Archive for July, 2011


What do these web sites have in common? (1)

July 18th, 2011 by Roger Darlington

Liberal Conspiracy (creating a new left voice) Labourlist (where Labour minded people come together to share news and opinions and have a laugh) Next Left ( a blog about politics and the future.) Harry’s Place (“Liberty, if it means anything, is the right to tell people what they don’t want to hear”) ToUChstone blog (policy […]

Posted in Internet | Comments (1)


My new public appointment concerning digital radio

July 18th, 2011 by Roger Darlington

The Minister for Culture, Communications & Creative Industries Ed Vaizey has invited me to take over as the Chair of the Digital Consumer Electronic Group which has previously been ably chaired by Leen Petre of the RNIB. For most of its life, this Group – which advises the Government on the consumer view regarding digital […]

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A review of “No Strings Attached”

July 18th, 2011 by Roger Darlington

“No Strings Attached” has a similar question to “When Harry Met Sally” but it’s not in the same class – my review here.

Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)


Would you like a house with 27 bathrooms?

July 17th, 2011 by Roger Darlington

Vee is fascinated by property television programmes and property web sites and she has today drawn my attention to this particular house. Apparently the place has become notorious because it is priced at £70 million and has been on the market for seven years. As a result, it features in this article in today’s “Observer”. […]

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Hackgate: The Movie

July 17th, 2011 by Roger Darlington

Believe me, there will be a film of this – and a television documentary and a book and a play (and maybe even a musical).

Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)


Can a ‘nudge’ change our behaviour?

July 17th, 2011 by Roger Darlington

Currently I’m reading a book called “The Social Animal” by David Books. This is all about how we can understand and shape human behaviour. One theory of behavioural change is that it is best accomplished by ‘nudges’ rather than compulsion. This is the central proposition of the appropriately-name book “Nudge” which I’ve reviewed here. In […]

Posted in Social policy | Comments (0)


Which American politician said this? (1)

July 17th, 2011 by Roger Darlington

“There is no position on which people are so immovable as their religious beliefs. There is no more powerful ally one can claim in a debate than Jesus Christ, or God, or Allah, or whatever one calls this supreme being. But like any powerful weapon, the use of God’s name on one’s behalf should be […]

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A review of “Bridesmaids”

July 16th, 2011 by Roger Darlington

A big hit states-side, “Bridesmaids” is doing well in the UK too.  You can read my review here.

Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)


Back with my beautiful granddaughter

July 15th, 2011 by Roger Darlington

My gorgeous granddaughter Catrin will be exactly half a year old on Sunday. I’ve been very fortunate in how often I’ve been able to see her because we live in the same city but, until this week, I had not seen her for four weeks (she has been in France most of the time with […]

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How serious is fuel poverty in Britain – and how much worse will it get?

July 14th, 2011 by Roger Darlington

Fuel poverty means being unable to afford to keep warm. The Government considers a household to be in fuel poverty if it needs to spend more than 10 percent of its income on fuel for adequate heating (usually 21 degrees for the main living area and 18 degrees for other occupied rooms). The Centre of […]

Posted in Consumer matters, Social policy | Comments (1)