I live on the coast. I can hear French radio on the car stereo. Ferries leave for France every day. The fishermen here are related, way back in time, to families from Normandy and Spain. We're nearer to France here than we are to Westminster ... yet my town voted for Brexit, by a largeContinue reading "“This isn’t about the politics. We’re either side of the same sea.” Making The Walk: Across The Water (Calais and Dover) for BBC Radio 4"
Hearts and minds
A big day for organ donation today as the Bill to change the system gets its third and final reading in the Lords ahead of becoming law next year. Here's a piece I wrote for the Guardian today, exploring what that means. By coincidence, my book The Boy Who Gave His Heart Away was featuredContinue reading "Hearts and minds"
Will you be my friend?
I have a new story to tell. It’s about a young woman called Sarah who is caught up in the stress of trying for a baby, through fertility treatment. The cracks are showing in her relationship with her lover Jack. They’re in that terrible moment between having the last cycle of treatment you can affordContinue reading "Will you be my friend?"
Ravilious
Beachy Head, 1939 is by the artist Eric Ravilious, who often visited Belle Tout and other areas of the South Downs. It was recently acquired for the Towner Gallery in Eastbourne which holds the best of his works. The view is from the approach to Belle Tout lighthouse or perhaps from the lantern room atContinue reading "Ravilious"
The Parson’s Hole
Four hundred feet below the lighthouse, there used to be a hole dug into the chalk. More like a cave, with a carpet, table, chair and lamp. A man sat in it night after night, either saving sailors from the rocks or guiding smugglers safely home. Or both. Parson Jonathan Darby is on record as theContinue reading "The Parson’s Hole"