Month: August 2020

The King’s Choice

The King’s Choice is a misleading film title for an English speaking audience – it is not about the Duke of Windsor. The king, as portrayed in the film, bears a remarkably close resemblance to Alan Brooke. If he looks less than happy it is because his wife had died in 1938 and his neutral… Continue reading The King’s Choice

Published
Categorised as History

Tomato Catsup

In 1876 Henry Heinz started selling Tomato Catsup – it sold well but the name didn’t catch on. Does anyone make ketchup better than Heinz?

Democracy Matters

As you probably know, there will be a presidential election in the United States on the first Tuesday after 1st November. Four years ago my friend Ned misread the runes. He’s more than welcome to have another go this year. 

Published
Categorised as Politics

Royal Reflections

  Yesterday, at the Savile Club, I asked Michael Bloch about the Dukes of Windsor and Sussex. His insights are too interesting to keep to myself and I prevailed upon him to write today’s post; thank you Michael.

The Queen’s Beasts

Sometimes I talk almost complete rubbish and this happened on Saturday at Holland Park. I was talking to somebody who works at Kew Gardens and she feigned interest that the ten Queen’s Beasts outside the Palm House had been designed by my great-uncle to stand outside Westminster Abbey at the Queen’s coronation.

Published
Categorised as Sculpture

Singing in the Rain

Yesterday evening I went to Opera Holland Park for a concert performance of Sondheim’s A Little Night Music; a return to normality? Not quite.

Published
Categorised as Music

Living with Alan Brooke

It’s May 1943 and I’m with Alan Brooke in Washington. A diarist, a blogger too, likes to show their best side although Chips Channon never seemed to have a best side.

History Repeats Itself

Western democrats are reluctant to read history. The same mistake is made over and over again. Tito, Gaddafi, Hussein, Assad, et al were not promoters of democracy but they did in their way run their countries quite well. Western democratic opposition to their regimes has resulted in bloodshed and misery. In my opinion a price… Continue reading History Repeats Itself