The world according to Kirkey
Over the years I have become sceptical about the position of the Royal Family. Save a trinket for foreign tourists to fawn over I neither considered the Royal Family to have much constitutional legitimacy or meaning. I had avidly watched The Crown on Netflix and considered the Royals to be, overall, a dysfunctional family and … Read more
So, I got your attention? Good! I have an admission to make – I have a mental health issue. I would hazard a guess that if we’re honest, we all have mental health issues. When asked about the subject matter some years ago I recall my pragmatic response – we are all nuts, it’s just … Read more
When something puzzles, surprises, or overwhelms me I tend to be sucked into a vortex of discovery, often buffeted by contradiction and confusion. A sense of clarity normally emerges although the wonderful thing about being human is that our minds are often fluid. When someone suggests that changing my mind is in some way a … Read more
From experience once you reach a certain age social gatherings have a pattern of predictability. The preamble, usually with glass in hand, engages with an unspectacular icebreaker: “Tell me, what do you do?” Not wishing to offend these professionals too much, “I’m in IT, HR” or any other job that can be similarly abbreviated can … Read more
Buildbase FA Trophy semi-final Notts County 3 v Hornchurch FC 3 (Hornchurch FC win 5-4 on penalties) After that result I’m popping out to the shops. In 2007 The Daily Telegraph revealed that Notts were the most stressful team to support. Today they became the most embarrassing. Yet tomorrow I will wake up and still … Read more
The other day I happened to walk into a room when a certain public figure was talking. They hold an eminently important office. People’s lives are affected by their words. What oozes from the orifice directly under their nose carries gravitas. Without naming names, you know who I am talking about. Yet all I heard … Read more
According to Ian Dury in his 1977 hit, co-written with Chaz Jankel, ‘Sex and drugs and rock and roll is all my brain and body need. Sex and drugs and rock and roll are very good indeed’. If I were being picky, I would add good food, some cash in my skyrocket and a nice … Read more
As I kid, I remember the double entendre placed upon the street signage: ‘Bill Stickers Will Be Prosecuted!’ under which was daubed, ‘Bill Stickers is innocent!’ A funny play on words but illustrative of the power of English language. Last night in Bristol a demonstration labelled ‘Kill the Bill’ reminded me of this flexibility of … Read more
When did we actually get mugged by the big corporates? Why can’t I simply buy a pair of black plimsolls and walk with my head held high? How come we yearn to be labelled? Like the perimeter advertising hoardings that enclose the Meadow Lane pitch of Notts County. And when did buying a cup of … Read more
The older I get, the crankier and more miserable I appear to become. I would like to be able to put this down to old age, yet the reality is that I have sometimes allowed my mindset to perpetuate this notion, since not everyone I know of a similar age is necessarily so. COVID-19 has … Read more