Universities are success stories. They educate large numbers of young people – participation in higher education has risen consistently in the UK and globally. They undertake research which has produced striking advances in medicine, sciences, arts, social sciences and humanities. Universities fuel the knowledge economy. They create value for cities and communities. And so on. …
Perhaps all photographs are – or were, when there were fewer of them – poignant. Photographs taken just before the First World War are especially touching: people captured, in grainy monochrome going about their daily lives, enjoying themselves, on the way to somewhere, all of them with not a clue about what was to come. …
About thirty years ago, I picked up a book in a second-hand shop which I’ve gone back to time after time. It’s called Pandaemonium – which was, of course, Milton’s invented name for Satan’s palace in Paradise Lost. It’s by Humphrey Jennings, a pioneering documentary filmmaker who died in 1950 at the early age of…
Even thirty years on, Yes, Minister captures something both funny and profound about government. If the stereotypical civil servant Sir Humphrey Appleby really wanted to warn his hapless minister Jim Hacker off a course of action, he would simply tell him ‘that’s very brave, minister’. Sometime over the weekend during which I write this, or…
There is a rhythm to the year which is recognisable, sometimes reassuring – we all feel good about the familiar – and sometimes mildly irritating – time cannot fly by that fast, surely. So the Easter eggs appear in the shops as the Christmas decorations are put away – squeezing the Valentine’s cards in between…
Years ago, the New Statesman used to run weekly literary competitions. One of the best was the competition to write new proverbs – and a collection of these was published under the wonderful title provided by one of the winning entries, ‘Never Rub Bottoms with a Porcupine’. The anthology included such classics as ‘it’s an…
As the decorations were being put away for another year, one of my daughters sent me this link, with a note saying ‘you can use this for your next blog’. Since we are just coming out of the season for giving and receiving, I’m happy to take up her suggestion. But the BBC story on the…
It’s that time of year again. Decorations out of the loft, presents to wrap, family gatherings to prepare for. And so, with apologies, here is a fairly obvious variation on an old favourite which simply reminds everyone of the fabulous people who do such great things across the University. On the first day of Christmas…
Graduation is over for another year: we have just completed two weeks of graduation ceremonies with all the aplomb that goes with them. The gowns, like Christmas decorations after Twelfth Night, are put away for another year. The graduation teams are able to take a breather – although a fair number were in evidence at…
There are two young fish swimming along, and they happen to meet an older fish swimming the other way, who nods at them and says, “Morning, boys, how’s the water?” And the two young fish swim on for a bit, and then eventually one of them looks over at the other and goes, “What the…