It's Sunday again... so it's time for a quick rouind-up of the events of the previous week. Cheers to Team GB's curling teams for reaching their respective finals, and especially to the women's team for their incredible victory to clinch the gold medal. Few people will have predicted a GB v Japan final at the outset, but Eve Muirhead's team got betetr as the tournament progressed and thoroughly deserved their fine win. Jeers to the Labour Party, which is reportedly looking at "naming and shaming" people convicted of buying drugs. Out-Torying the Tories on the "war against drugs" underlines the ...
I'm not sure if I saw Pyramids of Mars when it was first broadcast in 1975; I know I did catch the edited rebroadcast in November 1976, which got a larger TV audience than any previous episode of Doctor Who, and I also remember devouring the novelisation by Terrance Dicks at a young age. Once New Who had rekindled my fervour, it was one of the first DVDs I got. When I watched in 2006, I wrote:Pyramids of Mars (1975) - from Tom Baker's second year as the Doctor, which also included The Seeds of Doom and The Brain of ...
Boris Johnson's latest attempt to rehabilitate himself with sceptical Tory MPs is to scrap the need to self isolate if you have Covid in England. So you are now free to spread it far and wide. You would think that you would have to monitor the impact really carefully. That is way too sensible for this Government who also reportedly plan to scrap free lateral flow tests. So we will have no idea how many cases we have until hospitals start filling up. The BBC asked this week if this move was brave or stupid. NHS chiefs said it was ...
A very mixed picture this week for the Lib Dems in the realm of local council by-elections. Ballots were cast across all corners of the kingdom most of which saw a Lib Dem candidate getting their teeth stuck into the contest. Concisely then, nine vacancies to fight, we stood in seven, succeeding in one. The results weren't as good as we predicted but we can take solace in good campaigns being fought and celebrate the hard work put in by our local teams, knocking on doors, delivering leaflets, posting out focus leaflets and focusing on that squeeze vote. The headline ...
Holyrood and Westminster are back from their half term break this week and the Senedd starts its break. Here's what to watch out for. Westminster The Lords get to grips with the Elections Bill. Unlock Democracy have written to peers expressing their concerns with the measures it contains. The bill gives this Government, and future governments, unprecedented power over the way our elections are run. I want to give you one clear example of this. Elections in the UK are overseen by an independent watchdog, the Electoral Commission. This bill would give the power to the Government of the day ...
Sat, 14:48: RT @reclamation2022: We can't wait to see you at Radisson Hotel & Conference Centre London Heathrow, 15th to 18th of April 2022. Don't f... Sat, 17:35: Saturday reading https://t.co/TJp2peLJN2 Sat, 18:01: RT @lise_andreasen: Yes! Read the debarkle! #SadPuppies https://t.co/okWhYZURkM Sat, 18:03: At #gally1 with @H_Bettsworth as the Eighth Doctor. https://t.co/54BZSgwjJG Sat, 18:19: The Evil of the Daleks, by Simon Guerrier (and John Peel) https://t.co/BYRs6sxyvH Sat, 20:48: RT @0tralala: Feeling a bit sorry for myself with COVID and everything, so cheered by this glowing review from someone whose opinions of al... Sat, 21:52: Ambitious cosplay. #gally1 https://t.co/egipVG1yOc Sun, 01:53: ...
It may seem an obvious question, but I have never heard a frank and honest public discussion that fully defines the purpose of our Armed Forces. The current crisis in Ukraine has highlighted the stark contrast between our elected politicians wanting to talk tough and appear as a big player on the world stage versus the reality of what we have equipped and resourced our Armed Forces to actually do. It would be easy to find a broad consensus that they should defend the UK, and it's Overseas Territories and Dependencies. Most would agree that we have treaty obligations under ...
One of the strongest arguments for Welsh devolution in 1997 was how much of Welsh political and cultural life was being run by unelected Tory quangocrats, accountable only to a Secretary of State who had no popular mandate to run Wales. To some extent the advent of the Welsh Assembly changed all that, although there are still legitimate questions to be asked about accountablility under in the new reformed Wales. It is no surprise therefore to see this headline on the Guardian website announcing that six Tory donors have been given top cultural posts since Boris Johnson became Prime Minister. ...
It's embarrassing how little I know about music. When Ian McDonald died I was astounded to learn that the unremarkable band Foreigner had been cofounded by a member of King Crimson. King Crimson. But I did know about another episode in McDonald's career though. He recorded the trippy album - McDonald and Giles - in 1970 with fellow King Crimson member Michael Giles. It didn't sell well at the time but is now much sought after. Traffic were recording John Barleycorn Must Die at the same studios, which is why Steve Winwood can be found playing piano and organ on ...
Sun 20th
09:30
What the voters are telling the Lib Dems, and important votes at party conference: LDN #157
Liberal Democrat Newswire #157 looks at public opinion on Brexit, how by-elections are going, important votes at Spring Conference, and more.
In this weekend's World Review, LDV foreign correspondent Tom Arms looks at the forthcoming elections in Hungary and the ongoing elections in India. France is quitting Mali. Trump is not the only American politician being threatened by legal action. The Trump campaign has Hilary Clinton in her sights again. Hungary's beleaguered far-right Prime Minister Viktor Orban looks to have a secret weapon up his sleeve for the Hungarian general election scheduled for 3 April—Donald Trump. Orban's ruling Fidesz Party enjoys a two-thirds majority In the Hungarian Parliament and appeared set to win another sweeping victory in April. But then in ...
As Vice Chair of Dundee Age Concern's Board, I am delighted to see this latest great initiative to support the Fiveways Centre, a superb service for many of the city's older people :
