Leicester Central was the city's other mainline station. It opened with the Great Central's London extension in 1899 and closed in 1969. Five years ago I went there to see what remained and found more than I had expected. That quarter of the city is now undergoing major redevelopment, so I went back a couple of weekends ago to see how the remains were faring. The station buildings are being restored, but it turns out that when work is complete they will be home to a bowling alley, which I find a little underwhelming. Hotels have gone up across the ...
The Liberal Democrats have announced, though the constitutional basis for it is not clear, that they will not hold a leadership election until May 2021. The reason given on the party website is: Our Federal Board has decided that we will not have a leadership election until May 2021, so that we can focus on dealing with the coronavirus crisis. We know that coronavirus will have many implications for our society, public services, economy and day-to-day lives. It will also have important implications for how we operate as a political party. In particular, even when current lockdown restrictions are relaxed, ...
I don't really bake. I love cooking meals but I haven't made a cake or pastry for years. I have had a lifetime battle with my weight so I find it easier to avoid temptation by just not baking. These days, like everyone else, I am trying to be very careful with the food in my cupboard, fridge and freezer, and I have time on my hands so I can try new recipes. Nothing is being wasted; oldish vegetables are being turned into soup rather than being thrown out. Sometimes my meals are like the invention challenge on MasterChef – ...
The BBC's Shipping Forecast is a bizarre cross between a mysterious code and a succession of cryptic crossword clues to the uninitiated, a reassuring way of ending the day to the familiar (and a life-saver to those few who actually use it).
The new outdoor gym - closed along with the rest of the Park during COVID 19 shutdown The Friends of Kingsgate have received confirmation that Kingsgate Park has been awarded 5 stars in the South West in Bloom Pride in Parks Award entry judged back in 2019. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟.This is the third year in a row the park has been awarded the highest award. So so pleased. Thanks to all the Estates Team at Yate Town Council and the Friends of the Park volunteers. We are all looking forward to getting back to enjoying it and the new outdoor gym equipment.If ...
Patton won the Oscar for Best Picture of 1969, and picked up another six - Best Actor was famously declined by George C. Scott as the title character, but its makers took home awards for Best Director (Franklin J. Schaffner), Best Original Screenplay (Francis Ford Coppola), Best Film Editing, Best Sound and Best Art Direction. It lost Best Original Score to Love Story, Best Cinematography to Ryan's Daughter and Best Special Effects to Tora! Tora! Tora! The other Best Picture nominees were Airport, Five Easy Pieces, Love Story and M*A*S*H, none of which I have seen. IMDB users actually rate ...
Professor David Runciman, writing in the Guardian this week, may be right about a layer of politics being stripped away in this current crisis and, as he describes it, there being "a trade off between personal liberty and collective choice". Speaking to his nation on the Edison phonograph at the start of World War One, Kaiser Wilhelm II ended his address with the words; "I recognise no parties any more, only Germans". Whether we like it or not, what we are now in the middle of is a war; but, as Mr Spock might have said to Captain James Kirk; ...
Following on from my comments a few days ago about the impact of COVID-19 on small businesses the Guardian reports that thousands of self-employed people - in particular those working in the creative industries - who set up limited companies have been "devastated" by being excluded from the chancellor's bailout: On Thursday night Rishi Sunak said the government would pay self-employed workers 80% of their profits - up to £2,500 a month - for three months, starting in June. He said the measure was "one of the most generous schemes anywhere in the world" and would help 95% of the ...
[IMG: Are you suffering from midlife middle class twatness?] I sit in my lovely communal garden everyday. The sun's been out this week. I have been practising gratitude. Being thankful for what I have... The post Are you suffering from midlife middle class twatness? appeared first on Ambitiousmamas.
Earlier this week, the Federal Board of the Liberal Democrats (on which I sit ex officio, as Chair of the Federal International Relations Committee) took the decision to postpone the party's leadership election until May next year. The vacancy came about, of course, because former leader Jo Swinson unfortunately lost her seat in December's general [...]
I love books. Reading them. Having physical books around me. Even at times writing them.
In my last blog I looked at the environmental improvements that we might make if we learn the lessons of the coronavirus lock down. In this blog I am trying to begin to think through what this might mean in ... Continue reading →
Extraordinary times can have extraordinary outcomes. And these are extraordinary times. Civil liberties are restricted, the global economy is shutdown, and emerging communications technology is proving its worth. It's very easy to assume that the world will change. People point to the outcomes from other extraordinary times, such as the post World War II Labour Government which built upon the liberal foundations of social care. Folk say, "surely now people see the need for change". There is surely much to change - from the need to ensure effective scrutiny of Government can continue, requiring significant reform of parliamentary procedures, through ...
All Shropshire Council car parks are free from today. That includes all car parks in Ludlow. On-street car parking charges remain in place. We have plenty of space in our car parks now, so please observe social distancing rules. The butchers, bakers, fruit & veg merchant, convenience stores, health food stores and supermarkets are open, along with the pharmacies. All stores are implementing social distancing. Town centre stores are restricting the number of people who are within the building at any one time. The Co-op on Foldgate Lane is doing the same. Social distancing is leading to queues. These may ...
This is former Aintree Ratepayer Councillor Terry Baldwin speaking at a meeting to try to save his local library in 2013. Libraries have been lost at an alarming rate across the UK because of austerity which, I might add, was backed by all 3 major political parties in the 2010 General Election. So whichever party had won back then the consequences would have been as they turned out to be or even worse across most public services. Indeed, it has been argued that under Labour in the 2010 – 2015 Parliament the cuts would have been greater as they planned ...
Sat 28th
08:15
Whatever else happens, Corbyn will soon no longer by Labour leader. That will be a huge positive
Corbyn was on the BBC yesterday, talking about how the government spending money to get round the coronavirus was his idea first and that essentially the Tories are now just nicking his style. Of course he was – what else was Corbz going to do? The merry trickster, always sure he's on the right side of history, even when there is circumstantial evidence to the contrary – we'll miss him, won't we? No, we won't because for starters, it's clear he's going to hang around like a bad smell for years and years to come yet, trying to hurt Starmer's ...
DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL - WEEKLY ROAD REPORT REPORT FOR WEST END WARD - SATURDAY 28 AND SUNDAY 29 MARCH 2020 Glamis Road (at Carseview Gardens) - off-peak temporary traffic lights on Saturday 28 March for telecom mast maintenance. REPORT FOR WEEK FOR WEST END WARD - COMMENCING MONDAY 30 MARCH 2020 West Marketgait (Argyllgait to Nethergate) - overnight (7.00pm - 3.00am) southbound nearside lane closure on Monday 30 March for Scottish Water work. Forthcoming Roadworks Nablus Avenue (at rising bollard) - closed overnight (7.00pm - 6:00am) on Wednesday 8 April for Scottish Water manhole repair works.
