Even as a schoolboy in the 1950s, I found cinema and TV advertisements a bit naff. The cinema ad that promoted a local restaurant but was obviously shot by Pearl & Dean 500 miles away in south east England was really embarrassing to watch. So my decision to join the BBC was not only because [...]
Grateful thanks to tom for tweeting this 1967 Chris Welch article from the Melody Maker. Who should we see named among the 'Magnificent Seven' guitarists that year but this blog's hero Steve Winwood. When you consider he is widely regarded as the best British Hammond organ player and our most authentic soul voice - and authenticity was everything to white boys who played soul in the Sixties - that is some achievement. So here he is playing on Traffic's Dear Mr Fantasy that year.
I confess to having missed the news that Elvis Costello had been awarded an OBE a few days ago. Things that were unthinkable a few years ago seem to have become commonplace these days. The...Continue Reading The post Elvis Costello OBE appeared first on ten pence piece.
I have long hoped this clip would turn up on YouTube and tonight I found it. It comes from a friendly Scotland played against Wales before they set off for their famously ill-fated assault on the 1978 World Cup in Argentina.
The Liberal Democrats are delighted to announce that Streatham MP Chuka Umunna has joined the party.Chuka joins the Liberal Democrats, having held the seat since 2010. The Liberal Democrats recently topped the poll in London during the European elections and are extremely excited to gain this seat.Commenting on his decision, Liberal Democrat MP Chuka Umunna said:"I have chosen to join the Liberal Democrats because it is at the forefront of a renewed, progressive and internationalist movement in British politics that shares my values. "Labour and the Tories are committed to facilitating Brexit, and Brexit makes ending austerity virtually impossible. The ...
This is from the 1952 US Presidential election, animated by Roy Disney, nephew of Walt. Quite fun - and also a healthy reminder about slipping into believing that politics now is awful compared to an imagined previous Golden Age.
Although a lot has been going on, I haven't been blogging much in the last couple of months for two reasons - a local by-election, where I was an election agent, and the European election. I obviously had a lot less thinking time on my hands and secondly, if you publish anything that might be [...]
So, I know that a bunch of you who have already bought houses will know this, but even with everyone trying really hard to get it done by a deadline, wrinkles in the road happen, and sometimes it's not possible to hit the deadline. For various reasons we are not going to hit the deadline. We still do not have a completion date. We do not even have an estimate for when a completion date might be. And we have to be out of this house before the 23rd of this month. That's 8 and a bit day's time. We ...
The government is committing to "Net Zero" greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050. This is good news but the means of achieving it are critical. Global reduction is not being achieved but it would be wrong to suggest that nothing has been done and certainly panicking would not be a rational response. Global CO2 emissions per unit of GDP have been decreasing at annual rate of about 1.8 percent for the last 80 years but economic growth means that global emissions have still been increasing at 2.6 percent per year. The figures above are taken from "The Climate Casino" by ...
Fri 14th
11:55
#LibDemDivest can shift £billions out of risky fossil fuels and create climate smart pensions
With news of Climate Emergency getting more troubling every month its easy to feel hopeless and wonder what you can do. May has announced Net Zero Carbon a UK by 2050, but can we really trust the Tories to deliver when they've effectively banned onshore wind, supported fracking, sold off our Green Investment Bank and scrapped our Zero Carbon Homes law? You might have decided its time to take matters into your own hands, having meat free days and recycling your food waste, but did you know, up to 20% of your pension might be invested in climate wrecking fossil ...
One of the great ironies that will be relished by historians in the semi-distant future is how Rory Stewart, the only candidate in the current Tory leadership who had a realistic plan for delivering Brexit, was derided as a Remainer, while they went on to pick Boris Johnson instead, who was the final nail in Brexit's coffin. Since June 2016, Brexiteers have made every major call in regard to leaving the European Union incorrectly. Given the political terrain following the immediate aftermath of Leave's victory, where we are now is astounding: polls consistently in favour of remaining in the EU, ...
Thu, 12:56: The promises Boris Johnson has broken as mayor https://t.co/NJAS7nFOfT A reminder. Thu, 16:05: RT @DaveKeating: Very interesting map of who dubs and who subtitles in Europe. You can see the direct correlation between this and English... Thu, 17:11: RT @MatthewdAncona: Here's what's happening, then. Pretty much everyone has decided that Boris Johnson is going to win, and the numbers so... Thu, 17:47: RT @Unwise_Trousers: When you just want to clutch your head in a field in peace, and people keep slapping you on book covers: https://t.co/... Thu, 18:32: Will Supervillains Be On The Final?, by Naomi Novik, art ...
Both the leadership candidates have warmly welcomed Chuka Umunna to the Lib Dems: Ed said: Stopping Brexit is my number one priority and I welcome Chuka to our benches as a key player in this fight. He has shown huge courage, and will make a major contribution to the Liberal Democrats. Liberal Democrats are back in the game, and the only viable force for pro-Europeans across the UK. Join us. Jo said: I have said all along that growing a liberal movement means reaching out to bring more people into our party, and I am delighted that Chuka has decided ...
It didn't come as any surprise when I saw the tweet last night that the former Labour and ChangeUK had announced that he was joining the Lib Dems. The writing had been on the wall for some time and they'll likely be more dominoes to fall in the coming days. The main reason Chuka wasn't a surprise was I think he has real ambition in politics and having seen his Labour Party being taken over by the radical left, he needed somewhere that would give him a platform for him to sing from his own hymn sheet. The story in ...
The first round of the Conservative Party's leadership contest saw the welcome departure of Esther McVey, among others, but less heartening was the very strong performance by Boris Johnson, who came well out in front. That does not necessarily mean he will win in the end — there is a significant number of Tory MPs [...]
I am convinced the Liberal Democrats, as the spearhead of a broader progressive movement in civil society, offer the best chance to improve the lives of those I represent as well as countless other citizens across our country. The time has come to put past differences behind us and, in the national interest, do what is right for the country. So I urge others to join the party too. So says the newest Lib Dem MP Chuka Umunna in an article on the Lib Dem website. He's also been on the Today programme this morning (at about 7:12 am if ...
Brazen assertions by Tory leadership candidates that Europe fears a no-deal as much as the UK, may well be accurate but the stakes are much higher for us than the other 27 countries and they know it, and that is why at the end of the day they will let us self-destruct. That assertion is made clear by this article in the Independent, in which they report on analysis by the European Commission, which concludes that the UK economy will be hit up to 10 times harder by a no-deal Brexit than the continent's. They say that the working assumption ...
This is my stand on The Radical Centre: A Ten-Point Guide. It is a seven-point programme for a radical centre 1) Introduce seriously representative democracy to replace the present pretence. This involves reasonable precision in the polling booth and mechanisms to ensure that (almost) all votes count one way or the other. It means ending the stranglehold [...] The post My take on the radical centre – seven points this time appeared first on Radix.
Re-Discover Dundee launched last December and is delivered by Volunteer Dundee and Dundee Voluntary Action. It particularly focuses on encouraging older people to join in guided rides, as an opportunity to stay active and re-discover our nearby green spaces. Can you help? See below!
Welcome to the 20,000 people who have joined the Liberal Democrats in the last few weeks, and a special mention to our newest MP. I'm delighted to say I've joined the @LibDems! – here's my joint interview with @vincecable in tmr's @thetimes where I explain why https://t.co/DcqnCWikzg — Chuka Umunna (@ChukaUmunna) June 13, 2019 It's actually been really heartwarming to wake up every morning for the last few weeks and see a whole rush of "I just joined the Lib Dems" posts on Twitter. You might, by the way, have noticed the wee orange diamonds some people have on their ...
In case you had an early night last night and are wondering what's going on, last night Chuka Umunna joined the Liberal Democrats. Here's the official announcement which came just after 10pm last night. The Liberal Democrats are delighted to announce that Streatham MP Chuka Umunna has joined the party. Chuka joins the Liberal Democrats, having held the seat since 2010. The Liberal Democrats recently topped the poll in London during the European elections and are extremely excited to gain this seat. Commenting on his decision, Liberal Democrat MP Chuka Umunna said: I have chosen to join the Liberal Democrats ...
