Kicking the Can The realities of our predicament were starkly laid out by Angela Merkel in 2012: “Europe accounts for 7 per cent of the world’s population, 25 per cent of its economy and 50 per cent of its social welfare expenditure.” The second reality is that the UK can never raise more than 38 …
Category: 2026 Walk
Sep 11
Day 11: Woolhampton to Burghfield, Reading
Marital Gems Our host tells me that he met his present wife at her late husband’s funeral. On another tack, we had a great party before the walk when our eldest grandson announced his engagement to a girl from Texas. What excellent news. Love, Actually I lament the report of the Centre for Social Justice …
Sep 10
Day 10: Newbury to Woolhampton
Joy Shared Macmillan Cancer Support recently published findings showing that 18- to 35-year-olds had, on average, 237 Facebook friends. When asked how many could be relied on in a crisis, the average answer was two, a quarter said one and an eighth said none. Many of my older friends tell me that their friends are …
Sep 09
Day 9: Dun Mill Lock, Hungerford to Newbury
The Black Dog “For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move; to feel the needs and hitches of our life more nearly; to come down off this feather-bed of civilization, and find the globe granite underfoot and strewn with cutting …
Sep 08
Day 8: Wolfhall Bridge, Burbage to Dun Mill Lock, Hungerford
Life’s Golden Rules I read some of the scribbles of Ian Fleming (author of the James Bond books). Among them were the rules he gave Bond to live his life by: 1. Don’t waste time on women who wear a bracelet on the left ankle. 2. Beware of motor cars with two women in the …
Sep 07
Day Off
The Assembly Line In the 1950s, Second World War Spitfire hero Sir Douglas Bader gave an assembly talk to the girls of Benenden School about his part in the Battle of Britain. Not noted for his modesty, he hobbled to the blackboard on his artificial legs and chalked a series of small circles. “It was …
Sep 06
Day 7: Ladies Bridge, Wilcot to Wolfhall Bridge, Burbage
A Shameful Silence When I was at school in the late 1950s, a Jewish friend – I remember his name to this day – suffered appalling antisemitic abuse. Of course, I rushed to his defence, single-handedly fighting the abusers. In fact, spotty little rat that I was, I did no such thing. I pretended I agreed …
Sep 05
Day 6: Devizes to Ladies Bridge, Wilcot
“Oh Dear!” I much enjoy vigorous discussion, but I dislike it if the person arguing knows nothing about the subject. In fact, when I discover that my opponent hasn’t a clue what they are talking bout I make my apologies and talk about the weather. I recall in 2017 a friend of mine voted Labour; …
Sep 04
Day 5: Semington to Devizes
Ancient Worker Musings… How many miles of stone walls were built by the ancients of history? How many bad backs! And walking by the canal, how many navvies spent their entire lives digging out the vast tons of earth that had to be hacked out to make the canal operational? What were they paid? How …
Sep 03
Day 4: Winsley to Semington
Speechless As donors will recall, as conversation topics, I specialise in money, sex, politics, religion and death, so I can hold my own at any supper party… Until I am rendered speechless. At an unknown supper party during the last walk, a delightful host suddenly fixed me with a glittering eye as he asked me: …
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