Month: May 2016

The Battle of Jutland

Today marks the centenary anniversary of the single most important naval battle of WW1 and as I have been doing for the last few years, I thought I would write a dedicated post taken from extracts of my WW1 history book, Lest We Forget, published by Endeavour Press of London. For centuries, the Royal Navy… Continue reading The Battle of Jutland

Losing your marbles – A real life conversation!

Yesterday morning I had an early morning appointment at the garage to get my car serviced.  Happily it passed its test but instead of waiting around the garage for an hour, I went into town to buy some provisions and visit the bank. Whilst I was standing outside the bank, waiting for it to open… Continue reading Losing your marbles – A real life conversation!

Kindness From Strangers When Travelling

How do you like to travel?   Despite spending my time providing all-inclusive tours in London and around the U.K. when it comes to travelling myself, I really like to rough it with the locals.  Though I can understand the attraction of having everything sorted in a foreign country, I always like to experience the… Continue reading Kindness From Strangers When Travelling

When did Cinema become so infantile?

I have a day off today and I thought I would go to the cinema this morning but then it struck me how there is absolutely nothing of any merit playing on one of the many, many screens at the local multiplex. I know I’m not the only one who thinks this and even genre… Continue reading When did Cinema become so infantile?

Friday the 13th – Why is 13 the unlucky number?

The fear of the number 13 or even Friday the 13th even has a name, Paraskevidekatriaphobia – from the Greek words paraskeví (meaning ‘Friday’), and dekatreís (meaning ‘thirteen’). The fear of the number 13 itself is called Triskaidekaphobia. Partly this is due to the number 12 being seen as being a good number; a number of… Continue reading Friday the 13th – Why is 13 the unlucky number?

Thomas Coram and The Foundling Hospital

Whilst researching for a new book which I am writing on ‘Things To Do In London’, I came across a park which piqued my curiosity.  The park is called Coram’s Fields and remarkably it is only open to children with adults only being able to enter if they are accompanying young children themselves. I thought for… Continue reading Thomas Coram and The Foundling Hospital

3 Quotation Challenge

Greetings! I’ve been nominated by Amy Reese to participate in the Quotations Challenge in which one provides three quotations over the next three days or all in one post. I choose three quotes in one day, mostly because I’m busy and can’t guarantee when I am next on my blog.  I don’t normally do challenges,… Continue reading 3 Quotation Challenge

Are you a Global Citizen?

I’ve always thought the concept of patriotism and especially nationalism to be a very weird and most likely stupid and illogical idea.  It just makes no sense to me that people from any individual country can believe on whatever level that they are in the best country in the world or that they are in… Continue reading Are you a Global Citizen?

Amazing maps tracking the cargo ships of the world

I’ve posted plenty of posts dedicated to maps over the years but none quite like this.  This special project was undertaken by UCL and Kiln in London and tracks all the major cargo vessels of the world.  As well as being fascinating to look at, the project also had the aim of raising awareness of… Continue reading Amazing maps tracking the cargo ships of the world