Monthly Archives: January 2010

The Colours of Sport, or How Andy Murray Lost It

Posted on January 31, 2010 by

Is a sporting contest worth anything without an audience? The answer to this question is undoubtedly, Yes: my squash fixture against Ben the Hat is a key focal point of my week, and I take it most seriously, fitness wise … Continue reading →

Posted in And She Laughed No More, She Stood There Laughing | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

If you really want to hear about it

Posted on January 29, 2010 by

the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where he was born, and what his lousy childhood was like, and how his parents were occupied and all before they had him, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, … Continue reading →

Posted in Strides | Tagged , | 5 Comments

For grey_man

Posted on January 28, 2010 by

Grey_man, who is also know as Mark_Elt, loves Bjork, so here for him, and to continue the theme of Indie Love Song Week, here is the great Hit! by the Sugarcubes. This wasn’t supposed to happen/I was happy by myself… … Continue reading →

Posted in From Working-Class Hero to Absolute Disgrace (A Memoir | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

A Scattering

Posted on January 27, 2010 by

Well done to Christopher Reid for achieving the almost impossible and winning a cross-genre national book prize – the Costa – with a collection of poetry. I’ve read other of Christopher’s collections and heard him read. He’s very good, specialising … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 13 Comments

Wild Horses

Posted on January 26, 2010 by

After a busy morning’s faffing about I was very late having my breakfast. This situation saw me settling down with a bowl of porridge to watch the 2.40 “E. B. F. Mares’ ‘national Hunt’ Novices’ Hurdle (qualifier)” from Leicester. I … Continue reading →

Posted in From Working-Class Hero to Absolute Disgrace (A Memoir, Walking Ollie | Tagged , , , , , , | 12 Comments

The Amazon World Ranking

Posted on January 25, 2010 by

All writers are obsessed with this figure, checking it every hour on the hour in the early days of a book release. And She Laughed No More never did all that much on this basis, or any other basis either, … Continue reading →

Posted in And She Laughed No More | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Herbert Chapman, Lee Dixon, Charlie George, Bob Wilson, Nick Hornby, Dennis Bergkamp, Tony Adams, Bertie Mee, Highbury Library, Baudelaire, et numerous Homme Français…

Posted on January 24, 2010 by

…we certainly showed you boys!!! GOOOOOOOAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRNNNNNNNN STOKE! Monsieur Pulîs (Le Gaffer du Stoke): Il dit, ‘Oublie pas le beautiful game, mais regardez Rory Delap (‘Le Kiddie triffic’) – Il stick it to ‘em à bientôt with beaucoup scuds de ‘la … Continue reading →

Posted in And She Laughed No More, She Stood There Laughing | Tagged , , , , | 18 Comments

Confession: I slightly cheated on this wildlife photo

Posted on January 21, 2010 by

My office is in the attic where, due to some expert plumbing arrangements, the radiator only gets a tiny bit warm and is totally ineffective. I’m currently working in a jumper and scarf and my breath hangs in the air … Continue reading →

Posted in Along Came Dylan, Fetching Dylan, Walking Ollie | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Wolf Update – Breach of Rule 10

Posted on January 20, 2010 by

Blog visitors might remember the story about the award winning but staged-looking wildlife photography picture that I posted just before Christmas. A decision has now been made regarding its likely ‘authenticity.’ The following sorry tale appears on the Natural History … Continue reading →

Posted in Along Came Dylan, Fetching Dylan, Walking Ollie | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Small pleasures

Posted on January 19, 2010 by

As I am currently trying to get stuck into a novel I spent part of the afternoon ironing four shirts. Three of the four are over five years old so the cotton is just perfect for softness and is properly … Continue reading →

Posted in Strides | Tagged , | 13 Comments