Can Istanbul Be Saved?When I first came to Istanbul nearly 50 years ago (as described in my childhood memoir, Eccles Cakes), it was an enchanting and exotic city of wooden houses, water-sellers and boats across the Bosphorus. Today, it is six times larger and the more they build and widen roads, the more the cars and lorries rush in to [...] (more) |
The Queens submits plans for four holiday letsJim Bishop is one of the great characters of Ludlow. Recently, he moved out of his rambling junk shop alongside the garden of The Queens, Lower Galdeford. The proprietors of the pub, Jane and Tim Vaughan, have now submitted plans to convert the building into holiday lets (16/03798/FUL).[1] The building will be the same... Continue reading The Queens submits plans for four holiday lets → (more) |
Tim Farron and Liz Leffman open Lib Dem HQ in WitneyFrom the Witney Liberal Democrats website: Hundreds of volunteers are flooding into the constituency this weekend to help with Liz's campaign in the Witney by-election. Tim Farron said: "Taking over such a large building is a real sign of our commitment to West Oxfordshire and to the strength of the campaign we are running here."Liz Leffman said: "I have been so touched by the huge number of people who have been coming from all over the country to help. This brilliant new HQ has really put us on the map in Witney and underlines that we are the only challengers ... (more) |
Out of date before it's built!I wrote a story this week that brought into sharp focus just what an awful decision the government's green light for the Hinkley Point C power station is.The story was for the European NGO lobby groupTransport & Environment(my story isn't online yet), for which I've been writing for 25 years. The story was about a new record-low price for energy from renewable sources - Sweden's largest energy company, Vattenfall, has won the contract to build two wind farms in the Danish North Sea with a bid to sell the energy from the farms for €60 per megawatt hour (mWh).What makes ... (more) |
Theatre Thoughts: Ballet LessonsIt's quite a while since I last danced properly*, a long time since I felt confident enough to call myself 'a dancer', longer still since the last time I attended a ballet class, and more time has passed than I care to admit since I graduated from college. However, even though I'm much older, stiffer and curvier now than I was when I was training, and I certainly don't feel as though I *look* like a dancer, I still get asked on a regular basis: "You're a dancer, aren't you?" Some of this is, certainly, down to working in a ... (more) |
Whoop, Whoop! We're nearly at the 400 mark! #ScrapTheMayorsCarWe've had a bit of a surge in the on-line campaign Time to get rid of the Mayors car in Peterborough – which is always nice! What's really great is that we're getting a real mix of people who are adding their support to the campaign! People who are in well paid jobs, single parents, [...] (more) |
Tim Kaine: "It's a civil rights election"[IMG: 092716-news-tim-kaine-election] Hilary Clinton's running mate, Senator Tim Kaine, has written about the importance of civil rights in America's presidential election. In an essay for Black Entertainment Television he writes: I've learned how being white... means you can go your entire life without ever understanding the challenges African-Americans face every day. It's on all of us to come to grips with these issues. In many ways, that's the deeper question we're facing in this election: who we are, how we treat each other and what kind of nation we want to leave our children. It's a civil rights election. He ... (more) |
New threat to Shotley Bridge HospitalI have received a Press Release warning that, because of "significant maintenance issues at the Hospital with the water and drainage infrastructure", there will be no new admissions to the hospital's inpatient ward from tomorrow. Patients currently receiving care on the ward may, after consultation with themselves and their families, be relocated to alternative community hospitals and care homes. You can see the full press release below. Clearly the safety of patients must come first, and therefore I welcome the further investigations that are to be undertaken. There must, however, be full transparency throughout this process, with all interested parties ... (more) |
September BooksNon-fiction: 1 (YTD 32) A History of the World in Twelve Maps, by Jerry Brotton Comics: 3 (YTD 22) Paper Girls, by Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff Chiang Prisoners of Time, by Scott and David Tipton Toch Een Geluk, by Barbara Stok 6,200 pages (YTD 53,100 pages) 6/18 (YTD 57/183) by women (Trollope, Murad, Kirk/Teague, Pollack, Colgan, Stok) 2/18 (YTD 12/183) by (Murad, Chiang) Reread: 1 (Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man), YTD 14 Reading now Songs of the Dying Earth: Stories in honour of Jack Vance, eds. George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois Winter Song, by ... (more) |
Alzheimer's Society Guide for Councillors[IMG: Alzheimer's Society Guide for Councillors] There are over 685,000 people living with dementia across England,many of whom are not living well and can't access the vital care and support they need. The average cost of a year's dementia care is £32,250 per patient, and it is estimated that dementia costs the English economy £22.1 billion annually. There is no doubt [...] (more) |