19th Century
A Labour of Love
Introduction Hidden away in the heart of France’s Drôme region about 50km south of Lyon is a little known yet magnificently eccentric example of naïve architecture that is well worth a detour or, in my [more…]
France
Conservatives
Globalism v. Nationalism Part 6
Hello again, friends. Last time out we looked at the state of the parties and the Tory leadership race. Since then Boris Johnson, as was widely expected, has become Prime Minister. Trump has gone into [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 16
I’m thoroughly enjoying life in Davao City on one of the Southernmost islands of the Philippine archipelago, Mindanao. It is election time and our candidates are (General) Fidel Ramos for president and Rodrigo Duterte for [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 15
As with America, I went back and forward, back and forward to the Philippine Islands for about five years, but will tell the tale as one continuous story, in situ over there, perhaps including an [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 13
Over chai in the subcontinent, balut in the tropics or roast swan in an Oxbridge refectory the topic of conversation might turn to ‘given the chance, would you kill baby Hitler?’ In Latin this would [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 12
I had an uncle who was an excellent chap from a very proud, hardworking but rather modest background. He’s the one who was on the railway (a reserved profession) during the war but managed to [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 11
You may wonder, dear reader, after ten episodes and a prologue, where all this is leading. It certainly doesn’t seem to be leading to Lille. Bear with me. You’ll recall that, for obvious reasons, the [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 10
Previously I mentioned my ‘backs and forwards’ between the north of England across the Atlantic to North America. You may recall the ‘drink the air fare’ mile high club. These happened between the Pan Am [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 9
On a previous trip across the English Channel many years ago, I was returning to England via Calais to Dover on the ferry as a foot passenger. I was sat on deck minding my own [more…]