Last week, someone managed to back their car into the frontage of Stewart Eyecare in Whickham. Fortunately no one was injured and the business continues to operate, despite the boarded up windows. I had my eyes tested there yesterday. New glasses should be with me shortly. In the meantime, hopefully the glass panels will be replacing the chipboard soon.
I was browsing the British Newspaper Database the other day looking for something else, when I came across this story in the Nottingham Evening Post (22 June 1966): Former Top Liberal Held on Murder Charge 'Complete denial' says solicitor Oliver Smedley, a London accountant and former vice-president of the Liberal Party executive, was today charged at Saffron Walden, Essex, with the murder of Reg. Calvert (37), head of the pop radio station, Radio City. He was remanded in custody until July 1, an application for bail being rejected. If you wanted to know how such a distinguished Liberal found himself ...
We seem to have reached the point where potty-mouth politicos are becoming the norm. Don't they know what they are saying or don't they care? I know that I am danger of sounding like an old fogey here, possibly because ... Continue reading →
As well as The Rest is Politics, Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart have a second podcast called Leading. And the latest guest on that is our own Ed Davey. The billing for the show runs: What was it like for the Liberal Democrats in coalition? Would Ed Davey be prepared to work alongside Keir Starmer in another coalition government? Is tactical voting a good idea? Join Rory and Alastair as they speak with leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey, to discuss all these questions and more. Yet what you remember from it most is Ed talking about his family ...
It struck me that, having mentioned my dogs in a previous post, I should probably introduce them properly. So here we go. Molly (the orange one) and Ozzy (the black one) are both Labrador Retrievers. They're bred as working dogs, so they're slimmer, more agile and higher-energy than the show-breed versions. A lot higher-energy... [IMG: Molly and Ozzy the Labradors.] We've had Molly since she was a puppy. She's been my sidekick and constant shadow since the day we got her. She's fourteen now, so I really do struggle to remember what life was like before we had her. She ...
Stephen (left) and François at Flitwick by-election HQ this morning I've helped at the odd by-election (!) but normally I don't see the candidate during brief visits to the HQ to pick up bundles of Focii. At Mid Beds this week, I have had a double candidate "I Spy" score. As we were watching "Rookie" on Sunday evening, Emma Holland-Lindsay actually phoned me on our landline phone (which these days is a bit like the Carlsberg complaints phone). As if that wasn't enough, when I walked into the Flitwick HQ this morning, guess who was standing there to greet me? ...
The Guardian reports that Tory Ministers will this week announce a series of changes designed to make it easier for developers to win planning permission to build onshore wind turbines. They say that the government could publish proposals as soon as Tuesday on how to adapt the planning system to stop local authorities standing in the way of almost every new wind power development on land. This is a bit of a u-turn as until recently the UK Government has been less than enthusiastic about this form of development: Downing Street hopes that the changes will placate a group of ...
At the beginning of the year various BBC correspondents gave their predictions for the year ahead. Conspicuous by its absence was any prediction that Trump would get indicted this year and the monumental impact that would have on US and international politics. I for one wondered how they could miss something so obvious? Now he has been indicted and the political tension is building. As I write there is speculation that because of the danger he represents to the community, Trump may be subject to pre-trial detention. In addition, there is also speculation that Trump may be disqualified from standing ...
Fraser's weekly ward surgeries take place later today and every Tuesday during school term time. They are as follows : Tuesdays at 5pm prompt - Blackness Library Tuesdays at 5.45pm prompt - Ancrum Road Primary School All residents welcome - no appointment necessary.
