Reasoning I could not be the only person with fond memories of the 1978 BBC drama series The Devil's Crown, I took to Google. This is what I found. There is a whole podcast devoted to the series by The Benji and Nick Show, but it's not very good. It suffers from the common broadcaster's delusion that they are more interesting than their subject matter - it's known as Jonathan Agnew Syndrome - so feel free to skip the first 35 minutes. The Television Heaven page on The Devil's Crown is better:It seems to have been a deliberate attempt to ...
I have never been a Harry Potter fan. As I was 37 when the first book was published that is not such a surprise, though I can read other contemporary children's authors with pleasure. Fantasy literature is more derivative than most genres, but my impression is that Rowling is more derivative than most fantasy writers. And when I open a Harry Potter book at random a cliche generally flies out and hits me. But there is a major point in her favour. Her third Cormoran Strike novel has a scene set here in Market Harborough. I quote from StrikeFans.com and ...
One of the major reasons a 'leftie' like me can't support the Labour Party is because it's fundamentally a class based party. A party which encompasses such a broad range of political opinion is bound to be riven with sects perpetually at war with each other; that's Labour's burden which has bedeviled it and held it back from being a truly progressive party for as long as it has existed. Yes Labour's so called middle class supporters are often progressives who're for example anti-Brexit and they're predominately of the left/left of centre. However, many of the party's core working class ...
On the principle that even a broken clock is right twice a day I accept that Johnson is at least getting it right about the dangers to the nation's health and wealth caused by obesity. His damascene conversion has been ... Continue reading →
Liberator 402 is with subscribers and will be the last printed issue of the magazine. In future it will be a free online publication. If you sign up to the Liberator mailing list on the magazine's website you will be informed each time a new issue is ready to download. The new issue quizzes the two Liberal Democrat leadership candidates, while Radical Bulletin will tell you:which Lib Dem MP is supporting the candidate they were bad-mouthing a year agoabout ructions in Lib Dem LGBT+what has happened to Your Liberal BritainWe will now take a deep breath before starting a new ...
Tom Scott nicely summarises the powerful arguments against electronic voting for public elections, and given his own expertise also makes the point that the problems with electronic voting look worse the more you really know about how computers and security really work.
In May 2007, I had an extended work trip to Cyprus via Istanbul, then Kosovo and then (North) Macedonia. I had the incredible experience of tracking down the very same Macedonian hill from which my grandfather had led an Allied retreat in December 1915., having also taken in Skopje, Stobi and Štip. I then had anothe extended work trip to Berne, Switzerland, and the Portuguese mid-Atlantic island of Madeira for a conference. Meanwhile devolution was restored in Northern Ireland, with Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness in coalition, and the Republic had an election in which Fianna Fail (for the last ...
Great news from the West of England. Former MP for Bristol West Stephen Williams will be the Liberal Democrats candidate for mayor of the West of England Combined Authority: I will be a strong voice for our two cities of Bristol and Bath and will stand up for all the towns and villages of north east Somerset and south Gloucestershire. (2/4) pic.twitter.com/E83k6VzmrY — Stephen Williams [IMG: 🔶] (@StephenRW01) July 24, 2020 The election takes place in May 2021. His selection was covered in Bristol Live In a statement announcing his bid, he said: "This election really matters to people's everyday ...
Fear not children everywhere, Nickelodeon has confirmed that Paw Patrol has not been cancelled nor have Lego ceased to sell their police toy sets, despite claims by the White House to the contrary. As CNN reports, in a Friday edition of her White House briefing, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany declared that children's activities are being policed as a result of "cancel culture": "We saw a few weeks ago that PAW Patrol, a cartoon show about cops, was canceled," McEnany said, after noting that President Donald Trump is "appalled by cancel culture and cancel culture specifically as it pertains ...
Fri, 12:56: Fantastic disemboweling of Brexiters' 2016 manifesto, "Change or Go". This tweet is the climax, but do read the who... https://t.co/xI3jdgQ9kg Fri, 16:05: The many Beethoven myths https://t.co/8ZOKpIC4sW When a critic disliked his 1813 piece "Wellington's Victory", he a... https://t.co/ZyEj3IPSLC Fri, 17:08: RT @CrisisGroup: Deadly clashes at the Armenia-Azerbaijan state border earlier this month left 18 dead and forced villagers to flee their h... Fri, 17:11: Paper Girls TV Series Gets an Official Order at Amazon https://t.co/irOyO2kZR0 Hooray! Fri, 18:40: Getting out of the country - travel in pandemic times https://t.co/LzlBYFlxAh Fri, 22:47: RT @alfonslopeztena: It's hard to imagine ...
Yate Mayor, Karl Tomasin from the Focus Team Our thanks to McDonalds. Yate Mayor, Karl Tomasin has worked with McDonalds, to improve weekend bin emptying. As a result McDonalds have agreed to empty the bin by the bus stop on Station Rd near McDonalds at weekends. Council staff aren't around to empty bins at weekends- but bins everywhere have seen a massive growth in use since COVID started. This one is suffering really badly. Karl spoke to McDonalds, and they have volunteered to empty the bin at the weekend, and Karl got Yate Town Council to provide the necessary kit.Well ...
Whilst swimming pools across County Durham are preparing for a return of swimmers, Consett's is being drained to prepare for an investigation and subsequent repairs. According to the county council the issues arise from the construction company (Carillion – which Durham County Council gave a monopoly on school building across the county) which has left them with "a number of latent defects" and the pool is unlikely to be open until April 2021. This closure follows an earlier issue just before the Covid crisis when the learner pool had to be closed becasue of problems with the floor. The current ...
Editor's Note: Ryan Hollinsworth joined the Scottish Liberal Democrats recently, You can find him on twitter @ryanhollinswor5. Here he explains why he has decided to vote for Layla Moran in the Liberal Democrats Leadership contest As the ballot papers go ... Continue reading →
It's the last weekend in the leadership election before the ballot papers go out. Already there has been a good mix of regional and themed hustings to put the two candidates, Layla Moran and Ed Davey, through their paces. There are five opportunities to see them in action over the next two days. First up, the London hustings between 3 and 4:30 this afternoon. Tonight, between 7 and 8:30, it's the Welsh event and tomorrow the Scottish hustings take place between 2 and 3:30 pm. What these three areas have in common is that they all have mayoral, Parliament or ...
The former MP Stephen Williams has been selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor of the West of England in next May's elections.
Sat 25th
08:30
Whoniversaries 25 July: Cyril Luckham, Kevin Stoney, The Sensorites #5, Slipback #1 and #2
i) births and deaths 25 July 1907: birth of Cyril Luckham, who played the White Guardian in The Ribos Operation (Fourth Doctor, 1978) and Enlightenment (Fifth Doctor, 1983). 25 July 1921: birth of Kevin Stoney, who played Mavic Chen in the story we now call The Daleks' Master Plan (First Doctor, 1965-66), Tobias Vaughn in The Invasion (Second Doctor, 1968), and Tyrum in Revenge of the Cybermen (Fourth Doctor, 1975). ii) broadcast anniversaries 25 July 1964: broadcast of 'Kidnap', the fifth episode of the story we now call The Sensorites. The Doctor, Ian and Susan start to get to the ...
Sat 25th
08:20
If you were the person who voted 226 times on my Sainsbury's poll last night, you are an idiot
I regard my blog as a place where people can find information. A place where people can ask questions. Where they can agree and disagree. I want to want to hear what people think. I want to hear what they want to know. But last night one idiot tried to saturating my current poll by submitting repeat votes over half an hour. All the votes were that Sainsbury's will be bad for Ludlow. I call the person an idiot because the votes could only have made by someone who thought a sudden surge in voting, and the pattern of voting, ...
DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL - WEEKLY ROAD REPORT Please note that most works are subject to change and late completion due to the restrictive measures in place following UK and Scottish Government advice that only emergency/urgent works and those considered essential should take place during this period. REPORT FOR WEST END WARD - SATURDAY 25 AND SUNDAY 26 JULY 2020 Lower Pleasance (at junction with Lochee Road) - closed on Sunday 26 July for Scottish Water ironwork repairs. Brook Street (at East Milnes Wynd) - temporary traffic lights on Sunday 26 July for Scottish Water manhole repair. REPORT FOR WEST END ...
