This online event from early last year marked the republication of Malcolm Saville's 1946 book Jane's Country Year by Handheld Press. Taking part are: Mike McGarry, co-author of Malcolm Saville, An Illustrated BibliographyHazel Sheeky Bird, author of the introduction to Handheld Press's edition of the bookGraeme Bowerman, grandson of Bernard Bowerman, the book's illustratorKate Macdonald from Handheld PressAs Mike McGarry says early on, this was Malcolm Saville's own favourite among the many books he wrote for children. It is also one of his three early books that mentions Bevis by Richard Jefferies, and it even borrows an episode from that ...
Far from home's secure chimera I walked into a room, reluctantly, to face cacophony (comprised, however, largely of indifference); imagining I'm branded otherwise beside the marks of humdrum bourgeoisie – Berghaus, Next, Levi's – I wear as emblems day-to-day; feeling as if the lines anxiety has scratched around my eyes were welling blood
The council includes the following in the media release which followed Wednesday's AGM: the council's Liberal Democrat and Green Group, led by Coedffranc West member Cllr Helen Ceri Clarke, became full members of the Rainbow Coalition having previously supported it on a confidence and supply basis. Cllr Hunt said after the AGM: "I am humbled to have been given the leadership of the council for 2023/24 and our Rainbow Coalition welcomes the Liberal Democrat and Green Group as full members. Cllr Cen Phillips takes over in the Cabinet from [Dyffryn Independent] Cllr Peters with a new title of Cabinet Member ...
The very wet Spring has turned into a lovely warm, dry summer and all the roses in the garden are loving it. This one we inherited in the garden from the previous owners. beautiful scent. New iris bought last year. Glowing rose against a shady background. Modern Climbing rose 'Meg' happy with the scabious and clove-scented pinks. I repurpose tiny plant pots and small cardboard tubes into bug habitats and pop them (horizontally) around the garden. New, wider border taking shape after major wall rebuild. Why a small tree in big pot is invaluable next to a garden bench! Not ...
Tom McTague argues that Keir Starmer is adopting the Tory tactic of accepting past change and promising to curb the agitation for more: "Will it work this time? It worked for Peel and, eventually, for Disraeli after he reluctantly accepted free trade. It also worked for Churchill and Eden and Macmillan when they accepted Labour's welfare state. Each reform was popular. Today, the big difference is that Brexit no longer is." The Conservative Party in West Sussex was hit by a political earthquake, says James Walsh. "The DWP's messaging ... is part of a wider pattern of anti-welfare rhetoric that ...
If you're surprised that Lord Bonkers knows about emails, you really haven't understood him. From the steam-driven Shuttleworth press to the EARS trumpet, he has been at the forefront of harnessing new technology to help the Liberal cause. Characteristically, he was the first man to have a telephone in Rutland. (It proved something of a disappointment, as it never rang.) Wednesday My electronic inbox is full of green-ink emails complaining about fifteen-minute cities - apparently they are the work of the devil, George Soros, the Word Economic Forum and, no doubt, the Elders of Zion too. It happens that I ...
Liberal Democrats have inherited a huge headache from the Conservatives in Woking. The Borough is quite small, with a population of around 100,000, and is located in archetypal Blue Wall Surrey, centred around the busy town of the same name. But as we all know there is now a very large patch of orange stretching across the county, and Woking Lib Dems led the way, taking control in 2022. Since the local elections earlier this month we now hold 20 of the 30 council seats, and our Leader is Councillor Ann-Marie Barker. It's important to note that the Conservatives were ...
An unusual by-election this week, caused by a councillor leaving Labour and then resigning to stand again as a left-wing independent candidate. Although the ward is an area of Lib Dem success over a decade ago, it's only once been fought before on the current boundaries, when there was no Lib Dem. But this time there was – and the Liberal Democrats moved straight into second place: Percentages: Ind 499 [46.4%; +46.4%] LD Erica Willett 281 [26.1%; +26.1%] Lab 169 [15.7%; -57.6%] Con 69 [6.4%; -16.0%] Ind 39 [3.6%; +3.6%] Green 19 [1.8%; -2.5%] — ALDC (@ALDC) May 26, 2023 ...
Welcome to my summary of the latest national voting intention poll from each pollster currently operating in Britain. If you'd like to find out more about how polls work, how reliable they are and how to make sense of them, check out my book, Polling UnPacked: the History, Uses and Abuses of Political Opinion Polls, or sign up for my weekly email: "*" indicates required fields Email* Enter Email Confirm Email If you submit this form, your data will be used in line with the privacy policy here to update you on the topic(s) selected. This may including using this ...
The Independent reports that new research has found that Brexit red tape has cost each household £250 in higher food bills alone since the UK left the EU. The paper says that the analysis suggests that food price rises would have been 8 percentage points lower - nearly a third - without Brexit, at 17 per cent, rather than the actual rise of almost 25 per cent: Annual food price inflation in the UK is near historic highs, with some basic goods rising by up to 46 per cent in a year, official figures show, exacerbating the cost-of-living crisis. Non-tariff ...
Residents highlighted to us some weeks ago that there were potholes on Marchfield Road and we reported this back in April to the City Council's Roads Maintenance Partnership. We were thereafter assured that an Order has been made to ensure repairs are undertaken. Some repairs were indeed carried out but the road still has obvious defects and signs of deterioration so we asked the Roads Maintenance Partnership for an update. We have now received the following feedback. "Repairs were carried out on 17th April for the orders raised following your original report. The local inspector will check Marchfield Road again." ...
