20th Century
Crisis Journey, 1947 – Part One
“The record of what one man saw and heard and felt on a journey through Britain in October 1947, by John Alldridge” Uncle John’s record of his trip round Britain, to assess the extent to [more…]
Travelogue
20th Century
Desert Journey, Part Four
In 1961 my uncle, John Alldridge spent some time on the set of Lawrence of Arabia and reported his experiences for the Birmingham Mail – Jerry F The best paid maniacs in the world The [more…]
20th Century
Desert Journey, Part Three
In 1961 my uncle, John Alldridge spent some time on the set of Lawrence of Arabia and reported his experiences for the Birmingham Mail – Jerry F Jebel Tubeiq, Jordan According to the Bedouin, that [more…]
20th Century
Desert Journey, Part Two
In 1961 my uncle, John Alldridge spent some time on the set of Lawrence of Arabia and reported his experiences for the Birmingham Mail – Jerry F Jebel Tubeiq, in the desert I’ve done some [more…]
Authoritarianism
The World’s Coolest Dictator
Puffins arriving at San Salvador’s Saint Oscar Arnulfo Romero International Airport crouching down to avoid the gunfire and running through the terminal building with their case over their head to deflect shattering glass may be [more…]
20th Century
Desert Journey, Part One
In 1961 my uncle, John Alldridge spent some time on the set of Lawrence of Arabia and reported his experiences for the Birmingham Mail – Jerry F Akaba, Jordan I am writing this on the [more…]
Travel
Postcard From Keflavik
Art and the terminal Puffins who can see an enviably empty airport car park in the middle of nowhere with the skeleton of a nosedived B-52 embedded in the tarmac embarrassingly far from any runway, [more…]
20th Century
Report From Israel, 1957 – Part Six
In 1957 my uncle, John Alldridge visited Israel for the Birmingham Mail. This is the last of his reports. – Jerry F When an Israeli defines a civilian as a soldier on leave for eleven [more…]
Travel
Postcard from Iceland
A fat lot of help the Sultan of Oman was. About as much use as a chocolate teapot in the Al Hararis Plain during the hottest hour of an Omani desert day. Creepy sleepy sniffy [more…]