Month: September 2018

Give Peas A Chance – London loses its most seen graffiti

There aren’t many things in life that one can rely on in life and over the last few days hundreds of thousands of London commuters have had to deal with something that even puts Brexit in the shade.  Namely the loss of possibly the most seen graffiti in London if not all of the U.K.… Continue reading Give Peas A Chance – London loses its most seen graffiti

Up Close and Personal with the Greenwich Painted Hall Ceiling

Two weeks ago you may have seen my post on the Painted Hall in Greenwich which is often referred to as the Sistine Chapel of England.  The artwork is 300 years old however and due to age, wear and tear and earlier attempts at preservation, the imagery had become very dark and rather indistinguishable from… Continue reading Up Close and Personal with the Greenwich Painted Hall Ceiling

The day we rioted as the government stole 11 days of our lives!

If you think moving the clock an hour in October is a tedious, weird thing to do that only cheats you of an hour of precious useful daylight in the evening then do spare a thought for our forebears who centuries ago were trying to come to terms with the government stealing 11 days of… Continue reading The day we rioted as the government stole 11 days of our lives!

A holiday from hell for two Russian murderers!

I’ve been on my fair share of nightmare holidays.  Sank on the Nile, cars blown up, marooned in a live mine-field… that sort of thing but even I haven’t had quite as rough a time as Ruslan Boshirov and Alexander Petrov, Russia’s answer to Michael Palin or Levison Wood. Just two every day men, absolutely not… Continue reading A holiday from hell for two Russian murderers!

The Painted Hall of Greenwich – Englands Sistine Chapel

Said by many to be the English equivalent of the Sistine Chapel, The Painted Hall at the Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich is one of the most spectacular and important baroque interiors in Europe. You might get some idea what awaits when you first arrive at the Cutty Sark station or as I prefer to… Continue reading The Painted Hall of Greenwich – Englands Sistine Chapel

The Tale of the Cursed Amethyst at the Natural History Museum in London

Whilst preparing for a tour tomorrow to the Natural History Museum in London, I thought I should do a reconnaisance sortie as well as a bit of research.  The museum is a work of art and shows what value Victorians placed on education.     Amethysts were used as charms by the ancient Greeks to… Continue reading The Tale of the Cursed Amethyst at the Natural History Museum in London

How do you like your tea?

We are often labelled a nation of animal lovers, gardeners, shopkeepers, queue-ers, weather-watchers, good manners and apologising etc etc but surely there are few things that we are better known for than for our love of a good cup of tea. I don’t drink coffee, I don’t even like the smell.  All those stupid and ever… Continue reading How do you like your tea?