Mashed seagull recipe
Mashed seagull recipe First of all, let me say that this isn’t really seagull. No seabirds were killed in the production of this tasty snack. Tasty it is, and very quick to make but I have to say that the mixture looks a little odd, hence its name. That came from my ex-husband who thought it looked revolting. Ah well… Actually, this is a recipe for: A tasty tuna melt You can also use it as a toast-topper. Sometimes, if I...
Houdini’s Straitjacket Escape. Invented in Yorkshire
Houdini’s straitjacket escape. Invented in Yorkshire It’s true. One of the great Harry Houdini’s most impressive escape acts was born Sheffield, Yorkshire. Houdini was born in Budapest – the family later moved to the United States – but he often performed in the British Isles. It was when he was performing in Yorkshire that one of his greatest stunts was created – the famous straitjacket escape. In...
The Mystery of Dr James Barry
Dr James Barry James Barry, born in the eighteenth century, had a long and successful career as a medical surgeon in the British army. He fought and practised medicine all over the British Empire with distinction. He achieved the rank of medical superintendent general and eventually retired to London after and exciting career that even included duels of honour. A confirmed bachelor, he died in 1965. Of course, this isn’t a very...
Andrew Morton: 17 Carnations
17 Carnations: The Duke & Duchess of Windsor and the Nazis. Less than two years before the Second World War began, the king of England abdicated from the throne. And the Nazis wanted to use him for their own ends. After the war, the Allies spent ten years recovering secret German files that revealed their plans. That sounds like the basis for an excellent novel but this book is non-fiction. In addition, American industrialists...
Quiz: The Beatles’ Wives
Quiz: How much do you know about the Beatles’ wives? Just four lads from Liverpool – but between them, they’ve had a wide variety of partners. I guess this is understandable because all four are (or were) rather cute and they certainly had the money that many a girl finds attractive. Of course, some of the wives (do you know how many and which they were?) married their Beatles before they found fame and fortune....
Some Girls, Some Hats and Hitler: By Trudi Kanter
Holocaust memoir from Vienna. Trudi is an independent young woman – a hat designer – separated from her husband and living in Vienna just before the outbreak of the Second World War. She falls in love with Walter, a charming and intelligent man. Her parents live nearby, Trudi has her wonderful man and her own flourishing business. What could possibly go wrong? Of course, we know the answer to that question now –...
Who was Georgia Tann?
Who was Georgia Tann? Georgia Tann was the seemingly benevolent organiser of the Tennessee Children’s Home Society, starting in the nineteen twenties. However, the society was little more than a front for her black-market dealings. Georgia Tann sold babies. Back in those days, treatment for couples who couldn’t conceive,or for women who couldn’t carry a baby to term, was very primitive compared to today’s...
Grand Prix Gourmet: German Apple Cake
German Apple Cake. This recipe dates from 1931! And unlike other apple cakes, this features a dough rather than pastry. It’s a very adaptable recipe but I have written it below in its original version. There are many changes you can make to suit your tastes. For example: Add a little nutmeg – I always find that it goes so well with apple dishes Top the cake with slivered almonds Sprinkle powered sugar on top before...
Those Loftus Road Nights
Night time matches were the best. Early evening I’d head up into the setting sun to East Acton where my young mate Hiro lived, then we’d walk back down to the Bush and join the gathering crowds. We never missed a home game and took in a few away trips too. We’d started going to games back when Rangers were really good, “top team in London” under the guidance of coach Gerry Francis and led by the mighty...
Microwave ovens: Yes or no?
Microwave cooking: Yes or no? It’s quite surprising how divided opinion is about microwave ovens. At one time, a microwave was an essential in my kitchen but I haven’t owned one for years. Some people say this this is food snobbery. Yet although so many people own microwaves (83%of households in the UK) surveys show that they wouldn’t want to think that meals served to them in restaurants are cooked using this...
Colour Notes: Fast food
Colour notes: Fast food The study of colour is a huge subject. Researches have shown that certain colours affect us in different ways. Some of these are obvious; blue – the colour of a sunny sky and a clear ocean – is a soothing colour. Red, on the other hand, creates excitement – and hunger. Just think about how many fast food logos use red. McDonald’s of course, Wendy’s, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Dominos,...
Royal Feud: Wallis Simpson and Elizabeth
The royal feud between Queen Elizabeth & Wallis Simpson. The great feuds of history usually involve the desire for power. What makes this twentieth century royal feud extraordinary is that this feud of over fifty years was brought about because of unwanted power and position. This battle royal persisted from 1935 until 1986 and its protagonists were Queen Elizabeth and Wallis Simpson (later the Duchess of Windsor). The two women...
New York City – Food Capital of America
New York City has always fascinated me. As a small kid living on a small island in the middle of the Pacific, New York city seemed bigger than life and I dreamt of the day I would visit the iconic city. My dream finally came true when I was 21 years old. I found myself being relocated for work to Philadelphia so after I getting settled, I took a weekend trip to New York. I still remember my first sight of the New York City skyline-I...
Recipe: Mushrooms in red wine sauce
This is a splendid recipe which we often have as the main dinner course. We are a non meat eating household but I’ve served this dish to devoted carnivores who love it. If you wish, it’s excellent to serve as a side dish or even as an appetizer.Because these delicious mushrooms are cooked and served in a red wine sauce, it’s quite a rich dish that is perfect to serve with pasta or rice. Its very richness also makes...
Prince John: The Hidden Royal
What is the truth about Prince John? For many years, few members of the public had even heard about Prince John. And a lot of the ‘information’ that exists about him is actually incorrect. The story that many people have heard about Prince John has often been used to ‘demonstrate’ that the British royal family are a heartless, unfeeling bunch. The myth is that John, who was the youngest of George V’s...
Jacquard Sweaters & Jackets: So Stylish
Jacquard sweaters – so fashionable We’re often told that the basics of a good wardrobe is classic clothes. And it’s true. Classically styled garments are timeless and remain fashionable for ever. They are never out of date. But this doesn’t mean that classics should be dull – so many people buy them in just black, grey or other neutrals – they can also be fun. Take this jacquard sweater you see on...
Songs about Cities – Moscow
Before I start I would like to apologise in advance to my Russian friends who might be expecting Muslim Magomayev’s Greatest City on Earth, or a blast of Moya Moskva. And forgive my occasional inclusion of more general Russian songs too. I’m also writing this from a peculiarly British perspective, as most of my impressions of the city filtered through Hollywood movies, Peter and the Wolf the occasional bottle of...
Nora Ephron: Everything is Copy
Everything is copy – true? Writer Nora Ephron was told this by her mother. Her parents were both writers and Nora took the words to heart – she wrote a great deal about her own experiences. I think most writers would agree that writing about personal experience is not only easier, it’s more fun and quite possibly more interesting to the reader simply because it comes from the heart. But I’m not talking here...
In Praise of Sensational Women – Mavis Staples
Andy Royston pays tribute to a true musical legend, the magnificent Mavis Staples. We’ve come here tonight to bring you some joy, some happiness, inspiration, and some positive vibrations! We want to leave you with enough to last you for maybe the next six months. – Mavis Staples / Live: Hope at the Hideout Mavis is coming to Fort Lauderdale,just a walk away from my home and I just cannot wait. Here is an American voice...
Did President Kennedy’s Drug Use Affect His Leadership?
When John Kennedy’s medical records were released, they revealed that the president had been taking an enormous cocktail of prescription drugs. Many of these drugs would be considered unsuitable – if not illegal – today. Throughout his life, Kennedy was besieged by medical problems, starting when he was a young teenager and suffered from colitis. It was in London, where his father was ambassador prior to...
John Cleese: So Anyway…
John Cleese: So Anyway… What makes us laugh? What is funny? John Cleese knows. But did you know that we might never have never have known Monty Python and Basil Fawlty? John Cleese was sure that he was going to have a career in law. That’s what he was studying at university and he had been offered legal position – with a wage of £12 a week – with a prestigious firm of solicitors. (Can you imagine Basil Fawlty...
Wilson B. Hickox
Wilson B. Hickox: Poisoned by the government. There’s no doubt that Wilson Hickox died a gruesome death. On 23rd June, 1927, he booked into the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City. Wilson was a prosperous businessman from Cleveland, Ohio. He had spent the evening out on the town and settled down in his hotel room and poured himself a nightcap. Soon, he was struck by some unpleasant symptoms. His throat and chest began to tighten...
Queen Victoria and Haemophilia
Does haemophilia show Queen Victoria’s true paternity? When Queen Victoria gave birth to her eighth child, Leopold, both parents were surprised to see how small the baby was. They had previously produced healthy, bouncing babies so Leopold came as something of a shock. When he was just few months old, bruises appeared on his body as he was diagnosed as having haemophilia – ‘the bleeding disease’. This was the...
The Girl in the Song: She’s Leaving Home
The Beatles’ She’s Leaving Home: The inspiration. Melanie Coe was seventeen years old when she ran away from home. The story of her disappearance was reported in the British newspaper, The Daily Mirror, and when Paul McCartney read it, he began to write the song She’s Leaving Home. What he didn’t realise what that he had met Melanie three years previously, in 1963. She had been on the television show, Ready,...
Spicy eggplant recipe from India
Spicy eggplant recipe from India Serve this fabulous eggplant dish as a side or an appetiser. It’s lovely as a meat-free meal too, served with rice and yogurt. Or serve with Indian flatbreads for a truly authentic touch. Save Print Spicy eggplant recipe from India Rating 5 from 1 reviews Cook time: 1 hour Total time: 1 hour Serves: 6 Ingredients 1¾ pounds eggplant, cut into wedges about 2 inches...
The Ghost and Mrs Muir
The Ghost and Mrs Muir: Movie This is the most lovely film. It’s a love story, a weepie, a ghost story and a comedy all in one. Released in 1945, it has all the charm and drama of the Hollywood era. It’s set in the early 1900s and Lucy Moore has recently been widowed. Determined to start new life away from her in-laws, she and her small daughter move to a remote rented house near the sea. She’s been warned that the...
The Yorkshireman and the South Pole
On December 13, 2013, Major Ibrar Ali of the Yorkshire Regiment stood at the SouthPole. With him were eleven other service-men and -women, a handful of guides and organisers, oh – and Prince Harry from the British Royal Family. The entire team had trekked (although that’s far too mild a word) across 200 kilometres of punishing snow and ice, through brutally low temperatures for thirteen days, dragging their equipment...
Stephanie Hoffnung
Stephanie Hoffnung: Just one Jew. June 1942: Every evening, German SS officers would hammer on the door of the Hoffnung family’s home in Rue Riffault, Poitiers. This was occupied France and the Hoffnungs were Jewish. Led by Adjutant Wilhelm Hipp, the officers would visit Jewish homes to ensure that they were complying with the various rules and curfews that had been imposed. Any deviation from these rules and regulations could...
All Time Hero: Jack Johnson
We learn and grow, we make heroes of our own. For me, being a child of the 60s there were astronauts and civil rights leaders, soccer stars and Olympic champs. Gran loved her music, so Nat King Cole, Paul Robeson and Ray Charles were high on my list. Dad’s a big sports fan, and Cassius Clay impressed as much by his trash talking as his skills in the ring. The undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the World. If someone wanted to...
Louis de Rougemont
Who was Louis de Rougemont? Louis de Rougemont achieved fame in 1898 when London’s Wide World magazine published a serialised account of his adventures.Readers were electrified. For the magazine told that Rougemont had spent thirty years living with cannibals in Australia – as their king and leader. It all began in the 1860s when Rougemont was shipwrecked when he was pearl hunting in the Pacific. He and his trusty canine...
Anthony Bourdain: Five Essential Kitchen Tools
Anthony Bourdain: Five Essential Kitchen Tools Anthony Bourdain is probably one of the best known American chefs today. Having French grandparents, he claims that his love of food and cooking comes from the vacations he spent in France as a child. In his book Kitchen Confidential, he tells a great deal about the life of a restaurateur and the workings of commercial kitchens. His stories are illuminating and sometimes extremely funny....
Art Matters: Vincent and Paul
Andy Royston takes a look at Vincent van Gogh’s Chairs of 1888, and a fraught relationship with his houseguest, Paul Gauguin. ‘At the bottom of our hearts good old Gauguin and I understand each other, and if we’re a bit mad, so be it, aren’t we also a little sufficiently deeply artistic to contradict anxieties in that regard by what we say with the brush?‘ Vincent Van Gogh – letter to Theo van Gogh. Arles,...
Just Kids – Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe
I first heard Patti Smith as a teenager. The song – if you can call it a song, was Piss Factory, an extraordinary conversational poem set to haunting improvised free-jazz piano by Richard Sohl. It turned out to be from Patti Smith’s first recording session, and tells a story partly related to her time working in a low paid job back in New Jersey, at a factory that made baby buggies. It was a soul destroying environment,...
Songs About Cities : Paris
Ten Songs For Paris In setting out to compile a favorite list of Paris songs I admit to being totally anglo-centric. There are hundreds of exceptional songs and performances en francais and a few great blogs cover this very well (a great example is this by Paris Attitude) so I won’t even attempt. Paris seemed to have inspired the jazz generation very much – there are enough Frank Sinatra songs about the city to fill an...
After Queen Elizabeth II: What will happen?
After Queen Elizabeth II: What will happen? The last time a monarch died was in 1952. That is more than a lifetime ago for many of us and the world is a very different place now. Although many believe in the line from the National Anthem ‘long to reign over us’, we have to admit that, having been born in 1926, she may be coming to the end of her time as monarch. No, I don’t believe she will abdicate and it may be...
A Song for Sunrise – Mary Margaret O’Hara
Mary Margaret O’Hara turned up in London back in 1988 to play a show at one of those old London jewel box theaters. She’d released a remarkable album earlier in the year called Miss America, which had been a fascination of mine from the off. I couldn’t wait to see if she could live up to her extraordinary record. On Mary’s music there’s nothing particularly unusual going on. Accomplished country tinged...
Five Faves : The Florida Keys
Key West lies 150 miles from Miami, but the drive along the route is an unforgettable experience; one of the world’s classic road trips. Making the drive off the mainland and along the long and winding ‘ocean highway’ all the way to mile marker zero is a real Florida pleasure. It’s a classic because, like all great trips it’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey and what happens along...
Who Was Buster Edwards?
Who was Buster Edwards? If you’re English and ‘of a certain age’ you’ll recognise the name. If you don’t then it might intrigue you know that he was petty criminal who became something of a folk hero in Britain in the 1960s. For Buster was one of the men who took part in what was known as The Great Train Robbery in 1963. Although the robbers got away with a huge amount of money the general attitude of...
Clutter Control: The Home Lost Property Station
Keep your home tidy – easily and quickly. When your surroundings give you joy and pleasure, life is so much better. This is especially the case in your own domain – your home. And looking round and seeing a neat and tidy environment isn’t just good for your soul – it’s been proved that clutter can damage your well-being. But it’s easier said than done, isn’t it? In fact, it can be so easy and...
Fingersmith: A Victorian saga
Fingersmith: Fascinating Victorian tale This film is astounding. It is everything you’d expect from an adaptation of a novel set in Victorian times but much, much more. The plot has twists and turns which are totally unexpected. It tells of a girl, Sue, who hails from the seamier side of London. Imagine a Fagin-like den of thieves and this will give you some idea of her background. She is persuaded – by the promise of a...
Ring in the Spring – Woodland Bluebells
It’s been a long time since I lived within walking distance of an English wood. At this time of year the best ones become a magical perfumed carpet of blue flowers and can’t help but remind me of a childhood long gone. On visits to England I always to try to take a walk through the woodlands, to breathe in that heady scent concoction: Gorse, wild garlic, Scots pine, wet woodland, hawthorn blossom, honeysuckle, stinkhorn,...
Obsolete Words: Quiz
Test your knowledge: Obsolete words Isn’t it amazing how quickly our language changes? Today, we regularly use words that simply wouldn’t have been understood fifty years ago. Even some words we might think of as relatively ‘modern’ are outdated. Do today’s children understand words and phrases like ‘cassette player ‘, ‘floppy disk’, ‘Netscape’, ‘typewriter’...
The Flight of Nungesser, Coli and the White Bird
Nungesser, Coli and the White Bird: Mysterious disappearance. In 1924 a New York hotelier named Raymond Orteig renewed an aviation challenge he had issued a few years earlier. He offered the sum of $25,000 to any ‘person or persons’ who could fly nonstop between France and the United States. His previous offer had been largely ignored because it was generally thought that such a flight was impossible. But two men took up...
The Last of the Blonde Bombshells
The Last of the Blonde Bombshells: Movie If like me you’re tired of some of the films we see today and are looking to watch a movie that’s truly hilarious, a great story and a little bit of a weepie then I highly recommend The Last of the Blonde Bombshells. As a bonus,or rather two, it has wonderful music and an impressive cast including the fabulous Dame Judi Dench. The film flips between modern day (well, 2000) and the...
King Edward VII. The truth about his death
King Edward VII. The truth about his death. One of history’s myths regards the death of King Edward VII, the actions of his wife Queen Alexandra and of his mistress Alice Keppel. The king was in his late seventies when he was taken ill – at first with a series of chills. He had always enjoyed what we might call the pleasures of the flesh – fine dining, splendid wines and of course, a series of beautiful and charming...
Build a Library of Thought
What we can all learn from Neil deGrasse Tyson. What is it that we can all learn from a man who is an astrophysicist and cosmologist? That is, apart from astrophysics and cosmology. Neil explains why we should all build a ‘library of thought’. He starts by explaining that when he was a child, he’d visit the local library. Everything he needed to know was in there. Every time he had a query, his question would be...
Ian Fleming, James Bond and … Bob Marley
Did Ian Fleming model James Bond on himself? Ian Fleming’s most famous creation was, of course, James Bond. And to some extent, the author was the character. He had been involved in espionage during the Second World War but there are certainly other similarities. The fictional James Bond enjoyed a drink (shaken not stirred, of course) and definitely his love of women was a great feature of the 007 persona. Fleming liked a drink...
Is Eating Chicken Dangerous?
Chicken health scare. Let’s look at the latest statistics from the UK. A year-long study has discovered that 73% – very nearly three quarters – of supermarket chickens contain the campylobacter bacteria. This causes over quarter of a million cases of food poisoning in Britain every year, about one hundred of which are fatal. When you consider that the population is 64 million, and that over 3 million people are...
Oh! You Pretty Things by Shanna Mahin: Review.
Oh! You Pretty Things by Shanna Mahin: Review. This was the latest review copy to land on the editorial desk at JAQUO HQ and I’m so glad it did. It’s very funny, it moves along at a hare-brained pace and you’ll love the quirky characters as they stumble through the strange world of Hollywood in present day. But this is not all glamour and ‘swimming pools, movie stars’ – this is the reality of a...
Song For Sunrise – The Sopranos
“Woke up this morning, got yourself a gun…” The opening titles to the most highly rated TV show of the 21st century starts with a rumbling bass-driven trip hop track, and what sounds like a southern fried pick-up trucker drawling the lyrics. A small-time mobster, who we’d later get to know as Tony Soprano, speeds out of the Lincoln tunnel and heads down the New Jersey turnpike into the setting sunshine. The...
Barbara Taylor Bradford: A Woman of Substance
Barbara Taylor Bradford: A Woman of Substance. I recently read and reviewed Ms Taylor Bradford’s latest book The Cavendon Women (which I recommend heartily) and this made me eager to reread the first books of hers that I ever read. Coincidentally, it was also the author’s first book. I can assure you that it stands the test of time admirably and reading it again now I find that it is just as absorbing as it was when I...
Mexican Jewellery from Guillermo Arregui
Stylish,original jewellery from Mexico. Guillermo Arregui creates the most wonderful jewellery in his Mexican silversmith workshop. The necklace you see on the right is a lovely example. There are more further down the page and you’ll see that Guillermo combines traditional method sand design but brings them completely up to date. He takes much of his inspiration from nature, from the natural stones that are available in Mexico...
Sass, Smarts, and Stilettos: Review
Sass, Smarts, and Stilettos: How Italian Women Make the Ordinary, Extraordinary. The author of this book, Gabriella Contestabile, was brought up in North America (first Canada and then the United States) but had been born in Italy. She left the country of her birth when she was just four years old and unsurprisingly, when she grew up she became more interested in the Italy she barely remembered rather than her now home country. She...
Scandinavian Potato Cakes Recipe
Scandinavian Potato Cakes Recipe These are a real treat for breakfast. Although the batter needs to be refrigerated for thirty minutes it could be made ahead and then each potato cake (which are actually more like pancakes) take two minutes each to cook. The potatoes add valuable nutrients to the dish and the entire recipe is low-cost. Although the original recipe calls for applesauce to serve (which is delicious and adds more...
Galaxy Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Galaxy Grilled Cheese Sandwiches Recipe. A fun specialty sandwich from my Star Wars Cookbook is a Galaxy Grilled Cheese Sandwich. Now this isn’t your average plain jane grilled cheese sandwich. I has pickles on it. I like pickles but wasn’t sure of them grilled with cheese but to my surprise it was super tasty after I made and tried them. It’s just basically making your grilled cheese sandwiches as you normally do...
Citrus Chicken Recipe
Citrus chicken recipe This is a recipe that I’ve had for ages and although we no longer eat meat,I often use this recipe to make the yummy sauce when we are having guests for a barbecued meal. The recipe is very tasty when made exactly as you see it below. When I’m making it as is, I just make a couple of changes — but it’s up to you. I serve the grapefruit and kiwi in separate bowls rather than using the fruit...
Working with text: Tables
Working with text: Tables Format a menu using tables I have several clients who are restaurateurs and they know the importance of well-presented menus. Therefore, I often find myself working on them. When working with almost all text jobs, creating tables and cells is an important way of layout out the information. They keep the text in a regular, tidy form with nothing to distract the eater from the menu offerings. Oh, and I always...
Lamb & Chicken Gabonais Recipe from Marion Preminger
Lamb & Chicken Gabonais Recipe from Marion Mill Preminger Before we get to this African recipe,I’ll just explain first that Marion Mill was the one-time wife of movie director and producer, Otto Preminger. She then fell in love with a suspected Nazi spy, unsuccessfully, and then spent many years working with Albert Schweitzer in his hospital in Africa. By 1964, she was living in New York with her husband Albert Mayer, a...
Fashion Revolution Day
What is Fashion Revolution Day? On April 24th, 2013, a garment factory in Bangladesh collapsed. Over 1100 people were killed and many more injured. Bangladesh is one of the countries that produces the most garments and many of the clothes that were being manufactured in the ill-fated factory were destined to be sent to the western world. In other words, they were making the clothes that you and I buyin our local stores. To mark the...
The Duchess of Cambridge
The Duchess of Cambridge. On 19th July, 1981, Carole and Mike Middleton sat down in front of their television – as did millions throughout the world – to watch the wedding of Diana Spencer to Prince Charles. Little did they know that thirty years later, they would see their as yet unborn daughter marrying the son of the happy couple. At the time Charles married Diana, Carole Middleton was in the early stages of pregnancy...
Queen Elizabeth II: The world’s oldest serving monarch
Queen Elizabeth II: The world’s oldest serving monarch. Princess Elizabeth became queen on 6th February, 1952. Little did she know that she would become the oldest monarch in the world. On 23rd January, 2015, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia died at the age of ninety making the queen the oldest sovereign. She was born in 1926. Queen Victoria reigned for 63 years, 216 days, a record the queen topped in September 2015. Victoria lived...
Gabriel Garcia Marquez: Living to Tell the Tale
The early life of Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Should you read this amazing book before you read his novels? That wasn’t an issue for me because I have been reading Marquez for decades so to me, this book is a wonderful way about learning more. More, not just about the author’s life but how his books and stories are crafted. I knew that basic facts of his life – born in the nineteen twenties in Colobia, a journalist in...
Eric Jackson: The Chieftain Rally 1973
Eric Jackson: Chieftain Rally 1973 Rally driver Eric Jackson was strictly a Ford man. The only recorded competition car he drove that wasn’t a Ford was a Vauxhall in the 1959 Monte Carlo Rally. So it’s not surprising that when Jacko had ‘the big one’ – the rally accident that nearly finished him off – he was driving a Ford Escort. Here’s a photograph of how he managed to rearrange the car:...
Fort Lauderdale: For the Business Traveller
Travelling to Fort Lauderdale on business? Every year studies show that business travel is increasing rapidly. And many of these travellers are looking for accommodation that offers something more than faceless chain hotels. We have just the place for you. Instead of an out-of-the-way hotel, stay at your own waterfront apartment with every facility – that’s close to the beach and the very best shopping and dining...
Florida Birds : An Osprey’s Catch
The beach here in Florida that I walk daily tends to be pretty quiet, birdwise. The coastline here is smooth and clear, with unfettered lines and shallow shores. It’s a big city beach, where the A1A coastal highway runs right alongside the ocean. The backshore dunes are shallow here, and there are few patches of wilderness to speak of. These quiet beaches support an unseen wildlife including worms, bivalves and crustaceans,...
RMS Titanic: The band
The musicians of the Titanic It’s over a hundred years ago that the Titanic sank with such an appalling loss of life but we’re still fascinated by the fate of this ‘unsinkable’ ship and its passengers and crew. All the band members went down with the ship. Who were these men? And what is the truth about the last song they played as the ship went down? Those of us whose first movie exposure to the story...
Myths Surrounding the Sinking of RMS Titanic.
Myths & questions surrounding the sinking of RMS Titanic. It still fascinates us, doesn’t it? And yet it seems that over the years there have been many myths and legends that have appeared surrounding the loss of the RMS Titanic. Many of these, I suspect, have been due to the films that have been made about the sinking. It’s such a good subject for a movie and it’s hardly surprising that filmmakers want to add...
Spicy onion fritters
Spicy onion fritters – or use the vegetables of your choice. These vegetable fritters are so delicious.Part of the reason for that is the beautifully light batter. It’s truly fabulous and contains a special secret ingredient. I like to make onion fritters using this special batter – it’s really so light and tasty – but I’ve experimented with other vegetables too. Use whatever you have available...
A song for Sunrise – The Cherokee Morning Song
Over looking our Fort Lauderdale beach, his eyes trained on the morning sun, is a single tree totem, the Whispering Giant. He was carved out of a single cyress log by Hungarian-born scuptor Peter Wolf Toth. His aim is always to create a composite of all the physical characteristics of the local tribe or tribes, as well as their stories and histories. There are 74 documented giants around North America, one in each state of the union....
Top British Chefs
Top British Chefs How did Britain get its ‘reputation’ as being a place with less than perfect cuisine? It’s a myth that’s easy to explain and you only have to look at the chefs you featured below to see that great food is alive and well in the United Kingdom. Britain has a very long history of fabulous food going back hundreds of years. Our first cookbook appeared in medieval days and the recipes are still...
The White Van: By Patrick Hoffman
The White Van: Review. Emily wakes up – sort of – to find herself alone in a hotel room. As she comes round, she remembers that she’d been in a bar and met a man – a Russian. No, it was nothing like that – she hadn’t exactly been picked up and there’d been no activity of the type normally associated with situations where two people of the opposite sex who met in abar ended up in a hotel room...
Enjoy Yourself, it’s Later Than You Think
Enjoy Yourself, it’s Later Than You Think: Good advice It might just be a song lyric, but it does have a ring of truth,doesn’t it? Admittedly, ‘it’s later than you think‘ might be a touch maudlin but the point is, it’s true. You see, I’m seventeen. Well, you know I’m not but in my head I am. My dad is in his nineties. I wonder how old he is in his head? Much younger, I’ll bet. I...
Unsuccessful? Read This
Heroic Failures There comes a time when I get tired about reading about the great and the good. Sure, it’s nice to read about famous inventors, scientists, literary giants, artists and all the people who have added to our knowledge and enhanced our lives. Maybe there’s a bit of a green tinge to these thoughts – I know that I’m never going to join their ranks. Occasionally there’s something rather...
Who were Charters and Caldicott
I don’t know about you, but when I’m watching a classic movie I’m always taken by the characters on the edge of the action. The more than curious bystander who gets caught up in the action almost accidentally. Take Alfred Hitchcock’s classic take on Agatha Christie’s novel The Lady Vanishes. Two inept and veddy British cricket fans are amongst passengers on a train out of the European country of...
Formatting print pages: Quick and easy
Formatting print pages: Quick and easy Transform boring print – fast If you’re a designer, you’ll be familiar with the client who sends you a Word document and a photograph and expects you to transform it – in no time. Can you please make this look better? No colour please, we can’t afford colour printing. Speaking of which, the printer has a huge workload – can it be ready within half an hour...
Eddie Cochran
Eddie Cochran In 1959, Eddie Cochran found out about the tragic deaths of his young fellow musicians, Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper. They had been killed on tour when their plane crashed in bad weather. Eddie’s friends and family said that this led him towards thoughts of his own doom and that he too was destined to die young. Fourteen months later, when Eddie was on tour in England, he too was killed in an accident....
Je t’aime: Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg
Je t’aime: Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg. Je t’aime – banned. You’d have thought that by the nineteen sixties people were pretty much unshockable. Mind you, I suspect that the song Je t’aime shocked very few real people, if anyone, but the stuffy BBC decided to ban it from their airwaves. I thought it was rather lovely. The title was repeated, whisperingly, to the sound of luscious organ music, by Jane...
The Day Michael Caine Discovered a Family Secret
The day Michael Caine discovered a family secret. When actor Michael Caine and his younger brother, Stanley, were growing up in London, on every single Monday their mother used to go to visit their Aunt Lil. The two boys never thought anything about it – it was simply part of the family routine. But many years later, in 1991, the actor found out the truth.She had been going somewhere very different indeed. Michael Caine was in...
King George I of Greece and the British Royal Family
King George I of Greece and the British Royal Family. What does King George I of Greece have to do with the British royal family of today? Did you know that most of the royal family are descended from him? This is because he was the grandfather of today’s Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip. He became ruler when he was just seventeen and remained on the Greek throne until he was assassinated. It seems strange to us today, but...
Princess Mary
Who was Princess Mary? It’s likely that you’ve never heard of England’s Princess Mary but it’s highly possible that even after all these years you are familiar with the story of her brother. For Princess Mary was the sister of Edward VIII, the English king who famously abdicated so that he could marry his American mistress, Wallis Simpson. When you look at the photograph of her on the right, you can see the...
Britain’s Got Opera!
Britain and opera. In 1990. I still lived in the UK and a friend from America was visiting. I remember him being amazed because the most popular song at the time – it was in the charts, played on the radio and was a favourite on pub jukeboxes – was Nessun Dorma performed by Luciano Pavarotti. ‘Only in England’ he would say ‘could the most popular song be an aria from a Puccini opera’. But was this a...
Apollo One Spacecraft Fire
Apollo 1: Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee. In summer 1966, NASA chose the crew for the first manned Apollo space mission – a mission that was to end in disaster. Gus was the oldest of the team at forty years old. He had been the second American to fly in space. Ed was thirty six and he had the distinction of being the first US astronaut to walk in space. The youngest crew member was Roger Chaffee who at thirty one was...
Who Was Gertrude Ederle?
Gertrude, or Trudy as she was more usually known, was a sportswoman who should have been famous and remembered today but despite her achievements she faded into obscurity. In the 1920s she was seen as a pioneer in showing the world that women were not ‘the weaker sex’. Strangely, women were still considered to be so. Gertrude was the first woman to swim the English Channel She was the first woman to do so and she...
Mint Lime Grilled Mahi-Mahi
Mint Lime Grilled Mahi-Mahi This recipe will work well with any firm white fish but the author recommends mahi-mahi. I suspect that many of us could do with more fish in our diets and this is a wonderful way to serve it. It’s perfect for summer grilling or for those of us who are lucky enough to live somewhere where we can cook outdoors all year round. Save Print Mint Lime Grilled Mahi-Mahi Rating 5 from 1 reviews...
Joseph Lister Publishes Antiseptic Surgery Article on March 16, 1867
Can you imagine going to a hospital where there were no facilities to wash your hands? Can you imagine that for the doctor as well? Back in the mid 1800’s that was the case. Even a broken leg in those days would often mean infection, amputation, and a fifty percent chance of death. We take for granted that our medical staffs have sterilized equipment and their hands between patients. So much so that it doesn’t often occur to me...
Who Was Percy Shaw?
Who was Percy Shaw? If you’re from Yorkshire, like me, the chances are that you know perfectly well who Percy Shaw was – and what he invented. If you don’t know who he was,there’s still the strong likelihood that you see and use his most famous invention every day. There must be millions of them throughout the world. Although you see them every day, you might be so familiar with them that you don’t even...
The Internet for All
Computers for seniors I really don’t understand why so many older people these days don’t use computers or tablets. Well, I do to some extent. I understand that a) they can not always afford the devices and b) that for some elderly people it might seem as though it’s a technology they will never be able to understand. Are those two problems really too huge to be overcome? Aren’t there so many advantages that...
Who Was Pablo Fanque?
Who was Pablo Fanque? There’s a question. But the chances are that you might well have heard the name before. There he is on the right. I imagine he looks unfamiliar to you but I think that you might have heard his name, especially if you’re a fan of the Beatles. So what on earth can a bloke who was born in England in 1796 possibly have to do with the Beatles? And how is it that you’ve probably heard his name? Read...
The Great Sheffield Flood of 1864
The Great Sheffield Flood of 1864. At about 5.30 in the afternoon of 11th March, quarryman William Horsefield noticed a crack in the embankment of the Dale Dyke Dam, part of a recently built reservoir near Sheffield in Yorkshire. It was only a small crack, he reckoned that he’d be able to slip the blade of a penknife into it and that’s all but nevertheless, he alerted some of the men who worked at the dam. Just over an...
The Museum of Extraordinary Things
The Museum of Extraordinary Things: Review This book, written by Alice Hoffman, is an exceptional fiction, bracketed at the beginning and the end with real events. It’s hard to know which are the more horrifying sections – the fact or the fiction. Set in the early years of the twentieth century. the book tells of a strange character indeed – a man who makes his living at Coney Island running a sideshow of...
How to be Parisian
How to be Parisian – wherever you are Have you ever admired that effortless style that women from Paris seem to have? Everything they do seems to be so stylish and effortless. Whether sitting at a sidewalk café sipping a glass of wine or shopping for the best French bread, they exude a special something and what’s more, they do it with a twinkle in their eye. Sophisticated they may be, but they are also fun. They are...
The Triangle Fire
Death in Manhattan: The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire Disaster. Thirty five horse-drawn fire fighting vehicles were dashing through the streets of Manhattan. It was March in 1911 and the streets were quiet on that Saturday afternoon. But nevertheless, the firefighters were unable to save lives that day. They were headed towards the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory where fire had broken out in the ten-storey building. The business, which made...
Urbio: Designer Wall Storage
Storage plus indoor gardening – perfect for small space living. For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to own a Uten.Silo – that wonderful wall storage system designed back in the 1960s. But now I’ve discovered Urbio, I’ve found that it’s far more flexible, so very stylish and it comes at a very reasonable price. What’s more, the Urbio can be bought as modular pieces allowing you to stretch...
Yellowstone Named the First National Park on This Day in 1872
The World’s First National Park On March 1, 1872 Yellowstone was named the first national park. It was the first national park world wide, not just in the United States. It pleases me to realize that in the midst of those trying years when US Grant was president, he realized the importance of setting aside national lands for all to protect and enjoy. To think it happened about 7 years after the civil war ended gives it...
The Corfu Trilogy by Gerald Durrell: Review
The Corfu Trilogy by Gerald Durrell: Review In later life, Gerald Durrell was a respected naturalist and conservationist but in 1935 he was a ten year old boy when he and his somewhat eccentric family went to live in the Greek Island of Corfu. He was the youngest child of the family and, even though life in the Durrell household was bizarre enough, introduced various creature and animals into the home with disastrous – and...
The Oscars: Harold Russell
Who was Harold Russell? Harold Russell was the only actor to win two Oscars for the same role. He also caused controversy by selling one of the statuettes. And despite winning two Oscars, he wasn’t a professional actor. But his story is much more interesting than that. If you look closely at the photograph above you’ll see why. Harold Russell had no hands He had been born in Canada and when he was a boy, his family moved...
A Circle of Sisters: The MacDonalds
A Circle of Sisters: The MacDonalds Remarkably, four daughters of a nineteenth century Methodist minister became powerful and feted by Victorian society – against all odds. The girls were born into a relatively impoverished family; their father being a minister who moved around the country and their mother the daughter of a wholesale grocer. The had few advantages. They weren’t particularly educated. In that society in...
Last Meals: Death Row
Last Meals: Death Row How differently do men and women eat? Maybe a food psychologist could tell us,or even a restaurateur, but evidently the difference are plain even on death row. It’s customary for people who are about to be executed to have whatever they wish for their final meal and,it seems, jails are pretty good when it comes to satisfying their choices. But what surprises me is: Even on death row, women eat salads...
Rufus Estes – the first African-American Cookbook
Rufus Estes – author of the first African-American Cookbook In 1911, Rufus Estes published cookbook. There is nothing particularly unusual in that except Estes is believed to be the first African-American chef to publish his recipes. Rufus was born in 1857 in Tennessee and given the last name of his master; the man who ‘owned’ Rufus’ mother, a slave. When civil war broke out he said that most of the male...
Can Olive Oil Cure Toothache?
Does olive oil cure toothache? For me it does. I’m not a dentist and it may well depend on the reason why your teeth are aching but I have not had a toothache yet that can’t be sorted out simply using a product I always have in my kitchen. Last week, I was unable to sleep because of this horrible tooth. I suspect strongly that it needs to be pulled out but at my time of life, I need to keep as many of my teeth as I can....