• OPINION

  Food for thought and deep pockets

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 17/12/2017

  » Reading about the launch of Bangkok's first-ever Michelin Guide, I felt a little guilty having just consumed my own gourmet dish of baked beans on toast. A generous topping of grated parmesan cheese hardly lifted it into a creation that would win the approval of a Michelin bon vivant. Anyway, congratulations to all the restaurants that get a mention, even though I can't afford them. I wonder if any of them do a chip butty or mushy peas?

• OPINION

  A look back at another 'amazing' year

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 31/12/2017

  » It is customary at this time of the year to take a not too serious look back on the past 12 months, although there are some events you may well prefer to forget. If nothing else it will serve as a reminder that Thailand will always be Truly Amazing.

• OPINION

  Well, after that things can only get better

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 27/12/2020

  » What a dreadful year. We found ourselves having to tackle a whole new vocabulary and most of the words were enough to make even the most optimistic among us depressed. It all began in March with "self-isolation", a horrible expression inferring you have become a hermit, hidden away, exiled, incommunicado, which in fact is exactly what we were.

• OPINION

  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.

• OPINION

  Brits can still put on a good show

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 14/05/2023

  » Considering how depressing the world news has been lately, the coronation of King Charles III last weekend provided a brief diversion. It might not be everybody's cup of tea but the Brits certainly know how to put on a show if a bit of history is involved. They're good at pomp and pageantry and most importantly love a parade with plenty of horses.

• OPINION

  Home alone … a case of bad timing

  Oped, Roger Crutchley, Published on 18/07/2021

  » The emotional events at Wembley Stadium last Sunday inevitably stirred personal memories of a similar happening with a different outcome 55 years previously in the summer of 1966.

• OPINION

  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.

• OPINION

  The Ides of March and perils of power

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 12/03/2023

  » This Wednesday will be the 74th day of the year, which admittedly doesn't sound like something to get too excited about. But it is not just any old day. Known in Roman times as the "Ides of March" the 15th marks the anniversary of the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC.

• OPINION

  Joking aside, it's time for a quick groan

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 28/08/2022

  » The news has been rather gloomy lately and it feels like an appropriate time for some light relief. What better than to check out which jokes from stand-up comedians were voted the funniest at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe which concludes tomorrow. Unfortunately this year's offerings are either not particularly funny or I can't understand them. Perhaps I'm getting too ancient to appreciate modern wit. Anyway prepare yourself for a few quick groans.

• OPINION

  '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".

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