Sir Richard Attenborough, a great son of Leicester, has died at the age of 90. One of his best performances was as Pinkie in the Boulting Brothers' 1947 film of Brighton Rock.
I have been listening to Radio Four's Thought for the Day for decades, and in all that time (leaving aside a few jokes from Rabbi Blue) there has been only one of these homilies that was worth listening to. It was by, I think, Rosemary Hartill, who was then the BBC's religious affairs correspondent. She spoke of the tedium of assemblies in secondary schools and of keeping your eyes open to show you did not believe a word of it. Most of us have been there. If religion in secondary school was a New Testament affair, then at primary school ...
I can think of two good positions Scottish nationalists could adopt on the currency their country should have after independence. They could say that Scotland would be a prosperous country in its own right and have its own successful currency. Or they could say that Scotland would be a modern European nation and naturally adopt the Euro as its currency. Though I distrust nationalism as a political philosophy, I can see the appeal in both these arguments. I can see no appeal in the Scottish government's position that it would adopt the UK pound as its currency after independence. Yes, ...
I have only seen the second series of the TV crime drama The Bridge, but it made me an instant convert to Nordic Noir. The dynamic between the two mismatched detectives, one Danish, one Swedish, is quite special, as is the observation of their dysfunctional private lives. For those who haven't seen the programme, its [...]
So,how did I get on with last season's football predictions? Not too bad if the truth be told. I correctly predicted Man City (my team) would win the Prem, and that Liverpool and Chelsea would be [...]
Regular readers will know that Little Bowden's River Jordan can sometimes be a mighty torrent - just look at the damage it can do. This evening, however, it had dwindled to a trickle and this black cat took advantage of the fact to sit on the stones in its course just before it enters the Welland by Market Harborough station.
Sun 24th
19:44
How long will the residents of Orchard Avenue and Finch Road in Berkhamsted be Kept in the Dark?
[IMG: Can anyone shed light on these Tory cuts?] Can anyone shed light on these Tory cuts? Confusion reigns in Finch Road and Orchard Avenue, Berkhamsted with lamp posts cut down and residents left in the dark. "Not me, guv," says Ringway Director Jerry Pert, "It's 'elf an' safety!" (or as reported, "Where a column is structurally unsafe we are obliged, for public safety, to cut it down"). And you're going to replace them, aren't you, Jerry? Well, in his own time apparently. He is reported as saying, "We cannot give timescales for replacement." Of course it's always easier to ...
This afternoon saw the Dundee Liberal Democrats' Summer BBQ take place, with grateful thanks to Penka and Iliyan Stefanov for hosting in their lovely garden! It was a lovely afternoon and excellent food, drink and conversation. Here's some photographs from the BBQ : Summer BBQ Cllr Willie Wilson from Perth, Alison McInnes MSP, Cllr Tim Brett from NE Fife and Craig Duncan, Dundee LibDem Convener Penka and Iliyan Stefanov
Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our 387th weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere ... Featuring the seven most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (17-23 August 2014), together with a hand-picked quintet, you might otherwise have missed. Don't forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox — just click here — ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging. As ever, let's start with the most popular post, and work our way down: 1. Chris Rennard is back, so where for ...
As I wrote yesterday of my love for Kate Bush's first LP The Kick Inside, here is the first track from it - whale song and all. Two other tracks from the album - The Man with the Child in his Eyes and The Kick Inside - have featured here before. This performance of Moving at the Hammersmith Odeon is taken from 1979 and her (until Tuesday) only concert tour. Waiting 35 years makes the build up to the new Doctor Who look a bit tame, doesn't it?
www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/bride-says-i-choo-after-7665305 The Liverpool Echo has the story and what a story it is!
[IMG: Matthew McGregor. Photo courtesy of https://www.flickr.com/photos/minor9th/164438473/ - licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0] That's the headline on a New Statesman piece which is a good read: The casually-attired team comprise individuals from a variety of backgrounds: some are long-established Labour campaigners, some rose up through specialist web-based strategy agencies, others hail from NGOs. The star of the team is Matthew McGregor, the Norfolk-raised digital strategist who rose to prominence as Barack Obama's online attack dog in the 2012 Presidential race. Leading the US President's online "rapid response unit", the "Backroom Brit", as he became known, became a darling of the ...
It is entirely a coincidence that the 2010 top-up list was announced on 13 November 2010 - although it was my birthday - and a new list of appointments to the Lords was announced six days later. It did lead to an interesting occurrence, however. A list of fifteen, to be added to the remainder from the 2008 list, was elected as follows (those actually appointed highlighted);Sal Brinton - count 1 (19 November 2010)Mark Pack - count 1David Boyle - count 2Kay Barnard - count 2Flick Rea - count 20Sue Baring - count 22Mike Tuffrey - count 23Val Cox - ...
We can't look at our social media at the moment without coming across an avalanche of videos of our own friends or celebrities doing the Ice Bucket Challenge to raise awareness of Motor Neurone Disease and raise money for its charities across the world. I have to say that I have actually refused to do the challenge. I am too much of a free spirit, I suppose. I don't think I have the right to tell someone which charity to donate to or publicise, nor do I like being so told myself. This doesn't make me a wimp (although I ...
[IMG: 7 ver 4 full] Many thanks to the 13000 visitors who dropped by Lib Dem Voice this week. Here's our 7 most-read posts... Lord Rennard's membership of the Liberal Democrats reinstated by Party Committee (61 comments) by Caron Lindsay Statement from Lord Rennard (51 comments) by The Voice Post Rennard, what should the party do? (43 comments) by Linda Jack Opinion: What Andy Burnham didn't tell you about NHS privatisation (71 comments) by Killan Bourke Pauline Pearce: Why I am not running for Lib Dem President (48 comments) by The Voice Gaza: Senior Lib Dems speak out against Hamas, ...
So Dr Who has returned with a new Doctor and some very high expectations to meet. And I'm pleased to report that mine at least were broadly met. True, the episode itself was pretty so-so. It had some impressive visuals and director Ben Wheatley gave it a nicely cinematic feel. There was also plenty of Paternoster Gang [...]
Sun 24th
14:30
The 'Favourability Index': the Tories and Cameron lead, Lib Dems half as popular as Ukip
I'm a fan of polling firm ComRes's 'Favourability Index' which asks of political parties and their leaders 'How favourable or unfavourable are you to X?' For sure it's a simplistic binary. But, then, so's voting. It gives a much more accurate read-out of perceptions, I think, than asking (for instance) if people think X is doing a good job as leader of Y. After all, it's quite possible to think that Nigel Farage is doing a pretty good job for Ukip while still never, ever wanting to vote for him. The latest index has been published today across the Independent ...
Huge fan though I am of data in politics – it's your organisational life blood after all – I do wonder quite how the Liberal Democrats are going to segment follows up to this particular survey on the party website... [IMG: Nick Clegg The Movie - survey] Perhaps Ed and I better ready a 102nd chapter for a certain book...
A common feature of what has passed for debate on Scotland's future has been the relentless and cynical negativity from Better Together. It's also been a common feature to see "no" supporters refute this claim; they will consistently argue that it is not "negative" to question the claims of the SNP, to dismiss some of the claims made within the White Paper or to continue pressing Alex Salmond on the currency question. They may also state that to some degree the "no" campaign - like any campaign opposed to change - will inevitably be painted as negative by its opponents. ...
Sun 24th
11:55Alison Goldworthy quits party saying it's no place for "women who want to deliver change"
In an interview with The Times newspaper (£), Alison Goldsworthy said that she had resigned from the Federal Executive of the Liberal Democrats, of which she was Vice Chair. She has since confirmed to us that she had resigned from the Party. This means that none of the four women who made allegations of improper behaviour against Chris Rennard remains a member of the party. Chris Rennard denies the specific allegations but issued an apology to the women in May in which he expressed his "his regret for any harm or embarrassment caused to them or anythingwhich made them feel ...
At the beginning of this month I wrote a couple of reports up about tree maintenance required in Parkside. As we move towards September I shall be looking for evidence that CBC and their contractors have done, or will be doing, something about the many issues I have highlighted. from the report I even came across one man who claims to have had to raise the height of his kitchen floor several times due to tree roots growing underneath! That's clearly a case of negligence by the authority responsible for allowing a tree to grow so close to a property. ...
Poll shows huge opposition to privately-run public services Slightly misleading headline: poll shows huge opposition to Serco & g4s, which is different. The problem with enormous companies like those is they have all the problems of state run services with none of the upsides. BUT that doesn't mean private run services are bad, it means the way privatisation was done, so that only enormous monopolistic companies end up with the contracts, is bad. (tags: ) Proposals for new cricket club to go before committee (tags: ) [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
[IMG: Liberal Democrat Conference 2011] There has been a lot of talk recently about the way the Party nationally is not accountable to the members enough and also that there should be early warning systems in place to pick up on anything that could be going wrong .The Federal Executive whose members are directly elected by the Conference representatives every two years is the body that is in effect responsible for the internal administration of the Party and is chaired by the President. As one of the candidates for the post of President I thought I would set out some ...
Katharine Hodgkin finds Adam Ganzs new radio play about her grandmothers relationship with Margaret Thatcher an uncomfortable listen Writing fictionally about real people is always a challenging project. How much should fiction draw on knowledge, and how much on imagination? How far is it acceptable to tweak the historical record in order to produce a more aesthetically effective work? And, in the case of the still alive or the relatively recently dead, there are ethical issues about responsibility and reputation. Families have their own perspectives, and in borrowing a person for fictional purposes it is not easy to please everyone. ...
[IMG: Vince Cable. Photo courtesy of the Liberal Democrats - some rights reserved] The Observer reports Sunday's idea off the summer Liberal Democrat policy production line: All companies with more than 250 employees should be forced to publish the salaries of their highest earners and told to consult their employees on executive pay, Vince Cable, the Liberal Democrat business secretary, will say on Sunday. The radical idea, which would involve new legislation, is to be included in the Liberal Democrats' election manifesto and will be a key demand of the party in any negotiations on a new coalition deal with ...
[IMG: dacorum] Changes to refuse and recycling collections There are changes to your waste collection due to the Bank Holiday on Monday 25 August. Waste collection crews will not be working on Monday 25 August your grey wheeled bin and recycling that week will be collected one day later. See the below for details on when your green wheeled bin and recycling boxes will be collected. Normal Collection Will be collected on... Monday 25 August Tuesday 26 August Tuesday 26 August Wednesday 27 August Wednesday 27 August Thursday 28 August Thursday 28 August Friday 29 August Friday 29 August Saturday ...
From the Volunteer Centre Dundee : Volunteer Champions Team Awards - New for 2014! If you know a team of young volunteers aged 12-25 who have gone above and beyond expectations - we want to hear about it! The Volunteer Champions Team Awards will recognise the efforts of teams of young volunteers who have done something extraordinary! This award is for a team of young people who have come together to work on a specific project or activity for the benefit of the local community. To be eligible for nomination, teams must meet the following criteria: • All volunteers must ...
Yesterday afternoon, a group of us undertook a litter-pick of Balgay Hill and Park, organised by the Friends of Balgay. Here's a photo below :
This sedate and welcoming Lydiate farm shop, run by Cllr. Edie Pope and her husband, seemed to be torturing a customer on Saturday. As we turned into the car park something was afoot and a few minutes later all became apparent as a tractor bucket full of icy water was poured all over a chap for charity:- [IMG: rsz_photo0873] I have no idea who the victim was. The photo is amongst my Flickr shots at:- www.flickr.com/photos/86659476@N07/
A list of odd Freedom of Information requests sent to local councils has been published by the Local Government Association, drawing attention to the cost such trivial requests can add up to for authorities. One request asked councillors in Wigan what they were doing to secure the area was safe from attack from dragons, while another questioned how many exorcisms had been funded. Another request asked West Sussex Council if there were plans to cope with an asteroid crash. The LGA estimates that such hoax FOI requests cost in excess of £100,000 to answer. The Times & Daily Mirror carried ...
From 1 September, bus times between Ludlow and Kidderminster will change. There will be a much improved service, the 2L, which replaces the 292. Seven buses will run from Ludlow to Kidderminster from Monday to Friday, up from the current six. The first bus from Ludlow will be earlier, at 8.40am and last bus back [...]
After Shropshire Council refused to support the 492 service between Hereford and Ludlow, the service ends on Sunday 30 August. On the new 490 route, buses will only come into Ludlow four times a day, and not at all at the weekend (the timetable is below). I am really quite shocked that we are to [...]
These are current plans and may change if the weather is wet. Bromfield Road will be closed at the Corve Bridge on Sunday 31 August for one day for micro-surfacing. Lower Corve Street will be closed for micro surfacing on Monday and Tuesday 1/2 September. Vehicles, including buses, will be diverted from Bromfield Road, across [...]
Having watched the Kate Bush documentary on Friday night I am absolutely gutted that I do not have tickets for her comeback concerts. Despite that it has been a good weekend so far, The Swans won their first home game of the season and Dr. Who is back. And who knows, there may well be a new Kate Bush album on the back of these gigs.
The decision by the Welsh Government to withdraw the Financial Contingency Fund for higher education students is very disturbing. Welsh Labour claims that it wants to widen access to higher education for disadvantaged students but this decision does exactly the opposite. To pull this funding now, with just three weeks to go until the start of the new academic year, leaves both students and universities in the lurch at this crucial time. Universities have been given very little time to put in place any additional support for these students, many of whom rely on this fund to cover their costs ...
Some things I've been in to this week (after a bit of a gap, sorry!): An article: Iraq has understandably been in the news a lot lately, and the BBC Magazine did an interesting article about who the Yazidis are, a group that probably most of us hadn't heard of until the rise of ISIS [...]
I was thinking of reviewing the new Doctor Who episode, but I've got a migraine (third one in a week), so instead I'm going to post some links and get an early night... David Uzumeri annotates Multiversity 1, rather more sensibly than my own piece Adam Engelbright predicts the new Doctor Who stories, based on [...]
