Many will know of James O’Brien from his national 10am to 1pm weekday radio show on LBC. To borrow one of his phrases, “depending on which football shirt you are wearing” you’ll probably either think of him as a champion of progressive politics or a patronising woke lefty. But look back to when LBC was […]
In 1992 we lived and worked in Dorset. A beautiful count where I was Deputy Head of Lytchett Minster School.
Two of my colleagues were language teachers and together, we decided to create a European fortnight of theatre, music and food to celebrate the Union. Most of the staff and students got involved, and we produced several Spanish and French plays, held three concerts and hosted a Brazilian/Portuguese dance group who happened to be visiting Bournemouth.
Amen and Amen! For the first time in 65 contests, two songs with the same title might appear in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest final. That’s definitely a “might” as there’s every chance that Slovenia and Austria could get knocked out in their semi-finals on 18 and 20 May, hidden away on BBC4 before the […]
The stark change to the lives of the UK’s musicians and actors is heartbreaking. Prior to 31 December 2020, lockdown aside, a musician could jump onto Eurostar, pass speedily into France or Belgium and carry their instrument without paperwork, tariffs or red tape to their venue. Maybe for a week, maybe for a whole season. Post-Brexit, only 90 days is permissible.
Progressives are frequently accused of the desire to ‘cancel’, for example, by tearing down statues of slave traders or denying a speaking platform to those with unsavoury or dangerous opinions. During a period where the Government can’t find time to legally award and report on multi-million pound contracts, it has found time to announce its […]
Poetry was something I mainly read only at school. Of course there were examples of more accessible poetry from writers like Roger McGough, Pam Ayers and John Cooper Clarke, but their occasional appearances, often awkwardly slotted into a few minutes of TV time seem to have declined over the years. Recently I attended an online […]
“our website is filling up with digital and online activities”. Some of this is work designed to be digital and interactive, and some might be made for Zoom. There is experimentation and some work that is more traditional, audio only work and also film.
My love of badgers began when I was seven on finding a badger’s skull in a Derbyshire wood near my home. I could not have been more excited had I discovered a brontosaurus. In wonder, I stroked the large sagittal crest and carefully manipulated the non-detachable lower jaw. Immediately I felt a transcendental interconnectedness, an […]
Local music festivals have a variety of talented artists from all genres of music depending on the particular festival’s target audience. Very often artists are happy to travel from far afield to places such as Hallaton in the East Midlands to perform to their fans. It is a fantastic privilege for me to be able […]