Tom Stoppard is one of the greatest living playwrights. End of. His output has been remarkable so I've always been excited when news of new work starts doing the rounds. I adore Rosencrantz and Gildenstern are Dead and the truly…
Previous posts Anti-Semitism in the UK: 1. 75 years after Auschwitz...Anti-Semitism in the UK: 2. The challenge of definitions Now I'm super-conscious that the previous post is controversial. But here's one difficulty with it in particular. Supposing, then, that it…
Click here for Anti-Semitism in the UK: 1. 75 years after Auschwitz... Now I'm horribly aware of the hot water I'm tiptoeing into. So let me say at the outset: I'm no expert; I fully concede that others spend vastly…
The president of Poland Andrzej Duda walks with survivors through the gates of Auschwitz to attend the 75th anniversary commemorations (AP) I started working on this short series of posts while sitting in Frankfurt airport, en route to Ukraine. Just in…
Sacred Treasure If you've not clocked this great little radio series by Nick Spencer, then you must: The Secret History of Science and Religion.Some very surprising realities about global Christianity (esp for those who only follow secular media) - HT…
Sacred Treasure This is great - a constantly updated list - Biblical references in U2 lyrics!Tom Holland is on cracking form here - Thank God For Western ValuesIan Paul outlines the issues well for the perennial questions at this time…
I have stood at the very spot where Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were shot by Gavrilo Princip 100 years ago. And the impossible “What If” question occurred to me even then. So when I noticed that eminent historian Ned Lebow had published an examination of the issue, I leapt at it. The assassination was such a fluke, so preventable, so absurd that the yearning for a different outcome of that moment is great. As he says at the start (having summarised some of the counterfactual options),
None of these what-ifs strains our understanding of the world because most royal processions do not stray from their intended routes, and most security details would have rushed the archduke and his wife to safety at the first signs of violence. In this instance, the so-called factual, not the counterfactual, is what strikes us as unrealistic and incredible. (p16) (more…)
So, there’s been seriously long radio-silence from Q in recent weeks. But this is not the result of inactivity. Far from it. Regulars will be pleased to hear that my book is seriously under way – with 5 out of 10 chapters now completed in draft. Phew!! There’s going to be lots to blog on when it’s done – but I don’t have the energy or brain to do both at the same time! Nevertheless, I’ve been keeping up reading and stuff. Here are a few reviews of recent freebies I got on the Amazon Vine programme. There might be something of interest to someone… (more…)
Apparently there were only 19 hours of sunshine in Berlin between 1st January and 22nd March – a record low. Such absolute greyness is oppressive. But in recent weeks, there have also been huge snowfalls. The result is an eerily monochrome world. Not ideal for taking sightseers’ photographs. But somehow appropriate for a visit to Berlin’s Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. (more…)