Liverpool, Glasgow And Belfast
These three cities in the UK have for centuries had their troubles between Catholics and Protestants.
I grew up in London, which before the Second World War wasn’t without its religious troubles. But that generally involved anti-Semitism and those on the far right. My father was a staunch anti-fascist and claimed he was at the Battle of Cable Street. I suspect he was, and I know he used to write Cockney poetry about the war. Sadly none has srvived although, I can remember a few phrases.
He didn’t like Catholics because of the Pope’s support for Hitler in the War and my mother being of a Huguenot line didn’t like them either. But it was nothing more than the odd barbed comment, when say a new Pope was elected. I don’t think either of my parents ever saw the inside of a church except for the odd wedding.
This lack of religion, probably helped to push me towards being agnostic and of course now, I’m someone, who doesn’t believe in any religion. But that is not to say, I don’t follow the humanist principles of most of the major religions.
Going to Liverpool in the early 1960s, was the first time, I really came across religion in tooth and claw. With the massive Anglican Cathedral and the new Roman Catholic one under construction, I couldn’t avoid the fact, that I was in a city that took its religion seriously. In those days, there were parades by both Catholics and Orangemen. But any trouble had dropped off in the previous few years. Was it because the people of Liverpool developed healthy interests in music and football? But other factors were also at work inside the Anglican and Catholic churches. Although this pre-dates the partnership between Archbishop Derek Worlock and the Bishop David Sheppard, I think in the 1960s, the people of Liverpool thought they’d had enough of religious rivalries, that got out of hand.
It was then that I met C’s friend, Maureen, who was the daughter of a Presbyterian Minister and missionary from Belfast. Her tales of her home city painted a very different picture of life in Northern Ireland.
It was at that time too, that I had my first experience of Scotland, when I went to Glasgow to see Spurs play against Celtic in the Glasgow Cup. It was the first time, I saw serious football violence, as a Rangers supporter appeared in the non-segregated crowd and was promptly thumped by most of the Celtic fans around me. It’s not to say there wasn’t violence in England at the time, but in matches at Portman Road, White Hart Lane, Anfield and Goodison Park, I’d never experienced any at first hand.
Over the years, I’ve visited Belfast a few times and been rather horrified at all of the flags and religious symbols. I once went into Shorts factory in Belfast and couldn’t believe the bigoted displays I saw. If I were to put up similar posters and flags on my house attacking any religion, I’d be arrested.
In Glasgow it’s not so open, but read any forum about Rangers and Celtic and you’ll find language you never find on similar forums involving say Spurs and Arsenal or Liverpool and Everton.
I go to Liverpool regularly and even went to see the Olympic torch in the city, where the Archbishop enjoyed the parade with everybody else.
So how come Liverpool has come to terms with its religious divides and in Belfast and to a certain extent, Glasgow, they seem to be getting worse?
My Father’s Advice
My father always said that you never buy a house where it can flood. He never did and I haven’t. I suspect my son is fine on the high hills of Walthamstow. So he’s following the family tradition.
The only house of the seven or so, C and I lived in, that was on low-lying land, was our holiday home at Antibes. That was close to the sea, but you don’t get very high tides in the Mediterranean.
Memories Of That Was The Week That Was
They’re talking about That Was The Week That Was on Radio 5, this afternoon.
It was on late at night and I had to get up early in the morning. So my father used to get me up just as the program started.
I can remember several things about the program.
- Bernard Levin’s interviews. My father hated pomposity and nearly got himself a hernia laughing at some of Levin’s interviews.
- Frankie Howerd on the Budget, which is surely one of the greatest monologues ever written and performed. It was written by Muir and Norden.
- The program on the death of President Kennedy. Surely, the finest tribute program ever.
- Millicent Martin’s songs. And her dresses that appealed to a 14-year-old.
- David Frost’s tactics to handle overrunning of the program.
I’ve never seen anything so good since.
You’re Never Too Stupid To Do Science!
I like this story about Sir John Gurdon. Eton College told him he was too stupid to do science and now he goes and wins a Nobel Prize.
I could have titled this post, You’re Never Too Stupid To Do Anything!
In my case, an English teacher, told me I’d never pass my O Level in the subject. I just did, but now, I’ve self-published a couple of books, written stories and had letters in several publications.
It’s probably still not good, as people say I use too many commas and shrieks. Shriek is printer’s slang for exclamation mark. Or it was my father’s! Wikipedia says this.
The name given to “!” by programmers varies according to their background. In the UK the term pling was popular in the earlier days of computing, whilst in the USA the term shriek was used. It is claimed that these word usages were invented in the US and shriek is from Stanford or MIT; however, shriek for the ! sign is found in the Oxford English Dictionary dating from the 1860s.
My father had never been to the United States, so it must have come from his printing background somewhere. His father was also a printer.
My First INR Self Test
I’ve just taken my first INR self-test. Or should I say successful one, as I tried yesterday and couldn’t get a proper sample onto the machine.
But today, I thought it through and sat at the table with everything on a clean face flannel. I actually used my gammy left hand to take a sample from the right
I recorded a value of 2.2, which is in my target range of 2.0 to 3.0.
The major problem other than getting the sample quick enough was trying to read the manual whilst I was using both hands to do the test.
The Non-Spiral Bound CoaguChek Manual
My father would be fuming now, as he believed after fifty years in the printing business that all instruction manuals should be spiral bound.
I just proved him absolutely right.
Some people might have worried about making yourself bleed. I didn’t as I spent fifty years badly-biting by nails and fingers. Often until they have bled!
It’s generally all stopped now, although my nails aren’t good, but that’s down to the humidity!
Why Not A Standard Hospital Chart?
I’ve been presenting information by computer for forty years and before that my father was a printer, who designed forms for companies for probably fifty years. So to say I have a lot of experience both in my brain and having been taught by several masters, I was surprised when I saw this item about hospital charts, I was initially surprised that it wasn’t already happening.
On the other hand though, when was healthcare anywhere in the world logical?
Every hospital chart and report on a world-wide scale should be the same, so let’s say like I did you go to hospital after an attack in Italy, your GP or British doctor can get a hang of what happened and what drugs you got. So in my case it would have been in Italian, but because everything would be in the same place, a doctor could get the gist of it.
But of course, it would remove the independence of a doctor to do what he or she wanted.
A Car Registration of BF.
Parked dubiously and possibly illegally at Upper Street tonight was a rather flash car with the number plate BF followed by a few digits.
To my father, this would have been appropriate as BF were used as a term of abuse by his generation.
Why Does My Computer Call Me Jim?
I know I’m called James, although not everybody who reads this blog knows that.
But why does this computer sometimes call me Jim. No-one does that. In fact it was my father’s nickname, so I wouldn’t have used it would I?
Does anybody know how to change this American rediculousness?
Incidentally, if anybody calls me Jim on the phone, I immediately put it down, as it is probably a scam.
An Excursion At Wood Green
I went to Turnpike Lane, as I was going to Cockfosters to be picked up by a friend from school. It is an ideal station to be picked up on the northern part of the M25.
I was ahead of time, so I got off at Wood Green, where my father had his printing works and had a walk round. The station itself is virtually unchanged from 1967 or so, which was the last time I used it. Although, the escalators have been modernised and passenger barriers have been installed. But this view is almost identical.
Wood Green Station
Except for a few details and the Ocado van.
I walked down Station Road took this picture of the works.
H Miller & Sons, Wood Green
Note that until perhaps twenty years or so ago, there was a sign saying, H Miller and Sons, above the widest of the arches, which then had a pair of double doors. My father was one of the sons.
My father’s office in the building was at the top left, where new brickwork can be seen. I spent many an hour on a desk there as a young child sitting on a pile of leather bound ledgers watching the trains go to and from the now closed Palace Gates station.
In the photograph, you can also see the parapet, where my grandmother’s ginger cat went about its business in this tale.
Here is a photo of the Jolly Anglers, which hasn’t changed that much since my father used to illegally take me in for lunch in the 1950s.
The Jolly Anglers, Station Road, Wood Green
I also took a photo of where the Rex Cinema used to be.
Where the Rex Cinema in Wood Green Was
Many a day, I would go there, whilst my parents worked. It wasn’t that bad a cinema and was magnitudes better than the Essoldo in East Barnet, which had a collander for a roof.
The Anonymous Widower 