Held to ransom …

The Pepperoni and Chorizo wood-fired pizza we ordered from a local restaurant recently was lipsmackingly delicious and definitely one to order again. But it very nearly didn’t happen. It had come by recommendation so with the weekend coming up I jumped on to the restaurant’s website and searched high and low – but any mention […]

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The “spiritual” power of print …

Pilgrims have long trodden the path to holy places and surprisingly, these routes are more popular today than in medieval times. Although today as many travel to escape their hectic lives for a period of self-reflection as they do for religious reasons. Routes around the world abound. Destinations range as far afield as Tibet or […]

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Einstein defined it perfectly …

Scientists may be able to split the atom over breakfast or explain how much a neutron weighs – even if it is in largely unintelligible language. But they aren’t best known for crafting an adept turn of phrase. But Einstein was different. Not only was he a genius but he understood human behaviour. Never more […]

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39 years and four days ago, today

Shortly before midnight on the 30th of April 1982 Flight Lieutenant Martin Withers gently eased forward his four throttle levers. The four giant Olympus engines behind him began to howl in response and all 93.75 tons of XM607 gently started to roll down the runway. Their target; Port Stanley airfield on the Falkland Islands. As […]

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What business are you really in?

Ask anyone what business they’re in and you’ll hear replies like hospitality, manufacturing, construction, sales. Delve a little deeper and depending on how good a conversationalist you are, and you might get as far as an outside events manager, supply chain management or senior buyer. Hmm? We might be getting a little warmer but not […]

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Are you asking the right questions …

Albert Einstein once said: ‘If I had one hour to solve a problem and my life depended on finding a solution, I would spend the first 55 minutes determining the proper question to ask. For once I know the proper question, I could solve the problem in less than five minutes.” Our lives may not […]

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Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics

There are three types of lies: lies, damn lies and statistics – so said Benjamin Disraeli. But then, he hadn’t heard about Google Analytics. Packed full of stats and overflowing with real-world information your first dip into Analytics can be a bit daunting. But there’s no need to wrap a hot towel around your head […]

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Terrible table manners …

Watch any professional tea taster, or wine taster at work and the amount of slurping and gurgling would put a toddler to shame. You can imagine the fearsome scolding from a parent as a toddler polishes off their juice with a lip-smacking relish sucking up as much air as they do liquid. These terrible table […]

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Catch me a Tiger …

In deepest rural Dorset there’s a rather large shed. Tucked up safely inside is one of the deadliest weapons of World War 2. The Tiger tank. Sure, the tank is interesting but how it was captured and brought from Tunisia to London is one of the war’s most epic tales. The Tiger was one of […]

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Have you got the keys to the Rolls …?

“I never invent anything, because inventors go broke.” So said, Sir Frederick Henry Royce, he of Rolls Royce fame, to anyone who would listen. When we think of this most famous of marques, Rolls is the name which usually springs to mind. But it was Sir Henry Royce who was the engineering genius behind their […]

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Is Professor Brian Cox thick?

Is Professor Brian Cox thick? The professor of particle physics in the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Manchester? Of course not! The guy’s a genius. But the interesting thing is that he only got a D in Maths at school. This is the guy who could split the atom while he’s […]

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Who cares about your logo …?

Honestly, who really cares about your logo? And I wonder if anyone asked the Royal British Legion before they splashed out close to £100,000 on their new logo and endured an alarming flurry of brickbats last week for their troubles. I bet they wished they’d never bothered. Sure, we all want to show it off […]

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50 Shades of Grey it is not …

Lockdown may be wearing a bit thin but one its blessings has been a little more time to curl up and get lost in a good book. Tales of adventure, derring-do, travel, history – all there for us to lose ourselves in whatever magical moments of me-time we’re lucky enough to grab. One mighty tome […]

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Are we nearly there yet …?

On a balmy summer’s afternoon in 1977, Voyager 2 sat quivering on its Cape Canaveral launchpad.   Everyone at Mission Control on hyper-alert, the myriad systems all in contact with each other and all totally focused on the serene form waiting patiently on the launch pad for the command to go.    At 14:29 precisely […]

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