Today I took a break from seeking jobs and gazing into the fire to walk along the coast to Whitstable and back. The path was busy with dog walkers and cyclists, so I stuck to the shore line and stared at the egrets and oystercatchers. Whitstable itself isn’t designed for cars, but is inundated withContinue reading “Whitstable”
Category Archives: Diary
Cycling in the dark: an appreciation
Yesterday some new super-powerful front lights arrived, to replace the ones lost in the midst of one of my many bouts of forgetfulness. I’m now back to my preferred set up of two back lights – one flashing, one constant – and two front lights. The beefier of the two front ones is only requiredContinue reading “Cycling in the dark: an appreciation”
Cliffe
On Friday I went to the estuary to meet a dog. We met at the village of Cliffe, which feels like a village at the end of the world. The road ends at the church, and then there’s mud, and marsh, and channels of water leading down to the grey old Thames. But humans haveContinue reading “Cliffe”
Reculver
Today’s bike jaunt took me to the edge of Thanet, and the remains of the Roman fort at the head of the Wantsum Channel [1]. It’s a lovely spot. It reminds me of Dunwich, with its ruined monastery and the sense that this place used to be more important than it now is. And thisContinue reading “Reculver”
Herne Bay to Canterbury
I cycled to Canterbury and back today, out of desperation to get further than half a mile from the house. From Herne Bay, the easiest route by bike takes you out past Greenhill and over the Thanet Way. A sorry-looking ex-pub decomposes in its plot next to the dual carriageway. You then pass up throughContinue reading “Herne Bay to Canterbury”
Cats and Podcast Production
The title to this blog post could have been written by an algorithm, but it is an accurate summary of my weekend. I glued together the latest episode of Next Level Sketch, like a cut and shunt but with clown cars. I edited out the silences, and added some jingles and an intro. I’m superContinue reading “Cats and Podcast Production”
A Universal Translator for Fish
Like Elastica but with less heroin addiction, my podcast Sketches That Never Quite Made It made a belated return last night, after a three month hiatus. It was good to come back to it with fresh ears and new bad ideas. Listening back to earlier episodes, the podcast has taken a while to find itsContinue reading “A Universal Translator for Fish”
Next Level Sketch: October show at Hoopla Impro, The Miller
We did it. We actually returned to a stage and put on a show! As I’ve written about before, I’m a producer for Next Level Sketch, a sketch comedy collective founded in late 2019, with a mind to do regular sketch comedy nights, as a) we enjoy writing and performing them and b) we feltContinue reading “Next Level Sketch: October show at Hoopla Impro, The Miller”
Goodbye to the Elephant
The redevelopment of Elephant & Castle is a miserable story of greed, exploitation and corruption, extensively documented by Southwark Notes over the years. The Heygate estate is now the miserable Elephant Park, and now the shopping centre itself is coming to its end. It is to be demolished and replaced by a shiny new development.Continue reading “Goodbye to the Elephant”
Socially Distanced Soho
Remember when lockdown ended and everyone was horrified by the images of crowds drinking in Old Compton Street? The government and client journalist communities have moved on to blaming foreigners and specifically Muslims for the ongoing pandemic. Meanwhile Soho’s independent and less independent businesses have been grappling with how to continue to exist. The deathContinue reading “Socially Distanced Soho”
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