In my last post, on the case of Jimmy Savile, I wrote about the dark side of celebrity. We live in a society obsessed with celebrities – the gods of this secular age. And we try to convince ourselves that fame would guarantee entry into a perfect region of love, wealth and success. Yet theContinue reading “Searching for Love… And Craving Celebrity”
Category Archives: life
The Big Bad Wolf, the Human Capacity to Deceive, and the Case of Jimmy Savile
In recent weeks many of us have been shocked by the case of Jimmy Savile and the BBC, and wondered how someone who did so much good in the world could turn out to have such a dark side. The case of Jimmy Savile should make us all look with new eyes at the cultContinue reading “The Big Bad Wolf, the Human Capacity to Deceive, and the Case of Jimmy Savile”
The Heavenly Choir, Voices of Lothlorien, and Glimpses of Eternity
The most profound emotions, the deepest experiences of the human spirit may be evoked by the sound of a heavenly choir. There has often been debate about which is the greatest musical instrument. And of course each of us will have different favourites. It has been said, for instance, that the grand pipe organ isContinue reading “The Heavenly Choir, Voices of Lothlorien, and Glimpses of Eternity”
Beyond The Scream of Edvard Munch, into Reflections on Identity
The other day I was reading through the typescript of the novel I wrote about my university life, finished a few years after I graduated: it was called “A Degree Without Honour“. I had some astonishing shafts of self-knowledge from it… things I was entirely unconscious of whilst writing it. I was trying to seeContinue reading “Beyond The Scream of Edvard Munch, into Reflections on Identity”
Childhood Imaginary Worlds
When I was a little girl, my friend Alison and I created imaginary worlds. One of these was the land we named “Coneland”. We wrote stories about the royal family of this land; at the bottom righthand corner of the map is the palace and the royal park, situated of course in the capital city,Continue reading “Childhood Imaginary Worlds”
Special Time, Ordinary Time, and the Time the Weeping Angels Snatch
Who’d have thought there’s a connection between emigrating to a far country, and being snatched by one of Doctor Who’s greatest foes: the Weeping Angels? But I believe there is. The Weeping Angels played a vital role in the plot of the latest Doctor Who Episode, “The Angels Take Manhattan”, during which we, and theContinue reading “Special Time, Ordinary Time, and the Time the Weeping Angels Snatch”
People of Inspiration Part 4 – Rob Parsons, Gifted Communicator Who Inspires, Moves and Warns
“You don’t have to have everything together to make a difference to people’s lives. You just have to share your brokenness.” So says Rob Parsons, author, public speaker, and founder of the charity Care For the Family. “Most people don’t want answers,” says Rob. “They can find their own answers. They just want to knowContinue reading “People of Inspiration Part 4 – Rob Parsons, Gifted Communicator Who Inspires, Moves and Warns”
A World of Wonders at Leavesden Studios
On a recent visit to the Harry Potter tour at the Warner Brothers Studios in Leavesden, I was moved. Not simply by the moment when I and my two children first stepped into the Hogwarts Great Hall, or by the moment when I first came upon the model of Hogwarts Castle, or when I firstContinue reading “A World of Wonders at Leavesden Studios”
A Man We Owe Our Freedom To
On a recent visit to the Churchill War Rooms in London, I experienced in my imagination what it would have been like to work as part of Winston Churchill’s team underground during the Second World War. As I walked through the offices and passed the displays and spent time in the Churchill Museum, I wasContinue reading “A Man We Owe Our Freedom To”
Skillman & Sons: The Tool Shop Opposite the Woolwich Ferry – and Traditional Britain Reborn
The London postal service once had to deliver a letter from India addressed as follows: “The tool shop opposite the Woolwich Ferry London” It arrived safely at its destination: A.D. Skillman & Sons, 108 Woolwich High Street, London SE18. Skillman and Sons of Woolwich (founded by my grandfather Alfred Daniel in 1900) was a bywordContinue reading “Skillman & Sons: The Tool Shop Opposite the Woolwich Ferry – and Traditional Britain Reborn”
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