news

In a great example of how to do PR well, a letter appeared in the Times last week, urging the government “to consider the value of self-care” – and reassuring us that “self-care does not mean no care”.  The letter, which comes from “a coalition of leading health and pharmacy organisations” highlights their “blueprint for…

In these troubled times, surely what the nation is crying out for is a bit of cognitive dissonance. We could all do with a bit of diversion from the fear of falling in the shower, or having a stroke while ambulance crews, nurses and shortly, junior doctors, withdraw their services in protest at (in part), the…

Visit Qatar’s shiny new website and it states that every visit to Qatar starts with a feeling. Boy, have they got that right.  Feelings have been somewhat on public display since the World Cup circus rolled into the Emirate last week. While diehard travelling soccer fans will no doubt be enjoying the glow of warmth the State…

The BBC has just launched a new drama, SAS: Rogue Heroes. It’s the (almost) true story of the formation of the Special Air Service, and is based on a terrific book by Ben Macintyre. In many ways, it’s a salutary lesson in how it takes real disruptors to do things differently, make change and above all,…

In troubled times, turning to Jane Austen can provide a little respite. Her prose uses parody, burlesque, irony, free indirect speech and a degree of realism. No shortage of material for her style at the moment, then. Penned over two hundred years ago, some passages resonate today. For example, in Pride and Prejudice, Mr Bennet, unable…

Travel so it’s said, broadens the mind. This was presumably murmured wistfully in the era of flying boats and the sheer glamour of being abroad, and well before the days of mass tourism. Still, one of the smaller pleasures of taking an early morning train is the prospect of a calorific Pret croissant and coffee. Now, there’s…

The phrase on many people’s lips this week might have been, who would do that? None more so perhaps, than on those of M People. The Manchester band members were reported to be livid when they heard their 90’s banger, Movin’ on Up, used as Liz Truss’ walk on number for her conference speech.  Allegedly…