Seen three, lost three

We went to Ewood yesterday to see Rovers lose. There was an inevitability about it, but I was impressed at how the team tried to play neat passing football, even in wet conditions. Match of the Day was fair to us - and I agreed with the callers to Radio Rovers that Robinson was our best player, not Pedersen, as the suits in the Premier Suite chose.

Spoony on Radio Five tried to whip up a lynch mob on the low crowds at Blackburn, claiming Wolves, Norwich and Barnsley get more fans. I do tire of this. If Norwich was surrounded with densely populated mill towns each with a fierce loyalty to their own town team, instead of cornfields, then I doubt even they would get 20,000 fans to come and see their team lose in the pouring rain, for £35, or to watch it on TV in the pub.

And Barnsley were playing Sheffield United, a local derby.

Running total on the season tickets: That would have cost us £117, with booking fees. Add to the previous games, we've now chalked off £391 worth from our total outlay. We'll have paid for them soon and we may yet see a win.

Travelling army of synthetic supporters

There's a new book out about Subbuteo. A link to a review is here.

Around 1980 we used to have mega tournaments round at Peter Corke's house. The final would feature Brazil v Lancaster City and other such delights. Great days.

It's also recalled very well in this song by Half Man Half Biscuit - You Tube link is here. Some background is here.

Insider even featured two figures on the front cover in December 2002.

Free travel to London

Been down that London today. It cost an absolute fortune on the train, but it seems I could have travelled down for free. The young man behind me pretended to be asleep, when the guard woke him up he said he couldn't find his wallet, nor could he remember how much his ticket cost. "It must have been stolen, or I dropped it." He found it later when the trolley came round, by the way.

I asked the guard what she was going to do about this blatant act of fare dodging and she said - "what can you do?" Call the police, possibly?

On the way back the heavy handed Virgin Trains staff were checking tickets and I had to pay a fortune for a peak fare - because I'd missed the 15.05.

I was surrounded by about a dozen 14 and 15 year olds who were such great kids. Real characters with a ton of spirit. They weren't posh or polite or creepy or anything. They had the strongest Salford accents I've heard in ages too. As ours get older I worry about what they'll be like in the next age group. if they're like these I'd be very proud and happy. I passed this on to their teacher, who told me they were from a new academy in Salford attached to Media City and were studying A level philosophy. Fantastic.

Colour clash

I'll be honest, I think Wayne Hemingway can be quite funny. It hasn't always been so. But now that the internet can't even find the reason why I should be affronted by him, I can forgive and forget.

This however, is ace. Especially when you read the comments below.

A flavour is here:

You will not find the colours of Burnley FC in anything inspired by the Blackburn design guru. “You won’t find anything in those colours designed by me, certainly not clothes and not even to this day in my other work.”

A sharp bit of work

Barack Obama t-shirts here.

Ten thoughts on the American election

Barack Obama is a wonderful orator. His acceptance speech was very special. Calm, yet urgent. He is also a wonderful campaigner and has organised his team exceptionally well. I know everyone is saying this, but I'm linking to that speech her for posterity. It is history being made in our lifetime.

Conservative leader David Cameron said Mr Obama was the first of a new generation of world leaders. "In electing Barack Obama, America has made history and proved to the world that it is a nation eager for change. This has been an exciting and inspirational contest with two great candidates. In these difficult times people everywhere are crying out for change. Barack Obama is the first of a new generation of leaders who will deliver it - he has my whole-hearted congratulations. This is an important moment not just for America but for the world. Barack Obama's victory will give people a new opportunity to look at the United States and see her for what I believe she is - a beacon of opportunity, freedom and democracy." And if he's first, who's next, Dave?

I was in Pittsburg for the 2000 election and it was a depressing farce. This must have been awesome.

How much of the billions raised on this election could have been better donated to charity?

America needs to grasp this moment and get the world to love it again. The last chance was after 9/11 and America blew it by "kicking ass".

Sarah Palin was a disaster for the Republicans. I heard that McCain only met her twice before he adopted her as a running mate. Absurd.

One of my pals has a bet on that the next president - to be sworn in - will be Joe Biden. It assumes Obama will be assassinated. Perversely, his daughter is working for the Obama campaign. This is unrelated.

People thought McCain was a good bet because he had spent 4 years in a Vietnamese prison. So had Gary Glitter, but I wouldn't have voted for him either.

Obama needs to break with the past, yet look to the future. Clinton took on the problems of the previous recession and almost claimed them. Obama should avoid the Clinton's like the plague. An awful lot.

I read his book, but I'd struggle to tell you an ideological arc within it beyond - "why can't we all just get along?"

Vote for Barack Obama

We obviously can't vote for Barack Obama in the US presidential election, but you can pretend on the Economist site here.

I would, anyway. And according to my stats, I had some visitors from the US recently, though they were looking for Miss Marple and references to six strings. So, if you do drop by, even by accident, please vote for Obama.

Keith Andrews is a football genius

I was delighted that Keith Andrews scored at West Brom. He was rubbish against Arsenal and I feared the worst. But he knows the score. Rare humility from a footballer is here.

Insider website has an MT blog

When I started blogging it was to see where it went. And I keep work out of this blog. We're now stepping things up at work. Here's my first corporate finance column - Deals Focus.

Marple to Stockport - it's insane

I missed Stuart Maconie's programme on the railways. And it's not on iPlayer. There's a story from the Stockport Express here.

He did a piece on how Marple has been cut off from Stockport, concluding: "It is insane that there is no rail link between Marple and Stockport and it is easier for shoppers to get the train to Manchester than drive to Stockport just four miles away. Stations like Rose Hill are like a ghost town - no-one uses them. Even if they were to reopen the lines it would be impossible because supermarkets have built all over them. These problems were caused by the short-sightedness of Dr Beeching back in the 1960s. They expected a massive increase in car usage and thought the public wouldn’t use the transport system as much - this was a disastrous decision done for economic gain which 40 years later has caused a lot of grief."

He added: "Local authorities want to introduce things like congestion charges but they are offering no proper alternatives to cars."

The big issue

I know this is just the 'ickle ole Marple Leaf, but as news priorities are all upside down, some things just need saying.

Government intervention in the economy is the biggest issue facing everyone today. If you wish to take that on as a piece of political analysis then you have to conclude that it is very much the Tories' achilles heel at the moment. George Osborne on Radio 5 this morning was still repeating the mantra "you can't spend your way out of a recession". The interviewer should have picked him up on it by mentioning Germany (the Marshall plan), post-war Japan and Roosevelt's new deal in America in the 30s, to name but three examples.

Osborne probably isn't that bright. He just sticks to the laissez-faire line because it is in his Tory DNA and because it is constantly drummed into him by his rich mates in the City.

It's likely now that calls will increase for Labour to promote a (semi) return to statist politics and to announce they will up taxes for the super rich. They can probably get away with a bit of a shift to the left in the current climate. The problem is they could hammer the Tories on this stuff day in and day out but they don't seem to have the big beasts to do it any longer.

But, hey, there are more important issues to discuss, like radio presenters making a rude phone call.

Hat tip: Andy Coyne.

Oh Brother, where are't thou?

Welcome back to the land of blog, Phil Jones. He promises to update his blog here. Show him some encouragement.

Galaxy of stars at Bond premiere

We went to the premiere of the Quantum of Solace last night in Chester. Great night. Great film. The tickets promised "a galaxy of stars". Maybe it's my age, but we only spotted the regional director of the CBI and Ron Dixon from Brookside (I don't recognise actresses and footballers anymore, but they were there). 

 Basically the film has got all the bits that make the Bond franchise an enduring success - and added more of the action that has elevated the rival Bourne series to the level of serious competition. Stunning locations, chases, fights, fires, floods, raunch and wit. The film is all action; it has bad guys, good guys, murky guys who have to decide who they are, and bad guys doing over other bad guys. Bond is confused in the middle of all of it. Weak points - not witty enough. And not nearly enough raunch. 

Daniel Craig as Bond is darker, but could do with a better sense of humour and fun. I mentioned all of this to his Dad (see pic above). 

Which is exactly what I needed when I got pulled over for speeding on the M56 on the way home. That wouldn't happen to Bond, would it?

My word is my Bond

The kids love James Bond. Imagine their horror last night when we explained that we're off to Chester tonight to see the Quantum of Solace. Without them. It's a charity event for the RNLI, organised by Daniel Craig's father Tim and his wife Kirsty. Can't wait. We got in the mood last night by watching Casino Royale. I'll be honest, the last 20 minutes were rubbish and the card game was far too long. When he goes all mushy on his traitorous girlfriend, tells her he loves her and resigns; I thought I was going to wretch. You hope he's learned a lesson and will get back to what he's good at. They know they have a hard act to match with the Jason Bourne series, so we're expecting great things.

Frozen out at the Villa

When I looked at the fixtures in the summer, I pencilled in Aston Villa away as a chance to spend some time in our Birmingham office and to catch up with Andy Coyne, one of my best pals, who I don't see enough of. It didn't quite work out like that. It's half term (all the boys are with us), I'm very busy at work and, to be honest, I thought we'd get stuffed.

Here's Andy's report:

You picked a good one to miss. Poor match despite five goals and it was frigging freezing. Blackburn better side for most of match - dominated first half. Lots of quick, one touch passing in midfield. Morten Gamst Pedersen at the heart of a lot of it. Once the strikers are firing on all cylinders you will be flying. Villa a different side when Carew came on at half time. He gave Samba a lot of problems and brought Agbonlahor into the game. We caught you on the break a few times for the goals. 3-1 would have been a criminal injustice, though. Your fans were good too. Singing all through the game - mostly about Burnley.

Mystery Fox

In the course of learning the guitar I read Will Hodgkinson's excellent book Guitar Man - I blogged about it here. I emailed him to say I couldn't get one of his tunes out of my head, even though he only wrote about it. He replied eventually. And Mystery Fox is here on the My Space page of his band Double Fantasy. Cool.

That's better

The second Spooks of the current series was much better. Sir Harry's rapish wit came to the fore. Malcolm's fun with gadgets thwarted those pesky Russians and the dark one out of Robin Hood had a few nice twists and turns. Roland Gift's still dull as dishwater though, or whatever he's called.

Small world

John Barnes was at Center Parcs last weekend with his family. He seemed to be enjoying himself.

Rachel also bumped into Nick Lindley from Deli Select in Marple. I think my investment in smoked nuts, expensive cheese, pate, interesting snacks, rare olive oils and organic tomatoes will have paid for his weekend.

We also saw Badly Drawn Boy driving a BMW x3 near the Trafford Centre. And yes, he was wearing his hat.

Spooked by spooks

Spooks is back. And I never expected Adam to get killed off. I must admit I found the whole thing last night a bit flat. Adam's lines seemed very wooden and contrived: "No fanatic with a sword is going to stop us honouring our dead". Harry didn't have enough of the mischief about him and the posh one off Cold Feet was even more pneumatic and cartoonish than ever. And is there a more boring member of the grid than the lad who used to be a journalist?

In its favour, I was getting very tired of jihadist English boys as bad guys, so I like the twist to make the Russkis the villains again. They do it so well.

The new one, him from Robin Hood, who is a Russian double agent, also asked about Tom Quinn - the best agent the grid has ever had. And I'm sure he was in the titles. Could be coming back?

Idiots galore

At a time when we're being asked to consider road charging and to experience a big uplift in public transport funding in Manchester, the whole experience of commuting into Manchester to work is getting worse. The 08:11 from Marple has been cancelled a couple of times recently, meaning the 08:24 has been rather crowded.

On the days when I have to be out and about, so I bring the car, the drive home along the A57 has been wretched. For no reason the traffic outside the new Tesco store in Gorton has been reduced to one lane through a slalom of cones. It adds 20 minutes to a journey, what a terrible waste. Taking the alternative through Longsight and Levenshulme is no better, due to double parking, rat running and arrogant bullies of a certain type.

Most traffic congestion is caused by idiots. Either idiots driving too fast and having accidents, or idiots who think they can drive where they want without a thought for anyone else. Or idiots who dig up roads and cone them off.

You could weave a plausible conspiracy theory that the Gorton scheme and the terrible trains are all part of a plot to drive everyone into the arms of the pro-TIF lobby voting YES in order to dsave us all from this misery.

Nothing to fear

Having just returned from a very pleasant few days at Center Parcs, I am reflecting on a very strange series of experiences.

I think I'm getting old and soft. I got battered in the flume in the swimming pool. I've always liked water parks and slides (I know, I know), but I came off with quite a headache and my sinuses throughly washed out. Then we went tree trekking, which is basically walking on a series of obstacles high up in the trees. My thoughts were with the kids, not just ours, but Ross and Daniel, the sons of our friends Julie and Mark. Joe went first and obviously needed a fair bit of encouragement. Daniel cruised around. But as I watched them it only dawned on me that I actually had to go through the trek myself at the moment of my first step. It was really hard. Frankly, I couldn't have done it without Daniel!

I'm also getting very close to that point of no return where you play football with your kids and they are better than you.

Nothing special

The concluding episode of Marple-based tear jerking drama Sunshine concluded last night on BBC1. Bernard Hill was amazing as George Crosby, the Grandad and Dad of the piece. And the unstated love between the Coogan character and his estranged wife was very well played out. I didn't envisage quite such a happy ending, and it was too short a run for any more plot twists, but as a piece of feel good drama it was triumph.

There are some other reviews here and here.

Here's a bit from one: "It was shot in a nothing-special northern town with rain and war memorials and boozers and betting shops and kind hearts and corny jokes."

And a view to die for, a high street with everything you need and it's own cinema, even. Something very special in these times, I'd say. But the point is a fair one in this context.

Comment is free

Marple Leaf reader Guy Ainsworth has urged me to encourage more comments. I've switched the moderated page settings to allow all comments. I'm not sure whether this blog is the kind that sparks debate, even on pies. But we'll see.

Man of the moment

We went to a dinner party last night in Bolton. Everyone there was lovely and lively company. Especially this bloke. And he's every bit as warm, passionate, funny and decent as he seems on telly.

The joy of Joomla

I've been tinkering with the Marple Athletic website today. I'm getting the hang of it. It uses a Content Management System called Joomla, which is alright; but not as user friendly as blogger, which this blog is done on.

Surprise!

Last night, when we went to Billy Kochhar's 40th at the Cinnamon Rooms in Bowdon, we had our theory proved once again about the key to happiness: spend time with the people you love. We've been looking forward to it for ages and it's been too long since we've seen Billy. Also, to be fair, Billy didn't have a clue it was happening. I thought I'd put my foot in it if I rang him for a chat, so haven't. His wife Kate had gone to extraordinary lengths to keep the whole surprise going, even getting tickets printed for a fake jazz concert that they were supposedly going to at the venue. When the curtain was pulled back to reveal family, friends and a room ready for a party I saw something I thought I'd never see: Billy lost for words. They are a great couple and I've really enjoyed spending time with them over the last few years. Rachel and Kate were pregnant togther all those years ago and have been close ever since.

The night before we pulled a group of friends together who didn't all know each other. As Jennie Hughes, better half of him, said: "You've got wonderful friends". Aye, but there's never enough time, and we still like making new ones. We feel worn out today, but refuelled and content.

So, happy birthday Billy.

Oasis live

I've set myself a target of being to do passable versions of two Oasis songs on the acoustic guitar, by Christmas. There will be an unplugged concert at a mystery location in the Marple area on Boxing Day.

By a remarkable coincidence it was announced today that Oasis are to play Heaton Park next year. The BBC 6 Music story on it is here. I have fallen in and out of love with them over the years. First album, adored it. Second, I lapped up. Third, I think All Around The World is one of their top five tracks, still. After that. So predictable. Little By Little is good. Their b-sides are some of their best tracks - Half A World Away, Slide Away.

Live, they are brilliant. I saw them twice in 1996 in San Francisco, then Cardiff (supported by the Manics). They had to work hard in America and it was probably a better musical spectacle. For energy, Cardiff was one of the best ever.

Tartan Tories

Regular readers of this blog will know my political lineage, but I don't really care for any of them as they stand.

There is one party in the mainstream of British politics that I have consistently distrusted, disliked and disregarded as serious. That party is the Scottish separatist rump, the SNP.

Bankrolled by Sean Connery from his wee croft in Bermuda, the SNP know the price of everything and the value of nothing. Their leader has a dream of a small country with muscle, he has previously cited as a model for an independent Scotland, wait for it, Iceland.

Here's a savage critique of all that wee shite. A flavour is here:

It comes down to the simple arithmetic and coincidentally pleasing numbers. Westminster gave the two institutions £32bn and access to more. The Scottish government has a total budget of £31bn and even with North Sea oil and independence, would be bankrupted by that bail-out.

It's almost as laughable as the Welsh separatist who said: one day I dream my country will take its seat at the United Nations between Cuba and Cyprus.

More tales from the man in black

The sponsors of Joe's football team are RMS PR. One of the directors, Peter Davies, is a referee. Here's a match report of his latest match. Sounds very familiar. Hey, I bet none of your teams walk off the pitch!

Sunshine in Marple

We watched the second episode of Sunshine last night, the BBC drama starring Steve Coogan and written by Craig Cash. Coogan's character is a hopeless gambling addict on a downward spiral.

For us, the star attraction was Marple, where the whole thing was shot and set: Church Lane featured a lot, Mellor Church, Goyt Mill, the Railway Arms, Stockport Road and for a real touch of authenticity the young kid in the story went to All Saints School. I was a bit disappointed that he didn't play for Marple Athletic Junior Football Club, but relieved too that it was a faceless kit and not R*** H*** R*****.

There are a few local grumblings about the filming here and here.

More pertinently however, I watched most of it with a lump in my throat. Anything dealing with men falling apart, men failing as fathers and men being supported by their elderly fathers gets me every time. It was funny at times, as you'd expect from anything Craig Cash has written - but it was savagely raw as well.

It's Baby Calum

Shutterfly | Shared Picture Detail

Hey! If you click on the above, you can get a picture of us all with Calum, the beautiful baby son of Rachel's brother Sean and his wife Reena.

Walking to New Mills

What a glorious day it has been today. Bright sunshine and just the right temperature to go for a Sunday morning walk. We strolled along the River Goyt from Hague Bar to the Millenium Walkway at New Mills (pic isn't mine it's from Buxton Online, a lovely site).

Lots of mud, lots of splashing in the water and climbing up bankings. We are very lucky to live round here, where the city meets the Peak District and all its exciting landscapes. We were spoilt for choice when we set out, but Rachel hadn't been here before. Good exercise too, the boys will all sleep well tonight.

There's a plaque at the end of the walkway reminding visitors that the bridge is now a permanent memorial to Stan Brewster, the civil engineer who oversaw its construction, who was killed in the 7/7 terrorist attacks on London. It's a wonderful monument to a life cruelly taken.

The thoughts and words of Roger Cashman

Roger Cashman has gone a bit over the top in his column in our magazine this month. I get a very mixed reaction to his column. Some people think he's a cult classic and others just think he's a c.... He's certainly better than Martin Lukes.

Anyway, judge for yourself, a collection of his monthly thoughts is here.

What's London ever done for us?

I mentioned our 42 Under 42 dinner from Tuesday night. My civic pride rather got the better of me. To cut a long story short, I wanted to remind our audience how much has been achieved in the North West in such a short space of time.

Think about what rainy Manchester has created in the last 50 years: the computer, the splitting of the atom, free trade, Oasis (who were in Liverpool, during Capital of Culture year, that very night), developing a cure for cancer, Elbow winning the Mercury Music Prize, the Halle, even Manchester United. And what's sunny London ever given us: Chelsea, Arsenal, derivatives and hedge funds.

To close the evening I did an updated version of a rant from the last interview Tony Wilson did, where he roughly said:

In the North West it rains and it rains. And yet we managed to produce the industrial revolution, trade union movement, the Communist Manifesto and even the computer. Down south, where the sun never sets, you took all our money and what did you produce? Chas and f*cking Dave.

Which, for the record, was a nice twist on this, from Harry Lime in The Third Man:

In Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.

It's right though, isn't it. Chas and Dave, eh?

Me. A disgrace

Apparently I'm a disgrace. I refereed a junior football match this morning. No names, but you can probably work it out if you wanted to. I'd been warned to keep an eye on one of the team managers. I had a chat to him before the game, then again at half time when things had - predictably - got a bit testy. I didn't actually expect to have to watch out for dirty play with 9 and 10 year old boys, or off the ball incidents, but to stop the game if a kid got hurt and give the odd free kick. You sort of let things go unless they're really serious. One boy was getting tearful because another was clipping his ankles. At half time I appealed for calm and asked the managers to have a word with the players concerned.

Second half, early on, I spotted a bit of a niggle between two boys, but it didn't amount to much and I let play go on. Well, the manager never let up after that. I had to stop the game and ask him to calm down. When the home team scored, the away goalie burst into tears and claimed another boy had punched him in the eye. I never saw it. Hurt pride, I think, because he'd kept his team in the game until that point. This manager then took his team off and refused to play the remaining few minutes, blaming me. What a tool. He didn't stop ranting for a good 20 minutes. I walked away. Even a parent from his team told me he "had a short fuse" and that I had done a good job.

I needed to tell him he couldn't carry on ranting about me and just asked him to remember that it's just kids football and to ask the question all people involved in junior football need to ask: who is this for?

His response: "You're a disgrace".

Never again. And I feel utterly depressed.

Wire - top ten footy lookalikes

Someone I know hasn't enough to do, or is a genius.

Bill Rawls - Luiz Felipe Scolari

Carver – Florent Malouda

Bunk – Yakubu

Herc – Brad Friedel

Fruit – Nicolas Anelka

Chris Partlow – John Obi Mikel (miniaturised version)

McNulty – Michael Ballack

Bunny Colvin – Shaun Goater

Slim Charles - Didier Drogba

Wallace – Steven Pienaar

Mixing it

What a week. We had a 42 Under 42 dinner last night at the Radisson Edwardian. I think people don't know how to behave at functions any more. People are in shock and they feel uneasy about mixing and mingling. Once we got them warmed up it went very well. But these are odd times indeed.

Historical football kits - a quite brilliant site

There's a brilliant site here with all British football kits on it. Like, EVER. It is so ace. *Dons anorak*

I drive through Chesterfield a bit and wondered why the Union Jack features quite so much (chippy, garage, pub). Well, this was Chesterfield from 1892-3 they really did have that kit. And York from 1973 had that.

I fixed my view of what colours different teams were in about 1973 (when I was six). I had this incredible book my Dad got me one Christmas, and I have never been able to take seriously clubs that change their kits so much. Millwall, Crystal Palace, Luton Town, Stockport County and Rochdale have all buggered about with their tradition. I'll let another blogger of a nearby parish explain Tranmere's experiment with blue, and a workmate to put light on Oldham's flirtation with Orange. As for Burnley's first ever kit being blue and white halves, well, words fail me.

Annoying quirks of iTunes

For some stupid reason when I try and play an album on my iPod it shuffles the tracks, rather than playing them in the order on the CD. It's particularly annoying with the Glasvegas album because the tracks blend very well from one to the other, especially from Geraldine to It's My Own Cheating Heart... it didn't used to be like this. And randomly shuffling Paul Weller's 22 Dreams would have ruined the effect totally. How can I correct this?

I've also been messing about with Genius, it's thrown a few good playlists together, but I suspect it's based on purchase history given that it can't work out what to recommend from your own record collection when you click on a Beatles track. Ha.

Haughty 40

We've been to a few 40th birthday parties lately and I have to say, they've all been top nights out. Everyone seems really pleased to be out, it's a real landmark and I think our age know how to let rip in the right way. I think the right amount of effort is put into a 40th as well. We've been treated to live bands and a quirky DJ in the last few weeks. One of the live bands was the same one that I had for mine in 2006, and who were the band for the Y Factor. The other was fronted by Tony Hadley from Spandau Ballet. Yes, seriously, him. I would have written more about it on here but in these chastened times the last thing I'd want is to land some mate in the papers.

We've got another in a few weeks, but the person concerned doesn't know.

Positives from getting beat by Man Yoo

It's never pleasant to lose to that lot. And the walk back to our car up Livesey Branch Road was the wettest yomp ever.

Here are ten positives from yesterday, clutching at straws I know, but it could have been worse:

Face facts, we've come out of a good run, we meet this lot and they are very, very good. Rooney is deadly, Berbatov a fine footballer and Ferdinand very solid. What a spine. Ronaldo, however much he's a diving prick, is a marvellous player to watch. So, we got beaten, but by an excellent opposition.

The fifteen minute spell when we looked like the better side. Roque would have nailed it against lesser sides. They didn't like it up 'em.

We seem to have cut out the defensive errors that would have made the score even worse.

Jason Brown. He looked quality. The save from Giggs was awesome. Their first goal from the resulting corner shouldn't have been given and it was cruel on him. He deserved the home team man of the match award.

Tugay. What a master. He can still hold his own on the most part even against Giggs and Berbatov, but lacked a fetcher and carrier to link with. It isn't Andrews, who got closer to the ball when he was on the bench than when he came on. Where is Vogel?

We took Sean and Fraser, two of Joe's school pals and Marple Athletic team mates. They really enjoyed seeing their team win 2-0.

The Roverstore is very good, the experiment with Sports World running the shop and selling shell suits galore was a mess. It's good to have our own temple of tat.

I bought 4000 Holes, the original Rovers fanzine. It was very good in parts. I laughed out loud at the story that Burnley are the 6th most hated club according to a spurious survey and the comment from the Pisoir Pundit that such a position will match their fingers.

I spotted Potty Mouth and Knuckle Head in the old seats. They will have got very wet.

Running total on the season tickets: That would have cost us £132, with booking fees. Add to the previous game, we've chalked off £275 worth from our total outlay. We'll have paid for them soon.

Er, that's about it.

Arabian Nights

A couple of Marple Leaf readers have recently moved to the Middle East to explore the brave new worlds of Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Coincidentally both have blogs to keep friends updated.

Britney of Arabia is here.

Chris the Greek is here.

Baltimore - London

Not that I'm obsessed with The Wire or anything, but when I heard this, I thought - that sounds like Mayor Carcetti stiffing Commissioner Burrell.

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.

Marple's best pie

It was an early exercise of this blog to find Marple's best pie, link is here. We went for Grenaby Farm steak.

I'm delighted that the excellent Marple Food and Drink Festival have created the Samuel Oldknow Pie Competition, which you can find out about here. The festival is one of the things that makes Marple such a lovely community; combining all the best aspects of shared experience - eating, drinking, family time and supporting people with honest values. And filling Nick Lindley's boots. ;-)

We sampled something of this spirit in Barga on our holidays. We went to the annual Fish and Chip Festival organised by AS Barga, the local football club. There's a strong connection in the town to the west of Scotland and English is spoken with a Glasweigan accent. We did not find any deep fried Mars bars, however.

The website for the Marple Festival looks good, as you'd expect from Stuart Manley of IF Consultancy. I will accept the decision on the pie as binding, but will be making representations for myself and Ian Wolfendale to join the panel of judges.

Touched Up

Apple have fixed the bug on the iPod Touch. I can now sync it with Outlook calendars and address book. Still can't blog from it though.

Wire in the blood

The new issue of The Word magazine was waiting for me when I got home this afternoon. I do enjoy the cultural musings of David Hepworth and tend to like his unorthodox recommendations: Willie Nile, for one. There's a banging interview Hepworth has done with David Simon, the writer of The Wire, quite possibly the greatest TV series ever. We are currently up to episode 6, series 4 on the boxed set. It's not just the sprawling cast of characters, the changing backdrops to Baltimore's layers or the moral maze that blurs the lines between the cops and baddies. It's the scale of it. I'm envious that there's a screening in London of the last 5 episodes with Simon hosting a Q+A afterwards.

As a piece of work, it's amazing enough, but it's also epoch making in the way it's consumed. In the US and the UK followers have got hold of it in the most unconventional way, through downloads, Sky Plus and DVD. This is Simon on its unexpected popularity in the UK:

I'm stunned. I can't figure you people out.

We have the final series on order.

Coming Around Again

My Mum always reckons she wells up when she hears Carly Simon's Coming Around Again; she says it reminds her of when I went off on what people now call a "gap year". Oddly, it came on the radio this afternoon when I was taking Elliot to school for the first time. The last of our babies growing into boys, and then men. He looked so smart in his school uniform, but so young too. Anyway, for the benefit of all family members popping onto The Marple Leaf, he was very happy and excited. He was a bit nervous as we waited at the gate, but went in with no problems at all. When I picked him up a couple of hours later he was so proud and pleased and he ran round to the junior yard to meet his brothers and show them his smiley sticker.

And as I got Joe's stuff together for him this morning I noticed he had a certificate and a badge announcing he's been elected class councillor. Not that he thought it important to tell his Mum or Dad, or anything.

Honestly, I gasp at our lads sometimes and how they cope with the tests of life with such apparent ease. Being a Dad causes me more angst than anything at work or in any other sphere of life. But it also gives me highs I've never experienced either. Every day.

Come and see the Y Factor

I'm involved in the Y Factor event next week, where we're raising money for MENCAP.

Ten corporate financiers will be performing a song with a live backing band at the Chicago Rock Cafe in Manchester on Thursday the 11th of September. Having done it last year, it's a great occasion and quite nerve racking.

The full link is here, for tickets and information on the singers.

Creative industry

The subject of creationism has been thrown to the fore with Sarah Palin's candidature for the US vice-presidency. If you can bear the smug tone, Oliver Kamm blogs well on it here, concluding that anyone who approves of teaching a pseudo science that the earth was created 4000 years ago is not fit for high office. I don't think she believes it for a moment, but such is the force of creationist drivel in the Republican party she has to be seen to tolerate it.

A few of us at work have also been sent a massive book called The Atlas of Creation by an Islamic creationist called Harun Yahya. It is absolutely bonkers.

Damian Thompson, author of Counterknowledge, and editor of the Catholic Herald, sums it up very well:

Insightful? Let me tell you a bit about Harun Yahya. It’s the pen name of a series of writers flooding the Islamic world with books and DVDs that present Darwinism as part of a diabolical conspiracy. This is a particularly poisonous form of counterknowledge.

British universities are filling up with science and medical students who reject the single most important discovery in biological science. Sooner or later we’re going to have to face the consequences.

Full blog is here.

They're flooding the whole world with this nonsense by the looks of it. The book is enormous, it is expensively produced and it is frightening that people believe it.

Middle Eastlands

As usual, Real Journalism's David Conn does a cracking job summing up the "Manchester City bought by the oil trillionaires" story. Can't add to it. Superb. Link is here.

What's the betting someone is looking to hire a camel for the next home match, that they'll be selling sky blue and white tea towels as Arab head dresses? I've even had one City fan goading rivals with reminders that every time they fill their car with fuel, it's helping Manchester City.

But I've not heard anything yet from this blue. Or this one. To quote one blue pal today - "I still think there's a catch somewhere."

Footballers behaving badly

Jamie Carragher was going to get Lucas Neill "done" by some of his Scouse mates after Neill broke the leg of the World's Greatest Ever ScouserTM. There's a link to a slightly strange football website here which could take you on a bizarre journey of discovery.

Revolting passengers

I had to laugh at this (passengers revolting at Manchester Airport). Well, not a laugh exactly, but emit a slightly weary "huh". I really dislike air travel, especially from Manchester Airport. It is made worse by the attitude of so many Manchester Airport staff. They seem to think you have to suffer to earn the right to fly. We had a couple of stray bags at the end of our holiday. It wasn't the end of the world, but it delayed us another half an hour. Then of course, because taxis won't take an order until you've got ALL your bags, because they get charged so much to park, things dragged on. The attitude of the staff was the worst part of it. They couldn't have cared less.

Late today - congestion to blame

Today was the first day I have driven into work since I came back from holiday because I'm working late tonight. The 12 miles from Marple to Manchester took ONE HOUR AND 46 MINUTES. Suffice to say I was late. Most of that time was spent snaking along the two and half miles on the M67 from Hyde to the M60. No congestion charge would make any kind of difference to that, as it's outside the zone. The route along the A67 was pretty quiet.

And I could find no information on BBC Radio Manchester about what was causing the jam.

Blogging - what next?

Coming back from holiday - and following an August lull - there seems to be a certain amount of soul searching and wonderment about blogging amongst the local blogerati. Manchizzle goes so far as to ask: Is blogging dead?

I got into doing this out of curiosity. Part of my day job is to understand how people consume media and how we then deliver it to them. This blog has helped in that. But it's also subtly changed over the two years I've been doing it, both in its look, but also in tone. I have separated my work from this blog. I don't put stories from Insider on here, for example. I'm careful about what I say about my family. But I'm committed to it more than ever.

So, two years on, what next? I always find it amazing that people manage to publish long and well put together blogs on politics, or as extensions of their personal interests - be they music, football, writing, poetry or local history. I would find that achingly narrow. The blogs I return to - and link to - are generalist and personal. They reflect as well as possible the hinterland of the writer. Nigel Hughes does this very well, but he's also shifted away from his day job a bit; Dave Hill separates his Guardian work from his local Hackney stuff; I sense that Laura Wolfe is working out her direction - running a business, her family, Man City. The much missed Dougal Paver threw everything at his, but stopped entirely because he's a public face who didn't want to self-censor his deeply held views on Norweigans and environmentalists. I think I've settled down with my core now, though I occasionally need to be reminded not to overdo the Blackburn Rovers stuff.

I don't hanker after comments, but I like it when I get them. I know from the stats that there's a small loyal following and I like the fact that the blog not only helps me entertain and keep in touch with friends and family, my occasional nostalgic ramblings have also flushed out a few old friends from as Stringer Bell would say - "back in the day" - Nick Morrell, Andrew Worth and Andrew Blacktop.

Anyway, to try and revive the momentum and explore the reasons and the purpose for blogging, a Manchester bloggers blog has been set up here. And the Manchester Evening News blog has organised a get together, the details of which are here. I would suspect the bulk of the blogerati are younger, less grumpy, trendier, more left wing and therefore considerably more interesting than me. They may even inspire a new direction for the Marple Leaf. I'll let you know.

Delayed this morning - congestion to blame

Getting into Manchester city centre from Marple this morning was really difficult - due to heavy "congestion". Trouble is, I was on the train. The driver announced that we were stopped at Ardwick because the approach to Piccadilly station was congested. Maybe this is why the promise of more peak time services on our line has been quietly dropped from the proposed transport improvements, here, in favour of longer trains with more seats, which are desperately needed.

The train was delayed again today, but unlike yesterday, it was bigger and better able to carry the hundreds of passengers crammed in like sardines. One bloke sat in the toilet for the duration.

On Keith Andrews

I've never seen the bloke play. I only know what I've read about him. He was in and out of the team and Wolves and did a good job at MK Dons.

Paul Ince's faith in the ability of his former skipper to make it in the Premier League will define his tenure as Rovers manager. If he does play then it's going to be at the expense of internationals like Vince Grella, Steven Reid, Aaron Mokeona and Johann Vogel, and for Ince's new best mate - Dunny. If he plays well and competes, and adds something to our game the transfer will be hailed as a masterstroke. If he fails to break through then Ince will be seen as showing poor judgement, blind loyalty and looking out for an old mate.

Like a lot of Rovers fans I've mocked this transfer, but when you listen to Andrews himself admitting he's going to be lucky to get a game, you start to hanker after the days when a hard working grafter can work his way up to the top division. I'd love it to work out.

Charge debate

Surprising early poll news here seems to confound my firm belief that the TIF bid will be trounced in the polls in December. However, I think this is extremely optimistic on the part of the pro-TIF lobby. I don't think the question that the MORI poll asked will bear any resemblence to the question that will be set in the referenda.

Football predictions

These are my predictions for the Premier League, which I did before the start of the season (honest)

Chelsea
Man U
Liverpool
Arsenal
Villa
Spurs
Portsmouth
Man City
Middlesbrough
Everton
Rovers
Newcastle
West Brom
Sunderland
Wigan
West Ham
Fulham
Bolton
Hull
Stoke

Cup: Villa
League Cup: Middlesbrough

I think Preston Burnley and Blackpool will all comfortably finish in mid table.

Back on the train gang

First day back. First train to catch this morning and guess what? Yep. Rose Hill train cancelled. Luckily a chap at the station bundled a couple of us into his car and we headed for Marple instead. Nice touch that, more than made up for the disappointment of the train.

Back Home

The key to contentment is quite simple. Spend time with the people you love. That's why we put so much effort and planning into our family holiday. In the middle of our hectic year we can take ourselves away to some sunshine and just be us. I feel so rested and so happy. I don't want to write a travel article about where we've been, what books we read, who we met, what the kids did, what the best ice cream in Barga is. Italy is such a warm and accepting environment for a rabble like us, great food, lovely people, quirky too. All I do want to say is "thank you" to Rachel, Joe, Max, Louis, Matt and Elliot for making this holiday such a fun and happy one.

Arriverdeci Marple

Right we're off on our jollies. Here are ten things I'm happy not to have to worry about for two weeks.

The start of the football season
The rain
Bitchy comments on message boards
The TIF debate
Rose Hill trains getting cancelled
Waking up to the Olympics on Radio 5 Live
Dan Bank road works
Worrying about the kids in holiday clubs
The price of fuel
The credit crunch


See you in September

Press release of the week

From our Insider Daily today:

Press release of the week. They don’t come much more PR-hungry than Stockport floorer Resin Surfaces and this week’s press release was a corker. The company has “solved a long-standing bathroom problem for global energy giant BP” by installing a special resin floor on an oil tanker permanently moored off Shetland. The tone was tactful, pointing out the difficulties caused by the tanker’s movements. If the Policy Exchange had been in charge, it would probably have been entitled: “All Jocks piss on the floor”. Mind you, remembering the UEFA Cup final…

There were wry smiles round Manchester at the news that Rangers were knocked out of Europe at the first hurdle.

Congestion conversation

I chaired a debate on Manchester controversial transport plans today at the Lowry Hotel, in a special event organised by pro.Manchester. I have to say Chris Oglesby from United City and Andrew Simpson from the GMMG both delivered barnstorming presentations.

Here's the nub: Oglesby says public transport in Manchester is "crap". Yet this bid is designed to get more people to use that "crap" service. To most people what's on offer is more crap and being charged to use your car. Simpson's slide showing what TIF really amounts to - four diddy extra bits of Metrolink - was met with gasps.

If I was a betting man I'd say the consensus in the room was with the no camp. TIF is dead.

Hello Calum

Grandad Eamon now has another little lad to dote on. Rachel's brother Sean and his wife Reena are now the proud parents of Calum Joshua Guru Curran. He's a lovely little fellah, getting stronger and bigger every day. Mum's doing well too.
My pal Andy Coyne always maintains that the Sikhs are the Irish of Asia, so Calum has a grand pedigree!

Once again...

It was difficult to know where to start with the Policy Exchange report on regeneration.

The Liverpool edition of our Insider Daily email had this to say today:

Among the avalanche of criticism heaped on the authors of the Policy Exchange’s Cities Unlimited report, Insider’s favourite comments came from Professor Michael Parkinson of the European Institute for Urban Affairs at Liverpool John Moores University. Parkinson dismissed the observations as “teenage scribblings”. Parkinson is currently compiling a report into the impact of the credit crunch on the UK regions, which will be unveiled at Insider’s UK Investment Forum in London in November.

As I said on here last night, it was a breathtakingly poor piece of work. But some of what they were saying wasn't that far from what the new urban orthodoxy is saying in Manchester and Liverpool: "Back winners, support the city centre and the rest can only prosper."

To be honest I then see the coverage in the Liverpool Echo - like this - and it's basically turned into bullying anyone who criticises Liverpool.

In praise of BOSSmag

I grew up reading tall tales and mad lists in fanzines. I wrote about that here. Just picked up BOSSMag following one of Taguey's raids to Liverpool and liked it.

It's far from perfect, but it made me laugh and it's certainly good to see the young lads keeping the faith and telling it like it is. More than anything it was refreshing to read fanzines written by people under 40 (30 even). So many ideas, reviews, thoughts and snapshots end up on blogs and message boards it's a shame. You can't beat the look, feel and smell of a zine.

And I might even get the new John Power CD on their say so.

Overboard review

Delighted that Overboard got a nice review in the Scotsman. If you are in Edinburgh, do go and see it.

Are friends eclectic?

David Hepworth from The Word magazine sets a test. A randomizer - what five songs come up first when you shuffle the musical pack on your iPod (or equivalent MP3 player)? I was reading through the choices and thinking, what a load of bollocks. Who are these people? Is this just people trying to be eccentric and eclectic? I suspect so. No one has anything vaguely embarrassing.

Here are my first 10:
Martyr - Depeche Mode (hardly know it, one of Rachel's)
First Gear - The Rapture (must have been something off the youngsters at work, can't even remember where it came from)
Autumnsong - Manic Street Preachers (OK album track, but not a favourite)
Great Things - Echobelly (old 90s Britpop track)
Out of the Blue (into the fire) - The The (Excellent album track)
Those Canaan Days - From Joseph musical (on a for the kids playlist)
Let me entertain you - Robbie Williams (not very Word, but I like the Robster)
Babe I'm Gonna Leave you - Led Zep - (like it, but not my favourite by them)
Albert Hammond Bootleg - Half Man Half Biscuit (folk poetry)

I think because iPods are getting so massive, you just get all sorts ripped on and hope for the best. I must admit, I to tend to listen to playlists and new albums at the moment - Paul Weller's 22 Songs and the new Sigur Ros are my fave pair.

Catching up on The Wire

We've now watched the first two series of The Wire. I really do think it's every bit as good as so many people seem to say it is. However, no-one who I mention any of this to wants to know. They're way ahead of me. By the time we're up to date - mid September, I reckon, I can join in. Until then, observations on McNulty's Pogues soundtrack, the depth of Omar and the Shakespearean tragedy of Frank Sobotka will have to stay at home.

I like too the fact hardly anyone I know has actually watched it on TV, because it's on a channel called FX. Catching up, catching up.

Massive hat tip: Taguey.

Dan Bank

The traffic in and out of Marple is always a problem and it's about to get worse. Dan Bank is getting a complete overhaul for the next couple of years. I think it shows incredible foresight on the part of Stockport Borough Council to do the most invasive work during late August. When we will be away, thankfully.

I love the summer smell of the trees as you approach Marple from Chadkirk. It helps that the traffic is running smoothly.

A wintry picture taken from the bottom of Dan Bank up to Offerton Road is featured in a mod montage on the inner sleeve of one of my favourite albums of all time - All Mod Cons by The Jam. Bet you didn't know that, did you?

Ince loses dressing room - this blog was first

As exclusively revealed on the Marple Leaf last week, OK, "noted with caution" Paul Ince had already "lost the dressing room" at Blackburn Rovers. The Daily Mail has now waded in with this.
Senior players don't like him, his staff and his training methods, apparently.

Bring on Keith Andrews, that'll sort it.

The Graun has also come to the same conclusion as me on league placings (14th), after this thoughtful piece by Barney Ronay.

Last night I watched the Carlos Villaneuva clips on You Tube. He looks ace. But then before you get too excited, you can do a search on this deadbeat and get a 3 minute compilation that makes the currently unattached, ex-Swiss second division player, an absolute world beater.

Edinburgh bound

My Godson Adam and his family are appearing at Edinburgh in a play they've written together. There's a piece in the Tameside Advertiser about it here. To my shame I haven't seen it yet, but I'm sure it's funny, warm and slightly eccentric. Joe and Matt are going up to see it next week.

Anyway, it's called Overboard and will be performed at Tiviot Place, Wee 3, Venue 295 at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival between 10-16 August.

Tickets are £7.50 or £6.50 for concessions and can be reserved by calling the box office on 0870 241 0136 or by visiting www.sweet-uk.net

iPod Touch - a toy not a tool

I have finally managed to get my iPod Touch to connect to our Wifi at home. I did this despite being told by our service provider that I couldn't, or shouldn't. However, as I'd clumsily wrecked our settings on the livebox thingy I had to get a very nice lady in India to talk me through the resetting process again. In so doing I worked out how to do it. The next obstacle is to get the calendar on it to sync with my Outlook. It has been a major pain in the backside, which only started when I upgraded to the version 2.0 software for £5. Cheers, Apple.

The issue here is whether Apple want to have their sleek products considered elegant toys, or a genuinely useful business tools. I still they are fancy toys.

Bloggers and the media

London blogger Dave Hill writes here about a small spat between his local paper and the local blogging community in Hackney. We don't have that simmering cauldron of tension and competition between the paper and the blogs here, but I'm often approached for comment by the Stockport Express's district reporter for Marple, and sometime they follow up on various rants on here.

Pre season thoughts on Blackburn Rovers

Right, I've had a month off football. Or rather, this blog has had a month off talking about Blackburn Rovers. I'm glad, because in many instances I do encourage my children and workmates to refrain from saying anything if you can't think of something nice to say.
On Wednesday my friend Stephen Ashworth invited me down to Northwich to see a Rovers reserve side play the Vics, a club surrounded in turmoil and dark plotting of which Ashy is being invited to join in.

Here are ten thoughts - five bleak, five more positive, on what's been happening.

Selling. We have sold our most effective player from last season - Brad Friedel. Gutted isn't the word. He is an immense goalkeeper. There was a sell on clause for David Bentley. So, we split the proceeds on his sale with Arsenal. Is there a player that doesn't want to leave?

Managing. Paul Ince has - according to a good source in football agent circles - "lost the dressing room" already. His pre-match prep is patchy compared to Hughes and Ray Mathias takes the training. He likes winding players up by telling them there have been offers from other clubs. He wasn't even at Northwich, why?

Media. There's this from the Fiver yesterday which sums it up:
As for Blackeye Rovers, although they've now lost their two best players - Bentley and Brad Friedel - in the space of a week, they can comfort themselves with the thought that Bentley's attacking threat will be replaced with 84-year-old property magnate Robbie Fowler's pac ... Oh. Well, they can comfort themselves with the thought that Friedel's comforting presence has been supplanted with occasional goalkeeper Paul Robinson's handl ... Ah. Well, they can comfort themselves with the thought that Roque Santa Cruz isn't being linked to every half decent club with a few pennies to rub togeth ... Gah!

Bad buying. Robbie Fowler. Please, no. At Northwich he looked more like he should be in a veterans tournament. We are also being linked with Keith Andrews from MK Dons, Jermaine Penant, an Ecuadorian, a Mexican and a Chilean. And Robbie Fowler. Hughes had a great network, he sprung some great surprises. This looks like the old boys network.

Support. Season ticket sales are down on last year, despite some imaginative pricing. 2000 off the target according to the minutes of a fans forum. It's always a struggle.

Performances. We played alright in Portugal, according to those who went. The Vics game seemed to be a bit of a run out for Gallagher and Darbyshire as wingers, to see if one of them can fill Bentley's position.

Behind the scenes. Chris Ronnie isn't buying the club. Well, he never was really, it was as a front for a few others. The price I was told was £50m, which is ludicrously high for a club of Rovers size and the support we get. The best solution is for a supporters trust, underwritten by the Walker trust. Jack Walker's legacy was always never to see it sold to Cheshire property developers backed by Icelandic banks, etc. Better news is that the Walker Trust are reinstating the £3m they pay the club. I would like to think that this had something to do with it.

Good buying. Paul Robinson is a good keeper. That's a good signing for us and a good move for him. And he seemed to be a nice chap too; we chatted in the car park after the match.

Young players. Alan Judge looked good at Northwich, and the way in which the bench were instructing him, he's a key player.

Prospects. I'd settle for 9th now. But I think we'll struggle this season - 14th.

Barton Think

Joey Barton reflects:

The first day's the toughest, no doubt about it. They march you in, hand you your uniform and force you to pose for the photographer while loads of fat, tattooed, skinheads shout at you. That's when you know it's for real. A whole life blown away in the blink of an eye. Nothing left but all the time in the world to think about it. That's when it hits home. That's when you realise you've signed for Newcastle.

Sparks flying

When I stopped writing about telly and telly-making technology I unsubscribed from all kinds of magazines and press release lists and moved on. I still get one called Prompt from a bloke called David Sparks, which I really enjoy and wouldn't want to unsubscribe to. I was never close friends with David or anything and his old magazine was far too technical for me, but he always provided an incredible function in gluing this particular business community together. Here's a flavour in this month's intro:

Apologies - its publication is a little later than scheduled. I have been distracted, not least by an extraordinary event last Friday. My local pub - 'The Thatchers' - hosted the wake of a well-respected local Hell's Angel.
He died in a crash on the M4 motorway earlier in the week. Over 150 bikers from Chapters all over the UK (and Holland, Germany and South Africa) made a procession through Reading, from the Church to the Crematorium, and then headed for the pub. A sad event - but nevertheless amazing. Those immaculate, but amazingly loud, big bikes! The Angels, mainly seven foot tall and sporting multiple tattoos and long grey beards, were some of the most polite and courteous people I have ever met. I salute them!

Top chap that he is, David still publishes the lists of all the press conferences at trade shows like IBC and NAB even though I get the impression he doesn't go any more.

I must admit I don't even have a passing curiosity about what Quantel and Avid Technology are exhibiting at IBC, but I always look out for David's jokes, obituary notes and wise fables, like this:

An unemployed man applies for a job with Microsoft as a cleaner. The manager there arranges for him to take an aptitude test. Afterwards, The manager says, "You will be employed as a cleaner at the minimum wage. Give me your e-mail address so I can send you a form to complete before you start."

The applicant admits he has neither an e-mail address nor a computer.

The manager replies that there is little hope of him ever starting work there as, in reality, he doesn't exist.

The jobseeker leaves and with his last $10 note buys some tomatoes which he sells in the market at 100% profit.

Repeating the process, he ends the day with $100 in his pocket.

It dawns on him he could make a living selling tomatoes. Long days mean his profits multiply rapidly. A pick-up truck multiplies his profits and, two years later, he is the owner of a multimillion dollar enterprise with a fleet of trucks, all transporting and selling tomatoes.

Planning for the future, he decides to buy some life assurance. His adviser picks a suitable plan and asks for an e-mail address to send the final documents electronically.

When the man replies that he has no e-mail address, the adviser is stunned.

"What! No e-mail?", he says. "How on earth have you managed to amass such wealth without the internet, e-mail and e-commerce? Just imagine where you'd be now if you had been connected to the internet from the very start."

"Well," replies the tomato millionaire, "I'd be a cleaner at Microsoft!"

Keep it up Sparky!

Book review - Counter Knowledge by Damian Thompson

I get irritated very easily by lazy conspiracy theories and quack medicine. This book provides some decent sociological context to all the mumbo jumbo health stories in the Daily Mail, creationism, pseudo history (ie Dan Brown) and holocaust denial. It's not as fun to read as Francis Wheen's How Mumbo Jumbo Changed the World, but as an intro to a rational stemming of this tidal wave of nonsense, it's alright. Corresponding website is here. 6/10.

Wired

As telly as rubbish at the moment we've been back on the boxed set merry go-round, catching up on The Wire, which passed me by first time round. There's no point me adding to the tsunami of praise for this excellent series, whoops, just did.

Liked this spoof news story on it. Hat tip: Voices from the Below.

Gruesome attack in Marple

I hope this kind of thing isn't catching on in Marple.

The last time it happened in Marple, 14 years and 6 days ago it led to more mayhem. There's a chapter in this very thorough, very detailed, very violent book. Link is here.