In a way which many might find inappropriate for a man of my age, I like walking through London, carrying my Gibson guitar, sitting on the tube with the case proudly between my knees. The other day, I took the journey to Notting Hill Gate to play at the Tabernacle where the über-cool 5 ₓ 15 events,… Continue reading I’ve had my 15 minutes….
Read moreI have just had the pleasure of writing a play for the Radio 4 series, Fact to Fiction. My starting point was the BA strike – and how it changed one man’s life… The producer was Duncan Minshull and it is read by Paul Ritter. Here it is. [Or, rather, here it was. It is now… Continue reading Adultery and the BA strike – ‘Grounded’ on Radio 4
Read moreToday, officially and in public, I was declared to be the biographer of Fergie, Duchess of York. It is a small embarrassment (what a terrible job that would be) but frankly I can only blame myself. In today’s Independent, I’ve written a piece about Fergiegate, pointing up the madness – not to mention the nastiness… Continue reading In Celebrityland, no one can hear you laugh
Read moreIt’s exciting. It’s nothing less than a revolution in the way this country is run. But what exactly is this New Politics we hear so much about? To guide us through the tumultuous political future of Britain, when a wind of change – smelling faintly of Vince Cable’s shirt at the end of a busy day… Continue reading The New Politics – what exactly does it mean? An exclusive introduction…
Read moreAdopting her most serious tone, the BBC reporter standing outside Old Bailey intones that the courts had heard of many terrible acts but few were quite as disturbing as what has been revealed over the past few days. What had been revealed, according to the latest evidence, is a children’s game involving a mild piece… Continue reading Who exactly are the children at the Old Bailey?
Read moreIn a moment of perfect poetic justice, I have recently been on the receiving end of a mild act of political incorrectness within moments of completing a celebration of politically incorrect songs. With my musical partners Derek Hewitson (Suffolk) and Victoria Hart (Whitechapel), I had been performing songs from our show Taboo-Be-Do! at a London… Continue reading Political incorrectness: a country bumpkin writes…
Read moreWhat exactly is the problem? Why are both major parties struggling to reach any kind of agreement with those sweet, easygoing Liberal Democrats? Here, in an exclusive leak from the negotiations, is a list of what they are currently demanding: Colourful woolly jumpers for all TV newsreaders (to cheer everyone up!). The compulsory singing of John… Continue reading Puppies for pensioners, a niceness tsar and environmental police: an exclusive list of what LibDems are asking for
Read moreWhat a privilege it was to close Marth Kearney’s last Election Lunch on Radio Four’s The World At One with Noel Coward’s song from the early 1950s ‘Bad Times Are Just Around the Corner’ – with a little updated chorus from me. Here it is, complete with the slightly embarrassing fluff which Martha later sweetly… Continue reading Hurray! Hurray! Hurray! Misery’s on the way
Read moreHow excited Barry Miles must have been when the news reached him that his new book London Calling: A Counter-Cultural History of London since 1945 was to be a full-page review in a popular Sunday newspaper, the Mail on Sunday, and by a blue-chip reviewer, the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson. Sadly for Barry, it… Continue reading The Mayor of London rips off the counter-culture
Read moreJust one now and then, a review appears which takes a step back from the book, film or play under consideration and makes a wider, more significant point. A case in point is Walter Kirn’s recent review in the New York Times of Ian McEwan’s new novel Solar – a book so good, Kirn’s… Continue reading Impressive to behold – but a virtuous pain to read
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