The Anonymous Widower

You Get a Better Class of Busker in St. Paul’s Tube Station

I took this picture tonight, on the mezzanine floor between the escalators at St.Paul’s Tube Station.

A Busker with a Celtic Harp

I would have thought that usually those playing a harp, were well above the cathedral, rather than underneath it!

I hope I got the type of harp right!

May 11, 2012 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , | 8 Comments

Congratulations Your Majesty

I’ve only seem it on one bus on route 21, so it might be unique.

Congratulations Your Majesty

Although, I have seen it several times, before I got this picture at Newington Green. In some ways to photograph it there is appropriate, as that is the area of London, where the non-comformists based themselves in the seventeenth century. It has a long connection with Mary Wollstonecraft. It is a place well worth a visit, as it has a nice garden and some buildings worth a look.

May 11, 2012 Posted by | News, Transport/Travel | , , , | Leave a comment

A Tragedy Waiting to Happen

The tragic fire in Derby, where five children died,  was one of those incidents, where I thought there was a lot more to the story than initial reports, led us to believe.

It now appears that the father had had seventeen children by six different women and that a woman in her late twenties has been arrested for starting the fire.  The father has also appeared on the Jeremy Kyle Show, which probably adds even more to the story.

A lot of C’s work as a barrister, concerned sorting out families like this one. Usually, at the centre of her cases was a woman, who couldn’t say no! She would often act for the Council to get the children taken in to care.

So what is the difference here?

The state this family lived in wasn’t good, so why weren’t some of these children taken into care and fostered? I have known of families with ten or more children that were well run and the children were well looked after, but usually in these cases, both parents were model ones.

So what were Derby Social Services doing?

It would appear very little in a constructive manner! Otherwise this tragedy wouldn’t have happened.

May 11, 2012 Posted by | News | , | 2 Comments

BBC Breakfast Has Been Dumbed Down

Whether this is because of the move to Manchester, I do not know, but BBC Breakfast isn’t the program it was when it was in London. Obviously, the move cost it two of its best presenters; Sian Williams and Chris Hollins, but the rapport and banter between the presenters seems to have gone too.

I think too, that the regular guests, like Dr. Rosemary Leonard, have not been replaced with others of the of the same quality.  I know that it’s early days yet, but some have been absolutely dire, when talking about serious subjects.

And then there are many more segments about pop music and people struggling with horrendous injuries.  Today, there was only three serious stories. One about plastic bottle recycling, another about MOT bias and another about goal-line technology.

The sooner the program returns to its natural home in London, the better. Incidentally, one of the stories on BBC London; about children in care in Hackney and how long it takes them to be settled, should have been covered nationally.

But what illustrates the dumbing down and lack of quality most, is the story about the grooming of young girls in Rochdale. That didn’t get much coverage at all in the last few days.  Why not?

And what is the phone-in on Radio 5 about this morning? Celebrities!

May 11, 2012 Posted by | News | , , , | Leave a comment