And when I die

Morbid, I know, but death's been around me lately. There's this string - And When I Die - on The Word website about songs to play at your funeral, prompted by one service that featured Magazine's Shot By Both Sides.

I've been to two funerals recently where the tunes played were Joy Division's Atmosphere (a choker) and Abba's Fernando (he's smiling on us all).

And then there's this magnificent send off from the Baltimore PD.

Rovers on a roll

I'm not going to come on here and admit I was wrong about Paul Ince, I wasn't and I still don't like him. In fact I was completely right about Keith Andrews being out of his depth against Arsenal and completely right that Matt Derbyshire, Benni and Tugay would have given us options.

The Rovers fan in the Observer was full of praise, claiming we're playing better football than under Hughes. I'm not qualified to comment on that, so will reserve judgement.

We've got Man Yoo this weekend and as long as Rob Styles isn't the ref, then we've at least got some momentum to take into the game.

And I'm bottom of the office prediction league. I'm getting a few results (one point), but no correct scores (three), so what do I know?

When you walk through the garden

We've now ended our regular tour of duty to Baltimore. Yes folks, tonight we watched the last ever episode of the Wire. All 58 episodes in less than three months. It's been an incredible journey. I know I sound potty, but I cannot recall a TV series this good.

If you have reached the end, as I have, there are some excellent reviews here, here and here, from New York magazine, The Word and The Guardian website.

Do not click through if you haven't finished.

But, as discussed, there are friends who are behind us on this. Neil, Rob M, Rob H and John Dixon have been very good about not revealing plot lines, so I'm not going to blab about what's happened to different characters, top ten moments, top ten most horrible characters etc.

But let's get our skates on and organise a screening and discussion at the Cornerhouse. Baltimore, the Manchester connection.

Welcome to the layer cake, son

Rachel's out tonight, all the boys are asleep and I'm watching one of my favourite films on DVD - Layer Cake - and necking a bottle of Amarone. It's a brilliant film, full of great dialogue, imposing performances and has a sense of humour. It was also a real milestone in Daniel Craig's career, propelling him to the Bond role. Or so his Dad told me over lunch on Wednesday. Sorry, couldn't resist.

Director Mathew Vaughn was inspired by another multi-layered crime epic - Heat - which I also never tire of.

When I do an event I always tuck myself away for five minutes and listen to Michael Gambon's speech at the climax of the film, followed by Lisa Gerrard's soaring Aria.

You're born, you take shit.

Get out in the world,
you take more shit.

Climb a little higher,
you take less shit.

Until one day, you're up
in the rarefied atmosphere...

...and you've forgotten
what shit even looks like.

Welcome to the layer cake, son.

Kevin Roberts at the Lowry Centre

As I mentioned earlier, this week has been really gruelling. And for all the effort I was still double gutted to miss an Insider event I'd worked really hard to put together. I got Kevin Roberts to come and do a talk in Manchester. It was a great success, Nigel Hughes says so here, and my guys are still buzzing from it.

Here's how it was reported:

Kevin Roberts, the chief executive of global advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi, last night called for a complete rebrand of the MediaCity development at Salford Quays, saying the name and design of the emerging creative centre lacked the originality needed to put it into the hearts and consciousness of a worldwide audience. Speaking at Insider’s Creative Forum, held at The Lowry Centre, Roberts praised the idea of MediaCity, but said its execution has so far been poor. “I think you need to add mystery, sensuality and intimacy to it,” he said. “It needs to be rebranded, to have more storytelling around it and the external design needs to change. It’s not enough that it’s coming to Salford over London – we have to make this great and fabulous and ours. I really want it to succeed, but I just find it so bland at the moment.” Roberts added that the economic slowdown could also benefit the creative community, saying some of the most innovative ideas are generated during tough times.

Worst radio interview ever

Is this the worst radio interview ever? It's writer and broadcaster Hardeep Singh Kohli being interviewed about his new book, Indian Takeaway, on the Les Ross show on BBC WM.

Source: Holy Moly and the Word.

Playing catch up

I feel I'm slipping on this blog. Sorry. Something had to give during this phenomenally busy couple of weeks. Here are ten things that are on my mind at the moment, from the ten most popular categories on this blog.

Manchester put on a great show for the Labour Party this week. I've been at a do in Harrogate tonight and the (private) perspective from the white rose side of the Pennines is that Manchester is streets ahead of other UK cities right now. The Cushman and Wakefield report here confirms it.

I'm enjoying discovering new wine, but it's harder to find bargains at Majestic these days. The cheeky Chilean Merlot I like has doubled in price. New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc is also soaring.

I was involved in two events at Labour Conference. It struck me again how much I am switched off the whole entourage of politics. I was impressed with Richard Leese and John Healey and their honest, very personal commitment to public service, but Labour are doomed. The Tories seem exciting, but that's only because they're in opposition and don't have to do anything. They are weak once you get past Cameron, Osborne and Boris. See if anyone else stands out next week.

It has never been a more fascinating time to be in business journalism. Scary, yes. Complex, yes. But truly remarkable times. I've marked some student projects for UCLAN this week and I am in awe of what these students are capable of.

I didn't go and see Blackburn Rovers beat Fulham. It wasn't a great game according to my kilt wearing correspondent, but I did notice that Keith Andrews got Man of the Match in one paper.

I went to the Marple food and drink festival, which was a fantastic reminder to us that we are very lucky to live in a community where people care about their neighbours and their environment. The best pie award went to Grenaby Farm, as I mentioned. But there were also a whole range of entries in the home made category, which I regret to say I can't remember. As for other food, I was also really delighted to see that Murillos were doing a roaring trade in paella.

The best programme ever to appear on telly - The Wire - has concluded its fifth and final season. We're catching up on DVD and have seen the first three episodes. And it's set in a news room. Unbelievably good.

The Glasvegas CD is brilliant music. I love the energy and the initial feeling of authenticity. But part of me thinks there's a cynical plundering of Definitely Maybe and the early Jesus and Mary Chain that smacks of trying far too hard to get attention. Or maybe I'm just a grumpy old man. Still, I can play Smoke on the Water on my six string now.

So here I am, in a hotel in Yorkshire, away from my family. All this talk of Ruth Kelly giving up her cabinet job to be with her family makes me sad that I don't see enough of my Rachel and my boys. We did our best to have a great birthday for Rachel this week, but we're both at it again straight away. You feel so guilty all the time, but we devote so much of what we do, what we earn and how we invest our love into our family. And on another note, last month we went to my cousin Mark Leamy's wedding party in Morecambe, today we paid our last respects to Uncle Doug and on both very different occasions I was struck by how close people are in different parts of my extended family, and yet I've become distant from it.
We're also so proud of Rachel's niece Emily, who has been on the X Factor. I don't think I properly appreciate what a wonderful extended family we have. And I still haven't seen little Calum! Honestly, I know there are family who pop on here, I just wanted to say "Hello, and I love you all very much".

Doug Lancaster RIP

Doug Lancaster, my Great Uncle, will be laid to rest at Macclesfield Crem tomorrow and mourned by a sad and large throng at Mobberley Church. He was a lovely kind man and played a huge role in my Mum's life after her father died in the war. RIP, Doug.

Pie winner announced

The Marple Food and Drink Festival was an absolute triumph. The weather helped, but the efforts of so many great people paid off. There were queues at every stall at lunchtime.

And the winner of the Samuel Oldknow Pie Competition, as judged by myself and Joy Abell was...

Professional category: Grenaby Farm pork pie with cranberry.

There were other winners, but I am sketchy on the details.

New LTSBHBOS logo

...played it till my fingers bled

My fingers hurt today, because I had a guitar lesson last night. It really isn't going very well at all. Part of me wants to blame the teacher, who seems to show me some nifty moves with his fingers, that look physiologically impossible, but doesn't say anything that makes it easy. But basically, I don't practice enough. I just don't get the time. I will try harder to pratice, but I find chord transitions really hard and can't concentrate on two movements by different hands.

I read a terrific book on holiday called Guitar Man by Will Hodgkinson. It's one of those self deprecating middle aged man books that embarks on a journey of discovery. He learns the guitar in six months and plays a concert. It should inspire me to stick at it. All I want to achieve is being able to pick, strum and fret my way through a few campfire classics.

Sitting in judgement

I'm going to be a judge at the Samuel Oldknow Pie Competition this weekend at the Marple Food and Drink Festival. We'll be outside the pub on Market Street.

The glory of the North West

Stuart Maconie is to be an ambassador for the North West, he's doing a web service, which is here. I like Stuart, he's a funny writer and his book Pies and Prejudice was a great old ramble around the North. I did a review of it for one of our magazines, which he took exception too, partly because I said he made a few mistakes and then tripped up by making one of my own - he didn't in fact go to Manchester Poly.

Anyway, I hope it works out.

This is the worst trip...

The Times is reporting here that Rangers fans have been singing sectarian songs about the Irish famine. If I recall, this song ends with the line: "the famine is over, why don't you go home." And it is to the tune of Sloop John B.

As one of my Cardiff based colleagues reflected today, when Rangers were in Manchester, and he was required to be here, he did muse: "This is the worst trip, I've ever been on."

Italy is different

This cute animation about Italy is quite amusing. Click here.

Oh dear - Rovers get battered

Stuffed at home by Arsenal, who barely broke sweat. And our manager linked with the Newcastle fiasco. All my worst fears about Paul Ince, Keith Andrews and our flaky defence look like coming true. We will be in the bottom three tomorrow and may well spend a great deal of the season there.

I'm going to do running total here, working out how much the match tickets would have cost had we bought them on a game by game basis, as opposed to buying our family season ticket. As Arsenal are a category A team, the price would have been £111.

Y Factor a great success

The Y Factor was an enormous success on Thursday night. Dean Gormley of law firm Halliwells was crowned as winner after wowing judges, even the super-cynical Terry Christian, Rowetta, Sean Fitzgerald and Angie Robinson and an audience of over 450 professionals with his rendition of Suspicious Minds. Emma Leathley of Clearwater came second with her excellent Manic Monday.

Overall, the event raised nearly £40,000 for Mencap.

A DVD of the night, plus unseen extras, will be available soon after some wizardry from Chris and Alan at Zut Media. No doubt it will include raw footage of Phil Tarimo of Investec who provided "one for the ladies" with You Can Leave Your Hat On. The hat, and the trousers, did indeed stay on... but the shirt did not.

An absolutely blinding night. I understand Dean is still wearing the Elvis outfit.

Feeder club

It is customary for the perpetually vacant manager's job at Newcastle to be linked with whoever is in change at Blackburn Rovers.

According to a "rumour" in today's Fiver: "Dennis Wise and Mike Ashley think Paul Ince is the perfect puppet for the Newcastle job."

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.

Must have been how he snatched a point from Hull City, a week before Wigan stuffed them 5-0.

The intense humming of irritation

I read here that the new iPod Touch will have an inbuilt speaker. Boz won't be happy.

Fire at Hawk Green Cricket Club

Rotten news that the cricket club pavilion at Hawk Green has been torched. The jist of the story, here, seems to smell foul play. It would add insult to injury if it was.