Highlights
Count Binface and electoral theatre
Don’t be a costumed loon — It’s trivially easy to stand for Parliament in the UK. Any loon can do so. You need ten electors to nominate you and £500 for a deposit – and it’s actually been getting easier. The deposit was introduced in 1918 (£150 – quite a lot of money then). Before […]
I hate this
But does it matter? — I don’t usually say that sort of thing here. I try to be more measured, less personal. I’m talking about the police face recognition vans obviously. This might not surprise you: I mean that I don’t like them. I’m an old git after all, a man who’s written here before […]
Where is my patriotism?
Come, love of country, fill my heart… — I do love Britain. I guess I love England more. London most of all. I hope that in my life I’ve honoured the place I live and not disgraced it or undermined it (I support England and GB in sporting events – I fly a little flag […]
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Things I’d have blogged if I’d been blogging properly lately
Like Freeman Dyson’s excellent review of Vaclav Smil’s ‘The Earth’s Biosphere: Evolution, Dynamics, and Change‘ from the NYRB and Richard Florida’s Boho Britain report, ranking Manchester as Britain’s most creative…
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Hydrogen hopes
A good survey of the emerging hydrogen economy from the FT (you’ll need a subscription or a free trial). The carbon establishment is betting on hydrogen because they think it…
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Retail’s future
Johnnie Boden is a new age retailer with conservative attitudes: “In its celebration of warmth, contentment and pleasure in what one already has, Boden is the polar opposite of fashion’s…
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Visionary or goofball?
Fortune Magazine breathlessly inducts Bezos into the management hall of fame. And so they should.
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Why I love chamber music more than orchestral music
I don’t think that anything so tender, tragic or complete as Schubert’s String Quintet in C exists in the orchestral repertoire. And nowhere else will you find such passion, love…
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While I was away…
I blogged a review of William Langewiesche’s American Ground: Unbuilding the World Trade Center a couple of weeks ago and now I’ve actually read the book. It’s outstanding journalism, based…
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In case you’ve been wondering where I’ve been for a couple of weeks…
Since we reset our clocks to baby time on May 1 we’ve been enjoying the hospitality of Watford General Hospital a little more than we expected. First the nice people…
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Introducing…
(click the little pics for bigger ones)…Rosa May Bowbrick. Just short of 8 lbs in weight, born at 12.05 pm May 1st at Watford General Hospital under an amazing stormy…