• OPINION

  'Flying comma' suffers a bumpy landing

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 15/12/2019

  » Although it didn't make the headlines, there was a small item of news last week that will sadden those who treasure the English language. It looks like the poor old apostrophe is coming to a full stop. Finally admitting defeat, the chairman of Britain's Apostrophe Protection Society dedicated to preserving the much-abused punctuation mark, threw in the towel and announced it was all over, stating "the ignorance and laziness in modern times have won".

• OPINION

  The Early Bird has made his last flight

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 08/03/2020

  » Over the years there have been many talented foreigners who made Thailand their home. One such person was Australian Jim Davison who pioneered English language radio broadcasting after arriving in 1966 and continued for five decades. I am sad to report Davison passed away in Australia recently at the grand age of 104.

• OPINION

  The man in the 'rather uncomfy' mask

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 03/05/2020

  » Despite diligently wearing a face mask on rare excursions out of the house, I admit to not particularly enjoying the experience, finding the masks quite stifling. Admittedly that's a small sacrifice if it keeps me and others healthy. I certainly wouldn't make a good masked bandit. It's probably the long farang nose that's the problem. I don't envy the many people who have to wear a mask all day, especially in the tropical heat.

• OPINION

  Well, it's only a slogan after all

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 24/05/2020

  » The Tourism Authority of Thailand has decreed that the "Amazing Thailand" slogan will need rebranding once the coronavirus situation is sorted out. So from October, we will be treated to "Amazing Trusted Thailand", emphasising safety and aimed at "high-end" tourists. Well-intentioned as it may be, this new slogan doesn't exactly roll off the tongue and the middle word may prompt a few wry smiles.

• OPINION

  The milkman who became a secret agent

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 08/11/2020

  » To briefly escape from the US election mayhem, an appreciation of actor Sean Connery who died last week aged 90, seems to be in order. I had somehow thought Connery would go on forever, just like the Bond films. It is an intriguing tale of an Edinburgh milkman who became the most famous fictional spy in the world.

• OPINION

  Never underestimate the dog lovers' vote

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 15/11/2020

  » It was Harry Truman who famously advised would-be presidents: "If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog." President Donald Trump did not heed that advice, becoming the first US president in well over a century not to have a pet of some sort in the White House.

• OPINION

  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.

• OPINION

  Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 20/12/2020

  » In the mid-1970s, while travelling on the slowest train in the world from Bangkok to Kanchanaburi, I recall reading a substantial chunk of John Le Carre's espionage novel, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. Though not a fast-paced book, it still had more momentum than the wretched train.

• OPINION

  A chimp that became a space pioneer

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 31/01/2021

  » Today marks the 60th anniversary of the first chimpanzee in space. Not a lot of people know that.

• OPINION

  It's always 'bath' time in Thailand

  News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 07/03/2021

  » Flying in to a very quiet Suvarnabhumi recently I noticed the official ticket for the airport taxi still informs us of an additional "50 bath" (sic) you will be required to pay the driver at the end of the journey. The "bath" has been there since the ticket was introduced six years ago, so you can forgive what few tourists there are these days for believing they will be dealing in "baths" during their stay.

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