Working Titles… Bless This House The original working title of ‘Father Ted’ The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air A failed attempt to keep up with the Kardashians Diff’rent Strokes A young man’s guide to puberty. Porridge How to get your oats. Only Fools And Horses Official race programme of Royal Ascot. Happy Days Nostalgia isn’t what…
One of my earliest posts, from May 2013. Never forget where you were dragged up. Youse can take the lad owra Liverpool… So anyroad, I wuz skivin’ around disavvy, as per, lookin’ at dis WordPress business, an’ I seen dee ‘ad this thing called a ‘Weekly Writing Challenge’. Sounded a bit poncey, if yer ask…
For this week’s Song Lyric Sunday we’re asked to feature something that links to Earth Day. It has to be said that rock musicians were aware of, and producing music about, climate change and other damages that we as a species have been wreaking on the planet for a long time – certainly from the…
They said what?…. “I have a head for business and a body for sin” Mae West “Wax on, wax off” An Edam cheese producer. “I’ll have what she’s having” A gullible follower of social ‘influencers’ “Please sir, I want some more” Mr. Creosote “You want the truth? You can’t handle the truth!” Witness for the…
From 2017, tales of odd encounters in public toilets… An (in) convenience truth As one possessed of what is disparagingly known as a ‘gill bladder’ – which is to say that my powers of retention are somewhat below average – I have extensive direct experience of public conveniences all over the world, and during my…
This week for Song Lyric Sunday we are asked to feature a song that involves a family member. This was the first idea that popped into my head. I had to check that I hadn’t used it before, and happily I haven’t. A staple of Grateful Dead live shows throughout their career, this bouncy little…
Yeah, right… What is suduku? Doing mental arithmetic in the bath. What is a vagabond? A financial security not worth the paper its printed on. What is an anagram? Magrana. What is cribbage? The act of copying someone else’s homework. What is protocol? A new low. What is subterfuge? Playing classical music on an underground…
From 2017, here’s a list and it’s about music rather than a feeble attempt at humour – just for a change. You Can’t Touch This Most songs are ‘covered’, in the sense that they are performed by someone other than the writer/composer themselves. Some songs are so popular that they get to be covered by…
SLS this week has proved to be a bit of a tricky one for me. Jim is looking for a song by an artiste I have just discovered. Fair enough, but the problem is that there aren’t any I could think of. That’s because almost all contemporary popular music leaves me cold. For research purposes…
From 2015, another musing on my impractical nature… Master of none So, have you missed me? It’s been almost a fortnight since my last post. No? Thought not. I blame the good weather. Not that I have any objection to seeing the sun shine, but it does bring with it certain time-consuming responsibilities in the grass-cutting…
So, who do we know from the world of music who was born in the month of April? Quite a few artistes, as it turns out, although most of them, it must be said, have passed me by. Nonetheless, there were some worthy nuggets that panned out. One in particular called to me, however: Jack…
Vraiment?…… Why do we have Easter Eggs? Because of a plot for world domination involving John Cadbury, Joseph Rowntree and Milton S Hershey. What makes a Hot Cross Bun? Five minutes in the oven at Gas Mark 4. Why do we have a bunny at Easter? As a tasty alternative to the more traditional roast…
From 2014, on the two-edged sword that is school Speech Day….. Alma Mater “You’ve been asked to speak at your high school alma mater – about the path of life. Draft the speech.” Firstly, let me say that I am greatly honoured to have been invited to talk to you all on my old school’s…
“Everything all the time” I mean, it’s good to have something a bit on the highbrow side as an inspiration for Song Lyric Sunday every so often, but I hadn’t reckoned on an excursion into Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theories as a theme for this week. More specifically, Jim is seeking a song about ‘exhibiting instinctual…
From as recently as 2017, my take on ‘social media’… T(w)itter ye not ‘Social Media’. Harrumph. Why am I even talking about this? Because WordPress ‘365 Days of Writing Prompts wants to know, that’s why: “The social network. Do you feel like you ‘get’ social media, or do you just use it because that’s where…
the only deadhead in the hameau 