Two poems for today and yesterday

I read my adaptation of Mahmoud Darwish’s poem in Leeds last night. I also read it in Bradford during a protest at the Israeli air attacks on Gaza.
The Churchill poem I wrote on the occasion of his funeral, fifty years ago. Continue reading →

Now I’m 84!

A birthday poem and a Beatles parody Happy birthday, Aquarians A year hurries by No use to try To make it slow Time is the master He hurries faster He makes it go But lovers can meet Where dreams are sweet And backwards flow Today and tomorrow May only bring sorrow We reap and sow … Continue reading →

Demis Roussos RIP

Artemios Ventouris “Demis” Roussos (Greek: Αρτέμιος “Ντέμης” Βεντούρης Ρούσσος) June 15, 1946 – January 25, 2015 ♦ Pictures by Karl Dallas It was a strange gig for me, since I’d never been what you could call a big fan of Aphrodite’s Child – though I quite liked Vangelis, especially his music for Bladerunner. When my friend Denis, … Continue reading →

Honouring the Prophet in the snow, January 17 2015

It was announced as an inter-faith gathering. And while the majority of the several hundred who gathered in Bradford’s Centenary Square as the thermometer plunged to below zero were undoubtedly Muslim, there were at least two Christians and even one atheist of my acquaintance who had responded to the call to honour the Prophet. While … Continue reading →

This is the first item in my shop

Bluetooth Smartwatch for £14.19 Product Details Key Features Connectivity:Bluetooth3.0 Supported Operation System:Android, iOS Smartphone Assistant:Message Control, Media Control, Hands-Free Calls Fitness & Wellness:Alarm Clock, Find My Device, Stopwatch, Timer, Activity Tracker Entertainment:Audio Specifications General Brand Rwatch Operating System Other Languages Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Turkish, Swedish, Italian,German, French, Korean, Spanish, Russian, Portuguese, English, Thai Services … Continue reading →

Charlie Hebdo

Last week, following the tragic shootings at the offices of French magazine Charlie Hebdo, Prime Minister David Cameron joined leaders around the world to march with the people of France, against terrorism. Now a petition is quickly growing calling for French President, Francois Hollande, to honour Lassana Bathily. Malia born Lassana hid customers in a … Continue reading →

Whiplash – will you clean the blood off my drum set?

“It’s now time to close. I hope you’ve had as much fun as we have. Don’t forget the jam session Sunday. Mandy Tension will be by, playing his xylophone troupe. It’ll be a lot of fun. “Monday night is the dance contest night. Twist contest. We give away peanut butter and jelly. “I hope we’ve … Continue reading →

The Baptism of Jesus

Go to Witnesses to Glory – The Man From the Coast Go to 2013 celebration   Song: Turn Back  I went down to the river Jordan to pray And a man with a gun he barred my way Saying Turn back, turn back, There’s no way through. There’s no way through For the likes of … Continue reading →

Why I am not Charlie

Originally posted on a paper bird:
There is no “but” about what happened at Charlie Hebdo yesterday. Some people published some cartoons, and some other people killed them for it.  Words and pictures can be beautiful or vile, pleasing or enraging, inspiring or offensive; but they exist on a different plane from physical violence, whether you want to call…

2on2sday HOA test

I haven’t used Hangouts on Air (HOA) for some time because of my illness and this was a test show preliminary to a regular Tuesday afternoon 2on2sday show starting Jan 13 at 2pm GMT insh’Allah. Below you can see the completely unscripted and unedited test run today. I played the whole thing of the cuff, … Continue reading →