7 November 2022

The more the merrier as twenty-five thousand heads COP it sweet

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TWENTY-FIVE thousand? Really? Did I read that correctly? Surely someone with stuttering fingers has been clicking the head-counter at Sharm-al-Sheikh. Or perhaps Rishi has seconded a number-cruncher from the Treasury (you know how good they are with numbers) to lend a hand with collating the stats at Cop27. Whatever the answer, it seems staggering beyond… Continue Reading

7 November 2022

The more the merrier as twenty-five thousand heads COP it sweet

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TWENTY-FIVE thousand? Really? Did I read that correctly? Surely someone with stuttering fingers has been clicking the head-counter at Sharm-al-Sheikh. Or perhaps Rishi has seconded a number-cruncher from the Treasury (you know how good they are with numbers) to lend a hand with collating the stats at Cop27. Whatever the answer, it seems staggering beyond… Continue Reading

1 November 2022

‘New’ Nordic noir discovery goes to top of the genre

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Apologies for the long silence on the book review front. There’s no real excuse apart from being busy editing other writers’ books. This means scant time or energy remains for more reading at the end of a busy day. And the hillock of books for review is fast becoming a high tor. So much easier,… Continue Reading

11 May 2022

Editing cutbacks unfair to writers and readers

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memoir

WITH Covid and staff shortages becoming the default excuse for poor service and faulty products it is sad to see the malaise spreading to the world of publishing. Errors there are so visible and so irritating to readers. For publishers they are so difficult and costly  to correct.  In specialist areas, editing shortfalls can bring… Continue Reading

5 April 2022

Billingham’s twister sparks sleepless nights

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RARELY do I allow my bedtime reading to rob me of much-needed sleep. The temptation is often there but has to be resisted if next day is not to be write-off. Bit like drinking red wine; the extra glass (or two) rarely justifies the inevitable frowziness and inertia that follow. However, this latest creation of… Continue Reading

9 March 2022

Haunted by words as tyrant repeats horrors of the past

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  THE mind refuses to stop. It seems to be in permanent overdrive. Refusing to shut down.  Unresponsive to any attempt at braking, or changing direction. And it is getting worse, more insistent, taking a tighter hold and blocking any alternative thoughts or distractions. Endlessly dwelling on Russia’s brutal and horror-filled assault on Ukraine. And… Continue Reading

13 January 2022

Workhouse death brings on 1921 census blues

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MUCH joy tempered by bouts of shock and sadness. Such is the lot of family historians everywhere. Something I can well attest to after recent foraging in the foliage of my family tree. Anyone joining this global corps of addicts soon learns that tracking down their ancestors is a long plodding journey. One beset by… Continue Reading

5 January 2022

Bauer’s romp provides giggles amid the gore

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EMERGENCY service workers are well known for their macabre sense of humour; for having a giggle with the gore.  It is, as they will attest, the only way they can cope with the scenes that daily confront them.  The dead and dying, the mortally mangled, bodies broken almost beyond repair. Situations that have to be… Continue Reading

18 December 2021

Alco-free bubbles: boozing minus hangovers

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alcohol-free wine

BOUGHT a couple of bottles of alcohol-free wine. One a bubbly, the other labelled as a Merlot. Friends and dearly beloveds familiar with my past indiscretions might be worried about my sanity on hearing this news. Wondering if this statement is another piece of  fiction. Or whether years of running have finally taken their toll…. Continue Reading

31 October 2021

So easy to be spooked in these scary times

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BE prepared to be afraid. Very afraid, for these are scary times. There are frighteners everywhere; and that’s not counting the heavy brigade and their standover mates. Those black-clad steroids on legs, eyes permanently hidden behind Ray Bans. The grunters and mumblers  who feature so large not only in real life but also in the bloodier… Continue Reading

5 October 2021

Sportswear marketing feasts on a run in the park

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THERE is this bee buzzing around in my bonnet. Very annoying. It’s been there quite some while and is becoming increasingly irritating. Just won’t go away and is so difficult to ignore. It’s called Parkrun. You’ve probably heard of it; a weekly mass display of micro managed outdoor masochism willingly endured by thousands worldwide. Like… Continue Reading

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