Marple Fine Food Market

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The Way We Wore by Robert Elms reviewed

Everyone seems to be so mean about Robert Elms. This is how Chris Morris managed to rip into him on the outstandingly funny episode of Brasseye when starting his Zeit Guest interview with Darcus Howe:

CM: “I’m sitting opposite a man, he knows nothing, he talks all the time, the result is he’s a trenchant buffoon, he had no idea how to present television shows, he looks ridiculous in that fashion wear. He swans around all the time hoping that people will recognise him, when infact nobody’s even remotely interested. He’s taken up enough time on this show already and he hasn’t even opened his mouth. God knows why he’s here, I’ve nothing to ask the guy. And for all I know he may be a coco shunter too.
DH: “What’s a coco shunter?”
CM: “Coco Shunter? That’s just what I’ve got, er, oh, sorry, that’s the introduction to Robert Elms. Sorry. Do you know Robert Elms? I’ve just read out the introduction to Robert Elms."

So, you kind of start with that thought in mind. And the memory of him sneering at "Northern Scum" on The Tube in, oh, I don't know, about 1985.

For all of that, I liked this book. I found it in Marple library and wasn't even aware he'd done it to be honest. I'd read his novel - In Search of the Crack - and it was alright. Very of its time and clearly written in an age and place he knew quite well. For someone who the default mechanism is to immediately dislike, he writes in a very self-depracating way. He tacitly admits he used to be a bit of an arse. In an era when the world is stuffed full of media rentaquotes and all round arses, he was ahead of his time in so many ways.

The tales of various fashion developments in London are fascinating.- a sort of social history. The inside story of the DIY nature of punk and the evolution of male narcissism are rarely told this well. His mate Tony Parsons did him the favour of calling it a "Fever Pitch of Fashion", which looked good on the cover, and it's true in the sense the book is a self-conscious narrative with Elms at the centre of it.

But I wonder if Elms maybe has another book in him. As a radio broadcaster and a journalist with a supposed interest in the world he's inhabited he could bring a lot more to bear on the movements and street styles that passed him by - casual, rave, new casual. Anyway if he won't, I know a man who just might.

Nero fiddles while Gordon Burns

There have been some fulsome tributes to Gordon Burns as he announces he is to step down from presenting BBC North West Tonight. On the whole, I think they are deserved. He is a decent bloke who has done a consistently good job over the years.

He's going to do some projects for BBC Radio across the North from Media City, but there will be a new face when the programme moves to Salford Quays in September.

Who will that be?

I imagine there is talk already of Stuart Flinders, who would be a popular internal choice. I think he carries a lot of local sway. No doubt Andy Crane will be in the mix too. Tony Livesey has been widely praised for his speedy progress from editing a porno paper to BBC Radio Lancashire and now onto Sport and Radio 5 Live. I don't honestly see a step to NW Tonight as career progress for him.

No, I have another hunch. Graham Liver. The BBC doesn't tend to make these plans on the hoof. They groom from within and project their favoured sons. A younger and more modern look for the programme, but with a good folksy northern journalist with charm and charisma. First we have seen Graham get the Breakfast Show on BBC Radio Lancashire and then notch up more TV experience doing the local news. Just remember where you heard it first.

Disclaimer. I'm not saying any of that because our Dads used to work together or anything. But they did.

A weekend without football - a happy weekend

Sometimes I can only wonder what a life without football would be like. I despair of the way it seems to transform rational people into ranting idiots at almost every level of life and in whatsoever way it touches people. From the touchlines at kids games, to the terraces at professional games, there is much to dislike. And at the moment, for obvious reasons, I don't feel it is the beautiful game at all. It is the ugly game. Vain, violent, dishonest, exploitative and massively disrespectful of the contribution of the people.

We have really enjoyed a weekend pretty much free of football. Sure, the boys who like it in our house kicked a ball around. And I did listen to the second half of City v United on BBC Radio Manchester and I did keep up to date with another abject Blackburn Rovers performance at Everton.

Do not misunderstand me. This is not because suddenly Rovers are fading. This has been a long time coming. Previous lapses in form by Rovers have edged me closer to more irrational symbolic displays of loyalty. I bought season ticket number 0001 for season 1979-1980 AFTER we were relegated. I went to pretty much every game in season 1983-84 - which was memorable for what, exactly? I had an appointment at a tattooist if we'd gone down in 2003. The disgraceful destruction of the club by the Venky's, Jerome Anderson and Steve Kean should harden my resolve, but it's me that has changed.

It's the contempt for supporters by the football authorities and players which leaves me thinking we are all being taken for mugs. Why were City playing United in a semi-final at Wembley? And why on earth couldn't Stoke and Bolton play somewhere roughly half way - like, er, Manchester? Why is it so expensive? Why is cheating and diving so routinely tolerated and encouraged by the managers and the media. And why has no-one been fingered yet for financial corruption?

No, on Saturday night, oblivious to who squared up to who on the Wembley pitch we sat down to watch Verdi's Otello at the Bridgewater Hall performed by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and conducted by Gianandrea Noseda. Adoration from an audience, a peak performance by people at the very top of their game. Leadership. Passion. Charisma. I can't claim to have followed everything that was going on, but I felt part of something special. And at no point did I think - you lot are taking the piss out of me.

OK, so I'm thinking out loud. But this is a really important turning point in our lives and the lives of our children. There has to come a moment when you say, enough. That time is close. This may have been the first step on a long and slow walk away from football.

The only way is Wood

Tony Wood has some incredible stories to tell. He's worked alongside and inspired some of the best creative talents this country has produced. He knows about what makes a special creative space where good ideas can fly. And at Lime Pictures, where he's the creative director, he's now making what he thinks is the most ground breaking television he has ever been involved in.

But here are some things you might learn if you come to this event in Manchester next month. Like, how he won over 100 awards in his time with Coronation Street, including a BAFTA in 2004 (pictured, left with my pal Richard Bell and me). Why Jimmy McGovern walked out of Brookside twenty years ago this month. What it was like working with Chris Evans, Guy Ritchie and Mathew Vaughn on the TV series of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. How the highest rated kids TV drama in the USA is made in Liverpool.

And now? The Only Way is Essex. What's that all about?

There's an evening event I'm involved with next month - part of the MPA World Class Series on May 18 at Deloitte - hence the picture above. I'll be interviewing Tony in front of an audience. Come along. Details here.

The tragic tarnished legacy of John Pilger

I used to be inspired and in awe of John Pilger, the Australian journalist who did so much to report the brutal reality of the cynicism of a defeated American military in Vietnam and Cambodia. He brought nobility and anger to authored documentary journalism.

Here is the citation in the New Statesman: John Pilger, renowned investigative journalist and documentary film-maker, is one of only two to have twice won British journalism's top award; his documentaries have won academy awards in both the UK and the US. In a New Statesman survey of the 50 heroes of our time, Pilger came fourth behind Aung San Suu Kyi and Nelson Mandela. "John Pilger," wrote Harold Pinter, "unearths, with steely attention facts, the filthy truth. I salute him."

And now? I read his column in the New Statesman on Friday, where he asserts that the military action against Libya is part of a long war for assets against China. That David Cameron's speech on multiculturalism was code for an attack on Muslims. And then: "President Barack Obama's historical distinction is now guaranteed. He is America's first black president to invade Africa." (sic)

Whenever I see this bonkers conspiracy theory I tend to wonder if the all powerful American-Isreali military capitalist cabal was so powerful, so cynical and so murderous, then how come Chinese companies are digging up Australia. But this isn't about picking apart these unsourced and ludicrous fairy tales.

I shall dig out some of his powerful and ground breaking journalism on East Timor and Cambodia. That's the memory he still deserves.

We're playing twelve again

I don't believe that, by the way. I thought the reason Blackburn Rovers drew with Birmingham City yesterday was a failure to create momentum. Birmingham made that difficult with some negative time wasting in the long drawn out second half, which the referee didn't seem too bothered about, but the Rovers players simply didn't do enough. Santa Cruz is a major disappointment, Pedersen had a good first half, but he lacks urgency.

But this hysterical blaming of referees is starting to wear me out. The TV and radio pundits go on about decisions all the time. It fuels this impotent sense of entitlement that every decision can be challenged, attacked and, let's face it, used as an excuse for failure.

Three weeks ago, chatting with a Rovers director, we totted up the points we could accrue in the run-in. There were three "must win" home games. The first being the draw with Blackpool, the second being yesterday's draw. The point at Arsenal was an unexpected bonus, but we're still three points down. It's not looking too good.

A new Barbour from Bags of Flavor

I've just had my Barbour waxed jacket made into a bag and I bloody love it. I must admit I was pretty pleased with a classic Barbour waxed coat when I picked it up from a special vintage Oxfam shop on Oldham Street in Manchester last year. I scour some of the vintage shops in the Northern Quarter for rare pieces and enjoy unearthing the occasional thing of beauty. But, much as I liked it's rustic functionality, Rachel was right when she said it aged me by about five years. Needing a decent bag for carting around the things of life - mags, books, laptop, etc, and one that's a bit roomier than my current Manchester classic - I stumbled on the ideal solution: recycling.

I cannot recommend Rich from Bags of Flavor enough. He's got a terrific little shop on Tib Street with some vintage pieces - Adidas trainers, denim shirts, plaid, Fila coats, a magnificent 70s Belstaff that suddenly looks very contemporary - but his craft is making DJ bags, hence the name of his enterprise. He's done a cracking job with the bag: working original Barbour plaid lining and the waterproof waxed outer shell, he's embedded the label, reworked the collar clip and used the pocket as a handy front section as a bit of nifty custom detail. I love it, absolutely love it. Brilliant.

Here's the Bags of Flavor website.

Marple takeaway scores zero rating for food hygiene

Stockport Council run a food standards scheme and have rated local food establishments. Here are the scores on the doors.

Golden Flower, the Chinese opposite the Co-op on Hollins Lane got NO STARS. The report is here and was completed in early February 2011. "No Stars - Bad = General failure to satisfy statutory obligations."

There was just ONE STAR, meaning "Poor = Standards generally low" for the following:

The Hatters, Marple Express takeaway on Stockport Road.

Obviously if things change I'll update.

Where I won't be going for lunch any time soon

Thanks to Manchester Confidential for digging out the Food Standards Agency information on restaurant hygiene. They selected several which rated zero and many more that rated just 1. I have to say I was particularly dismayed at some of the places featured in the lowest rated list, most notably the Yang Sing on Princess Street which was last inspected in January 2011. I even recommended a friend to go there last week when he was up with work from London. To be clear and to be fair, a zero rating demands urgent improvement. You hope this was just catching them on a bad day.

Here are a few other places I've been to recently that only rated 1, which means "major improvement necessary".

In Chinatown: Pacific and Royal Orchid.

Sandwich shops: The Beautiful British Butty on Portland Street and Nicky's.

Northern Quarter: Kabana and Koffee Pot

Other city centre restaurants: Efes Tavern.

I'll be checking back to see if they have improved and in the interests of fairness will point this out.

Digby Jones - Fixing Britain - reviewed

Just as empires have been judged to have crumbled under the weight of their own contradictions, so too this memoir/manifesto from the enigmatic Lord Digby Jones leaves you wondering how it all came to this.

Even the starting point (and conclusion) where the bombastic Brummie professes to love his country, then likens it to Ancient Rome (just before it collapsed), he puts a familiar marker down with the pomposity and grandstanding that took him to the top of the CBI and into Gordon Brown's Government of all the Talents. I say all of that as someone who admired him as the Voice for Business. He always delivered a good speech. He clearly worked ferociously hard at the helm of the UK's most influential business organisation, touring the country and talking to businesses. But just as you always wonder if a good campaigning politician could effectively lead a great department of state, so you found yourself wondering where all of this tub thumping would take dear Digby.

During his time at the CBI, he boasts in the book, he was the most visible leader that the business organisation had ever had. He was also taken inside Tony Blair's big tent and listened to. He had the ear of government.

He was asked round for chats at Number 10 and was frequently consulted on policy. Politically, he skilfully sidestepped the issue of the Euro, pandering to his bigger members by not following the weight of business sentiments which was against entry to the single currency. And during a period of economic growth, business enjoyed a good run. And yet for all of that access, for all of the massive strides that Labour made to be seen as business friendly - a Labour government, a Labour government (as he paraphrases Neil Kinnock) introducing a 10 per cent rate for Capital Gains Tax - by his own judgement, by his own standards and analysis of where we are now, it must have been a era of failure. He charts all the tactical defeats in the book without a hint of self-deprecation; the implementation of EU regulations on working time, the hike in National Insurance in 2004, the climate change levy. And culturally, he moans that business people are always portrayed as the bad guy in soaps and that journalists don't understand where wealth comes from.

So, you ask this question, why did this happen on your watch, Digby?

As he stepped into a new career as a minister he is frustrated from day one by the stifling civil service culture. He cites, but doesn't name, a thrilled woman minister accepting the trappings of office for the first time. He turns his back on all of that though and gets on with the job of "promoting Britain". But at what? I dare say he shakes a lot of hands, refuses to make apologies to imperial crimes, makes a lot of speeches, but more than that he doesn't really say - apart from accepting without a crumb of modesty that he "played a blinder" on a number of occasions.

So what is to be done about the broken Britain that needs fixing? To be fair, politically, if you take the book as a series of stances to take on a number of issues, there's little anyone who runs a business and who cares about Britain could disagree with him on. He's fairly centrist and fair minded, he articulates very well the distressing culture of worklessness, indolence and welfare dependency. His is the politics of the common sense voice of reason. But he also goes further and isolates the importance of education in an age of globalisation. So far so good. But this is supposed to be a serious figure from public life, one of the most influential of the last 15 years. And while this isn't a policy document, it is frighteningly light on detail or evidence, all the more surprising as a former lawyer, lobbyist and minister. It's just anecdote after story. Personal confrontations where he always has the last word and the best line.

He dreams up initiatives - like compulsory training - that will have to be enshrined in laws and delivered by reluctant civil servants. More red tape, tut tut.

He urges the Great British Public to embrace public life, but deliberately doesn't endorse the Big Society, because he's apolitical, see.

Take a look at this BBC interview, here, Digby oozes charm and self-promotes his own achievements. He is an ordinary bloke from the Midlands, he says, who has voted for every party. This is him batting for business, his constituency. His country. Using short sentences. Like this.

But just as he swerved the Euro issue, so too he has surprisingly little to say on the financial crisis of 2008, just a plea to leave the bankers alone. Has Britain's banking sector failed his constituency? The hard working, honest, red tape snarled, beleaguered and unloved British entrepreneur. Where is his railing against the monopolistic abuses of power of big retail and their destructive effect on the high street and on their supply chains?

This book ultimately reads well enough. Pugnacious and passionate; a little bit "Richard Littlejohn" in its saloon bar polemics. But it's also strangely close to the consensual politics the coalition agreement represents. Sadder though, it reads like a wall of unappreciated noise from a man with plenty to say, but nothing left to do.

The subjects he raises are at the heart of what kind of country Britain should be. The conclusions he draws are largely correct. But they're also not far off what the inclusive coalition agreement mapped out. I feel slightly mean spirited raising a critical word, as his is a voice in the political wilderness, a man who embraced coalition politics for the good of the country before the coalition government, explaining that although he was ennobled, he made big financial sacrifices as he did so. It's placed him, for now, outside of the corridors of power and influence. But the only person who can explain how that has happened is Lord Digby Jones of Birmingham himself, the one person least able, and least likely, to do so.

Remember the name, Patrick Monahan

We had a terrific day in Belfast on Thursday. Our conference and awards dinner seemed to go down really well with the businesses we were working with. As this blog isn't really about work I thought I'd just mention the comedian we used: Patrick Monahan. He was really funny. He hardly told a joke, just had a great way of interacting with the audience. He also came across as a genuine nice guy - someone who loves what he does, and loves entertaining and telling stories. He stayed in the bar at the Europa Hotel until 1am having a good laugh with the punters. So yes, I'd go and see him again. You should do. Or book him for a corporate gig if you do that sort of thing. A great talent.

April fool

I don't mind the tradition of April Fool jokes. Some are pretty rubbish, some are good fun though. I agree with Mark Solomons that none has ever beaten the spaghetti tree one from 1957 (yes, the date shocked me too). We did a school project on it in 1976. It was a great fun day.

Anyway, I was responsible for Insider's attempt at humour yesterday. It was a version of this mildly tailored for each region We fooled a few people, one bloke emailed our reporter accusing us of printing rubbish stories.

Some links to good stuff

William Routledge has penned another essay and photo story on the Casco site - this time on Whittingham Hospital. It's here.

The Land of Lost Content. A Wayne Hemingway project, but it didn't put me off.

A tribute to Frank Skinner on Sabotage Times.

Pica-Post, tales, facts, clobber and chatter -  a new, twice-yearly magazine from the trendy folk at Manchester's finest shop Oi Polloi.

Wayne's world

Quite possibly the most disastrous after dinner speech in my 11 years at Insider, indeed, possibly in the 20 year history of the business, was the one given by fashion designer Wayne Hemingway at the Merseyside Property dinner in 2003. The event has fortunately survived such a rocky start and 300 guests enjoyed a thoughtful and productive evening last Wednesday night at the Hilton Hotel in Liverpool.

As a reminder of events past, Hemingway was in Manchester the day after for the Institute of Directors North West Conference. Suffice to say his performance was funny, warm, clever and went down an absolute storm. What a difference a recession and a few years makes.

What next for BBC local radio?

There's a fear gathering pace about the future of BBC Local Radio. One of a number of strategic options being considered is for the stations to be boiled down to peak time opt outs from Radio 5 Live.

As a contributor to BBC Radio Manchester I see at close quarters the dedication and professionalism of the people I work with and the conditions and resources they operate in. So much that is good is down to the people who present the programmes and everything that doesn't come up to scratch is as a result of the murky BBC politics that sits on everyone's shoulder like a black dog.

Example: our programme on Monday evening features music. I don't know why, it is confusing to the listener and makes no logical sense. It should be a talk format about business in Manchester, punctuated by news and traffic. It is much more coherent as a podcast with the Phil Collins and Backstreet Boys taken out. Probably why the podcast has one of the highest number of downloads on BBC local radio.

The interviews are good, the format is relaxed and recently we've had additional items from the business team in London feeding in reports such as today's launch of a new start-up programme. However, it's being cut. I imagine the team will find a way round this, but it's another example of death by a thousand cuts.

I have no reason to believe this experience is any different on other slots. Local radio is frequently boxed into music, community, speech and talk formats because someone centrally says so. Breakfast formats are all speech, for example. Just as the drivetime slot has to have music.Yet local radio is at its best when it is closest to the people it seeks to serve. Good producers and presenters know what works and most importantly, they know what works in Manchester, Cumbria, or wherever.

You can't help but feel that the BBC unit (DQF - Delivering Quality First) which is employed to dream up new strategy ideas are re-running what happened with BBC 6 Music. Threaten to scrap it, say it's just one of a number of options - plausible deniability - watch the backlash; if it's isolated and weak, then proceed, if it's strong then retreat gracefully, saying 'look, we listen'. Remind people what they could lose - gain free publicity out of the indignation. Carry on regardless.  Frankly, I think it deserves a better level of debate than this.

Family hiking again

Another Sunday, another epic walk. Either these children will become endurance athletes or they will regard this as torture and never venture out with boots and rucsacs again. We did the canal walk from Goyt Mill to the Hyde Bank tunnel, then followed the trail down to Chadkirk and Otterspool. The walk up to Marple Hall School and then through the houses is the boring bit - but it was a satisfying day. I can't quite work out the total distance but it's about 5 and a half miles. The highpoint was definitely the aqueduct that takes the Peak Forest Canal over the Goyt. It's history is here. I couldn't believe it had been built in 1804. Amazing. And such adventure on such a glorious day. Bliss to be alive.

Marple's shops and restaurants

Marple's main shopping centre is currently the star attraction in some new BBC comedy called White Van Man, starring Will Mellor. One of the locations is Hollins, a hardware shop where they seem to have disconsolate grumpiness down to a fine art. I remain loyal, but only tentatively.

Other new shops in the centre have popped up. Urban Gypsy is a new deli and cafe at the bleak end of Stockport Road. I wish them well, but it's not the best location. Further up on the right is a new bike shop, a terrific addition to the range of shops. On the restaurant side the Basmati Hut opposite Marple station is to become a Purple Pakora, part of an established chain of curry houses in south Manchester.

My mate #11 - Jim Pendrill

In this occasional series I do a random shuffle of my address book, skip along if it's either a muppet I only tolerate in passing, or someone I actually haven't spoken to in years. This time it's about Jim Pendrill, who was the first person I recruited to work with me at Insider in May 2000, and who has worked with me until he left on Friday for a new career in teaching. Pictured left, is his memorial front cover.

When I hear Robert Peston on the news explaining, for example, quantative easing, I wince. When I wanted something like that explaining, or simplifying, or analysing then I was confident that Jim Pendrill would do it as well as anyone and certainly better than the BBC's Business Editor. In our 11 years working together Jim has performed a number of different jobs admirably. As the editor of Midlands Business Insider he took our business into Birmingham and got us established.

He took on our contract publishing division and really made it fly, producing exceptional magazines for Manchester Metropolitan University, Clearwater and Target, amongst others.

But his greatest act of heroism was in taking over Yorkshire Business Insider. In his short time there he's launched a terrific rail campaign which will be his legacy and prepared the us for a bright future.

But this is just work stuff compared to the real business of real life.

First thing anyone who knows Jim is how fit he is. He is probably the healthiest and cleanest living man I know. His dedication to fitness shames me, if I'm honest, but is reassuring to know that his diet includes lots of biscuits and Soreen maltloaf. Who will I pilfer from now? But that steel and determination in him also manifests itself in a very deep sense of loyalty and an innate decency. Now that same dedication he has demonstrated in journalism (and in athletics) is being transferred to his new professional life as a high school teacher. He will make an incredible teacher - passionate, caring, dedicated, serious - but also a friendly figure of strength in the uncertain world of teenage kids. He will make good use of his experiences, I have no doubt.
The kids where he will teach are very lucky. Everyone deserves a teacher like Jim.

Social enterprise and the big society

Social enterprises have a massive role to play in the delivery of public services. The difficulty is the politics of it though. I make the point here, in a piece for Enterprising, a magazine for social enterprises in Manchester.

Motivation in football

I suspected on Saturday that the dogged second half display was not a Steve Kean inspired performance. He still looks like a lost soul. No, it was the players. They were out early and ready for Blackpool. They seemed angry and hungry. And just as Scott Parker rallied West Ham to victory recently, well, it was captain Samba apparently with a "Churchillian" rousing address, with a French accent, obviously.

Trust in Rovers

The more the ever so chaotic Venky's bandwagon trundles Blackburn Rovers dangerously towards the trapdoor of relegation, the more I look back on the last year as a missed opportunity. There must have been some noble and resourceful supporters willing to manage an orderly transition from ownership by the Walkers Trust to something more dignified and democratic? Surely? The end result may have been ultimately the same - eventually - but in so doing it could preserve the dignity and the values that a traditional Lancashire club has.

For these reasons and more you have to support the formation of a Supporters Trust by a group of concerned Rovers fans. It's early days yet. There was a tentative move in the summer, but the group, me included, tiptoed around the club and waited for a meeting with John Williams. We then sat back and watched events unfold. No-one knows for certain what the future holds, but an organised and sensible supporters trust could provide a very valuable rock in a very unstable and volatile situation.

There's a Blackburn Rovers Supporters Trust Facebook page here. 

Here's another piece about the Venky's changes here (from Insider).

And here's another, about the role of Jerome Anderson (from Twohundredpercent).

For good measure, this is Supporters Direct.

The Paul Adams 10People Project

I have a massive amount of admiration for professional  photographers. They can make all the difference to a publication, or to the projection of an idea in advertising. And at a time when all kinds of amateurs are playing at it, sending journalists out with digital cameras for grip and grin head shots, here is a timely reminder of the craft that really good photographers possess.

Paul Adams is one of my local favourites. He's completed a project with ten of his clients, called 10People. I'm one of them, and he's done a sample on his blog here. The picture, above left, is one his too, taken on my iPhone. The others are obviously much more atmospheric.

But take a look at his range of work, especially the textures he creates. The empathy he has with his human subjects. I can't quite place it, but there's also something very organic, very Lancashire, about Paul's work too. Check him out here.

Roman Lakes - a great Marple walk

We are blessed to live in such a beautiful and peaceful part of the world. We took the pooch and the boys for a stroll on Sunday, heading towards Roman Lakes, close to the ancestral home of Samuel Oldknow, a Marple Victorian mill owner. We took a circular route along the shores of the lakes, hung a right down a path towards the Roman Bridge, up through some woods where we reached Strines Road. We then crossed and headed steeply up to meet the Peak Forest Canal. At this point we crossed the canal and rambled through the woods. A path took us to Ridge Road, but we opted to head back through the fields to the canal. It's probably not kind to tell kids that we could get shot by an angry farmer who's barbed wire fence we had just climbed over, but they soon beat a retreat and we headed along the Ridge to Hill Top Farm and rejoined the canal. Anyway, I'm rambling now.

There's a great guide to roughly the same route, here.

Music from the heart

Mike Garry, here, writes a beautiful paean to Raymond Carver and Guy Garvey, two of my favourites. He gets caught up in the emotion of it all, something about Elbow's track Lippy Kids - which includes the line "build a rocket boys" touches him. Wonderful stuff. I love that music can do that.

And me? I'm still massively in love with the whole idea of Elbow. This piece by Guy Garvey in Shortlist is one more reason to. We're not going to the Arena for the tour as nothing can ever bring back the birthday memory of the 2009 festival with the Halle. I tried to listen to the new CD (bought from Piccadilly Records) when I came home tetchy and tired on Thursday. I thought it reached some of heights of Seldom Seen Kid, but not quite. Not yet anyway.

A politician's destiny

The current wobbles of William Hague once again throw to the fore the inherent problems of politicians and their suitability to do such a tough job. Hague is expected to be able to grasp a range of tactical responses to complex international events. His last government job - which ended in 1997 - was at the Welsh Office. Since then his preparation for being Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom has been leading the Conservative Party to an election defeat, writing some books, being a very good after dinner speaker, campaigning with his comely young friend Chris Myers and being the MP for Richmond, North Yorkshire. None of that suggests he could have been able to run the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. It doesn't mean he couldn't, but it's hardly a smooth career segue is it?

These thoughts came to mind on meeting Paddy Ashdown this week and how ministerial office passed him by. As a leader of the Liberal Democrats he did OK. But his military and diplomatic experience caused him to be called to sort out Bosnia and for Gordon Brown to offer him the job of Northern Ireland secretary. He would have done a terrific job. He would have made a first rate Foreign Secretary, of that there is no doubt. He always cuts an impressive and statesmanlike figure. He has a tremendous grasp of world affairs, of history and of knowing the right thing to do. His talk at the Bridgewater Hall on Tuesday this week - organised by lawyers DLA Piper - was wide ranging, serious and, at times, scary. His remarks were off the record, so I won't repeat directly what he said - but the importance of legitimate structures that provide a framework to an interconnected world are vital.

But there's one more thing about him that will forever haunt him. That nickname. It doesn't seem to have done him that much harm, but everyone I told I was seeing him offered it as an aside. William Hague has to be careful how he rides out this current difficulty. A joke won't do it. A quip won't work. A bit of pumped up muscular liberalism might though. Just ask Pantsdown.

Clever stuff

Michael Lewis is a fabulous writer. Check this out - his many layered feature on Ireland, post crash, from Vanity Fair.

On a similar theme, should cities be allowed to die? From Prospect.

Tim Harford's column from the FT on Saturday about Libya, Egypt, game theory and Wat Tyler: here:

Our turn to cook

It was our turn to cook for our friends Andy and Michelle Hinselwood this weekend. Rachel got us some lamb shanks from Maurice Thornley the butcher in Romiley. The rest was down to me. I tried a lamb tangine with apricots, tomatoes and various nuts. I was pretty pleased with the end result. But it was the starter that was a real stretch.

I liked the look of Yotam Ottolenghi's recipe for a pomegranate and chicory salsa with haloumi. The comments underneath tell a tale though - people complaining you can't get the ingredients. Well, the haloumi was easy enough, but A.C. Neal in Romiley didn't rate the pomegranates on offer at the market so he didn't have any. He did have coriander, parsley and chicory. And luckily the Co-op in Marple had pomegranates. The only thing I couldn't get was the pomegranate molasses. I made do with maple syrup, which seemed to do OK. I'm intrigued now about this mystery ingredient and how it is a stable in Lebanese food, my favourite.

In praise of Wythenshawe Town

It's only fair to present the positive face of junior football after the horrors of last week. Yesterday we visited the brilliant set up at Wythenshawe Town. Two pitches, one full size for the senior amateur club, a junior pitch with home and away dugouts, a barrier and a club house with a special room for the junior section. The photos and trophies in there give the whole club this real sense of togetherness. I had a chat to the manager after the game - a cracking 4-4 draw - and he did say it has taken a lot of hard work and fund raising to get to this stage. But to be honest with you, it was inspiring. We need to get this sorted in Marple.

Read this blog: Once in a while

Marple man Howard Roberts has had an incredible life-changing experience. He's had something removed from his head. Read his amazing blog. Howard, I salute your bravery and good humour and pray for you and your family.

Breakfast with Anglo by Simon Kelly - book review in a lift

I'm fascinated by how people were thinking in the run up to the financial crisis of 2008. Everyone I interview through my work I ask the same thing: where were you and what were you thinking? 2008 in particular intrigues me. It will be seen as seismic in years to come as our parents generation viewed 1968. Who saw the signs of the looming crash? How did they react? Who had an epiphany or a moment of clarity? And has anyone truly registered the enormity of what happened? So, how could I not be drawn to this book by an Irish property developer who lived the dream and then the nightmare as it all fell apart. He spares us the melodrama, holds back on something spiritual that stirred in him and the result has a low key matter of fact melancholy about it. It's a long way of saying I enjoyed it because I'm a bit of an anorak about this period, but there is more dramatically written and explosively sensationalist stuff out there. 5.5/10

My Arts: Frank Cottrell Boyce | Culture | Liverpool Confidential

My Arts: Frank Cottrell Boyce | Culture | Liverpool Confidential

Hey, here's that Boyce fellah again. At the moment two of our boys are reading his books - Cosmic and Framed. Nana has just bought them Millions. Also really enjoyed a terrific interview he did on an American radio programme - Sirius XM with Bob Edwards. Hope he's doing Hay this year.

Grass roots football needs its heroes

Here is a humbling story. A proud and dedicated man tried his best to run a team for young boys in his area of Manchester. He's African, has no money, the parents of his players have no money, they lack kit and they can't afford to pay the pitch fees for a 3G pitch which has been paid for with local authority and sports industry funding. Some of his kids are on remand or in care and can't get to play. The parents of the visitors from a wealthy area stump up for the pitch when they are due to play, but this proves to be their last match and his team have to withdraw from the league.

Here's a shocking story. A 16 year old referee is reduced to tears as a result of the abuse he gets from parents and managers at a team in the same league. He is a keen referee, he had a marginal offiside decision to make that was disputed, but he doesn't have anyone running the line. He isn't prepared to put up with it any longer. The game is abandoned at half time.

Here's another depressing story. A 10 year old boy is struggling to tie his laces so his coach helps him. The referee swears at the coach and tells him to get a move on.

There is an appalling lack of perspective throughout kids football. The need to win at all costs, the shrill cheers of parents who think they're watching the European Cup Final, the dreadful treatment of referees, the coaching of gamesmanship (cheating), the poor quality of the pitches, the petulance of children following the example of the moaners, divers and over-celebrators by bringing their own versions of this to the game. I feel angry as a parent for bringing my sons into this environment. And I feel foolish for giving time as a volunteer to a sport where the efforts and endeavors of people like the African chap from Manchester, or the manager of our team and so many other people involved in teams and leagues seem to be doing so against a tide of lousy and loutish conduct.

But you can't let the bad guys win. It surely is worth maintaining dignity and standards. Not for our sake, but for the kids. Afterall, as Jim White asked in his book about kids football - who is it for?


POSTSCRIPT: The incident with the referee today is being investigated by the league and though I would like to say more about it, I better not.

My mate #10 - Simon Sinclair

The latest in the occasional series of random selections of various mates this time comes up with Simon Sinclair. I met Simon on the touchline as a football Dad, where our eldest sons play for Marple Athletic. 
He's brought a certain intellectual and urbane flair to our happy gaggle of Parents and Grandparents (PAGs), with his dog, his shooting stick, his Barbour coat, the Daily Telegraph and bemused observations about the progress of a game of  "Chavball". Watching a bunch of 11-year olds chase around a pitch in Hyde or Dukinfield is always brighter when interspersed with his views on Christian morality, fly fishing, Mad Men or tales from his time working for Ogilvy & Mather in Paris. We've since struck up a bit of a rapport beyond Saturday morning. He's spoken at our Business of Media event, turning up in board shorts, Dunlop Green Flash pumps and a checked shirt to present his vision for his new creative advertising agency Waggledance, where he's produced some cracking campaigns for WD40 and Pork Farms. We must have got through to him on the football, as he's also started doing match reports, some of which have even escaped the censor's red pen, like this one. But I'm privileged to spend a bit of time with Simon, he's a top bloke, and if you want to have a glimpse into his world, then check out his blog - Raving Adman.

This here Resign London campaign

A few years ago I heard Mark Radcliffe talk about the "journey through London" that many Northerners had to make to further a career in television and radio. I did it in my sector of the media too. I don't feel bitter about it, and it's not defensive to acknowledge that the capital city of the country and the most important cultural city in the Western world might just have some attraction.

OK. Are we clear? I also am a chippy Northerner. I want my children to have rich and prosperous lives without having to move away. I believe in the North. I support the move of large parts of the BBC to Salford. I wish there were more people working for national newspapers here. I wish advertising and design agencies here were given more chances to do their best work on great brands. I support those who do.

When I first saw the Resign London campaign on Twitter I thought "this sounds like a bit of a laugh" and posted something to that effect. It would be good if more creative Northerners could ply their trade back home, especially if it was part of a viable ecosystem of creative businesses. I remember an NWDA campaign called "It's Grim Down South" which tried to promote the North West at the expense of a crowded and grimy London. It didn't work did it?

But having seen the spoof press conference clip based on a child abduction plea, and the adverts for houses in Standish, the silly resignation letter and the rest of the news feeds on the website, I think it's all a bit embarrassing. Just as I don't want Manchester or Liverpool to pretend to be a bit like cool London, equally I don't want the reinforcing of dreadful old Northern stereotypes, like the parents in the clip.

This misguided though well intentioned campaign has, I feel, missed the mark. I can't pretend to know how a better one would look, which proves what a difficult concept it is to get right.

Go and see Inside Job

Go and see Inside Job if you get the chance. I've done a review on the work blog here. It's on at the wonderful Cornerhouse cinema in Manchester. Book here.

Mad Dog

I caught a little of Colonel Gaddafi barking at his people today. My thought wasn't that this is a mad man on his way out, but this was a mad man who has been in power for 40 years. The empires are indeed crumbling. Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Bahrain. Iran next. Here's praying for peace and justice.

What Philip Blond misses out

A while back I reviewed Philip Blond's book Red Tory (here) and concluded the missing link was a lack of appreciation of the contribution of enterprise and innovation. I've met a kindred spirit in the last few days - Malcolm Evans - a sociologist AND a Lancastrian to boot.

A flavour of his erudite analysis is here:

And, this, to my mind, points to the crux of the matter. Our political leaders (and future leaders), by and large, just don’t get the notion of production. Production for the Left has never recovered at all from Engel’s Salford-based research of Victorian mill conditions.
Production for the Right has never really been fully acceptable in certain circles under the very long snob shadow of land-based and multi-generational wealth. There’s still a suggestion, even today, amongst the professional and the professional political classes, of a sleight in the air to the self-made businessman who buys his own furniture, however expensive.

A link to the full monty is here.

Behind the scenes at the Rovers

When any organisation is in a period of change, everyone involved and everyone close to it craves a "return to normality". In the case of Blackburn Rovers, I don't think we are anywhere near that new stability.

The new owners set up a special purpose vehicle to buy the club's shares. This week I found that Venky's London have a mortgage registered against them, secured against property assets of the business. In December Barclays Bank agreed a funding line with Rovers, but this was secured against all income from Sky TV and Premier League commercial revenues. You have to make assumptions here, which tend to vary depending on whether your prejudices are for or against the Rao family.

I'm somewhere in the middle. Any business needs a bank. Cash flow is lumpy in football. The wages have to be paid every month, but the income isn't as stable, quarterly TV money and annual season ticket revenue. A bank would need a certain amount of security if they were to grant an overdraft. There have also been relatively short term demands such as payoffs for Sam Allardyce and Alan McDonald. A payoff too, I imagine, for John Williams. The new signings will all have cost money in signing on fees and there is no doubt the wage bill is now much higher, even if Jones and Santa Cruz are loans.

Talk of a marquee signing (and I really cringe at that dreadful phrase) seems to suggest there is more to come. But is there? And where does this money come from?

Venky's have never said where they got the cash to acquire Rovers. The PR version of the offer document was pretty woolly on their commitments and the undertakings given to the Walkers. They have also said the deal will give them exposure for their international business interests. Indeed, there is a Venky's advertising board at Ewood now. But for a business that turns over £100m and makes profits of £12m they are good for something, but they are not in the same financial power league as the owners of Manchester City and Chelsea. So, how much have they borrowed to do the deal?

They have also said the aim is to get an experienced chairman. I would guess they don't want anything of the sort. They probably want an experienced new chief executive, which is what John Williams originally joined Rovers as, and are in the process of a clean sweep through the senior management to accommodate one. I think in Tom Finn they have a good guy who slotted in well behind Williams, who seemed more comfortable in a front of house role. Finn is an experienced and well respected football administrator who is known well in the game. I would argue that it is vital he is retained. But equally, it was pretty clear from the business done in the transfer window that the chairman was peripheral. Business was conducted by Steve Kean, the owners and Jerome Anderson.

In these circumstances I would suggest the chairman's role is nothing more than a figurehead. Possibly even a bridge to the supporters and the local community, providing his or her business experience to ensure good corporate governance and, under normal circumstances, to bring an extra dimension to increase revenues and performance. I would also have thought it a good idea to get some more experienced Rovers fans onto the board. Here are a few: Roger Devlin, for example, the former chief executive of Ladbroke Hilton, or Ian Currie, a Rovers season ticket holder, a former director of Bolton Wanderers and a shrewd businessman. Then there's Wayne Wild of WEC Group and John Green of local accountants Pierce. I don't actually expect them to get the call. Maybe it won't matter anyway, but I still believe fervently that the leadership of Blackburn Rovers has to maintain at least a foot in the traditions of the community that surrounds it.

In defence of the Glazers

I don't have any great fondness for the Glazer family. I think they are milking Manchester United for all they can get. Anyway, I've written a piece about it, taking the opposite stance to the usual anti-Glazer rhetoric: that actually the Green and Gold brigade may be better with the (red) devil they know.

A link is here.

A memorial for my Grandfather and other fallen comrades

Amazing as it seems, there is no permanent memorial in this country to the Canadian Airmen and Women that fought with the allies during the Second World War. Their contribution was very special and they formed some of the elite units of the war in the air. All of this is close to my heart; my Grandfather Francis Edward O'Hare, my Mum's Dad, died aged just 24, shot down near Duisberg in Germany in April 1943. He was serving as a pilot officer with the Royal Canadian Airforce and based out of Gransden Lodge in Cambridgeshire.

Now RAF Stations Leeming and Linton on Ouse, once home to most of the Canadians, have set up a fundraising project to create a lasting national memorial and a lovely, lovely man called Michael Oliver, a businessman from Knutsford, has generously agreed to personally underwrite the project.

The memorial will be a monolith with granite information panels in English and French, topped by a stone maple leaf, and will be located at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, the UK’s year-round centre of remembrance.

Flight Lieutenant Alfie Hall of RAF Leeming – a Royal Air Force station in North Yorkshire which opened during the Second World War, said: “The Royal Canadian Air Force contributed more than 130,000 aircrew to the war effort– the fourth largest allied air force and over 10,000 lost their lives.

“The Arboretum already contains memorials to the Royal Australian Air Force and the Norwegian Navy, but a monument to the Canadian airmen is conspicuous by its absence.

“Fundraising for projects like these can be a long-drawn-out process, but the generous offer we have received from Michael Oliver will allow us to quickly rectify the absence of a fitting memorial.”

Michael Oliver said: “It is very important that we remember the people who fought alongside Great Britain during the Second World War and a memorial to the Royal CanadianAir Force at the Arboretum is long overdue.”

All of this is a massive coincidence. I've met Michael Oliver a few times and always been very taken with him. He's a funny and generous man with a fantastic business. I interviewed him last year, the link to that is here.

Spotland: the sun also rises - reviewed

Rochdale Football Club won promotion last season for the first time in Mark Hodkinson's lifetime of supporting them. Quite rightly he's written a book about it, Spotland, the sun also rises. Well, sort of. The journey through last season takes up about half the book, but to be fair, though he gets across the euphoria of Dale being lauded for good football, then sees it all nearly come apart at the end, he doesn't draw out one of those tedious memoirs full of match day stories and personal anecdotes. Instead he chucks in a collection of various pieces he's written for the Times over the years. I like these pieces, they're thoughtful and warm and I feel he's a kindred spirit on matters of fatherhood and football. 8/10.

Marple's gateway

I read in the local paper that there had been a protest against trees being cut down on Dan Bank, the road into Marple that is being worked on every night for 2 months.

My first thought was that people mustn't have read the information leaflets and were shocked, as I was, on seeing how stark Dan Bank looked following the felling. On re-reading the excellent leaflets and website, it is clear this is always what had been intended. Once new trees have been planted and the banking landscaped, the entrance to Marple will look good again. And at first I didn't share the paranoia and anger of those who have posted on the Marple website.

There's more on the Myers Tree Care site, here.

But there's a nagging doubt. The Dan Bank project has also made it clear that a large number of trees needed to be removed in order to make the uphill footpath wider and to build a new bank to the side of the new stone wall. Their detailed explanation is here. But they claim that following the meeting with residents and protesters, 65 trees and shrubs will be planted. How many were they planning on planting before this was raised? Anything else they want to mention?

Helping Uganda Schools

Here's a book that's full of love - it's a story of the 10 year journey of my great friend Peter Mount. He's set up a charity called HUGS - Helping Uganda Schools and the whole project has really made a big difference to a small part of Uganda. He's also inspired a number of benefactors, including Michael Oglesby. I would recommend this colourful and beautiful book to anyone, you can get one from Peter's website, or I can sort one out for you if you email me, it's a tenner well spent.

Liberal Democrats struggle with power

Political blogger Iain Dale lucidly summarises the problems of the Liberal Democrats here. Locally, Stockport Council is facing a steady stream of defections as elements within the ruling Lib Dem group drift away from having to impose cutbacks. I'm pleased none of the Marple councillors are defecting. But it raises the question, why commit to a political party if you aren't prepared to take power, locally or nationally?

The greatest fans in the world

Blackburn Rovers played Newcastle today, a team followed away by a band of noisy and self-consciously boisterous supporters. Every conversation I overheard as we weaved our way through their throng was about how many they were bringing, how many they took to their other games, while their taunts of the home fans were all about empty seats, we've got more fans than you etc etc.

What a boring, boorish and stupid bunch of cretins some of these fans are. I have no time for any of that rubbish. I could argue the toss about the demographics of a crowded North West, as opposed to a club with a large city region all to its self. But I can't be bothered.

The criteria of certain types of football fans - some idiot Rovers fans included - is that you only qualify as a proper football fan, a good fan, if you wear your replica shirt, have a tattoo, sing all through a game, stalk the streets loudly, drink a lot and, most importantly, to be a real fan you don't question the source of funds of your club or the morality of your players. Sing when you're winning. There's only one Joey Barton.

Slightly unrelated, but at every turn too the Premier League dominates. The players live in a different world to their supporters and yet demand more from them. More money, more encouragement, more stroking of the ego. More promises too of a "world class product" in the "best league in the world".

So, to get to the point. What of those who have a different motivation and appreciate football in a different league and with little prospect of Europe, or seeing World Cup winners? I did meet some of the greatest fans in the world today, they happened to be supporters of Southend United FC. They traveled from Essex to their game at Accrington only for it to be called off 90 minutes before kick off. They came to Ewood instead and witnessed a 0-0 draw. I have heard that Rovers only charged them £20 each. A nice touch, if true.

Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby - book review in a lift

After finishing Any Human Heart I was after something modern and funny. I have struggled with Nick Hornby lately, I must admit. After adoring Fever Pitch and Hi-Fidelity and his awesome column in the Independent in the 1990s, I never finished How to be Good, or Long Way Down. I will give them both another go, because in Juliet, Naked he once again proved he has absolutely nailed the over-educated disappointed Brit. It is every bit as wise and sharp about feckless, useless men as Hi-Fidelity. It's a simple enough plot centred on a couple in a northern seaside town (harshly portrayed) and HIS obsession with an American retired rock star. It was my book de jour when I saw Martin Amis and Ian McEwan last night and heard their slightly verbose and oh so clever observations on their friend Christopher Hitchens and on Vladimir Nabokov. I tell you what though, for a good ear - something Amis values as a key virtue of the modern novelist - then Hornby is a match for either.

And if you need reminding about how good that Indie column was, this story about Richard Harris getting chucked out of an Arsenal v Chelsea match is priceless.

PS I've done a list of my top 125 songs on an iPod playlist that meant a lot to me at various stages in my life, one track per artist. Self indulgent as this blog is, I'll keep it private, but the simple act of doing it was definitely inspired by the Great Scribe of Highbury.

The true heir to Blair

I never did round to reviewing the Tony Blair book. It was a quite astonishing tome. Obviously a great deal has been written about his anger and betrayal by Gordon Brown and how his heir screwed up the legacy and bottled the big decisions on public sector reform. But there is someone who gets off pretty lightly and got hardly any scrutiny: David Cameron.

Interviewed by Andrew Marr he even said he didn't want to make the Prime Minister's job any harder, as he knew what it was like. I was reminded of this observation when the Spectator ran a cover story The Cult of Blair that the inner circle of Cameron acolytes see themselves as the true heirs to Blair.

Cameron's wise words on multiculturalism yesterday could well have come from Blair, such as this, here.

Personally, I think this is very sensible and brave: "In the UK , some young men find it hard to identify with the traditional Islam practiced at home by their parents, whose customs can seem staid when transplanted to modern Western countries.  But these young men also find it hard to identify with Britain too, because we have allowed the weakening of our collective identity.  Under the doctrine of state multiculturalism, we have encouraged different cultures to live separate lives, apart from each other and apart from the mainstream.  We’ve failed to provide a vision of society to which they feel they want to belong.  We’ve even tolerated these segregated communities behaving in ways that run completely counter to our values."

There is a view, expressed in the Observer today that says he was wrong to say that on the day the EDL were marching in Luton. Rubbish. The whole reason a shoddy street movement like the EDL has gained traction is precisely because mainstream politics has ignored an issue at the heart of modern life. This won't embolden them, it will take the issue from them. That won't happen overnight, but it's long overdue.

A bit like London...

I do look enviously at the amount of political, philosophical and literary events in London. I see it as a challenge for an aspirational and cultually ambitious Manchester to do more and to offer more.

For that reason I have to be delighted that Martin Amis will be in conversation with Ian McEwan at the University tomorrow. Delighted too because I'm going along. It means I won't and can't quite stretch to seeing Dave Haslam in conversation with Frank Cottrell Boyce at the Royal Exchange on Tuesday.

And what am I doing about raising the level of debate and discourse? Well, there's this:

Debate: Inside Job & the financial crisisMon 21 Feb, 20:00, The Annexe
Cornerhouse, in association with North West Business Insider, presents a special post-screening discussion to coincide with the release of documentary Inside Job. Join us to debate the issues raised by the film about the recent financial crisis and its ongoing consequences. Michael Taylor, editor of North West Business Insider co-chairs this debate with Sarah Perks from Cornerhouse, invited guests are Michael Luger (Director of Manchester Business School), John Ashcroft (CEO of pro.manchester) and Steve Connor (Co-founder and CEO of Creative Concern).

You can book here.

So, yes, probably not really a bit like London, but like London buses, you wait for ages, then a few come at once.

Any Human Heart - book review in a lift

Enough differences to the epic 4-part Channel 4 series to make the book worthwhile, this sprawling tale of the life of Logan Mountstuart is a terrific exposition of the 20th century. The style of the book is as  a journal of a writer. In retrospect, I think maybe I should have read it before watching the series. It is profound, powerful and incredibly moving. The passages I imagine will stay with me are on his melancholy reflections of a life of regrets and tragedies. 8/10.

There's only one John Williams

I'm going to add to the wave of eulogies to departed Blackburn Rovers chairman John Williams.

I thought something was up when he wasn't in his normal seat at the Spurs game. When I saw him at the Liverpool game I asked how he was and said: "You know?" and swivelled his hand to indicate that he wasn't happy.

I got to know him over the last ten years. He was accessible, open and very honest. And he could talk and talk and talk like no-one I'd ever met.

I got to know him after I'd written a few things about the running of the club that were less than complimentary - like 99 questions for the sleazy end of the football business - I'd also asked why the chief executive of a business turning over £35m needed to be paid the thick end of £200K. We were critical of the hospitality offering back in 2000. We also wondered why he'd employed his son in the marketing department. Unlike other bosses of businesses we'd upset he called me in and confronted me. I have to respect him for that.

Picking up on the fact I was a Rovers fan he invited me to a game as his guest and told me lots of stories from inside the camp. Our semi-regular meet-ups, a coffee and a chat, could last three hours. So, I mention these encounters because I take as I find. I also judge his performance as chief executive and chairman from a fan's perspective. I think he is probably fond of the sound of his own voice, like a lot of people in football, but he also understands the people of Blackburn and the surrounding area. The pricing plan was his idea. He knew the importance of balancing the budget, securing Jack's legacy and the financial probity of the club.

He stepped up as chairman, taking over from Bob Coar. The circumstances of this have never been made public, but I understand it was all down to the way Tony Parkes was let go by Mark Hughes. Jack Walker's daughter Linda Matthewman was outraged at this, really angry. Shortly after Bob was demoted to director, John was made executive chairman.

Like the rest of the board, John Williams always worked the room in the suites, often popped into the shop before a game - I bet not many football executives do that. But the last few months must have been crazy times. The guys I know at Crown Paints were a bit miffed that he - anyone - didn't call to talk through the new ownership. Especially as Venky's were making noises that they'd have their names on the shirts - it would have been good form to mention this to the incumbent. Words were said and to be fair, all seemed to be back on an even keel at the Liverpool game when John had a good chat with Crown boss Brian Davidson.

Interesting timing then, that Crown should announce on the day that John Williams is stepping down that they'll be ending the sponsorship. This is what the statement said: “Sponsoring the Blackburn Rovers’ shirts over the last three years has been a partnership we have really valued and been proud of. It has therefore been a very difficult for us to decide not to renew the contract when it comes to an end in May. 

"We have really valued the excellent working relationship we have built up with Chairman, John Williams, Tom Finn and Simon Williams, and wish to thank them all for this opportunity.  We are disappointed to hear the news of John’s departure from the club.  He was an incredibly respected Chairman and admired by so many people, both on a local and national level. 

“In line with our growth strategy, we are in the process of researching other opportunities to consider in the future.”

So, amidst this period of change, more change. A people's chairman, gone. A local employer as a sponsor, gone. Compared to winning games and qualifying for Europe and making big signings this might not matter, but in the words of one of my favourite songs: "Don't it always seem to go, That you don't know what you've got, Till it's gone."

Welcome to football, Mrs Rao

So, Mrs Rao, the owner of Venky's and Blackburn Rovers will have enjoyed her first football match tonight. Well, I say enjoyed, maybe she expected Rovers to win after spending all that money in the transfer window. But Spurs are a decent side who hold the ball well in midfield and defend very well. Their keeper was on fine form too. I'm sure Jerome Anderson and Steve Kean explained all of this to her. I was disappointed to lose, but on balance think there was enough to take from the game to feel the season is still going to be good.

But I feel embarrassed to be part of a crowd that booed Keith Andrews before a ball had even been kicked. Shameful. OK, he was signed by a discredited manager and is pretty crap, but what a nasty, negative and stupid thing it is to boo one of your own players. What must Mrs Rao be thinking.

And another thing? Where was Rovers chairman John Williams? Not in his usual seat, that's for sure.

Lists and commandments

Here are some very thoughtful lists and commandments.

First, here's former Guardian Science Editor Tim Radford on 25 commandments of journalism. This is inspiring.

Then here's Tolstoy, on 10 pointers to a happy life, here.

And all week I've been thinking about the 8 Beatitudes, here.

The Marple Lockdown

Every night from 7pm Marple is effectively closed to the outside world. The authorities have imposed a curfew on our community and have blockaded the one road in and out. There are rumours of emergency vehicles on stand-by. Flashing lights and strange signs have appeared. There are concerns that the government is engaged in an experiment in mind control, to manipulate the patience of a whole town in readiness for the imposition of a police state.

Obviously this is just me being fanciful. The only true statement in the above paragraph is that the main road, Dan Bank, is closed at night for a while. The council have set up an exceptionally good public information service and website.

There's also a terrific blog, here, about the tunnels under Marple and the existence of a bunker. Here are the tunnels on a map. Fascinating stuff.

Hope for the Arab world

A thought keeps coming back to me as the people of Cairo and Tunis take to the streets. All of this was part of a vision for the Middle East back in 2001, post 911. There was a theory that the people of Iraq would welcome to invading US troops with open arms. It was clearly dreadfully, tragically wrong. But the resistance, the alternative to corrupt dictatorship was seen as Islamist butchery. I hope with all my heart that the alternative now is looking clearer for all the people of the Arab world.

Anyway, here's an interview with Paul Wolfowitz from the Spectator.

From Belfast with love - ten thoughts

I've been meaning to sit down and blog a few thoughts about Belfast these last few days. I've been over twice recently and have been very impressed. Then, today, there was the news that an explosive device was left in Antrim Road, to the north of the city centre, planted by dissident Republicans. Anyway, here are ten thoughts that have sprung to mind about a city that deserves your attention. I'm slightly ashamed that I haven't been before and amazed how few people have. Do something about that and go there soon.

Don't look back in anger - This depressing return to the past will have saddened the hearts of everyone I spoke to in Belfast, who have all been incredibly candid about the past. But to a man and a woman the message was consistent. That was the past, we have moved on. Northern Ireland needs to move on. And that even those who are politically engaged are lagging behind business people, creative people and a new professional class that sees bigger issues in the world than the colour of the kerbstones. I was also struck by such a passion and a decency about everyone. It sounds patronising coming from a chippy Northern Englishman but I have never felt as welcomed in a new city as I have in Belfast.

Troubles tourism - here's a picture of me on the Falls Road alongside some Republican murals. We also took a tour along the peace line and through the Unionist Shankill area too. This is a must. It has to be seen to be believed, it also drives home the appetite for normality, and the pride that comes from these conflicting and often violent traditions. The murals, which always fascinated me have become more romantic and less sinister, but they've certainly put a marker down for the permanence of their street culture.

The regeneration game - for urban planners Belfast is a work in progress. Example, the Titanic Quarter - one of 5 (figure that one out) - is a massively ambitious project that looks almost Arabian or Chinese in its ambition. It's a £25bn 25 year plan that seeks to extend the city through its docks. Economic development is a long and complex process. We're at a poor spot in a cycle at the moment, but Belfast has challenges in a UK setting, never mind a global context. The state dominates the economy. That is unsustainable in Liverpool, Manchester or Newcastle. Belfast is no different.

The Titanic - "She was fine when she left here" is the boast. Belfast is gearing up to open Titanic Belfast, a stunning visitor attraction that marks the city's contribution to shipbuilding and the centenary of the maiden voyage.

A good place for an elegant weekend away with Rachel? I tell you what, I've been to some well turned out hotels with a good bar, a nice service culture and some fine food, but I'd hazard that the Merchant is without equal in a provincial British city. Just a theory. They've spent £16.5m on it, or so it says here. It shows. We had an amazing lunch and the ambience of a Friday afternoon tea was just lovely.

Good place for a lad's trip? Well, the Guinness is good. They Belfast Visitor Bureau have picked the worst Oasis album to steal a title - Be Here Now. But it looks brilliant for a weekend away. We had a quick one in the Duke of York in the Cathedral Quarter, but there are loads of character pubs. Here's a pic of the Red Hand Guinness sign at that pub. There are also now flights to the Belfast George Best City Airport direct from Manchester with both FlyBe and BMI Baby. On balance I prefer BMI Baby's bigger planes, but both offer bargains.

Breakfast - you can and should judge a place by the quality of the breakfasts. I wasn't disappointed by my first genuine Ulster Fry at the legendary Oscar's but I left my two remaining pieces of fried soda bread. On Friday's St George's Market has local food produce and plants. That's a good spot for the next trip, I reckon.

Clobber - I happened upon a very smart clothes shop. The Bureau. Like Oi Polloi, but smarter. More like Paul Smith on Floral Street in London. Quirky.

Churches - I do like to visit a church in a city centre, especially in the middle of a frantic day. Recommended  was the beautifully restored Saint Malachy's in Alfred Street. It has an understated spleandour, but it has also had an awful lot of money spent on it.

Outcomes - Back in my student days I studied the sociological aspects to the conflict in the 1980s, tending towards a very bleak view of life as articulated by Professor Steve Bruce of Aberdeen University in his study of Ian Paisley and Unionism. "This is not a problem. Problems have solutions. This is a conflict, conflicts only have outcomes." I rather think the outcome has been for the better, certainly happier than any of us envisaged back then.

A Question of Sport

I'm a sucker for a sports quiz. Or, a football teaser at least. There's this at the moment: An A-Z of highest goalscorers in the Premier League (since 1992). One for each letter. Obviously C is for Cole and S is for Shearer. When I've worked it out I'll post. But if you have, let me know. Struggling with R.

Hoofball RIP

Blackburn Rovers beat West Brom today. Two months ago the same result would have been brute force over elegance. Big Sam over Cool Hand Roberto. Today it was an enterprising footballing side playing with daring and verve at home, against a visiting side who shipped two goals based on positive attacking play.

Apart from the goals, the happiest moments for me were the determined efforts to look for another way of getting the ball forward than a long lump. Paul Robinson playing a ball wide to a defender, for example. Even Pedersen was prepared to try a short throw instead of a predictable long one.

The first Rovers team I followed was all about Noel Brotherston and Dave Wagstaffe on the wings, with Kevin Hird and John Bailey overlapping as full backs. So it was good to see Hoilett and Olsson running at defenders with such confidence today. They were immense. And new signing Jermaine Jones really patrolled the midfield, giving Dunny room to roam like a rampaging Tony Parkes. All in all, a terrific performance.

The point of the Lib Dems

I haven't bought into the tide of anger over the "betrayal" of the Liberal Democrats. Or their inevitable demise, as predicted by Nick Cohen in the Spectator this week. On the contrary, I think, on the whole, they have embraced the responsibilities of government rather well. In time, that may be appreciated by the electorate.

The easiest part of politics is the gesturing, the spin and the sloganeering. It's also the cheapest. The most difficult part of politics is governing. My biggest problem with the third party is they could always appear to be all things to all people. Making silly pledges that sought to, for example, increase tax by 1p to spend on education, to call the Iraq War "an illegal war" and to, er, vote against tuition fees.

I've actually got more respect for those who backed such an unpopular measure than those who - like Charles Kennedy and Tim Farron - take delight in standing against it. Nick Clegg, Vince Cable, Danny Alexander and our MP Andrew Stunell have stood up to their responsibilities to govern. They have taken a collective decision to face up to the need to reduce the deficit, to reduce the size of the state, the cost of the state, and what the country can afford. It's not a comfortable reality to confront, less to make choices about what to do, but they have.

The last election was the worst one in a generation to win. An era that needs to implement cuts and public sector reforms sees many in Labour very safely in their comfort zone, saying anything that springs to mind about the government because they can do so easily without having any kind of responsibility.

But but back to the LibDems. Simon Beard, here, argues that there is a point to the Liberal Democrats: Free trade, civil liberty and electoral reform. Issues he says that are popular, but ... "Instead they are far more interested in the wealth of services provided by the state, how they are run and how they will be paid for. In these areas the Lib Dems are far less distinctive."

At the moment, that's the issue. In four years time, it may not be. That's where liberalism can come to its fore. The biggest danger for the Lib Dems at the moment isn't how they are in government, but how they deal with the politics of it all.

Thumbs up for the Marple Wine Club

I was giddy beyond words on Friday at buying my first mixed case from the Marple Wine Club. It was also delivered by John Hulme, the bloke that runs it.  The good news was, as we had pals round on Saturday, we could try a few. Here's the verdict.

Domaine Bech Merlot 2008 (Vins dePays du Gard)  3 for £15. John described it as gorgeous, soft, rich wine with concentrated berry fruit and dark chocolate finish. Packed full of character. Agree. Absolute bargain.

Sonetti Pinot Grigio 2008 (Venezia, Italy) £4.55 or £13 for 3. This was described as light, fresh, clean tasting dryish white. "Perfect for just glugging." In other words, it's pretty bog standard. The sort of wine you'd get in a pub that doesn't really do wine. But, you get what you pay for.

We splashed out on a few others like a Mud House Pinot Noir 2008 (Marlborough, New Zealand), another spectacularly fruity and slightly dark wine.

The maverick choice was the Hochar Pere et Fils 2003 (Lebanon)  at  £9.95  Like other Chateau Musar wines it's a slightly thinner than the full bodied reds we tend to go for. It even has that slight sherry taste. Certainly very unusual and one for an occasion to savour.

The best by far, was the Squinzano Rosso 2008 (Italy) an absolute bargain at £7.65, full of body and really aromatic. Terrific.

Overall, I think this is a wonderful idea. We'll be back for more.

Tide of opinion turning for Venky's

I base this on a gut feeling, nothing more, and a fair few comments and sentiments expressed by Blackburn Rovers fans on the web and on social media settings. But I think the tide is turning in Venky's favour.

The manager is doing OK. Dan Clough's excellent blog Rovers Return reflects this theme with a good analytical post following the defeat at Chelsea yesterday. Link is here. Dan praises the attacking style and the positivity of 4-4-2. He's spot on about Nicola Kalinic being better attacking than being a lone striker. The only player at Rovers who can do that is Jason Roberts, which rather limits the options if that is the sole style of play.

There's this piece in the Mail on Sunday about Venky's. It's a positive feature that puts their point of view. It claims they are hugely wealthy and ambitious.

But the issue that gives me the most concern is the link with SEM/Kentaro. It's clear they are in control. They are in on two sides of transfer deals. It may suit them to have a club dominated by their clients, and it may suit them that this is a roaring success. But what if it doesn't turn out that way? Then what? And what if Venky's fall out with SEM?

I'm still convinced that Venky's don't really know what they're doing. It may be re-assuring to some fans that they have massive wealth, and their bling somehow validates this, but beyond the sincere pleas that they are eager to make Rovers a success, this deal is about what Rovers can do for Venky's, not the other way round. Longer term, this deal is about opening fast food chicken outlets. We're pretty helpless and stuck in the middle, we just have to hang on to the hope that they consider doing well in the Premier League to be within their gift and a price worth paying to market sell some more chicken.

Calm down, calm down

The New York Times has suggested that Manchester is on its list of 40 places to visit. The actual write up was pretty pants though: suggesting a cafe in Fallowfield, the Deaf Institute and the usual wax museum musical mystery tour that provoked this.

Stephen Bayley has written a lovely piece in the Daily Telegraph, here. He says of the Northern Quarter, that it "makes the Sohos of London and New York appear as sleepy as Bath". I think that's overdoing it a bit, to be fair.