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TV Nostalgia: The Adventure Game

(It seems like I've been blogging mostly politics these past few weeks. Here's a bit of whimsy... the first in a possibly new series of nostalgia telly posts). The Adventure Game lurks dimly in my memory and sometimes I worry that I’m the only who can recall it. I think it was on at about 6pm, ... Read more »

In Praise of British Citizenship Ceremonies

Patriotism, let alone nationalism, is not that British. We seem coy about celebrating our nationality and it's rather a shame. Until recently the Union Flag was seldom flown on public buildings and, unlike in other parts of the Commonwealth where the Queen's portrait is often seen or the States ... Read more »

Ada Lovelace Day: Meg Whitman

Meg Whitman was the CEO and President of eBay from 1998 to 2008 and is now pursuing a bid for the Governorship of California. She led one of the biggest technology-based companies in the world, taking it from start-up to global dominance. In many ways she was the most powerful woman in Silicon ... Read more »

The Great Escape Online Ticket Rip-off!

Just went to bag my ticket online for the Great Escape festival in Brighton in May. It was great fun last year and the 2009 line-up is shaping up nicely. But I was astonished by the additional charges being applied to fans buying tickets online. £9.95 in postage and processing fees. It's ... Read more »

Little Hopes for the Eleventh Doctor

The arrival of a new Doctor is always a bit harrowing. I can remember each regeneration since Tom Baker turned into Peter Davison (admittedly dimly) and as a result can remember occasions when the next Doctor wasn't equal or better to his predecessor. But Matt Smith seems like an excellent choice ... Read more »

2008: My Top Five Favourite Songs

Last year I started what I suspect will become a bit of a tradition. I named my 5 favourite new songs of 2007. I was loose in my definition of new. This year, 'new' means new: all but one of the songs was published in 2008. So here you go: my top five new songs of 2008. Vampire Weekend: Oxford ... Read more »

Wilsondan.co.uk: That Was The Year That Was

I'm posting this graph for illustrative purposes only (I've stripped off numbers and dates). It's my blog traffic for the year 2008. What do you notice? The peak is my post on Max Gogarty, which really caused a storm back in March. It was great to be part of that conversation. And then ... Read more »

Brighton: I like it here

A fellow Brightonian read my previous post on Brighton and asked me why I like the old place, in a bit a more detail. We had a long conversation that ranged from the general to the specific and the arcane to the absurd. So, why do I like it in Brighton? Here are some incomplete and random thoughts ... Read more »

3 things that have been on my to do list for more than a year

I had to rummage through an old notebook earlier and found an old to do list. Most of it had been completed, but some line items from a year ago are on my current to do list. Sort out iPod/iTunes This I haven't done. I'm constantly annoyed by the way that music is catalogued in iTunes and then ... Read more »

Bollocks arguments that just don’t wash.

If you rattle around the web long enough, or frankly even just your local boozer, you get involved in a few discussions here and there. Whilst there is an awful lot of good stuff out there, often discussions are low quality and arguments pathetic. I love reason based argument with examples and ... Read more »

Browsing the Booth Museum

On a cold saturday after Christmas, a little excursion is in order. Where better than the Booth Museum of Natural History in Brighton? Thankfully very little has changed since I used to visit frequently as a child. Founded by Edward Thomas Booth in the 19th century, it was very much a ... Read more »

Ginger beer? How very dare you!

I made some tasty ginger beer the other week and I've been totally thrilled with the results. All you need is some sugar, ginger, water, yeast, lemons, tartaric acid and a few bits of equipment. It was great to use the demi-john gathering dust in the cupboard for once. Anyway, I've posted the ... Read more »

The Last.FM geeky white boy hit parade

When I was at dConstruct earlier this year (and as I write this I realise that I never published the post I wrote in my papery notebook, which is probably just as well as I wasn't entirely positive), I was struck by how white it was: there were very few black, asian or 'other' (as those crass ... Read more »

I’m gonna spend my Christmas with a Dalek

Happy Christmas everyone. This is my favourite Christmas ... Read more »