• OPINION

  Delicate art of being nasty and nice

  Roger Crutchley, Published on 31/03/2024

  » One word we have been subjected to almost on a daily basis recently is "diplomacy" as politicians grapple with the world's woes without much success. A dictionary definition of diplomacy is "tact or skill in dealing with people". Unfortunately it is more complex than that as the world is in such a mess. Perhaps Ambrose Bierce was nearer the mark in his Devil's Dictionary when he described diplomacy as "the patriotic art of lying for one's country".

• OPINION

  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.

• OPINION

  Anthem angst and hits the singers hate

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 01/12/2019

  » Rod Stewart is currently on tour in the UK belting out all his old songs, including Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?, which is admittedly pushing it a bit for someone the age of 74. The old rocker has confessed in the past that he dislikes singing that number, but the fans always demand it. This appears to be an occupational hazard among singing stars.

• OPINION

  The Stones just keep rolling along

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 17/07/2022

  » This past week marked the 60th anniversary of the Rolling Stones' first-ever gig which took place at the Marquee club in London. That makes me feel even more wrinkly than usual.

• OPINION

  It's feeling a bit on the warm side

  Roger Crutchley, Published on 07/04/2024

  » It was Oscar Wilde who observed that "conversation about the weather is the last refuge of the unimaginative". He might have had a point but it means there are a lot of unimaginative people in Thailand at present. I can hardly recall a conversation lately without a reference to the heat. It has definitely been "a bit on the warm side".

• OPINION

  It's all aboard for the Land of Nod

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 07/11/2021

  » You may have seen a news item during the week on how Hong Kong has launched a special bus service named the "Sleeping Bus Tour" for citizens who are desperate for forty winks. Apparently there are a lot of insomniacs in Hong Kong as a result of the stress of living in one of the world's busiest cities.

• OPINION

  Unearthing the true meaning of tea money

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 23/05/2021

  » Thanks to readers for their entertaining comments and emails on last week's PostScript concerning the delights of drinking tea. There were assorted inspiring tales of eccentric tea ladies, quirky tea-time habits and important song lyrics I had overlooked.

• OPINION

  Final curtain for 'Forces Sweetheart'

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 21/06/2020

  » It was sad to learn of the passing of Dame Vera Lynn, Britain's wartime singer known as the "Forces Sweetheart''. Although she was 103, her death still came as a shock as she was one of those inspirational people you thought would go on forever.

• OPINION

  From Abbey Road to Sukhumvit Road

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 29/09/2019

  » There seems to have been a never-ending stream of 50th anniversaries this year, all of which have contributed to me feeling increasingly wrinkly.

• OPINION

  More a sorry scrawl than a signature

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 15/09/2019

  » Visiting the bank the other day I had to sign a bunch of documents that no doubt would be carefully filed away to collect dust in a basement, never to be seen again. By the time I had finished I was uncomfortably aware that no two signatures of mine are exactly the same, even when written in close succession.

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