A new kind of community politics - 'flatpack democracy' - has emerged in towns left to fend for themselves by the centre, reports John Harris. Seth Thevoz is interviewed on the podcast The Making of a Historian about the role of clubs in 19th-century British politics. Hearing voices can be frightening and isolating, but Bryony Sheaves says talking can help. "Shot on location in London, The Long Good Friday explores a mixture of luxurious and post-industrial settings, but most vitally it is a last document of the docklands around the Thames before the developers - as dramatised in the film ...
The old boy has taken to shooting his radio whenever Simon Mann moans about the over rate - "Fella should watch prep school cricket if that's all he cares about" - but I find today's entry admirably constructive. Sunday How to interest the young idea in the noble game of cricket is a problem that has long troubled our greatest minds. Some have seen shortening the game as the key, hence such innovations as Twenty20, The Hundred and matches of one over a side, but I beg leave to demur. Let us keep to the formats that fill a summer's ...
[IMG: Remembering John F Kennedy on his 57th death anniversary] John F Kennedy was assassinated 57 years ago today but still retains high approval ratings for a President, the type of numbers which Donald Trump... The post Remembering John F Kennedy on his 57th death anniversary appeared first on Ambitiousmamas.
Tomorrow is the 57th anniversary of the first Doctor Who episode. To commemorate the occasion, I've updated my list of all the times Belgium is mentioned on Doctor Who on TV (plus the Sarah Jane Adventures) and compiled them for you, in historical order. I've also made an even fuller list of all of the references I felt worth including to Belgium in the Whoniverse as a whole. It's striking that the Doctor seems to have been at the famous battlefield football match during the Christmas Truce of 1914 several times over (though perhaps there was more than one football ...
Does Germany do it better? That was the questioned asked on the Red Box podcast, looking in particular at how Germany has been handling coronavirus.
Here, less than a month after playing Woodstock, are Crosby, Still, Nash and Young on Tom Jones's television show. As Dangerous Minds says: Given that nearly five decades have passed since this was taped, it's actually pretty amazing. Nothing to be ashamed of, certainly. Tom Jones and his show might've been seen as somewhat "square" by the rockstar standards of CSNY - Nash would've been acquainted with the Welsh singer from his days in the Hollies, no doubt - but the man's mighty lungs inspire the rest of them to keep up, it must be said. I love how (an ...
I had held off publishing Wendy Chamberlain's speech delivered to Scottish Conference the other weekend because I had heard that it might be put up on You Tube. However this hasn't happened yet and I wanted you to have the chance to read it. Heartfelt and honest, it's one of the best speeches I've ever seen a parliamentarian deliver at Conference. Wendy talks about how she's trying to help her constituents through some pretty complex problems and it's clear how driven she is to get results for them and how much she cares about the injustices they face. Here is ...
News that the Government is changing its treasury led rule book for public sector investment gives Liverpool a golden opportunity to reset our City and our economy. If we consider things properly and fully and add some sparkle of a ... Continue reading →
A skinny, blonde British doctor approaching 40, Hana (Andrea Riseborough) arrives in the Egyptian city of Luxor and checks into the atmospheric but somewhat dowdy Winter Palace Hotel. She is lackluster, jaded, seemingly introspective, but that does not stop her allowing a handsome but crass tourist in the hotel bar to chat her up on [...]
First published in LibDemVoice 22nd Nov 2020 Liberal democracy is in crisis, particularly in the UK and the USA. In the UK we are perhaps bemused at how we could have come to elect such a corrupt, cronyistic and incompetent government, and in the USA there is much debate over how the Trump lump has not gone away despite four years of Trump's Twitter tantrums. There is a tendency to view this as a short term phenomenon - what went wrong four years ago, six years ago, even ten years ago. In my view this has been coming for forty ...
I've committed myself to doing updates every ten days on the general situation; there is not much to report from real life since last time, though I was very unreasonably excited about having an actual in-person work meeting last Tuesday. (With an ambassador, who is of course not subject to Belgian rules, though we naturally observed correct hygiene protocols.) We're also under stronger restrictions about visiting B, so in retrospect I'm very glad I took her to Hélécine three weeks ago. She's allowed one regular contact (Anne) and once occasional contact (me), but I can't see her on my own ...
Sat, 15:45: The Gods Themselves by Isaac Asimov Huge flaws of plausibility and consistency; portrayal of gender relations is old-fashioned and cliched; completely fails to engage my willing suspension of disbelief. #nwbooks https://t.co/cPB2OQKINX https://t.co/4MaJsEZzsW https://t.co/NTPsFDB6E1 Sat, 16:05: Grendel, by John Gardner John Gardner reimagines Grendel as a philosophical monster both attracted and repelled by the world of humans. #nwbooks https://t.co/xq50dKqC8H https://t.co/Hl0JxlD0nN https://t.co/bPjB79FbUl Sat, 16:10: The Daleks' Master Plan https://t.co/wkcf9SULoI Sat, 16:25: The Light That Failed, by Rudyard Kipling Interesting only in places; the hero's failure to get with the girl he loves is apparently painfully autobiographical, and the casual brutality ...
In north-west Germany sits Bielefeld, a city complete with castle, cathedral and citizens. Just one catch: according to something that's half urban legend, half in-joke, it doesn't exist.
Twelve years ago, Ros was declared the new President of the Liberal Democrats in what was a bit of a landslide - 72% in a three-cornered contest can, I think, be fairly reasonably described as such. In her acceptance speech, she promised me a kitten, the cause of some amusement. We did still have cats at this point, however, and the time never really came right to get more of them. You know how it is, life is busy, we travel a lot, and leaving cats alone for much of the day seems a bit unfair. But the pandemic changed ...
Today's news in the Independent that campaigners have submitted a legal challenge alleging that prime minister Boris Johnson and health secretary Matt Hancock acted "unlawfully" when appointing key figures to top posts during the coronavirus crisis has hardly hit many of us as a bolt out of blue sky. Indeed there appears to be a continuing barrage of news about contracts and appointments which is challengeable in this way. The paper says that the case had been lodged jointly by the Good Law Project and race equality think tank the Runnymede Trust. The judicial review, submitted to the High Court, ...
Sun 22nd
08:59
Lib Dems urge PM to secure Adjustment Period with EU to give businesses breathing space
The Liberal Democrats are calling on PM to negotiate an "Adjustment Period" as part of the deal with the EU, to ensure British businesses have enough time to prepare for the new trading relationship with Europe.In a letter to the Prime Minister, the Liberal Democrats warn of a potentially "existential" threat to businesses if they are not given time to adjust and argue that - by phasing-in new rules, regulations and procedures - businesses would have the "breathing space" they need to prepare and adapt.Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said: "Businesses cannot afford to be hit with the ...
Sun 22nd
08:58PM's refusal to sack Home Secretary shows one rule for them and another for everyone else
Responding to the resignation of the Government's independent adviser on standards following the Prime Minister's refusal to sack Priti Patel, despite it being found she has breached the Ministerial Code, Leader of the Liberal Democrats Ed Davey said: "Priti Patel has broken the Ministerial Code. Boris Johnson should have sacked her. "The fact that the independent adviser on ministerial standards has felt the need to resign means that no one can have confidence in Boris Johnson's handling of these bullying allegations. "Bullying is a destructive force with devastating consequences. We must not tolerate it anywhere in our society - and ...
Liberal democracy is in crisis, particularly in the UK and the USA. In the UK we are perhaps bemused at how we could have come to elect such a corrupt, cronyistic and incompetent government, and in the USA there is much debate over how the Trump lump has not gone away despite four years of Trump's Twitter tantrums. There is a tendency to view this as a short term phenomenon - what went wrong four years ago, six years ago, even ten years ago. In my view this has been coming for forty years. It has not been inevitable but, ...
i) births and deaths 22 November 1920: birth of Paul Erickson, author of The Ark (First Doctor, 1966). 22 November 2007: death of Verity Lambert, the very first producer of Doctor Who (1963-65). ii) broadcast and webcast anniversaries 22 November 1975: broadcast of first episode of The Android Invasion. The Doctor and Sarah arrive at the village of Devesham, to find peculiar behaviour from the villagers, a lost astronaut and sinister guards in white suits. 22 November 1980: broadcast of first episode of State of Decay. The Doctor and Romana explore a very low-tech village, and are attacked by bats. ...
From the City Council : THE ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14(1) THE DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL AS TRAFFIC AUTHORITY being satisfied that traffic on the road should be prohibited by reason of Scottish Water manhole repair works being carried out HEREBY PROHIBIT the driving of any vehicle in Lower Pleasance (between Douglas Street and Brewery Lane), Dundee This notice comes into effect on Wednesday 25 November 2020 for 1 day. Pedestrian thoroughfare will be maintained. Alternative routes for vehicles are available via Douglas Street / Brook Street / Brewery Lane. For further information contact 433082. Executive Director of ...
