Tony Hatfield's Retired Ramblings

Symptoms of Old Age ?

On Monday, I put in my monthly appearance at South Shields County Court, where, since I retired, I have worked sporadically for the local Citizen’s Advice Bureau. The court finished at about midday, and after packing my traps I returned... Read more →

Get Carter!

A couple of weeks ago, the Carter Review published its first report (pdf) here A day after that I met with some of my former colleagues at one of our regular evening get-togethers. I was surprised how few of the... Read more →

Wrong Target?

Owen here and Talk Politics here are getting all lathered up by Henry VIII clause in the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill . Bearing in mind the illiberal legislation passed in the last few years, the suspicion is entirely understandable.... Read more →

CineFesta

I mentioned Il Gattopardo-The Leopard- here before when the British Film Institute’s DVD was released last September. It is a wonderfully restored version of Visconti’s masterpiece. On Sunday as part of its CineFesta season, The Tyneside Cinema showed the same... Read more →

Trust Schools and the Human Rights Act.

I am beginning to wonder whether New Labour is regretting their 1997 manifesto committment to incorporate the European Convention of Human Rights into our domestic law. Over the past few years they have been in the forefront of asking the... Read more →

Ce n'est pas un dessin?

This, I think, puts some common sense in front of the cowardly media who are caving in before a medieval religion. It's from Chappatte in Le Temps "I did not draw him" "Muhammad with a giant Schnozz" Read more →