Showing 1 - 10 of 11
Hedgehoppers in search of good news
Roger Crutchley, Published on 01/02/2026
» Being the very first day of February it would have been nice if there was some good news worth celebrating, but unfortunately nothing immediately springs to mind. Cheerful news is an increasingly rare commodity these days. It all seems to be gloom and doom and hardly portends a joyful 2026. It can get a bit wearying grappling with news reports featuring contradictions, cover-ups and cock-ups, often accompanied by half-truths, prevarications and porky pies. But this is the world we now live in.
Taking a journey into the unknown
Roger Crutchley, Published on 13/07/2025
» According to newspaper reports Bulgaria will next year become the 21st country to adopt the euro. Admittedly it's hardly earth-shattering news and is possibly the first time Bulgaria has ever been mentioned in PostScript, let alone its currency, the "lev". But it reinforces my feeling that the European Union and the euro is partly responsible for taking the fun and romance out of travel.
A 10-day journey across snowy Iran
Roger Crutchley, Published on 22/06/2025
» Watching events unfold in the Middle East last week sparked memories of the brief time I spent in Iran a long time ago in more peaceful times. In February 1969 I travelled across the northern part of the nation during an overland trip from London to New Delhi. The country was still run by the Shah who was overthrown 10 years later in the Iranian Revolution.
It is what it is … whatever it might be
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 29/05/2022
» An expression which is increasingly heard these days on television and in political comment is the rather cryptic "it is what it is". Not exactly an illuminating observation, and it prompts the question, "But, what is it?" Apparently it means a certain situation that cannot be changed however much you want and carries an element of resignation.
When steamrollers saved the day
Oped, Roger Crutchley, Published on 06/12/2020
» In recent street confrontations in Bangkok the police have regularly used buses as barricades against the protesters, hopefully letting any dozing passengers off first. People tend to fall asleep on buses and might get a bit of a fright waking up in the midst of a street showdown.
2018: The rescue that gripped the world
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 30/12/2018
» It ended up as a truly inspiring feel-good story, but could so easily have been a heart-breaking tragedy. That was why the tale of the Wild Boars football team -- 12 young Thai boys and their coach trapped in a flooded cave system in Chiang Rai -- held the attention of the world for more than a fortnight.
A long flight for the paper plane pilot
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 14/10/2018
» It was pleasing to see that Mong Thongdee's dream of becoming a Thai citizen appears to have finally come true. Nine years ago Mr Mong made the headlines as a 12-year-old when he won the Thailand paper plane championships. However, he was devastated after being told he could not represent the kingdom at the international tournament in Japan because he was stateless, his parents being immigrants from Myanmar.
From a cultured cabbie to the Albert Hall
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 23/09/2018
» The recent column on the musical tastes of Bangkok's taxi drivers prompted quite a few comments from readers relating assorted cab rides featuring the joyful strains of Cliff Richard, Boney M and even Pavarotti. However, Elvis remains the favourite amongst the veteran cabbies.
Wild Boars become a part of history
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 15/07/2018
» This time last week the rescue mission of the 12 young Wild Boars and their coach had only been half completed. They had all been found miraculously alive, but the question remained how to get them out. And in all honesty, it didn't look great. It was a very strange, uncomfortable feeling. With heavy rains forecast, the initial joy of finding them transformed into the real fear that they could not escape what had become their watery dungeon. It was a race against time.
Rescue effort gripped the world
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 08/07/2018
» It is hard to imagine what went through the trapped teenagers' minds when two British divers suddenly emerged from the murky depths of Tham Luang cave on Monday night. They were the first people the kids had seen in nine dark days. But that first exchange told everyone what they wanted to hear. "How many of you? Thirteen? Brilliant!'' They had not lost anyone, and it was indeed brilliant news.