…grayblog…

Category: old blogging

  • Fancy a haircut? New Weebl.

    Fancy a haircut? New Weebl.

  • Loads of things to read

    Loads of things to read on the BBC News pages today – I’m too busy to link them all, so go find them yourself:

    • Concorde to be retired
    • SARS virus "here to stay"
    • Ariane has flawless launch
    • European Space Agency to send a swarm of satellites to investigate asteroids

    Best of all, more from Andrew Gilligan:

    Saddam Hussein has already been spotted in more places than Lord Lucan. He’s been in the Russian embassy, he’s been in the mosque this morning, he’s alleged to be on a convoy to Syria – no doubt he’ll soon be found on a sofa in Huddersfield.

  • My new business needs a

    My new business needs a bank account. And a second account in euro. And a debit card so that I can do simple things like booking a hotel over the phone. Nothing too complicated.
    So why do I have to complete TEN forms to apply for that?

  • The big news in Orchard

    The big news in Orchard Street this week is that number 183, the famous Girls’ House, is up for sale. Which explains the frantic exterior decorating efforts taking place there last weekend. Interestingly, and ideally for stalkers, the details on the King and Chasemore website show interior views of the rooms. It’s a nice three bedroom house, yours for £230K.
    So, with 181 and 183 for sale, the hope is that I’ll get some interesting new neighbours to spy on. Watch this space, as usual.

  • It’s always worrying to be

    It’s always worrying to be sat on a train next to an unkempt and unshaven man with bare feet sporting toe rings and lavender nail polish. I’m worried right now.

  • Whilst Rageh “Zoiks!” Omaar breathlessly

    Whilst Rageh "Zoiks!" Omaar breathlessly reported the destruction of one of the statues of Saddam in Baghdad on the BBC reporters’ log page, Andrew Gilligan once again, took a different view.

    I want to talk to you about my favourite Saddam statues, in anticipation they may not be here for much longer.

    One of my favourites is a moody looking Saddam on a tall plinth. And there are tiny little models of Mrs Thatcher, George Bush Senior and the President of France, Jacques Chirac cringing at his feet.

    This is a memorial to what the Saddam regime called the American occupation of Kuwait – the first Gulf War. Now I imagine that will probably come down pretty soon.

    Theres another one by the telephone exchange saying "Saddam on the phone". They tend to be themed, these things.

    I like his style – I see a good future for him in broadcasting.
    (Credit for the Scooby Doo joke to Punt and Dennis).

  • Bloody cold here today. Brr.

    Bloody cold here today. Brr.

  • Nice stealth tax increases from

    Nice stealth tax increases from the Chancellor, in freezing tax allowances – a sneaky, backdoor way to increase income tax that disproportionally impacts on the poor.
    But it looks like it could have been worse in terms of business taxes, which is a good thing.

  • I’ve just watched the pictures

    I’ve just watched the pictures on TV of the American troops and armour arriving at the media hotel in Baghdad. Quite incredible scenes, with the incongruity of a US Marine giving a live telephone interview from outside the Hotel Palestine.
    But I’m amused that at least one journalist still has his cynical head on, and hasn’t given in to the jingoism and euphoria that some others seem to have adopted. Andrew Gilligan of the BBC:

    We always wondered whether the American tanks would roll up in front of our live cameras in time for the American morning TV shows, and they just about have. Quarter to nine in the morning on the East Coast, quarter to six on the West Coast, so it is more or less picture-perfect timing for the Americans.

  • Last night’s talk went well,

    Last night’s talk went well, although it over-ran as usual, and was followed by a brief and late night coffee with Penn (as she lives only a couple of miles or so from where I was speaking), which afforded an opportunity to meet her incredibly cute and mad kitten, Dexy. Which has got me wishing I had a home that was more kitten-friendly than my flat.
    Anyway, I didn’t get home until 1.40am, so consequently I am exhausted today.