Fightin’ Brian McFadden is back! These lyrics from his new single really take the cake, a worthy follow-up to “Real To Me” I’m sure you’ll agree:
There’s a world inside and a world out there
With that on tv you jus[…]

Decided on Sunday to stop drinking for a couple of weeks. I don’t drink at home much so it’s only in the pub that temptation strikes. Last night was the first test. Arrived, ordered a lime and soda, sat sipping it – this isn’t[…]

King Rat by China Mieville
I’ve enthused wildly over his second and third novels (Perdido Street Station and The Scar) here, and finally got around to his first. The others are set in SF-fantasy worlds, while this one is in London, but hardly t[…]

LOVE OF CHOCOLATE
Correct me if I’m wrong, but aren’t all the candies on sale now that the holiday has passed? Score! February 15th should be the real day of celebration.[…]

THE MOUNTAIN GOATS
“Dilaudid”
I’m not sure what it means. That said, you can hear this if you go over here for the next week or so and wait for the fifth song. It’s a lovely little thing because while it has that quick, shar[…]

I have always enjoyed sucking bones
Browsing for dinner components the other week in the supermarket, I examined with great interest a couple of chunky pieces of oxtail. Now these haven’t made any significant appearance for a while, what with […]

I am a pet lover myself and not a heartless man, but honestly, where is the dog? Where?![…]

JW LEES MOONRAKER, 7.5%
It’s theer mon, rake it eawt ~
This pint kills fascists (unsure if it can shut up mayors of London).[…]

What I Did In The Holidays
Well, I’ve now held a copy in my hand so I’m finally prepared to believe it really exists. Not sure when the official publication date is (tomorrow according to the publisher, “not yet” according to[…]

“sooner is better than later”
when i proposed joan of arc: the messenger for the FT Top 100 i had actually only seen the first half, and wouldn’t have wanted to expand much except to say how peerlessly* FAB this half is: OK now i&#[…]