Showing 1 - 10 of 247
Say a little prayer for the Queen of Soul
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 19/08/2018
» One sunny morning in 1968, I had settled down to my customary reading of the Sunday newspapers on Hampstead Heath in London, when a couple sat on the grass near me. I was a little irritated when they switched on a transistor radio and was pondering giving them a lecture on the sanctity of peace and quiet. But then I heard the piano intro to <i>I Say A Little Prayer</i> and all was forgiven. A rare sunny day on the Heath with musical accompaniment by Aretha Franklin -- what more could one ask for?
The remarkable lady from Nutbush
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 28/05/2023
» Tributes have poured in for Tina Turner who sadly passed away at the age of 83 this week in Switzerland. I would like to add a small, if inadequate thank you to this wonderful performer who brought such joy to millions. In addition to having a great talent she was also a lovely lady and her Buddhist faith played a strong role in her life. Tina had soul.
The train robbery that gripped a nation
Roger Crutchley, Published on 20/08/2023
» Last week on television I watched the two-part series The Great Train Robbery, an intriguing account of the audacious heist that made headlines in Britain all those years ago. It slowly dawned on me that this month is the 60th anniversary of that extraordinary robbery which took place on August 8, 1963, on the Royal Mail train from Glasgow to London. Frightening how time flies.
Audience of one is better than none
Roger Crutchley, Published on 13/08/2023
» There was a story from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival last week concerning English actress Georgie Grier whose one-woman show Sunsets attracted a grand audience of one. A tweet with pictures of a tearful Grier after the show prompted considerable sympathy and the following night she found herself performing to a near full-house which she joked felt the equivalent of "Wembley".
Democracy fulfills last wish of Myanmar teen
News, Published on 27/05/2016
» Dying from soldiers' bullets, the young protester told her father not to lay her soul to rest until democracy reigned in her homeland, Myanmar. It has taken 28 years, but it is done.
Silly buggers: Russia, US play chicken
News, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 23/06/2017
» I don't remember which navy I was in when I first heard the term "silly buggers", but the meaning was clear. It included some sensible exercises like "man overboard" drills, but the heart and soul of the game was high-speed manoeuvres by ships travelling in close company. These sometimes got quite exciting, because ships don't have brakes.
How Putin's war ended dream of another Russia
Oped, Published on 25/02/2023
» It has now been a year since Russia, my birthplace, invaded Ukraine. For 365 days, we have been waking up to news of Russian missile strikes, bombings, murders, torture and rape. It has been 365 days of shame and confusion, of wanting to turn away but needing to know what is happening, of watching Russians become "ruscists", "Orks" or "putinoids". For 365 days, the designation "Russian-American", previously straightforward, has felt like a contradiction in terms.
Killing Darya Dugina: Ukraine own-goal?
News, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 25/08/2022
» 'Iam a political observer of the International Eurasianist Movement and an expert in international relations. In this capacity, I appear on Russian, Pakistani, Turkish, Chinese and Indian television channels. The situation in Ukraine is really an example of a clash of civilisations; it can be seen as a clash between globalist and Eurasian civilisation."
Gorbachev -- the greatest democrat Russia ever had
News, Published on 05/09/2022
» 'We all need to have perestroika," Mikhail Gorbachev would often say. The Soviet Union's last leader lived by that credo. After becoming the general secretary of the Communist Party in 1985 and implementing his programme of restructuring and glasnost ("openness"), he even changed his job title, preferring to be called president.
Tuning in to the opening day of May
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 01/05/2022
» Well, here we are in the first 24 hours of the magical month of May. According to the dictionary, May Day is the time for "a celebration of the coming of Spring". Unfortunately, we don't experience Spring in Thailand and are still perspiring our way through the hot season, hoping Jupiter Pluvius might oblige with an occasional refreshing shower.