The Writer's Life : A Simple Reason Why Books and Reading Are Important

 

 

Two stories about books: One involves war, the other, Dolly Parton.

Last week I came across a news article about books that was front-page news on the BBC website. 

It was about the publishing industry in war-torn Ukraine, but not for good reasons.

For anyone who is a book-lover and reader, here’s the bit you would rather not read. Russia has been targeting the book publishing industry and books as part of its war on Ukraine.

Here’s the BBC headline:

Russian strikes destroy 12 million books ahead of Ukraine’s first week back at school.

In recent weeks 35 publishing facilities were hit. It’s part of a concerted effort by the Russians to attack cultural targets in Ukraine. That includes book publishing, museums, art galleries, film studios, libraries, and opera houses. I suspect that the attacks probably violate international law, but since when has that mattered to an aggressor?

The fact is, when it comes to war and extreme politics, the written word and books are always a target. 

Then I came across another news story about books — one that tells us about the importance of books and reading in our lives. A positive story that takes us away from the nastiness of those who choose destruction and aggression.

Did You Know… Life in 1960s/70s Britain: The Hot Summer of 1976 - The Long Heatwave That No One Forgot

 

It’s the summer of 2026, and officially, the UK has seen five heatwaves this year, the latest one coming to an end last weekend as temperatures dropped to mid-twenties.

This year, the grass in many areas has turned brown and then yellow. We have seen wildfires and drought conditions. Health warnings about heat exhaustion are front-page news. The hottest day of the year so far was recorded at Kew Gardens in London, with temperatures reaching 38.1C.

We have had hot summers before, but hot, relentless heatwaves are rare.

1976 was one of those long, hot unforgettable summers.

It was fifty years ago, and back then we didn’t have weather apps or amber heat warnings. There was no rolling television coverage. Unlike today’s forecasts, there were no smartphone alerts warning us to drink more water or stay indoors. Like now, we knew it was hot, but being a young teenager, the sun was what we wanted.

Life in 1960s/70s Britain: The Comfort Foods That Kept Us Going - Sugar Sandwiches

In the 1960s and 70s, when jam wasn’t available, children would often turn to sugar, in the form of sugar sandwiches. It was the meal that kept children happy and dentists busy. A sweet treat made with two slices of white bread. Every sandwich seemed to be made with white bread back then. They were cheerfully cheap and satisfied the sweet tooth of the nation.

The sugar sandwich delivered empty calories while giving an energy rush that stopped hunger in its tracks. Many adults who grew up in the 1960s and 1970s may still smile at the memory, although I doubt most wouldn’t dream of eating one today.

It was a snack designed for comfort and convenience.

And just like a jam sandwich, they were so easy to make. As a boy, even I could make them. I’d return home from school at lunchtime, hungry for a sandwich and with a plan in mind as to what I wanted.

“What are we having to eat?” I would ask my mother.

“There’s cheese, spam, some corned beef left …”

“Do we have any jam?” I asked, ignoring all the more nutritious options on offer.

“Jam? Not until I go to the shops.”

“No jam? I wouldn't mind a sugar sandwich. I can make it.” I said with hope.

“Sugar sandwich? I suppose so, but don’t blame me if you get a toothache.”

Wise advice often ignored.

Did You Know… Life in 1980s Britain: Council Housing in Transition: Tenants as Owners and the End of Affordable Housing

 

 

For much of the mid-to late 20th century, council housing was to become a cornerstone of British life. That all changed after the election of Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government in 1979. In 1980, they introduced a policy that would see one of the most significant housing reforms in modern British history. 

From the start, it was controversial. Council tenants were given the legal right to purchase the homes they were living in. The policy was called “Right to Buy”. And to encourage tenants to take part, they were often given a substantial discount to market price to do so. 

Traditionally, council housing was there to provide cheap, affordable housing to rent, not to buy. It was a policy grounded in affordability, and a recognition that a basic level of decent quality housing should not be left to the market to decide on the basis of what you could afford. That was about to change.

But first, how did we get there, and why?

The Post-War Council House Boom

After the Second World War, Britain needed new housing and lots of it. Housing stock that had been damaged and destroyed by the Luftwaffe needed to be replaced. There was also a need to replace the rundown, ageing, privately owned housing stock that was no longer fit for purpose.

Not for the first time, Britain had a housing crisis. The same call to build homes fit for heroes had gone out after the First World War. For the most part it failed to deliver. Britain’s housing stock for the masses was poor, but in 1945 a Labour government committed itself to building decent-quality, affordable housing to rent. 

They were called council houses.

From the end of the war, up to 1981, over five million council properties were built in Britain. By the start of the 1980s around 1 in 3 households lived in social homes. They provided secure, affordable homes, and for many, renting from the local council became the norm, something that was desirable. It offered stability, community, and a sense of belonging that stretched across generations.

But in the 1980s, that changed.

It was something that would reshape not only how people lived but also what they thought about homeownership, wealth, and society itself.

A Radical New Idea — The Right to Buy

In housing, there was a shift to the ideology that the market knows best. 

The Writer's Life: The Hospital Clock

 

One thing about getting older is that you spend more time at the local doctors surgery or, occasionally, a hospital visit. Even if you’re fit and healthy, you can end up needing a check-up now and then. And this is the second time this year I’ve found myself at a local hospital — nothing serious, but I still needed to go in for tests.

I have written before that writers tend to look at the world differently; everything is potentially a story. 

That was the case on this visit as well.

My appointment was for two thirty in the afternoon, the letter saying that I should allow for two hours. I arrived at the hospital with thirty minutes to spare. I made my way to the department and was surprised to see that the reception was empty. The only person there was seated at the reception desk working away on a computer.

I thought, ‘Lucky me, no one is waiting; I should be in and out in no time.’ I handed in my letter to register that I had arrived. Unfortunately, I soon found out that I was not so lucky after all, as all appointments for that day were to be seen on the first floor.

“Go out this door, turn left and up the stairs. The door directly opposite is where you need to go.” Said the receptionist.

Life in 1960s/70s Britain: The Comfort Foods That Kept Us Going - Spam: The Meat That Refused to Disappear

 

Love it or hate it, Spam, canned pork and ham, has become one of Britain’s most recognisable foods. At least there was a time when it was recognisable. Today when Spam gets a mention, it is often more to do with spam emails or online scammers than food.

Introduced in the 1930s, it gained enormous popularity during rationing in wartime because it was readily and widely available. By the 1970s it remained a cupboard staple in many homes. That was certainly the case in my home. 

And it was cheap, around fifteen to twenty pence a can. 

Is it still popular? I must admit, I haven’t eaten it in years. In fact, I wondered if it was still available. You don’t hear spam mentioned much these days as a desirable meal or part of the weekly shop. And I don’t remember seeing it on the shelves at the supermarket.

So, I had to check. 

Of course, it is available, and it still comes in a tin can. An odd-shaped tin can. It was also a can that used to come with, if memory serves me, its own little key that you would use to wind the lid off (or maybe that was corned beef in a can?). That could be tricky if you got it wrong.

There was then the challenge of getting the meat out of the tin. Often, it didn’t move, and I would end up slapping the bottom of the tin. There was an art to getting it right that my mother seemed to know.

Now Available - The Wisdom of The Garden: Life lessons From Roots to Meaning

 

What can a garden teach us about life?

The Wisdom of the Garden offers a series of personal insights and reflections. Each chapter is a story from the author’s life, a memory of what was and what might be. It is not a how-to manual or about giving instructions but a book of our relationship with the garden.

Themes emerge, of patience and responsibility. The garden becomes a place where effort meets uncertainty and where the outcome can surprise. Along the way, the author learns that gardening shows lessons we often miss in today’s busy world.

Tales From The Simulation: Part Six - The Mandela Effect, James Bond, Moonraker and Dolly's Braces

 

I saved the best one for last.

Let’s recap.

What is simulation theory?

Philosopher Nick Bostrom proposed that advanced civilisations might one day create simulations that are no different from reality. If countless simulated worlds exist, statistically, we might inhabit one ourselves. And, if our universe were a vast computer simulation, any update, patch, or correction might leave a trace of what existed before behind.

This might explain something called the Mandela Effect.

What Is the Mandela Effect?

It describes a memory where large groups of people remember an event or detail from their life differently from how it actually happened and/or exists now. It has been explained as a form of false memory, but some believe that these shared memories hint at something stranger.

Furthermore, it might be evidence that reality itself has been changed.

Fiona Broome, a paranormal researcher called it the‘Mandela Effect’ after she discovered that many people, including herself, had incorrectly remembered Nelson Mandela dying in prison during the 1980s. In reality, Mandela was released in 1990 and became president of South Africa. He died in 2013. At least, that is what most people, including myself, remember. When I first read about the “Mandela Effect”, I assumed it was a false memory.

One possibility was that people were remembering the death of the famous anti-apartheid activist, Steve Biko. He was murdered in police custody in 1977, and his death was reported worldwide. The musician Peter Gabriel even wrote a song about it, which became a worldwide hit in 1980.

Since then, countless examples of the Mandela Effect have emerged, with many people insisting they remember details that simply don’t match reality.

The Writer's Life: Monday Morning Trivia - What's in a Word? Ageing or Aging?

 

Ageing or aging — that is the question.

Grammar — does it matter? 

The Writer's Life: Monday Morning Trivia - The Day I Became a Millionaire

 

In theory, and in fact, I was once a millionaire, just not in a way that was life-changing or meaningful. Let me tell you how I reached that status, because everyone can do it.

Many years ago, I collected coins and banknotes from around the world. Old and new ones. I was never a serious collector, but I did like the design, colour, and numbers on them. Some can even be valuable to a collector, but like stamp collecting, most are not worth much, if anything at all.

When I was a boy, I would find them at rummage sales. While they have long gone out of fashion, rummage sales were great places to find a bargain. Any old coins and banknotes I found would be tucked away in an old Quality Street tin box. I’d dream that one day in the future they might be worth more than the pennies I paid for them.

Tales From The Simulation: Part Five - There's Always the Sun

 

My latest encounter with the 'is the world a simulation' happened a few days ago. 

Like previous stories in this series, it was one of those coincidences where chance and randomness seem unlikely. The odds of it happening would be so high that most high street bookmakers would be happy to take a bet on it. For them, it would be money in the bank.

For me, it’s a good story, so here goes.

I had been writing about the summer of 1976, a time of record temperatures (until this year) in Britain. I was in search of a title, something that had a summer vibe to it. I started to think about songs about summer and the sun.

The Writer's Life: Is Imposter Syndrome and Procrastination Killing Your Creativity?

 

 

At some point in the writing journey, every writer knows the feeling.

You sit down with the intention of writing. The computer is on, the laptop open and waiting, and the ideas are somewhere in your mind. But instead of writing, you make another cup of tea or coffee. You check emails or scroll endlessly on social media. And there is always another YouTube video to watch.

Or maybe there is something else that needs attention. 

A little tidying up at home, or a visit to the shops. You decide that perhaps you’ll write tomorrow, when more inspired. But when tomorrow arrives, it looks remarkably like today, or the day before.

For many writers, procrastination is not always about laziness. It is about self-doubt and fear. A voice inside the mind that asks uncomfortable questions. Am I good enough? Has everything worth saying already been written? Who would want to read what I have to say?

And that voice has a name. Imposter syndrome, and it can fuel procrastination. For the last week or so, that has been the case for me. It started when I was reading through and editing a chapter from another project. I couldn’t get into it. What I read was a mishmash of words that were not coming together.

It felt easier to do something else.

Imposter syndrome affects writers of every level, from inexperienced to bestselling authors. It doesn’t matter where you are on the journey, because even writers who have had success find it still happens. The self-doubt and the fear of being “found out”.

Did You Know… Life in 1960s Britain: From Wembley 1966 to World Cup 2026 - How Football Went From Affordable Glory to Premium Prices

 

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is now well under way, and for those of us of a certain age, it’s hard not to think back to another summer that still holds a special place in British sporting history.

1966.

The year England last won the World Cup.

That was the year when commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme said the immortal words:

“Some people are on the pitch… they think it’s all over… it is now!” as Geoff Hurst hit the fourth goal that gave England victory over West Germany, 4–2.

And sixty years later, England opened their 2026 campaign with a 4–2 defeat of Croatia. The scoreline is a coincidence, but a reminder of 1966, as England try to end “sixty years of hurt”.

Time will tell.

But there is one very noticeable difference about the 2026 World Cup, compared to 1966. How much it now costs for fans to actually watch a game in person. 

2026 is the year when ordinary supporters attending the biggest football tournament on Earth might just need to take out a second mortgage to finance their desire to watch football. For the fans of the two teams that get to the final, following them all the way will cost a small fortune.

One big change in the game of football since the 1960s and 70s, is the impact of money on the sport, especially big tournaments like the World Cup.

It is now a commercial extravaganza.

The World Cup in 1966: The People’s Game — Football for Everyone

When England hosted the World Cup in 1966, football was still very much a working-class game. People would attend games in their working clothes. Some still wore a cloth cap, with a rosette pinned to their chest, a scarf around their neck, and a rattle in hand.

And to attend a game at the World Cup back then was cheap. Football fans today might be surprised as to how cheap it actually was.

As today, ticket prices varied depending on the match and seating area, but contemporary reports show that some supporters were able to buy tickets for as little as five shillings (25p in pre-decimal currency). Even the best seats for many World Cup games cost only a few pounds.

And yes, there were tickets for the actual final, priced at five shillings.

That may sound impossibly cheap today, and by comparison to 2026, it was!

Tales From The Simulation: Part Four - These Boots Are Made For Walking (Revisited)

I originally wrote the story below, in two parts, back in July 2023. 

At the time, a series of unlikely coincidences happened.

Here’s the story — part one.

About a month ago, I was out walking when a thought came to me that I really needed a new pair of walking boots. My old walking boots, more of a walking shoe really, had seen better days. The sole was beginning to show wear and tear, damaged from years of pounding the pavements and walking country paths.

I had put in the mileage on my footwear, and it was time for a new pair.

But I knew that a new pair of walking boots would not be cheap. A good quality walking boot, with a decent hard-wearing sole, is always likely to be expensive. The cheaper ones with softer tread on the sole never last that long. Over the years, I have had many, and they tend not to last. I must be a heavy walker. I certainly walk fast, which apparently is good for you but not so good for the boots.

The cheaper boots often look good, but as the saying goes, you get what you pay for, and I do like a bargain. Not so easy in these days with the rising cost of living. Mind you, I’ve always lived a fairly frugal life, and when it comes to footwear, I’ve usually managed to find a bargain — eventually. Typically, from a charity shop or a car boot sale (flea market in the USA), but I couldn’t rely on that happening this time.

Would my old walking boots endure until I found a bargain? The need for a new pair of boots was definitely on my mind.

And then something strange happened. Really strange.

A week or so later, I was on a trek to an appointment I had to keep. I had made the four-mile journey many times and could take several routes. In the end, I chose a route but then changed my mind when I was halfway there. A little further on I changed my mind again, deciding to take a scenic walk through open fields, finally reaching a road that I had not walked for many years.

It was there that I had my out-of-the-ordinary, strange experience.

I approached a bend in the road, and there on the grass verge was a pair of walking boots just lying there. They were about eight feet apart as if they had been thrown from a passing car. I picked them up expecting them to be worn down, tatty, old, and falling apart. That wasn’t the case. In fact, they seemed as good as new, just a little dusty. It was the kind of dust that boots pick up on a building site. They were in far better condition than the boots I was wearing.

I decided to take them with me. I would decide what to do with them after my appointment.

Meeting over, I walked home via a different route. On the way, I found a bench to sit on and decided to check out the boots. They were a good make, The North Face, and were in excellent condition. They didn’t even look as if they had been worn before. I put them on, not expecting them to fit, but remarkably, they were exactly my size. I walked the rest of the way home in them, about three miles.

They were the most comfortable walking boots that I had ever worn.

I later checked to find out how much they would have cost new. The price range for similar boots was around £100. I knew they were good quality, as the sole was of a harder tread. The type of boot that would last years.

It was as if they had been left in the road just for me.

As the saying goes, I had got lucky in my find, but perhaps it was something more.

Another coincidence that happened around that time was that I found a book in a local charity shop, titled The Secret, which had been very popular with those who believed in the idea of the law of attraction.

And then there was another coincidence.

Idiom of the Day - Jam Tomorrow

 

If you have ever invested in the stock market, you will have probably heard someone say, “Jam tomorrow”.

It is an English idiom used to describe a promise of future reward or improvement that never actually materialises. In the stock market it is often used to describe companies that promise a lot to their investors but actually deliver very little.

It is an idiom that captures the frustration of repeatedly being told that something desirable will happen “tomorrow” or at some point in the future, when in reality, nothing changes.

The “jam” is rarely delivered.

It is a criticism that implies a consistent failure to deliver a promise or implied benefit. We have all probably experienced the promise of better times ahead, but when the future arrived, little had changed.

Politicians have lived off the promises of “jam tomorrow” for years.

History and Origins

The idiom can be traced back to Lewis Carroll’s 19th-century satire, Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There (1871).

The White Queen offers Alice “jam every other day” if she will work for her.

Did You Know… life in 1960s Britain: The Year England Won the World Cup, With Thanks to Pickles the Dog

 

In Britain, when people think of 1966, one thing immediately comes to mind (especially if you are English): England winning the World Cup. Sixty years later, and with the World Cup of 2026 about to start, England will try again to add a second win and end “sixty years of hurt”.

But 1966 stands out for so many reasons. 

Even today, football fans can recite the famous words of commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme as Geoff Hurst iced victory over West Germany.

“Some people are on the pitch… they think it’s all over… it is now!”

And it was. By four goals to two, England lifted the trophy, and little Nobby Styles, all five feet, six inches of him, went on a merry dance around the pitch with the trophy on his head.

It was a World Cup that gave people many lasting memories, including one that happened four months before England lifted the trophy.

That famous World Cup trophy was stolen.

And if it hadn’t been for an ordinary dog named Pickles, football history might have been very different.

The Biggest Football Tournament on Earth

The summer of 1966 was an exciting time in Britain. The swinging sixties were in full flow, with The Beatles at the height of their fame, and, for the first time, the World Cup was to be held in England. 

In 1960, England had been chosen as the host nation for the 1966 tournament over rival bids from West Germany and Spain.

For the first time, football was coming home.

Hosting the tournament became a matter of national pride. Actually winning it in front of a national audience was something that dreams were made of. But before the football started, the famous Jules Rimet Trophy, awarded to the World Cup winners, was sent on a tour of the country as part of the build-up.

Then disaster struck.

The Day the World Cup Was Stolen

On 20 March 1966, the trophy was on display at Westminster Central Hall in London as part of a stamp exhibition. Security was arranged, but unlike today, when cameras and sensors can monitor 24/7, the trophy was not under constant surveillance. It was during a brief period when the guards were on patrol, or distracted, that thieves got inside the building and removed the trophy from its display case.

Tales From The Simulation: Part Three - A Not So Common Cold

 

Does the body rule the mind, or does the mind rule the body? I dunno. 

For some people of a certain age, those words will be familiar. It is a line from a song by The Smiths, penned by the master of misery himself, Morrissey. And like Morrissey, I dunno the answer to that question, either. But the mind, and our thoughts, can behave in ways that are strange. 

The way our mind often works, reminds me of the two shoulder angels, one good and one bad. Both sitting on our shoulders, waiting for the opportunity to make or break us. Our thoughts can lead us to think about things that make us wonder what is going on, a state where often the only thing we can fall back on is coincidence.

Or it just might be that someone or something else is in control.

And here’s my second tale from the simulation. Nothing complicated about this one, just a series of unlikely events.

The Writer's Life: YouTube to Label AI-Produced and Mostly-AI Videos: What Creators and Viewers Need to Know

 

I think we all know by now that AI is rapidly changing the way content is created online, and nowhere is this more obvious than on YouTube. Every day we see AI-generated video, voiceovers, and virtual presenters. Creators now have a choice of tools that can produce content faster than ever before.

The AI “Faceless” creator channel revolution is now producing tens of thousands of videos, both long and short, every day. And YouTube has been swamped by what has been labelled ‘AI slop’. An endless diet of very repeatable, low-quality content, which often has very little input from the creator. The algorithm then sends this content as recommendations that many would rather not see.

When it comes to AI on YouTube, it would be nice to have a choice.

In response to this, the platform is about to introduce new measures designed to help viewers identify when AI has played a significant role in creating a video. They have announced that creators will be required in future to disclose when their content has been altered or generated using AI. Videos produced by AI will be clearly labelled.

I would say, ‘About time.’ For viewers, it offers greater transparency. And while it has to be said that many AI videos are pretty obvious, it would be good to know beforehand that what you are about to watch is AI or not.

Why Is YouTube Introducing AI Labels?

The rise of AI has brought both an opportunity and also a concern. AI tools can help creators in many ways, but they can also be used to create misleading content. AI-generated footage can make it difficult for some viewers to distinguish between genuine and AI-created material.

Tales From The Simulation: Part Two — When Your Old Computer Dies

 

Actually, my old computer didn’t die, but its replacement did. 

That was a year ago. I needed to upgrade my old faithful PC, as it was beginning to struggle with a lack of memory. I suppose that comes to us all eventually. For several years it had done a good job, but time had arrived to upgrade to something that didn’t take thirty seconds to start a YouTube video.

Enter a new Dell, Windows 10 PC. Well, a new(ish) refurbished Windows 10 PC. All was well until it wasn’t. After three months it developed a clunking sound at start-up, only running silent after a restart. It sounded like something was going to fail, so I took it back to the shop.

“It’s a noise from the fan.” Said the shop assistant.

“No, it isn’t,” I replied. “I took the side off, and the noise is near the start button. A component part is going to fail.”

“I’m afraid you will have to bring it back when it fails, as the PC runs perfectly on a reboot.”

Customer service.

I took it home, but one day three months later it made a clunking sound for the final time. I looked at the monitor, and it was like a scene from The Matrix. The picture was breaking up, Matrix-style, numbers falling down the screen. Except this was the PC wallpaper image making a pretty pattern of broken pixels.

Tales From The Simulation: Part One - Do We Live In a Simulation?

 

Something strange happened to me a few days ago. It was something that I struggled to explain logically, other than the idea of coincidence in life. It was as satisfactory an explanation as any other, but only in that it was convenient.

Occasionally, things happen to me which make me wonder what is going on? There is a theory that explains it all, but it is somewhat controversial, and some might say unbelievable. A theory that belongs more in the world of science fiction than science fact — that we are living in a simulation. 

That someone, or something is in control of everything we see and do.

And I regularly ask myself the question. ‘Are we living in a simulation?’

It does sound like science fiction, but there are scientists, philosophers, and tech billionaires who have seriously discussed the idea that our universe might actually be a simulation. Some propose that we are living in a kind of ultra-advanced computer program. It is a serious proposition.

The theory became widely known after philosopher Nick Bostrom published his “Simulation Argument” back in 2003. What he was suggesting was something surprisingly simple; it goes like this.

If life became so advanced that they were capable of creating simulated worlds that were so realistic and indistinguishable from the reality that we know, then how would we tell the difference? Each simulation would contain beings who believed they were alive and real. They in turn would create their own simulated realities. There could eventually be millions, or even billions of them. 

If that happened, statistically, it might be more likely that we are inside one of those simulations rather than living in the original “base” reality.