Writer I write stories that help you and me understand the world (and ourselves) a little better. Every Friday, I send said stories out to a self-selecting group of well-regarded and discerning readers. You can join our ranks by signing up here. I am co-writer (with Beth Granville) of BBC Radio sitcom Foiled, set in … Continue reading About me Writer, Speaker, Outdoor Leader and Cyclist-At-Large
This is something I’ve been working with for a while. The premise is simple: don’t spend any money on Mondays. This is a fairly meaty post, so I’ll cut to the chase: Why No Money Mondays? It helps me to be more mindful of money, of how easy it is to spend, and how pointless. … Continue reading No Money Mondays
The louage driver slaps my hand and gives me a toothy smile. “Ahh, 2011!” he says, then gives me directions to the giant hand-cart. I’m in Sidi Bouzid. It’s a town in central Tunisia. A working town, like any other. It reminds me of Sfax, only smaller and with zero tourists and zero tourist appeal. Except for … Continue reading Cycling to the Sahara: Tunisia after the revolution
The town of Marseille is dishonest. That’s how it seems to me. And I don’t mean that as you might think. I don’t mean it because a friend of mine got pick-pocketed twice within an hour of arriving here. That’s ridiculous. That could happen anywhere. It certainly didn’t happen to me. The tangle of streets … Continue reading (Not) Cycling to the Sahara: Marseille 2
What is Camp Ashraf? Camp Ashraf is a community of 3,400 Iranian exiles and refugees who fled their country in the years following Iran’s Islamic revolution. It is located 60km north of Baghdad, in Iraq. Who lives there? The camp is famous (or infamous) as a centre for the banned Iranian opposition group the People’s … Continue reading A massacre you haven’t heard of yet: Camp Ashraf, Iraq
Quite simply: the best Dylan show I’ve ever heard. Okay so that’s only out of two, but it was also right up there with all the live recordings I’ve heard: The Rolling Thunder Revue of 1975, the Halloween Show in 1964, 1965 at the BBC, and even the infamous 1966 tour of England. Honestly. Every … Continue reading Bob Dylan live at London Feis 18 June 2011
For those of you who missed it, here’s a link to ME, live on BBC Radio Scotland with MacAulay & Co:David Charles on BBC Radio Scotland Highlights: RG: “Did anyone stop who looked like Rutger Hauer?”DC: Who the f*** is Rutger Hauer? “Ha ha ha…” DC: “I’ve met squaddies, religious fanatics, mine investors, hydroelectric dam … Continue reading MacAulay & Co: The Programme
The Rise of Meditation in the West Meditation in the West has seen a burst of popularity since the 1960s. An Australian survey in 2002 found that 11% of people in Western Australia have practised meditation at least once in their lives. A 2007 government study in the United States found that 9.4% of people … Continue reading Sleep, Meditation and Dreaming
On the 16th of December 2010, about forty people crammed into a small lecture theatre on a snowy night in London. Just one week on from the tuition fees protest, the topic of this evening’s event could not have been more timely. Why am I an activist? This is a very personal question – why … Continue reading UCL Friends of Palestine: Why Am I An Activist?
“I’m no prophet…” says Norman Finkelstein, slayer of myths and self-hating Jew, before proceeding to unveil a monumental international conspiracy: the impending Israeli invasion of Lebanon, due, according to Finkelstein’s crystal ball, in the next 12-18 months. It was interesting hearing this Rottweiler of verifiable fact and reason succumb to the seductions of speculation. but … Continue reading Norman Finkelstein on Gaza and Israel’s Sinister Conspiracy
This is the story of The Little Red Fiat. You’ve probably seen it, haven’t you, in the Tate Modern? It was painted by my little boy – not so little now, but he was back then. Probably about twelve I think, when he painted that one. But he started painting them when he was only … Continue reading The Little Red Fiat
It is now illegal to give food to scruffy looking types in two US cities: Las Vegas and Orlando. Two new ordinances in these cities, passed on the 20th of July in Las Vegas and the 26th of July in Orlando, mean that people on government support cannot eat in a public place for free … Continue reading Don’t Feed the Human
