Showing 1 - 10 of 92
The moggy that rules Downing Street
Roger Crutchley, Published on 22/02/2026
» Important news from London. This past week Larry the Cat has been celebrating his 15th year as chief mouser at 10 Downing Street. During that time the tabby has served six different prime ministers and has arguably been considerably more popular than any of them.
Let's hope 2026 is not too amazing
Roger Crutchley, Published on 04/01/2026
» Well here we are on the fourth day of a brand new year. I trust everyone is holding up well after the festivities because it can be quite gruelling pretending to behave in a jovial fashion if you are not feeling jovial at all.
Not even the penguins were spared
Roger Crutchley, Published on 28/12/2025
» Well, we've just about slithered our way through the Year of the Snake. Suffice to say, 2025 wasn't much fun. At least the previous year we had the "Happy Hippo" which kept us vaguely amused in a daft sort of way.
Words of the year are bit of a worry
Roger Crutchley, Published on 07/12/2025
» More words or phrases of the year have been drifting in courtesy of the major dictionaries and I'm afraid most of them are not particularly encouraging. In fact some are a disturbing indication of the direction in which the English language and society are heading.
Last Frontier unlike any other place
Roger Crutchley, Published on 17/08/2025
» Alaska has been thrust into the news this weekend for reasons that require no explanation. It's a suitably symbolic venue for the Trump-Putin summit considering it was once part of the Russian Empire. It is certainly an extraordinary part of the world that is much appreciated by those who love the wilderness.
Cheating in exams now a sophisticated art
Roger Crutchley, Published on 27/07/2025
» It was Oscar Wilde who once observed: "Exams sir, are pure humbug. If a man is a gentleman he knows quite enough, and if he is not a gentleman, whatever he knows is bad for him.''
It's a bit on the warm side in the UK
Roger Crutchley, Published on 06/07/2025
» It seems a trifle strange to be sitting in Bangkok and reading about a heatwave in London, but at times last week it's been hotter in Britain than Thailand, while the rest of Europe has also been sizzling. You know something is wrong when at Wimbledon the umbrellas have been going up not for the rain but to protect spectators from the sun.
The 1970 visa run into a war zone
Roger Crutchley, Published on 15/06/2025
» The Thai/Cambodian border has been in the news lately and let's hope everything is sorted out quickly and amicably. It sparked memories of the first time I crossed into Cambodia from Thailand back in October 1970. Now that's a long time ago.
Probably the saga to end all sagas
Roger Crutchley, Published on 08/06/2025
» The latest nationwide crackdown on motorcyclists not wearing crash helmets kicked off on June 1. Whether it will prove more effective than countless previous campaigns remains to be seen. But don't hold your breath.
When tittle tattle lost the battle
Roger Crutchley, Published on 11/05/2025
» This past week there have been many moving ceremonies commemorating the 80th anniversary of VE Day (Victory in Europe) marking the end of the war in Europe. I was born shortly after the war (a "bundle for Britain") but this week's celebrations brought to mind wartime slogans and expressions that surfaced between 1939-45 and remained in use for years to come.