Archive for May, 2017


How well does the British Parliament scrutinise legislation?

May 9th, 2017 by Roger Darlington

In the British political system, almost all legislation is proposed by the Government and much of it comes from promises made in the manifesto of the relevant political party at the last election. At the beginning of each annual session of the Parliament, the main Bills to be considered are announced by the Queen in […]

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A review of the new horror movie “Get Out”

May 7th, 2017 by Roger Darlington

OK, so this is a horror film which is not a genre I normally entertain and I would probably have never seen it if friends had not taken me. But this is a horror film which is as smart as it is scary, featuring a clever plot with some sharp twists, a political satire on […]

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A review of the 1982 classic film “Gandhi”

May 5th, 2017 by Roger Darlington

When I first saw this classic film at the cinema, the audience applauded at both the intermission and the end (it is a long work of 188 minutes). Although the narrative covers over five decades in Gandhi’s life, a major segment concerns the the process by which independence of India and Pakistan was brought about […]

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Ever heard of the notion of nominative determinism?

May 3rd, 2017 by Roger Darlington

Nominative determinism is the hypothesis that people tend to gravitate towards areas of work that fit their names. The term was first used in the magazine “New Scientist” in 1994, after the magazine’s humorous Feedback column noted several studies carried out by researchers with remarkably fitting surnames. These included a book on polar explorations by […]

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A review of the play “The Philanthropist”

May 2nd, 2017 by Roger Darlington

I don’t go to the theatre anywhere near as often as I should like but I’ve resolved to change this. I recently became one of the last people in the UK to se the musical “Les Miserables”. Then, this weekend, I went to see a play at the Trafalgar Studios in London. It was “The […]

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