Archive for August, 2013


A review of the sci-fi movie “Elysium”

August 31st, 2013 by Roger Darlington

If you enjoyed the science fiction film “District 9”, this is something for which you have been waiting for four years. You can read my review here.

Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)


A review of the Hungarian novel “Embers”

August 31st, 2013 by Roger Darlington

By an author of whom you have never heard, it was first published in Hungarian in 1942; it was only translated into English in 2001; and I have just read it and reviewed it here.

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Vee and Saskia brave the South Bank Starflyer

August 30th, 2013 by Roger Darlington

Vee and I spent this afternoon with my brother Ralph, his partner Carol, and their daughter Saskia who was 10 this week. They live in Manchester but have been down in London this week visiting relatives and attending the Notting Hill Carnival. We passed the time on London’s South Bank which is always lively, especially […]

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50 years on and poorer children in Britain are still born to fail

August 30th, 2013 by Roger Darlington

In a report published today, children’s charity the National Children’s Bureau is calling for urgent action to address the poverty and disadvantage that still wreaks havoc on children’s lives, causing them to lag far behind their more affluent peers in almost all areas of their lives, from health to education, early development to housing. Furthermore, […]

Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)


Bashar al-Assad helpfully sets out the options for the Western allies

August 29th, 2013 by Roger Darlington

See his guest posting here.

Posted in World current affairs | Comments (0)


Why is a minute divided into 60 seconds, an hour into 60 minutes, yet there are only 24 hours in a day?

August 28th, 2013 by Roger Darlington

All is revealed in this short but informative essay.

Posted in History, Miscellaneous | Comments (0)


The “I have a dream” speech – the actual text

August 28th, 2013 by Roger Darlington

Fifty years ago today, Martin Luther King made his famous “I have a dream” speech in Washington DC. You can read the full text here. You can see a 17 minute video of the march here:

Posted in History | Comments (0)


Ever been to Glossop?

August 27th, 2013 by Roger Darlington

No, I didn’t think so – and I hadn’t been there for half a century until this week. Glossop is a lovely market own in Derbyshire which bills itself as the gateway to the Peak District. I was brought up in the nearby city of Manchester and  a boy at my school actually lived in […]

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A male politician to watch: America’s Cory Booker

August 25th, 2013 by Roger Darlington

Could Cory Booker be a future President of the United States? Check out this profile of the Democratic Mayor of Newark. I spotted Barack Obama as Presidential material four years before he entered the White House, as I have blogged here.

Posted in American current affairs | Comments (0)


A female politician to watch: Britain’s Stella Creasy

August 25th, 2013 by Roger Darlington

Could Stella Creasy be a future Leader of the British Labour Party? Check out this profile of the Member of Parliament for Walthamstow. I first spotted her two and a half years ago at this event.

Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)