What should we talk about today?
The world according to Kirkey
A recent Facebook post provoked a sudden synaptic spasm: Some people think it’s peculiar that I am a Notts County season ticket holder and follow them all over the country whilst living in Berkshire, questioning my sanity and the amount of money that I spend on this enduring pursuit. But I’m not daft! In comparison … Read more
For the majority of my adult years I’ve had to conform with the rules of life, both written and informal. At times, the societal norms I am obliged to yield to frustrate me, and the more I explore the world the more I realise that, although many commonalities exist, wonderful exceptions are evident too, especially … Read more
I do admit to being a professional potty mouth. My filler expletive regularly engages with my favourite and most versatile of profane words: fuck. Its versatility is pretty much limitless: both a verb and a noun, an expression of elation and disappointment, a call to action and a decision to sit it out. As an … Read more
All you need to know about Vietnam, from the unique perspective of the British equivalent of Inspector Clouseau, who usually turns up at the airport and says, “Where are we going?” Collecting my travel money in advance of my Southeast Asian late October adventure to a place personally epitomised by the hauntingly vibrant Paul Hardcastle … Read more
Apparently the measurement of a successful author is the swift launch of a follow up book. I’m proud to announce that “Big Bald Ian” has proved an instant hit with Darcie! © Ian Kirke @ianjkirke Title photograph reproduced by kind permission of Emma Ellis.
The stag do – or as our friends across the pond would call it, the bachelor party – can be traced back to ancient Sparta (circa 404 B.C.) where soldiers would hold a celebration for a groom the night before his wedding. This masculine meet sought to bid a final salute to singledom whilst preparing … Read more
There is something compelling about graveyards and the narrative they provide for the living. Once people gathered around these memorials, no doubt expressing the undertaking of eternal remembrance; but that isn’t a reality, since we all wither – just like these stones. Filling the space between being born and ending up in a similar place … Read more
Leaving base camp at a little after 8am, the train journey north from Reading would traverse to Birmingham New Street, then up to Leeds, and finally across to the promised land: Bradford. As a southern-based Notts County season ticket holder, I guess I could class most fixtures – in terms of distance ─ as away … Read more
I’m old enough to be unable to remember what it felt like to be me as a child. Sure I can recall events, but my perception of the world as a kid has ebbed away over the passage of time. My ability to experience utter wonderment, pure emotion, naivety, and steely selfishness have been tempered … Read more
A not so long time ago, in the Milky Way galaxy, I once had some pretty far, far away thoughts. Apologies to all Star Wars aficionados out there for my clumsy corruption of the opening sequence, but in keeping with one of the principal characters, I used to look like Chewbacca: hair fucking everywhere. My … Read more