The Isle of Portland is not actually the home of a Moloch-worshipping blood-sacrifice cult (at least not the one I wrote about), but it is nevertheless a fascinating place. I have recently done a great deal of research on it which I am determined shall not be wasted, and hence I bring to you, patient reader, […]
I turned my back on flummery after my first child was born. I was perplexed: he had presented against all expectation as a boy. Whaaa?? BUT THE RING SAID IT WAS A GIRL! Suspend the Ring from a chain, or a hairfrom your head, over a woman’s handto discover the sex of her babies Admittedly, the […]
In Memoriam: Zahra Bani-Yaghoub 16 October 1980-13 October 2007. Tongue removed from cheek today, to share the inspiration behind my story ‘In the Service of the Demon’, recently published in the Willesden Herald anthology ‘New Short Stories 6.’ It wasn’t Zahra’s story I wrote. I do not know it; I did not know her. But […]
I am eyeing up the narrow gap between wardrobe and wall for bookshelf-potential, and feeling sheepish. I have tried to love my Kindle, honestly I have – it’s the future! Printed books are such old-tech! But the novels I’ve downloaded to it have been languishing there for months, and the truth is, I just don’t […]
My baby is leaving home. Not for another ten years – he’s only eight – but today it began, the leaving. On Saturdays I wake up early (nine, but it feels early because everyone except Small is still in bed) and creep downstairs to make breakfast for Small and me: our Saturday Toast Together. During […]
I believe in God. Wait, that’s wrong – I believe in Love. Sorry. Easy mistake to make, for me, anyway, because until quite recently I didn’t believe in either. In fact, I was pretty convinced that both were equally pernicious man-made constructs, conceived and refined as a means of subduing and pacifying specific groups of […]
A little pome for the Dude, whose easy-going style inspired the Coen Brothers to make a movie. She is the only person in the world who NEVER gets on my nerves and she deserves all of the happily ever afters. Toast each other, every win,No matter how small, or fleeting.Drink champagne (or something bubbly),Giggle wickedly.Remember […]
