Watching the fly-on-the-wall documentary Police Intercepters on 5* tonight, it’s impossible not to think that the English justice system is not fit for purpose. In one case, a couple were caught cultivating cannabis in their loft with a full hydroponic kit – lighting, insulation, the works. The commentator explained that the CPS dropped charges against […]
Category: Comment and Opinion
Ex-gay ad may prove embarrassing to London Mayor Boris Johnson
London Mayor Boris Johnson may yet come to regret getting involved in the decision to pull an advert for the “ex-gay” group the Core Issues Trust after the Court of Appeal today ruled that he should be ordered to give evidence about his role in the decision. The Trust had agreed a contract with Transport […]
Goodnight Madiba
Nelson Mandela has died, it has been confirmed tonight. Madiba, as he was known, was the first post-apartheid President of South Africa, but he was far more than that. By the time I was born in 1970, Mandela had already been in prison for eight years for his leadership of the anti-Apartheid activists. This week […]
The Chancellor is expected to …
“The Chancellor is expected to…” that’s the headline on BBC Five Live’s breakfast news bulletins today – with similar being used across the BBC network and throughout the media. But what, exactly, is the Chancellor expected to do? Or, more importantly, who is it that expects him to do this? What we do know is […]
The Tesco Hudl: Do they really exist?
I don’t know how Tesco’s highly-rated but super-hidden budget tablets, the Hudl, got their name. But I’m beginning to think that the Hudl doesn’t really exist and that on 1st April 2014, Tesco will announce that we have all fallen for an amazing marketing ploy and that Hudl actually stands for “HaHa U Dozy Loons!” […]
Actions speak louder than words
I have just received two identical letters from my gas and electricity supplier SSE (or, SSE Energy Supply Ltd and Southern Electric Gas Ltd, to give the separate companies their proper legal names). The letters begin: “When it comes to customer service, Southern Electric believe you should be treated as we’d like to be treated […]
Time to stop this nonsense of milk or water first in tea
“What came first, the chicken or the egg?” That’s a question that has baffled scientists for years (answer: the chicken). Another equally taxing question, judging by the endless discussion on the subject, is this: when making a cup of tea, do you put the milk or water into the cup first? I’ve never understood the […]
Not News: Miley Cyrus’ latest PR stunt
I’ve worked in media relations. Like many hacks I crossed the journalistic river and sold out to the bigger rewards available in PR. But a couple of years ago I did a U-turn and crossed the river again to work once more as a journalist. I understand the need for brands, products, events, whatever, to […]
Steps: some words of wisdom from Nazareth
There are lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots of steps in Nazareth. But it seems somebody has a more positive view of them than me:
The sound of heaven in Jerusalem
The Old City of Jerusalem sounds pretty much like any Middle-Eastern city: the sound of market traders in a crowded suq competing with incessant tour guides – some amplified – over the Adhan, or call to prayer. Jerusalem is different, of course, and depending upon which part of the Old City you’re in you will […]