Domain remove BOOKCHEF

Above is blue sky, the pale tender blue of an early spring, crossed by wisps of smoky cloud blown by a sharp breeze. There is a call, a shrill cry, and the form of a bird of prey, long wings outstretched, drifts over the bare trees.  The grey brown of its feathers can be seen and its head moves fro…

I Don’t you just love the smell of old books. That whiff of history. ‘Local Radio in the Public Interest’ was a delicious aquamarine pamphlet, published proudly by the BBC in February 1966 as it laid claim to local radio. If there were to be a local radio network once more, the BBC should bloody we…

For over 45 years I have had some kind of relationship with the work of the educator J Krishnamurti.  I have seen him, heard him speak, I have read books, watched videos and listened to audio recordings; I met him briefly once, but he was more interested in my young children than he was in me.  The…

People move from place to place, some search, some flee and others resignedly take whatever faces them.  For centuries there have been the nomadic survivors creating a way of life that gives attention to both the land and people’s needs; ensuring that the delicate balance is maintained and life con…

It occurred to me the other day just how many passionate radio folk also have an unhealthy interest in public transport.  There's clearly a good reason why we both have 'stations' and 'platforms'. A talented colleague, poised to book a fascinating trip of disused Tube stations, …

S Reith did not invent the phrase  ‘inform, educate, entertain ’, I learnt from today's BBC's Charter review proposal documen t.  I really like facts like that. No, it was clever old David Sarnoff, the founder of commercial radio in the US. He wrote that its function was “entertaining, info…

Bridlesmith Gate lies at the heart of Nottingham's fashionable quarter.   Jack Wills nestles near to Diesel; Flannels close to Ted Baker; and Paul Smith's quaint original shop lives on just a stone's throw away. Number 4 Bridlesmith Gate stands towards the St. Peters' Gate end of th…

My old man is 94. He loves his mobile phone and his iPad;  and merrily plays Olly Murs loudly from YouTube. He banks online.  He's not old-fashioned. And he says he doesn't feel old. Whilst he likes Olly and Leona Lewis; he also enjoys Doris Day and the harmonies of the Beach Boys.  Whilst …