This is another category where the ballot is dominated by the overlapping slates that were block-voted in an attempt to promote reactionary (and in the case of at least one of the two slates, explicitly neo-fascist) political views, and as such I would be putting four of the five stories here below "No Award" anyway, [...]
. Lyndon Davies played the young Philip Marlowe in The Singing Detective with a heartbreaking shaved-above-the-ears haircut. He went on to enjoy an acting career for a while on the strength of it, notably in the Sharpe series of TV movies. Here he remembers the making of the Dennis Potter series. Later. And here is the finished scene from the final episode of The Singing Detective.
Sun 24th
21:41
Why calling for HQ staff to be sacked is unacceptable and will not be tolerated on LDV
There have been a few snarky comments directed at me on various places on the internet because we don't allow comments on this site which abuse members of HQ staff. We can't always catch them all, so if you see any, please let us know by emailing voice@libdemvoice.org. I've also had a few very nasty emails calling me all sorts of names because of this policy from people who should know better. I mean, imagine if yours or your partner's or your mum's head was being called for on some random website. I doubt you would like it that much. ...
Sun 24th
21:24
"He would come and show us magic tricks and tell us to make sure our parents voted for him"
As the Leicester Mercury reported on Friday, Peter Farrands, a former teacher and scout master who sexually abused two schoolboys, has been jailed for seven years. One of the victims, Robert Gibb, has waived his anonymity: The court heard Gibb eventually told the defendant to stop the abuse when he was 13, and told his parents who complained to the headmaster - but he dismissed the boy as a liar. The defendant, headmaster and scout commissioner then visited Mr Gibb's family. The defendant begged them to take the matter no further, saying his wife would leave him.This is a sickening ...
Elections are happening in Spain in which a party with a similar view to the Greek Syriza (Podemos - We can) is putting forward an "anti-austerity" platform. The difficulty in government is that policies have to work. The Greeks appear to have put a major hold on payments to suppliers prioritising employees and other objectives. Inevitably suppliers have put a hold on supplying the Greek
I feel very sorry for Alistair. He is an incredibly hard working MP and a lovely man who has been nothing but polite to me. No doubt that sways my judgement. But... Here's my two pennies worth 1. If MPs resign every time they are proved to have old untruths we'll have none left. Which is a pretty depressing state of affairs but a fact. So Alistair shouldn't need to resign. Unless everyone who's ever told a journalist a great big porkie is going to do the same (more of that anon). 2. That isn't to say Alistair shouldn't be ...
For over a decade this eejit was a slave to Coca-Cola and I can assure you there are better things to be a slave to than a giant American corporation who are keen on ruining my teeth. In 2010 I went cold turkey and having essentially not drunk anything but carbonated beverages I fought through the withdrawal and saw cherry coke in my rear view mirror. On the upside this change alone knocked off around 800 calories a day (yes I was drinking that much coke) and unsurprisingly this led to losing rapid amounts of weight. It also had other ...
Welcome back to the Golden Dozen after its extended break over the election campaign. This is our 416th 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 May, 2015), 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 ...
Meols Ward Lib Dem Councillors John Dodd, Nigel Ashton and Jo Barton are holding their next advice centre in Churchtown. We will be at Cafe Moo Moo on Cambridge Road (by the junction with Preston New Road, next to Boots) from 10:30 to 11:30 am on Thursday 28th May.
Wallington South ward has the honour of providing the First Citizen of the borough as our Cllr Muhammad Sadiq has been appointed as the new Mayor of Sutton for 15/16. The official Mayor-Making took place at Civic Offices on 18th May and I was very proud to be Muhammad's official proposer. This gave me the [...]
I am saddened to read the statement of the PCI in light of the decision made by over 62% of those who voted in Marriage Referendum in Ireland. So much so that I feel it needs a few comments from me. The Presbyterian Church in Ireland has issued the following statement on the result of the Marriage Referendum.Commenting on the result the Very Rev. Dr. Norman Hamilton, Convener of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland's Council for Church in Society said, "We are deeply disappointed and saddened that the Constitution will no longer reflect the historic - and Christian - view ...
[IMG: Liberal Democrat Newswire logo] Liberal Democrat Newswire #66 is out next week, looking at the 10 key factors to watch during the Liberal Democrat leadership race. Sign up for it here and make sure you don't miss out. In the meantime, you can browse the previous editions online and follow the leadership contest through this Facebook event, where both Tim Farron and Norman Lamb are regularly responding.
From today's Independent on Sunday: Frank Bruno, the former world heavyweight boxing champion, will endorse Norman Lamb to be the next leader of the Liberal Democrats. The former health minister wants to show he has popular appeal as he tries to close the gap on Tim Farron in the race to succeed Nick Clegg. Mr Lamb has already secured the support of former N-Dubz singer Dappy, and is expected to unveil Mr Bruno, who fought Mike Tyson twice, in a video endorsement this week. "Frank Bruno is heavyweight support," a source close to Mr Lamb said. Mr Bruno, who has ...
Dreams come true. Last night I saw Anna Netrebko – the best opera singer in the world, the legend and pride of Russia, and she was as fantastic as one expects. I was very lucky to see her as Mimi in the opening night of La Bohème at the Royal Opera House. First night celebrations [...]
When Roscommon - South Leitrim voted no to the Irish referendum on marriage equality I was a little upset that it wouldn't be unanimous. However, I was not too concerned as this was only by a margin of 1,029 votes and barely nibbled into the overall trend of the votes that were being announced. I had to leave for a Eurovision party before the three Cork county seats declared, but in the end this left Roscommon - South Leitrim as the sole red mark on the map. The other forty-two constituencies had all by either a small (only 33 votes ...
Sun 24th
14:28++ Breaking...Willie Rennie: I hope that fair minded people will give Alistair Carmichael a second c...
Scottish Liberal Democrat Leader Willie Rennie has just issued this statement acknowledging the seriousness of Alistair Carmichael's actions but saying that the Orkney and Shetland MP deserves a second chance. I have discussed the serious nature of the publication of the Scotland Office document with Alistair Carmichael. He fully understands the impact it has had on his reputation. He deeply regrets his actions, has accepted responsibility for his error of judgement, apologised to Nicola Sturgeon and the French Ambassador and declined his ministerial severance payment. I have known Alistair for almost thirty years and have worked closely with him in ...
So, we have a key difference between the two contenders in our two horse leadership race. While settling down for Eurovision last night, I asked both if they were watching. Tim was going to watch with his family today as his kids are a bit too young to stay up that late. Norman was making his way back home after a day of campaigning in London. When that was established, I asked them a question of interest to many Liberal Democrats. Doctor Who – yes or no. Here are the responses in the order in which they were received: @caronmlindsay ...
Both Norman Lamb and Tim Farron have recorded exclusive videos from Liberal Democrat Newswire, putting their case to be the next leader of the party. You can watch both their videos over on Facebook (you don't need to be logged in or a Facebook user to see them): [IMG: LDN leadership videos from Tim Farron and Norman Lamb]
[IMG: 7 ver 4 full] Many thanks to the 19,400 visitors who dropped by Lib Dem Voice this week. Here's our 7 most-read posts... Statement from Alistair Carmichael following leak enquiry (62 comments) by The Voice How not to motivate your exhausted, defeated candidates (65 comments) by Caron Lindsay Opinion: This will be closer than we all think (57 comments) by Craig Dearden-Phillips Lynne Featherstone writes...Why I'm backing Norman Lamb for Leader (36 comments) by Lynne Featherstone Paul Scriven writes....Be clear about who we are (112 comments) by Lord Paul Scriven What Llib Dem Voice members think about Nick Clegg ...
Ipsos MORI | Trend | How Britain voted in 2015 (tags: ) An improved version of that life timetable infographic (tags: ) Um. I really think, with hindsight, we would change our General Election campaign. Wouldn't we? (tags: ) [IMG: comment count unavailable] comments
While are heads are still full of Eurovision, here is one of the contest's more interesting winners. "Poupée de cire, poupée de son" was the Luxembourg entry in 1965. It was written by Serge Gainsbourg, whose protégé Gall was. Wikipedia is enlightening about the song: As is common with Gainsbourg's lyrics, the words are filled with double meanings, wordplay, and puns. The title can be translated as "wax doll, rag doll" (a floppy doll stuffed with bran or chaff) or as "wax doll, sound doll" (with implications that Gall is a "singing doll" controlled by Gainsbourg). Sylvie Simmons wrote that ...
Notice is given that Bath and North East Somerset Council in exercise of its powers under section 14 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 intends to make an order the effect of which will be to temporarily introduce a road closure in that length of Kilkenny Lane, Odd Down, Bath outside No. 3 Woodside Cottages. This order is required because works are being or are proposed to be executed on
"When will you bring back socialism?" Ed Miliband was asked in 2013 by one of Labour's possibly erstwhile supporters at an event. Ed's response was: "That's what we're doing, sir." While his response wasn't particularly true (price freezes and matching Tory cuts like for like wasn't exactly a Marxist agenda), it was a perception Miliband was happy to have people buy into. The then Labour leader clearly wanted to project the idea that socialism was alive and well in Britain. He clearly felt that enough people in the country bought into socialism as a concept. And then the parliament concluded ...
In my first blog post, I argued about the need for the party to have a grassroots resurgence in the wake of the General Election, and spread like wild flowers across the country. It has therefore been incredibly encouraging to not only see a surge of new members, but also see this theme picked up by both leadership candidates - most notably in Tim Farron's article in politics home today suggesting we should set a target of over 100,000 members. Such bold claims are likely to be met with a degree of cynicism in certain quarters but I would fully ...
Details of the HM Frigate Unicorn networking tea parties - next one is on Friday 29th May :
Following a constituent contacting me stating, "I was a bit concerned to read that WH Smith is pulling out of the Overgate. I note that Gap has already gone. I'm not sure what shops will be moving in," I have been in correspondence with the Centre Manager about planned developments at the Overgate Centre. He has given me positive feedback as follows : "We are aware from a customer's perspective Overgate has lost a few retailers over the last 6 months or so but I can assure your constituents we are working hard behind the scenes to ensure Overgate remains ...
I live on Merseyside because of my Dad's job. He worked for the Thomas Cook travel agency and the last two shops he managed were Lord Street in Liverpool and finally Lord Street in Southport. Dad (George Robertson), who died in 2009, had very high standards when it came to both personal and business behaviour and I am sure he would have been utterly horrified at the way his former employer dealt with the tragic deaths of two children on a holiday booked via Thomas Cook. Whilst it is pleasing to see the head of Thomas Cook fronting up in ...
