Is It Hire a Frog Week?
I think that the result of the French Presidential Election and the subsequent uncertainy may mean that a lot of high-grade people working in France decide to hop-on the Eurostar and get a job in England.
Personally, I am pleased I no longer own the house in Antibes, as I suspect if some of the candidates win on May 6th, I’d have a lot more taxes to pay.
I checked with my stockbroker this morning, and he said that French bonds are at least holding up, but that is not what can be said for Spanish ones.
Dorothy Tyler Starts the London Marathon
Dorothy Tyler is to start the London Marathon. She is 92, and the only female athlete to win an Olympic medal before and after the Second World War, as she won silver medals in the high jump in Berlin in 1936 and London in 1948.
The 1936 contest was surrounded by Nazi chicanery. It’s all detailed here. Hitler was really pleased that the event was won by the Hungarian,Ibolya Csak, who just happened to be Jewish. The Germans plan of getting a man to enter, spectacularly backfired, when Dora Ratjen came fourth.
A Course In Chugging?
They’ve just had a guy on the radio, who runs a course at South Bank University on charity fundraising. How to chug properly is a substantial part.
Surely, we can think of more worthwhile University courses?
Incidentally, they were chugging for Save The Tiger in Islington last week. It would be better if they did this outside the Chinese Embassy!
After all we’ll only save the tiger, if we convince the Chinese to change their ways. I wonder if the Chinese are keen on saving pandas, is that they have no culinary or medicinal use for them!
There is a big piece in The Telegraph today about how the Local Government Association is getting a bit fed up with them and is calling for a clean up of legislation. A spokesman is quoted as saying.
“Government needs to remove the double standard which means volunteers collecting coins for a local hospice need a licence, but agency workers seeking pledges for national charities do not.”
I would agree as a local hospice is much more important than a big national charity. I think though that methods of donation like Just Giving are better. I regularly see an ad and send a small amount. The trouble is some ads are on the Underground and mobile phones don’t work down there.
Jo Brand Has Had Her House Extraordinarily Rendered
She just said this on HIGNFY. She also said the builder called it stone cladding.
The Unwelcoming Face of Addison Lee
I’ve never used a mini-cab in London, as usually when I need a taxi, I’m in a place where I can flag an empty black cab down. I also live close to the route back to the City, that is usually taken by black cabs. So when it is raining and say I need a black cab for the theatre, it’s only a few seconds before one appears.
So I doubt I would ever need one of the forthright John Griffin’s mini-cabs from Addison Lee.
A few days ago, he was urging his drivers to use bus lanes. As a very regular bus user, I am against this and am pleased to see that Transport for London is taking action according to this report.
Now he has had a go against cyclists. Again it is reported on the BBC. The comments here are mild compared to some sites I’ve looked at.
As some of their mini-cabs sometimes hang around my area, I had thought about possibly using them. But not now! How could I be sure, that I would get what I paid for?
I also find mini-cabs and some may be from Addison Lee a nuisance in the West End, when I’m trying to get my bus home from the theatre. Some tend to block the pavements and junctions, when they are waiting for their passengers.
I would not be bothered if wardens decided to clamp down on this illegal practice.
So I’ll stick to the reliable 38 bus and the occasional black cab.
RSPB and Wind Farms
The RSPB is usually to be found on the list of those organisations lined up against a wind farm.
But now they are oputting up a wind farm on their headquarters site.
Can they have it both ways? It would appear they can!
I’m not a fan of wind power, as I believe there are much better methods like using tides creatively.
Lord Sugar Doesn’t Back Ken For London Mayor
Lord Sugar is supposed to be a Labour Peer. But here are his words for Ken Livingstone as reported in the Telegraph.
The Labour peer defied Ed Miliband by telling his 1.8 million followers on Twitter to reject the party’s official candidate.
The intervention could amount to a breach of party rules and is likely to damage the Labour campaign.
“I don’t care if Ed Miliband is backing Livingstone,” Lord Sugar wrote. “I seriously suggest NO ONE votes for Livingstone in the Mayoral elections.”
He added that the contest between the Conservative, Boris Johnson, and Mr Livingstone was a “real issue”. “Livingstone must NOT get in.”
Not very supportive.
The Louvre Does A Liverpool
The Times today reports, that the Louvre is opening a branch museum in Lens. It suggests this might have been inspired by the success of the Tate Liverpool.
I suspect though that the French will charge in Lens, whereas, the only charge in Liverpool is for special exhibitions or in the excellent restaurant.
Putting The Stiletto In Deep
The wives of ambassadors, have an image, which probably owes a lot to the Ferroro Rocher adverts of a few years ago.
But now the wife of the German Ambassador to the UN, Huberta von Voss-Wittig and her British counterpart, Sheila Lyall Grant have made a video that apopeakls to Asma Assad to get her husband to stop the violence in Syria.
The video is shown in this report in the Guardian.
To say it doesn’t lack punch would be an understatement!
The sad thing though is that it will probably have no effect.
The Anonymous Widower 