I had some phone troubles at the start of the month. After a few games of pinball at a local coffee shop, with the children, I put on my jacket to find two of the three components of the phone – the back cover and the battery – were lying on the floor beside my… Continue reading Farewell WhatsApp
This month’s earworms are just snatches of songs, a few lines here and there that I sing involuntarily. The first is Ne-Yo’s “So Sick”, a song I didn’t hear when it first came out. It was a UK #1 ten years ago this month, when my wife had her last Big Birthday, and when she… Continue reading April’s Earworms: Ne-Yo, Culture and Kitty Kallen
On this date 24 years ago (26 April 1992) Leeds United won the last Football League Championship before the arrival of the Premier League. I have followed the team since the 1960s, and this feels like a good day to copy my childhood memories about the club from my book “1000 Memories” to this Blog.… Continue reading A Sporting Anniversary
Most of the local cinemas I went to in my childhood are now gone. There were two cinemas on Shepherds Bush Green. The smaller one became a Walkabout (Australian pub) and now stands empty; the larger one became a Bingo Hall, stood empty for many years, and now the building has been modified and turned… Continue reading 10 Meatballs Escape from Alcatraz
Kosher foods are those that conform to Jewish law (kashrut, Jewish dietary law). For any adults reading these lines the word kosher could probably be counted as Universal Knowledge. Twenty years ago I used the word to mean safe (legit, on-the-level), in the way that Arthur Daley in “Minder” might describe a business transaction. Before… Continue reading Word of the week: kosher
This weekend of events commemorating the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death is drawing to a close. There are 37 plays in the Complete Works of Shakespeare. Can you name them all? If so, how do you remember them? If not, and you would like some suggestions, my mnemonics are given below. [Digressions appear in square… Continue reading Shakespeare Mnemonics
[There are over 700 words in this piece, and links to 10,000 words elsewhere.] So, how to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death? At Shakespeare’s Globe this weekend there are filmed excerpts of all the plays: “The Complete Walk: 37 Plays, 37 Films, 37 Screens, A free, celebratory journey through Shakespeare’s plays”. That’s what… Continue reading 10,000 words about Shakespeare
We don’t have a dog. We don’t want one. It’s very unlikely that we will ever have one. Family members in Ireland and Spain have them and that’s as close as we need to get. Here in West London there are plenty of people walking their dogs during (and as part of) the school run.… Continue reading Cleaning up after your dog
Here’s a theory for you. The ideal dietary regime for you is linked to your blood type. If your blood type is O you should follow a high protein diet (and eat meat); if your blood type is A you should follow a high carbohydrate diet (and be vegetarian). It’s a theory, I must emphasize… Continue reading Eat right for your type
I have just started reading “Shakespeare’s Local” by Pete Brown. It’s about the George, a pub near London Bridge that can trace its history back 600 years. It’s more about beer and London history than about Shakespeare, but it seemed appropriate to start reading a book with Shakespeare in its title as we approach the… Continue reading Backing up
The Compartments 