Antony Jay’s and Jonathan Lynn’s stage adaptation of the TV sitcom, Yes, Prime Minister, at the Gielgud Theatre in Shaftesbury Avenue, London, is well worth a visit. Having enjoyed the TV series I went with high expectations, and the production didn’t disappoint.
The classic combination of a controlling Sir Humphrey (Henry Goodman) with beautifully crafted lengthy speeches [...]
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Posted in Government, Health, Science on Feb 22nd, 2010
Despite some £4m a year being spent on homeopathy, the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee said today that using public money on the highly diluted remedies could not be justified. The cross-party group said there was no evidence beyond a placebo effect, when a patient gets better because of their belief that the treatment [...]
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Here’s something. Imagine you live in a community where you are expected to pay into a fund that is used to meet various needs in the community - the upkeep of roads, salaries for nurses and teachers, and community hospitality, for example. Then it transpires that you are about to receive a visit from a [...]
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Local vicars in Winscombe and Sandford in Somerset have been pressing to have prayers reinstated at the beginning of Parish Council meetings, a month after they were dropped.
The reason why they were dropped is not that the Parish Council wished to stop individuals talking to their imaginary friends in the privacy of their own homes, [...]
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Posted in Education, Faith, Government, Religion on Sep 22nd, 2009
For a long time I have felt very uneasy with the notion of Faith Schools. Having worked in Secondary Modern Schools, and latterly in Comprehensives, and Further Education Colleges, I have a profound dislike of anything that divides young people unnecessarily or that make access to progress a privilege.
My two main objections to them are [...]
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Posted in Government, Human Rights, Politics on Sep 1st, 2009
According to Children’s Secretary, Ed Balls, social workers ‘change lives’. Despite that attraction, and despite an appeal from many ‘famous’ people (Samantha Morton, Michelle Ryan, Sadie Frost, Goldie) adding their names to a UK campaign to recruit more social workers, I won’t be changing career myself (even if that were practically possible) or encouraging others to think [...]
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There are strong reasons in favour of releasing Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, the former Libyan intelligence officer convicted of killing 270 people when Pan AM Flight 103 exploded over the skies of Lockerbie on 21 December 1988. However, to my mind, there are more compelling reasons for keeping him in prison.
The two strongest arguments for releasing him have [...]
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British newspapers appear to be making a big story out of a recent Royal decision to take note of modern Britain.
Some Hindus and Muslims objected to the name and the insignia of an honour established by the Queen 40 years ago to recognise distinguished service in the former colony of Trinidad and Tobago. The Trinity [...]
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I think I am living in the UK in the twenty first century. I think I am. Sometimes things just seem so absurd that I question my reality. Some things you just couldn’t make up.
Just bear with me. Suppose there were laws about pigs - laws set up to protect the rights of pigs [...]
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A new proposal from Islamic states was circulated amongst Geneva diplomats last week as they attended the current session of the UN Human Rights Council. It is entitled “Combating defamation of religions,” and mentions only Islam. If adopted it would define any questioning of Islamic dogma as a human rights violation, which would intimidate dissenting [...]
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