What a week for copies of my latest book Reptiles to arrive! The book opens with Toad Patrol an annual rescue of amphibians as they cross the Old Abingdon Road . Many from my village take part including me
https://madrascourier.com/insight/anglo-indians-a-story-of-hybridity-music-legacy/ This feature in today's Madras Courier rightly celebrates the legacy of Anglo- Indians in India. The White Mughals who traded with India before Empire were exploitative and greedy but they were not racist. They enjoyed the Indian way of
I've drafted this to pitch for a translation into French . Even I'm impressed. Is this really my novel? I have the Stars Artists to thank . This novel is about them. Not only are they incredibly talented but they
My reaction to Keir Starmer stating ( as a response to a question by Douglas Alexander) that the British Empire was a "force for good in the world", is the same as my reaction to him supporting Israel when it began to
Laurie Lee grew up not far from Carterton where I’ll talk memoir on March 4. The audience will know the PLACE but not the TIME. Following my interviews of Ray Foulk and Roger Bannister for the Oxford Castaway series, both
In todays i Yasmin Alibhai Brown writes about British Citizens of Pakistani ancestry and how they regard the grooming gangs. The conclusion was that most people of that background despise them and are distressed by the suffering of the exploited
Simon Schama and I https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m0026zyn/simon-schamas-story-of-us-series-1-2-whose-britain-is-it-anyway I may not have Simon Schama’s brains and erudition but, watching episode 2 of 'Whose Britain is it any way' made me realise that we share the same attitude to the evolution of this
The Water of Life: Bill Nighy, Victor Glynn and I Do you find that life is like water –rivers flowing alongside crossing, meeting and blending? Thursday was like that for me. The film producer Victor Glynn suggested I be
I love the Today programme during the Christmas period, when it has guest editors. Their choice of in depth subject matter is inspirational. First off was author and screenwriter, Frank Cottrell Boyce, on a subject dear to my heart -
https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/19607563.novel-walk-around-oxford-author-sylvia-vetta/ Most visitors to Oxford cluster around a few streets of Dreaming Spires and, in my opinion, miss out on the complexities of this beautiful city. I recommended a few books on the subject for https://shepherd.com/best-books/oxford-and-where-town-meets-gown In Sculpting the Elephant,