Observations of an ex pat: IranIran and the US have been on a collision course since 1979 when the radical Islamic state was founded and 44 US diplomats were taken hostage. But why now? But also, what are the who's, what's, how's, when's and where's of the current car crash and its regional, national and global repercussions. Who first—the US and Israel. America did not call on its traditional NATO allies. It did not go to the United Nations to seek legal sanctions. The United States did not even bother to inform the G7 countries. The United States acted unilaterally. In fact, Donald Trump acted ... (more) |
The Joy of Six 1485"Yet again, we're all caught up with the fame-encrusted stories of rich, powerful men. The women and their reported life-scarring encounters with Epstein and his set are an afterthought. At best, they're treated as a salacious backdrop to the fortunes of men whom society has lionised and - with epic irony - thought better than the rest of us."Michelle Cook says the reaction to the Epstein files spotlights how badly we are still failing women and girls. "As DHS [the Department of Homeland Security] expands its footprint, it's making its cruelty manifest in suburban areas like Roxbury - towns that ... (more) |
A German bombing raid on Dublin in May 1941 killed 28 peopleEmbed from Getty ImagesHere's bit of history I didn't know. The caption for this photograph on Getty Images says: Emergency services at work in a bomb damaged street in Dublin, Ireland, the day after a German air raid, which killed 34 people, 1st June 1941. The cause of the raid on neutral Ireland remains unclear. Wikipedia- it's strange how the advent of AI has changed that site from a near embarrassment to the last online redoubt of human judgement - explains what happened: In the early morning hours of 31 May 1941, four German bombs fell on north Dublin. That ... (more) |
Latest voting intention and leadership ratings opinion pollsWelcome to my summary of the latest national voting intention polls for the next general election, along with the latest MRP projections and party leadership ratings. 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, The Week in Polls: General election voting intention polls PollsterConLabLDGrnRefLab leadFieldwork Find Out Now* 17% (-1) 15% (nc) 10% (-2) 21% (+3) 27% (+1) -12% (4th, vs Ref) 4-6/3 GB ... (more) |
Rock of the nightCraig-y-nos Castle (meaning:Rock of the Night), is a Scots baronial-style country house near Glyntawe in Powys, Wales. Built on parkland beside the River Tawe in the upper Swansea Valley, it is located on the southeastern edge of the Black Mountain. The castle was formerly owned by opera singer Adelina Patti, but is now a wedding venue. Its landscaped grounds are a country park, managed by the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority. According to wikipedia, the main building was built between 1841 and 1843 by Captain Rhys Davies Powell, to designs by Thomas Henry Wyatt. It was bought by Morgan Morgan ... (more) |
The LNWR branch line from Weedon to Leamington SpaIt's time we had another good disused railway video. This one follows the route of the old LNWR branch line between Weedon and Leamington Spa. Wolfhampcote is mentioned. As I discovered at the age of 10 on a family canal holiday, here you will find a deserted medieval village whose church still survives, two abandoned railway lines (the one the video is about and the Great Central main line) and an abandoned meander of the Oxford Canal, complete with a tunnel. Is it any wonder I turned out how I did? (more) |
The Elections Bill isn't good enough for a democracy under threatOur democracy is under sustained attack. Repeated scandals and corruption have hollowed out trust, while powerful men who hate our democracy – from Silicon Valley to the Kremlin – undermine our social fabric and institutions. It is nothing short of a national crisis. It has therefore been deeply frustrating to see the litany of lost opportunities in the government's "Representation of the People Bill". What is called for is transformation – to restore trust and make our brittle, fragile democracy more resilient. This bill does not meet that moment. In all its 186 pages, it manages to avoid measures that ... (more) |
A contemporary review of Lucy Masterman's biography of her husband Charles MastermanI once wrote of C.F.G. Masterman, Lucy Masterman's biography of her late husband Charles Masterman, in Liberator: There are too many undigested extracts from her diary for it to rank as great literature, but besides its value as a picture of Masterman, it is an invaluable resource for anyone seeking to understand the big beasts of that Liberal government. For not only did Masterman serve under both Lloyd George and Winston Churchill, he and Lucy became friends of both families On 3 November 1939 the Salisbury Times published a long review of the book by Alan Campbell Johnson. He was ... (more) |
ALDC by-election report, 5th MarchThere were five principal council by-elections this week, four of which had a Liberal Democrat on the ballot, up from just one last time these wards were contested. In Kent, Ashley Wassall and the Sevenoaks team earned a quarter of the vote from a standing start, as the Conservatives picked up the seat from Independent. This is a good base to start from in the next campaign here. Good effort! Sevenoaks District Council, Hextable Conservative: 600 (38.9%, +19.3) Reform UK: 406 (26.3%, new) Liberal Democrats (Ashley Wassall): 367 (23.8%, new) Independent: 108 (7.0%, new) Green Party: 62 (4.0%, new) Conservative ... (more) |
Magical lantern showOn Wednesday 4th March 2026, Sunniside History Society had its monthly meeting at Sunniside Club. Instead of a speaker, at this meeting we had a lantern show! The Society had been given the photo collection of Francis Newman, a former member who passed away a few years ago. It included over 1000 slides. The Society has not yet gone through the slides so a random selection of a couple of (more) |