Showing 1 - 10 of 17
Good chance of being caught on the hop
Oped, Roger Crutchley, Published on 22/01/2023
» To mark this weekend's Chinese New Year celebrations for Year of the Rabbit it seems appropriate to dedicate today's column to our cuddly cottontail friends, otherwise known as bunnies. Let's hope not too many of them end up in a pie or stew. As a precaution, just be careful when you order "today's special".
Bow Bells rang out but not the accents
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 03/04/2022
» Firstly, a belated follow-up featuring the cockney accent from an American reader who wanted to meet a real cockney when he was in London a few years ago. Aware of the traditional definition of a cockney being "someone born within the sound of Bow Bells", he made a special effort to visit St Mary-le-Bow church, the source of the bells.
Thailand becoming even more amazing
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 14/11/2021
» With the kingdom opening up again the Tourist Authority of Thailand have announced that they are primarily interested in "quality tourists". What exactly constitutes a quality tourist is not entirely clear, but one suspects it's a polite way of saying anyone with lots of money. No riff-raff or hoi polloi please.
'King of fruits' is nothing to sniff at
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 13/06/2021
» Most people who have a functioning hooter will be well aware we are in the middle of the durian season. I got a timely reminder when my wife returned triumphantly from a day trip to the orchards of Nakhon Nayok last weekend laden with what is called the "king of fruits''. It is also the smelliest of fruits, prompting a brisk trade in T-shirts bearing the message "tastes like heaven and smells like hell".
A century of sawing people in half
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 17/01/2021
» The most important news of the week is that magicians are today celebrating the 100th anniversary of a woman being sawn in half on stage. We could all probably do with a bit of magic in our lives at the moment, so let's wave the wand with a quick "abracadabra" and take a magical mystery tour.
Mutiny that sparked a bounty of films
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 28/04/2019
» Today is April 28, and out of curiosity I checked to see if anything of historical significance had taken place on this day through the ages. The answer is... not a lot.
Possibly an uncanny case of hoof in mouth
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 21/10/2018
» The gentleman in the White House has run into self-inflicted flak over his indelicate use of the word "horseface" in describing the adult film actress he may or may not have dangled with. However, she came storming back with a tweet of her own, referring to him as "Tiny", which one suspects was not a compliment. These exchanges could become quite entertaining.
Is everybody happy? You bet they are
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 25/02/2018
» It was nearly four years ago the powers that be announced the "Return Happiness to the Public" campaign and since then we have all been insanely happy, like it or not. So last week's news that Thailand has been named the "least miserable country in the world" for the fourth successive year by the Bloomberg Misery Index, hardly raised an eyebrow. However, there was some debate if there is any subtle difference between "most happy" and "least miserable".
All it took was a raised eyebrow or two
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 04/06/2017
» I was saddened to hear the news concerning the recent passing of British actor Roger Moore at 89. He was a classic English gentleman with an appealing self-deprecating sense of humour.
Off to the pub for a British history lesson
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 11/09/2016
» As a kid, I was fascinated by the name of a pub near my grandmother's home in Farnborough, Hampshire.