I first read his book, ‘Our masters’ voices‘ when I was 22. If I’m honest, lots of it was beyond me then. But like great poetry, that you like the sound of, but don’t really ‘get’, I persevered, and learned more at each reading; as I matured and gained experience. At 22 years old, I…
I went to a speechwriter’s conference last year- The UK Speechwriter’s Guild event, in Bournemouth, and I saw Charles Crawford speak. I didn’t know of him and was intrigued and interested to find out that he’s a very experienced diplomat of the first rank. (Does one ever become an ex-diplomat?) His subject was fresh, full…
I got it for Christmas. From my wife. She loves me. I was indifferent, to him. For an Englishman, Lord Sugar of Clapton, as he is now, is unmissable, ubiquitous and often unintelligible. He’s the ‘Donald Trump’ of our little island and he’s become the (grumpy and sometimes curmudgeonly) face of the ‘self-made-man’ in the…
My name is James, it’s what my mother called me, it’s what my 2 sisters, my twin brother and my creaky old dad do too. I prefer James, but almost nobody asks before they call me Jim. I gave up trying to put people right years ago, but I do notice when someone bothers to…
A professional conference in the UK, 2010. Syndicate speakers, famous published author on communication, 200 seats, all attendees looking forward to pearls of wisdom and quotable quotes, high expectations. The audience began to assemble, sat where they thought they could, happy, chatting amongst themselves, waiting. Scheduled start time passed with no comment from the stage….
Whitehall insecurities about its new Conservative masters are laid bare in eye-opening secret papers leaked to The Sunday Telegraph.- Apparently!!! Here’s what the spleen-venting, deranged Sunday paper thought about finding out that one UK government department was preparing plans to build a working relationship with the incoming Minister and his team… ‘The documents, instructing senior…
As professional presenters we have to develop tough hides and learn very quickly that sometimes, there’s nothing we can do but accept that someone doesn’t like us. If we don’t, then a career of sweat filled nights of terror-stricken anticipation and alcohol softened evenings of solace await. Even that God-like figure of admiration and hero…
Andrew Marr, of the BBC, is becoming one of the hardest to watch ‘car crash’ presenters in the UK. He’s finely poised between horribly self-conscious and excruciatingly self-loving and I can only watch him with my hands over my eyes, through the gaps in my trembling fingers. It’s not him as a person that I object to,…
I know that George Orwell, English novelist, liberal and writer, only wrote 4 decent books (The Road to Wigan Pier, Down and Out in Paris & London, 1984 and Animal Farm- in my opinion). As a novelist, he was probably better at the ideas than their expression, but the was a truly great journalist. He set the standard for lean,…