“Simply put, politicians can prate about “fixing” social care, but we are to them subjects on spreadsheets, units of cost and an amorphous mass”Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash Every Easter, without fail, we hear the same message from pulpit and political soapbox – “we need collectively to makeContinue Reading
International Haiku Poetry Day is on 17 April. This year it coincides with Easter Sunday. Haiku poetry is not rhymed and it consists of 3 lines of 17 syllables in total, with the lines having 5, 7, 5 syllables. We are celebrating by publishing one Haiku per day for theContinue Reading
We are seeing “A permanent new policy of hybrid war on liberal democracies and institutions of international order and legality”Photo by Damiano Lingaun, courtesy of unsplash This article was first published in November 2020 Covid-19 in the UK is now turning into a permanent feast of kleptocracy. The term ‘scandal’Continue Reading
Photo by Anton Litvintsev from iStock (editor holds licence) The North East has traditionally been a place of settlement for Irish men and Irish women often forced to seek employment and a living on the mainland. Indeed, after the traditional redoubts of Merseyside and Clydeside, the North East was probablyContinue Reading
Photo by Louise Brown This Chana Bhuna is naturally vegan and low fat as well as being very quick to make! It’s cheap to make and you should still be able to find all the ingredients on the shelves at this time of shortages. Ingredients 400g can of chickpeas, drainedContinue Reading
Book cover screenshot This book pieces together the life of Vladimir Putin with the recent history of Russia, covering events up to 2015. When Putin was born 1n 1952 Russia was part of a larger USSR still ruled by Joseph Stalin. The USSR suffered badly during WW2 when it madeContinue Reading
Bettrys Jones and Helen Katemba as Ellen and Annie Wilkinson in Red Ellen Photo by Pamela Raith When going to see this production of ‘Red Ellen’, be prepared to be immersed in the romanticised life of a North East champion. Although her personal accounts and papers were lost after herContinue Reading
Photo by Chris Humble On arrival at my (different) hotel in Delhi I prepared to visit Amir (Part 1) and his family that evening but received a message to say that his cousin had been involved in a road accident and they would have to cancel. Obviously, my concern wasContinue Reading
Isambard Kingdom Brunel Standing Before the Launching Chains of the Great Eastern (by Robert Howlett, 1857) Public domain 9 April marks some 206 years since Isambard Kingdom Brunel (IKB) was born in Plymouth. He went on to become one of the world’s most famous Engineers and “one of the greatestContinue Reading
Every other day, it seems, Boris Johnson changes our national energy strategy with the rapidity with which he changes his socks. On a Monday, it’s new nuclear, Tuesday it’s hydrogen, Wednesday it is onshore wind farming – and yesterday he’s dipping his unsocked foot into looking again at fracking. But onContinue Reading
