LONDON is another world. To start with, the capital is currently a whole scarf and overcoat warmer than Godzone-on-Tweed.
More than climate, too: fellow hacks at the British Press Awards ‘do’ were wrapped only in their own parochial metro-politics, convinced that all of Britain was as fascinated as they are by the coming mayoral contest between Ken, Boris and The Other Chap.
My reasons for being in The Smoke were twofold: as a BPA judge I was in town to carouse with the night’s Big Winner (the Sun) and commiserate with the Big Loser (the Mirror) on their respective shares of the spoils. And as a former editor and broadcaster I was down to take part in LBC Radio’s “Quiz the Candidates” show.
I’m still not sure which event left me with the bigger headache. The Park Lane Grosvenor was awash with Piper Heidsieck (currently the editors’ champagne of choice) while LBC’s unfortunate listeners were drowned in a sea of schmaltz and schmooze, always the politicians’ preference.
Talking of politicos, David Cameron was keynote speaker at the Press Awards, traditionally a notoriously difficult audience to control (I know, I’ve tried!) and I was encouraged to hear him describe the blue track-suited Chinese who so rudely pushed and shoved the Olympic flame through London as “goons”.
The knowledge that Our Dave ‘digs’ the Dalai Lama will have done nothing to endear him to Beijing.
OLD BOB, my reserve domino partner, is an incorrigible smoker and we lose him between games when he retires to light a ‘reviver’ and glow in the rain and wind and darkness.
So when a mate of his announced he was taking a fortnight’s holiday, Bob was quick to spot a moneysaver. “Bring me back 200 king-size,” he pleaded.
Two weeks later, upon the rover’s return, Bob received his reward along with the bill: “That’ll be £72,” he was told.
“S-s-seventy two quid?” gasped Bob. “Where on earth did you go on holiday?”
“Whitley Bay,” replied his pal!
I’M LOOKING for some very special Geordies . . .
You’ll probably be in your seventies or eighties by now, have been brought up on Tyneside or Wearside and remember saying a tearful ‘goodbye’ to Mam and Dad when they loaded you onto a northbound train to escape Hitler’s bombs.
Now, descendants of the villagers in the Till Valley who gave you shelter want to make contact with those evacuees who were billeted in North Northumberland during World War Two.
It’s part of a massive history project the parish of Ford and Etal is undertaking to commemorate a century of the Joicey family’s ownership of the Ford and Etal estate.
If you were an evacuee and have memories of that time, please contact me at the email address below or through The Journal and I’ll put you in touch with the amateur historians.
ROUND Two of the War of the Wind Farms has already begun and, as ever, the dice seem slightly loaded against the people of North Northumberland who are firmly resisting the applications of turbine developers to raise giant masts to harvest a renewable resource.
Expensive appeals must be fought at public inquiries. Inevitably the voices of the rich and powerful make a greater impact, so I want to encourage a public dialogue by opening my website, www.banksy.fm for people on both sides of the debate to present a case and argue their corner.
If you have a broadband internet connection you can take part by listening between 6.30pm and 8.30pm next Tuesday and have your say using a microphone or through live text messages.
