Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
‘Some People’ is out on DVD on May 20th. It’s not been on telly that often, and is unlikely to feature in anyone’s top 100, or even top 1000, greatest movies of all time, but it’s an interesting little piece of social history. It’s also a real treat for Bristol history spods, and indeed older […]
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Bristol. Being different again.
The UK Independence Party (UKIP) made spectacular gains in this week’s local elections. But not in Bristol. Some are wetting their knickers over the idea that this is the start of a new era of four-party politics. It so isn’t, you know. It’s ushering in an era that’ll deprive the Conservative party of votes and […]
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Tags: Bristol Politics
The £1 coin gag
(Sigh!) <Old Fart mode> The £1 coin is currently celebrating its 30th birthday and I keep reading articles by people who really should no better, that it was “nicknamed” the “Maggie” – as in Thatcher – when it first went into circulation. No-one ever called it a Maggie in everyday conversation. It was a gag […]
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My latest local book, Unbuilt Bristol is to be published on May 18. Most families will probably be able to get by with just three copies (one for the coffee table, one for reading in bed, one for the guest room) but don’t let that put you off buying more if you need to. Unbuilt […]
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Bash the rich?
One of the more moronic tabloids once featured Ian Bone on its front page as THE MOST EVIL MAN IN BRITAIN. That would be going it a bit given all the competition from elsewhere. If, however, there were to be some contest to find the most obnoxious man in Britain, Bone would certainly poll heavily. […]
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Who invented fish & chips?
April 9th is it? That’s Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s birthday, that is. So in honour of the great engineer’s birthday let’s look at fish and chips. In my capacity as an Insufferable Smartarse, I am often approached by people who want to know who invented fish and chips.* The answer is: Isambard Kingdom Brunel. (Actually, it […]
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Crunchie time
A wee Easter story for youse, all about my own favourite chocolate bar. On May 13 1929, J.S. Fry & Sons of Bristol launched their latest product onto the market. Children and adults alike went mad for the Crunchie (price 2d (less than 1p decimal)), and its crisp honeycomb toffee centre covered in two coatings […]
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The 1970s weak beer joke
I was in a certain well-known public house in the middle of Bristol the other day. This is a place which has been hugely popular for decades not on account of the quality of its food or drink, but because of its atmosphere. So it was here that I had a couple of pints of […]
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Things I did today pretending it was proper work department … What is now an industrial estate in Easton was once the site of the Bristol Waggon Company, and this is where the first caravan for recreational/holiday purposes was built, in the early 1880s. This was the brainchild of William Gordon Stables (1839?-1910). He was […]
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Give it some library-love
Saturday Feb 9th is National Libraries Day. At the risk of sounding like some witless press release, have you been into your local library lately and seen just how good they are? Councillors and politicians up and down the land are busily closing libraries, often places which have been at the heart of their communities […]
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