tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20315496900507053492011-09-14T17:46:56.856+01:00The continuing adventures of AlexAlexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.comBlogger441100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-5681380062241343112010-12-18T07:00:00.002Z2010-12-18T14:34:18.199Z

In early December of 2000 I came home to my parents' house from a not entirely unsuccessful first term reading social anthropology at Sussex.At the time I was writing a lot; I had recently started writing online for pleasure with a group of friends, and those two weeks would see me spend a lot of time sitting on the sofa by the Christmas tree tapping away on my laptop.On Monday December 18th I

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-77409593572465430652010-07-31T19:19:00.003+01:002010-07-31T20:06:26.366+01:00

On Friday, London witnessed the not wholly unsuccessful launch of the Barclays Cycle Hire scheme, our very own version of Paris' Velib programme and the apparent culmination of Mayor Boris Johnson's avowed desire to get us all on two wheels.Now, I'm no fan of the big-haired blond bombshell - pictured here by yours truly in Sutton last April, campaigning with the loathsome bigot Philippa Stroud -

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-11267844416260492862010-05-05T12:37:00.002+01:002010-05-05T23:37:03.545+01:00

Five years ago I wrote a blog on why I intended to vote Liberal Democrat. Well, I wish I could tell you to vote Liberal Democrat again. I was thoroughly impressed with their performance in this campaign and the debates. Many of their policies make sense to me, and it I believe is high time we addressed the thorny question of electoral reform. Nick Clegg has promised this and I wish him luck.But

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-10213421985926674082010-01-12T08:19:00.002Z2010-01-12T08:45:18.221Z

Hello again.As vaguely promised before, I'm trying to get myself into the writing mood by sharing some thoughts on the books I'm reading this year. I've been plugging away at Defence of the Realm, a twenty tonne diplodocus of a book that is hard to hold upright, yet alone wave around on the upper deck of a crowded bus, so I'm saving that for home reading and have embarked on some other, more

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-36235129919974811252010-01-03T12:20:00.003Z2010-01-03T13:13:28.470Z

Hello, all two of you.There's lots to get through and lots to plan this year, not least an impending wedding, so at the minute, feeling vaguely energised - which might have something to do with all the coffee I just drank - and basking in the winter sunshine, I'm trying to take the changes that are going to happen during 2010 as a cue to start writing here, and in other places, again. I've been

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-25743409753028227512009-02-27T13:22:00.006Z2009-02-27T15:33:27.941Z

I had an encounter with an interesting new aspect of the Twitter experience this week, having been pretty much converted to the whimsical charms of exposing my soul to Stephen Fry and wondering if Jonathan Ross might follow me back in 140 characters or less - and what the hell I'd do if he did.So, to set our scene, a couple of days ago I decided to go through the list of people who I was

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-61267858099670663632009-02-02T15:34:00.003Z2009-02-02T15:56:19.408Z

Well, the last time snowfall got this deep in London I was 8 years old and the headmaster caved in and let us wear long trousers - actually the tracksuit bottoms out of our games kit - for a day. This was how hard we were in 1991 in the wilds of north Surrey.Today I got up, poked L to look at the snow, and then found out that every bus in London was out of action for the duration. L said it much

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-45243732855545767342009-01-19T00:26:00.003Z2009-01-28T11:24:45.713Z

With just days left before the inauguration of Barack Obama I thought it might be timely to think a little about freedom and aspiration and specifically, freedom to aspire.I often have difficulty articulating to people why I choose to identify as a republican. Sadly the vast majority of the British public are still either supportive or broadly neutral towards the monarchy, so usually I don't go

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-58415748739368651332009-01-10T19:50:00.002Z2009-01-13T22:34:45.766Z

So, it's that time of year again when we all come together to select this year's UK Eurovision entry, and this year things are going to be mighty different... ooh yes.Following our utter failure to get anywhere near the top 10 in recent years, in 2009 Britain is taking this damn seriously. Oh yes, we're stringing the selection process out over two months and the eventual act will get to sing a (

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-68467582040840858412008-12-13T23:47:00.001Z2008-12-13T23:48:36.443Z

At some point on Thursday evening during a not-particularly-heavy Warcraft session (I was in Dalaran picking mushrooms) the MacBook started to make an absolutely horrific something-ain't-right whining noise. It sounded like the fan was throwing its toys out of the pram, and as I was starting to feel that the computer might actually take off I shut down WoW and turned off the computer and that

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-23273091600221970312008-12-11T21:50:00.004Z2008-12-11T22:37:27.421Z

So, hi, guys. I thought that as I'm using this blog more instead of my old Livejournal, and because it's linked in to other sites and platforms that I've been using, it's about time to find out who, if anybody, is reading this, what they're getting out of coming here, what they want, and why they're following me around.I hope, if you're reading this, you might indulge me for a few minutes and

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-84941367460816225392008-12-11T19:31:00.004Z2008-12-11T21:34:53.712Z

The internal TV aerial we'd been using gave up on the last remaining spot where we could still get a signal, so a nice man is coming to install Freesat for us next week. We get two hundred and forty channels and I don't really want any of them but still, it is free, the nice people assured me ... and what kind of incomparable titmonkey markets a flat without a TV aerial? Seriously.I took a look

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-65628431086349022182008-12-09T23:27:00.000Z2008-12-09T23:28:07.348Z

So, I've been twittering away for a couple of days now and it seems like good fun - a bit of a time-sink in the way that this sort of thing tends to be - but on balance definitely something worth sticking with.*However, I'm really having some pretty severe issues with some aspects of the site's design and wondered if anybody else had been irritated by this as well? There seems to be no feature to

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-51664860193747402982008-12-05T20:23:00.004Z2008-12-06T00:59:46.811Z

X-Factor, the first person shooter video game for PC, Mac and WiiLouis Walsh has gone rogue and kidnapped tousle-haired Jamie Oliver/foetus lookalike Eoghan Quigg to be his sex slave. Its time for Dermot O'Leary and Same Difference to form an unholy alliance to stop this madness once and for all. Includes zombies, hardcore porn inserted by a bored designer and hidden bonus Abba Tribute Night

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-52535347794221624682008-09-29T20:25:00.001+01:002009-01-13T22:37:55.957Z

Well, for those who are following this one, I'm about seventy pages into The Devil Served Tortellini, which I picked up in Murder One on Saturday at Cassie's signing. It is a stunning artistic tour de force and I predict it will some day be a GCSE set text. I'm thinking of throwing it open to the public. £5 a viewing. No children. No dogs. K and John are both welcome to borrow when I am done, but

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-73421048344257850562008-09-22T17:51:00.001+01:002008-09-22T17:52:34.813+01:00

I've been doing rather well vis-a-vis the perks in this job. In the past week I've scored both Arbutus and Quo Vadis for the first time ever. Arbutus set me up with an amazing pig cheek and apple salad, Elwy Valley lamb with sweetbreads and olives, which was probably the most succulent lamb I've ever eaten, and an apple and blackberry charlotte that was average for one Michelin star, but still

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-52627746491438846182008-08-14T08:00:00.000+01:002009-01-13T22:41:18.659Z

I'm not convinced that Michael Phelps is the winningest athlete and most successful olympian of all time. Not to take anything away from a pretty outstanding achievement, but let's try and put this in perspective. The swimming competition is massive, with loads of events and several different strokes over a variety of distances and with a varying number of actual swimmers. The potential for

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-52597314873203152852008-08-07T07:55:00.000+01:002009-01-13T22:43:52.992Z

I'm not dead.But I just got out of the shower and in the steamed up shaving mirror I saw a fingerprint drawing of a star of David.All the evidence points to one thing only; the Chosen have tracked me down...

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-91925736369506135822008-02-28T20:29:00.003Z2008-02-28T20:39:44.768Z

It isn't that I want Prince Harry dead or anything like that, but I have a very, very bitter taste in my mouth right now over how this story, broken - albeit not where anybody noticed - early in January and subsequently seized on by the Drudge Report, has been handled.Essentially, in conspiring to hold back the story, the entire British media has bent over and allowed themselves to be held in

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-90840631534175027732008-02-20T13:35:00.004Z2008-02-20T15:01:39.918Z

So, here I am in Paris. Yesterday evening we had a frightfully trendy media reception at the Museum of Architecture, all champagne fountains and soft dance music in the background. The walls were white and the floors, hot pink. It was all very minimalist and interesting.Today I have got my story, and it's quite an interesting one; Alcatel-Lucent has fallen on hard times since its merger, but it

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-84059138865046630452008-02-18T19:58:00.004Z2008-02-18T20:56:45.512Z

Off to Paris first thing tomorrow at the behest of a major French telco that is, to put it politely, on the rocks after a disastrous merger with an American firm. This is a conference for their business partners in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and my mission is to get a positive story out of it, as my contacts with these guys are very friendly people and I don't like laying into them. Some

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-34279799376156564782008-02-06T19:16:00.000Z2009-01-13T22:46:13.788Z

Money disaster averted, not many hurtAfter the disastrously lean month that was January, I now have money in my bank account again, and also the news that HR has fucked up and has been paying me too low a salary for the past eight months. This will be rectified in early March, just in time for the April pay settlement. I am told the NUJ is agitating for a decent increase this year.Alex plots to

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-80262730553605768112008-01-24T21:48:00.002Z2008-02-18T20:02:49.358Z

Work has been ... interesting this week. There have been a lot of changes, and not for the better, methinks.Joe Queenan in today's Guardian reports on why the premature deaths of movie stars affect us more than the premature deaths of singers.Essentially, when someone like Heath Ledger, James Dean or River Phoenix dies young there is more cultural fallout because over the course of their careers,

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-87916402584091064172008-01-06T22:53:00.001Z2008-02-18T20:04:40.392Z

Disappointing lunch at Prezzo on Brighton Marina. My linguine con polpette lacked for the kind of herby, sausagemeat-laden meatballs that good Italian-American restaurants have spoiled me for, tasting more of actual sausage. All in all, average food for the price, and you were left with the feeling that you could have got better in a trattoria that hadn't been decorated since 1975, all raffia

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-32449077681727429722008-01-06T12:07:00.001Z2008-02-18T20:05:08.452Z

Brighton - Pleasant night's sleep in L's very comfortable and big bed. Drove down yesterday in - it seemed - like double time, and will go back to London tomorrow via work.Chinese take-away yesterday evening was less than successful - some middleman clearly thought he'd start an impromptu game of Chinese whispers with our order, and by the time it arrived at our door one giant seafood appetizer

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-48502629987663372122007-11-14T23:14:00.003Z2008-02-18T20:06:17.629Z

Whatever your opinion of three-limbed ex-Beatle banger Heather Mills, you can't deny the lady has an eye for a publicity stunt. Today's Metro, picked up at the station in a moment of madness - although on Wednesdays I have the excuse of reading the restaurant reviews and, well, a chap has to stay current - reports that Mills has decided to become a Gay Icon and is trying to book an appearance at

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-42461283100717771672007-10-27T21:54:00.001+01:002008-02-18T20:07:00.647Z

The Scottish National Party (SNP) has unanimously backed calls for the voting age to be lowered to sixteen, reports the BBC.Which strikes me as a very cynical, and very voter-savvy ploy. It's ill-informed, immature, hot-head teenage voters who will vote for some perceived glorious notion of Scottish independence without taking into account all the reasons why Scottish independence is a very bad

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-79270440382877513042007-10-25T17:04:00.001+01:002008-02-18T20:07:21.606Z

Tomorrow's canteen menu includes the delights of the minced lamb donna kebab.Poor Donna.Still, it's what she would have wanted.

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-89818143437391702472007-10-24T21:59:00.001+01:002008-02-18T20:08:12.006Z

A devout Baptist couple who picked up what they thought was a Doris Day film for £2.99 in a supermarket bargain bin were shocked to find themselves watching sapphic Italian schlockfest Tettone, che passione! (Breasts, what a passion!).Full story on the BBC.What I love best is that the god-fearing couple continued watching until the end of the DVD, presumably so that they could see just how

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-88695335686901285362007-10-15T19:44:00.001+01:002008-02-18T20:09:02.595Z

I obtained a new umbrella today. Half stole it in fact.... At Blackfriars Station on the way home from work the guy sitting on the bank of seats across from me jumped up, and as he got to the doors I spotted his umbrella on the seat. I jumped up too as he pushed the button and with a loud "excuse me!" tapped him on the shoulder, at which he looked back at me, gave me a glance that I can only

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-5498775818413895902007-10-04T20:50:00.001+01:002008-02-18T20:09:42.781Z

Every morning at about 8:55 as the platform at my station starts to get busy, a pre-recorded announcement is played over the tannoy to the effect that anybody physically or verbally abusing the train company's staff will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, or words to that effect.And I wonder, what happened to the assumption that passengers wouldn't gratuitously start assaulting people

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-59817716673634364822007-10-02T19:25:00.001+01:002008-02-18T20:10:01.321Z

So I was in the gym on the Broadway doing a little chest work before my swim late on Monday, and there was this very intimidating, thickset guy in a silver tracksuit. He clearly shaved his head, but hadn't done it for a little while and so his bonce was covered in rather unappealing fuzz. Then he turned around and he'd had some kind of swirly faux-Maori meets Celtic knot down a dark alley design

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-64465027919995963732007-09-01T14:22:00.000+01:002009-01-13T22:49:41.579Z

So, on Wednesday night I put my elderly computer to bed as usual, tucked it in and gave it a Horlicks and a chocolate digestive and I had the same myself and then we both went to bed as happy as Larry - however happy he is.Come the morning bright, however, the computer had clearly come down with something - whereas I was fighting fit and ready to hit the gym. Try as I might I couldn't get the

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-34164136262654641832007-08-23T19:07:00.001+01:002008-02-18T20:10:46.244Z

I read with some interest Jeremy Vine's piece on tackling thugs and antisocial yobs on Auntie's website the other day, and recognised the dilemma Vine found himself in right away.For those who didn't read the original posting or the subsequent follow-ups in tehlondonpaper, there was a burly c**t being sexually aggressive to a girl on the tube; he got off and as the doors were closing one of the

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-32487730223993425722007-08-17T23:04:00.001+01:002008-02-18T20:11:39.098Z

One of my great, but lesser known fears, is that I will die before having had the chance to have a chat with Stephen Fry. It would be an exquisite pleasure; like swimming in chocolate. I don't know that we'd have anything much to talk about, but it would be wonderful to be able to absorb some of him ... mentally.I mention this having just watched a talking heads documentary celebrating the 50th

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-44534619072028098922007-08-12T18:13:00.001+01:002008-02-18T20:12:25.805Z

The Sunday Times reports that 'comedy actress' Dawn French is 'moving to Cornwall to die'.The lovely Dawn, who is not suffering from cancer or AIDS or anything that a couple of hours on a treadmill once or twice a week wouldn't cure, is apparently convinced that she is going to die young - The Times, in grisly style, notes that her father committed suicide, which is less something you die of and

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-2040285550449293532007-08-12T17:31:00.001+01:002008-02-18T20:12:58.813Z

Following Friday's ever-so restrained night of excess I slept for four hours on Saturday morning, and planned on having a very long, satisfying sleep the following night, of the kind that you just don't get any more. So, I started watching Mike Leigh's All or Nothing on BBC2 at about 10:40 but after 20 minutes decided that I just couldn't hack it - even for a Mike Leigh film - and beetled off to

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-3762379440240453942007-07-30T17:19:00.001+01:002009-01-13T22:56:00.617Z

So I think summer has definitely come in some form or another; I was actually able to leave home this morning without an umbrella for the first time since April, although this is really because I forgot it, but I'd never let that stand in the way of a good story.Walked down to the gym on the Broadway this morning in what is fast becoming a normal routine. I have yet to see any really hot boys

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-31556783046315213732007-07-27T21:30:00.000+01:002009-01-13T22:59:40.328Z

Gastronomes across the land have taken heart this week, following the publication of a survey revealing that the French - of all people - have voted the British the most adventurous eaters. Which I think we can all agree is a fine and richly deserved nod from our Gallic cousins.The eagle-eyed will spot some flaws in this logic of course.The first being that French cuisine, beyond the ubiquitous

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-45572261229734513292007-05-23T19:32:00.000+01:002009-01-13T23:07:40.223Z

So, an awkward day in the office. I finally got confirmation of my start date at The Very Big Company O'Doom this morning - it's towards the end of June - and promptly handed in my formal resignation, and coming so soon after the Deputy Editor walked it wasn't welcomed. The Boss is very disappointed and made it clear in no uncertain terms - as well as saying how great the opportunities were if I

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-88291320817602236702007-05-16T21:50:00.002+01:002009-01-13T23:19:16.732Z

So, I decided I haven't really done a big, interesting entry for a while, so here is one ... hopefully.I had a birthday, a very important one, I'm halfway to 50 and nobody remembered! Well, thanks for the good wishes here and on Facebook. I would have liked to do some kind of big party thing, but I don't really like hosting big parties, so it was more of a quiet weekend at home, not doing a whole

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-35996366590500251932007-05-10T21:16:00.000+01:002009-01-13T23:20:39.716Z

By what strange process did Channel 4 News wind up with Boris Johnson going on to talk about Tony Blair's resignation??Brrp brrpBrrp brrpBrrp brrpHello, and welcome to Conservative Party Central Office, rolling back the frontiers of socialism since 1978. To help us better serve us, please choose from the following options...If you are calling to request a signed photograph of David Cameron, press

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-88112099856114427682007-02-06T10:00:00.000Z2009-01-13T23:24:25.551Z

So, in a second act of stupidity, a whole bunch of countries have now banned imports of British-bred poultry. Which has me scratching my immaculately coiffeured head. Here's why. So far everything we know points to the spread of H5N1 along migratory paths flown by wild birds. Given that thousands of innocent gobblers have gone to their untimely deaths and the outbreak appears to be tentatively

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2031549690050705349.post-19307164990556797122007-02-05T10:30:00.000Z2009-01-13T23:25:41.853Z

What about the eggs??? A human mother can pass HIV onto unborn child, so can a bird pass bird flu to egg, if so, are they disposing of eggs as well, or are they hatching or are we eating?? It is quite a scary thought. deb, halifaxIt's a scary thought that you're eating, for sure...And as for the people who are speculating that the government is deliberately infecting the turkeys in order to bury

Alexhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01659463188794823540noreply@blogger.com0