The Sceptred Isle: twentieth century by Christopher Lee

 This is the current book on my reading list, it may take me a while to review it.

In search of the dark ages by Michael Wood

 Yesterday I finished reading “In search of the dark ages” by Michael Wood, one of his earlier books, published in 1981 but how was it, let’s find out more.

First of all, like all non historians, I knew very little about the dark ages, especially dark age Britain. One of the reasons is that very little of it is mentioned in the media and taught in schools. So I bought this book last year to learn a bit more.

Like his other books, this is a very readable book and it teaches us the events and personalities of that time period between the end of Roman Britain and the Norman conquest. I learnt about the Saxon, Danish and Viking settlement in England and their local leaders. It also explained how England was divided up between the different ethnic groups.  I was particularly fascinated by his description of the lead up to battle of Hastings and how it was likely fought.  Strangely enough the book content coincides with the migrant problem happening in the UK at the moment, as new arrivals from Europe clashed with existing host communities. Maybe Wood had some foresight back then. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone interested in this less well known part of British history.

 

Jeffrey Archer

 One of the first items I saw on my Instagram app this morning over breakfast was the news of Jeffrey Archer’s death yesterday.

He was a former Conservative MP, deputy chairman of the Conservative party and most remembered as a novellist.  I have read two of his works, ‘Kane and Abel’ and one of his prison diaries about his time in Belmarsh.  He was a very flawed character due to his perjury conviction and he was the subject of mockery on BBC “Have I got news for you” and in Private Eye magazine.  Rest in peace and condolences to his family.

Esther Rantzen

 I woke up and after finishing breakfast I saw this sad news appear on my Youtube feed.  Like most people of my generation I remember her from BBC “That’s life” it was investigative journalism, fearless campaigning and light entertainment rolled into one. It was a must watch on Sunday nights. Esther, thanks for the memories and rest in peace.

Teeline - update 2

 In my Teeline self study I am now using two new books(pictured below) which I bought from my UK visit this year. These two books provide more practice exercises, which helps the learning process and makes learning more interesting. I use both books in parallel and started from the beginning on both.  All exercises have answers at the back. 

The other reason I use them is that my “Teeline Shorthand made simple” is literally falling apart, so I decided to retire it.  My method is to study each book on alternate days daily, this means I am more likely to retain what I learnt. 

Forthcoming BBC radio medium wave switch off

 As I recently mentioned the BBC has already switched off its long wave transmissions for Radio 4, it will switch off medium wave transmissions for BBC Radio Five Live in 2027. This means less choice for listeners, especially those who do not have access to Digital Audio Broadcast(DAB) and the internet.  I have watched various youtube videos commenting on the long wave switch off, this one mentions a possible defence implication whereby an electrical magnetic pulse impact will disable digital communications and the national grid. I remember seeing this depicted in the 1980s BBC drama documentary “Threads” about Britain under nuclear attack.  Such an attack may not be as devastating for legacy items such as long or medium radio due to them being less complex and radio receivers being able to run on batteries. Hence long and medium wave operations may survive the aftermath of a nuclear attack and be used to inform the public. 

Therefore I have signed the petition to keep BBC medium wave, if you agree with me, please sign and share the petition. 

Mr Do on Nintendo Switch

 As you may remember, I bought a Nintendo Switch way back, and I still use it on a regular basis, I do not have that many games on it but recently I noticed that Nintendo released an “Arcade Archives” collection and an Atari classics collection.  I hope to buy the Atari classics collection in the near future.  

I have bought and downloaded “Mr Do”, I spent alot of money at the arcade on this game back then and I’m really glad to see it ported to the Switch. If you don’t know this game, check this out.  I find idea of crushing enemies under the weight of huge apples highly satisfying.  It’s simple, yet its simplicity is what makes it addictive.  This port allows three different versions and I choose the original version each time.