17rh December 2017
Those of us who trained as dancers were all agog. Who would win the Strictly Come Dancing show? Who had the best dancing skills? However the winner was judged by the viewers. Similarly in the far more serious fields of politics and in the criminal courts. Should Britain leave the EU? Let's ask the general public. Never mind that the average man in the street couldn't possibly understand the intricacies and financial consequences. In the courts, back when we had the death penalty, a jury of ordinary citizens, completely untrained in the field of criminology, were handed the role of life and death over some poor person. Imagine if this happened in other fields. Picture the neurosurgeon about to decide which bit of the brain to excise to cure a terrible disease: should he then call in a 'jury' of complete novices to make the ultimate decision? In football, was it a penalty? Let's ask the baying, opinionated crowd. The general public will always choose the personality, be swayed by the current fashion/media, will tend to use emotion rather than raw facts. In TV programmes the result isn't that important. In more serious issues, it is. When important decisions must be made, ALWAYS leave it to the experts in the field.
10th December 2017
For me it's been a good week. My publisher, Crooked Cat Books, has announced that they have signed my sequel to the successful Pensioners in Paradis: it's called Paradis to Perdition: A Year in France. "We're delighted to announce that Crooked Cat signed the sequel to the multi-bestselling PENSIONERS IN PARADIS today. Olga Swan's PARADIS TO PERDITION: A YEAR IN FRANCE is to be released in mid-2018."
What's this new one about? Hot off the presses, here's the blurb plus a recent review:
What's this new one about? Hot off the presses, here's the blurb plus a recent review:
"After a successful transition from the gloom of England to La Belle France, the year starts well for our two pensioners in Paradis – but all is not as it seems. An ageing Him Indoors has written a composite diary in true Jack Benny style. In the fine art of humorous self-disparagement, he recounts exactly what happened between him and She Who Must Be Obeyed. From January to December it’s a time where self-humiliation and realistic comedy battle against a rising tide of Brexit and angst. This is France as you’ve never seen it before. What exactly do the French think of two ageing English pensioners and how to cope with looming disaster in a foreign land? Take a personal peek inside a fateful year in France – exactly as it happened. English self-deprecating wit at its very best.
***** Fabulous
Olga invites you to become a part of her journey to a new life with her husband in sunny southern France. Written from a casual, enjoyable mature pen, Olga give such warmth and life to all they encounter, good and challenging. Pour yourself a nice glass of your favorite wine and dive into this refreshing tale"
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Of course today's news brings the angst even further forward as Theresa May continues Britain's lone quest to leave an increasingly difficult EU. What's up with everybody. No-one wants all these theatrics. It's as if unelected EU individuals are each glorying in the global spotlight of their own petty self-importance. Time it was all over and done with!
3rd December 2017
Yesterday my new friend Adrian Goldberg, a well-known broadcaster, was on BBC Radio 4 interviewing a Birmingham architect in his inner-city home. What was interesting was how the architect had modernised his old house to incorporate new technology. He had left the exterior as it was, in keeping with the rest of the street and area, but had then totally modernised the interior. There is a closed FB site called Old Photos of Birmingham where contributors continually lambast town planners for destroying the city's heritage and culture, but still the wholesale destruction goes on, in the name of progress. When we lived in France I was continually struck by how the French never seem to knock anything down, so retaining the original character of the country. Similarly, when I visit charming places like Bath or even London, I see whole rows of Regency houses, giving a flavour of the city's past. Obviously we can't expect people to live with outmoded facilities - I remember all too well my grandparents' house in the old back-to-back courtyards of Birmingham - but why decimate our heritage? So, Adrian: did you give a hint, yesterday, to the nation's builders and town planners on the way forward? Yes! Retain the characterful exteriors of our buildings - reminding everyone of our history and culture - but bring the interiors completely up to date with all that modern technology can provide.
26th November 2017
Continuing my look at the UK after 12 years away...
What does Britain stand for? In France many, like Napoleon, still look on us as a nation of shopkeepers. British old-timers still see their country as a flagship for the world, ruling the waves from its vast Commonwealth powerbase, an example to the world of a longstanding democracy, with centuries of the rule of law and traditional institutions. But today? The country is a patchwork quilt of an increasingly large population of black, Asian and Muslim peoples added to the indigenous Anglo-Saxon, all bringing different mindsets and cultural opinions to the mix. This brings an identity crisis. We're all confused and ill at ease. Added to this is the longwinded divorce proceedings known as Brexit. Elsewhere in Europe there is a sense of bewilderment and no-one really cares about us any more. The government is split, and if Corbyn's Labour gains control, he will lead the country into an equally stupid, socialist past where unelected unions rule the roost. SS Britannia is adrift in the waves, leaderless and rudderless unless someone somewhere marches up to the helm and takes control. My wish? An immediate second referendum before it's too late, this time giving the people full economic and other facts consequent on withdrawal. Otherwise it's a tragedy.
What does Britain stand for? In France many, like Napoleon, still look on us as a nation of shopkeepers. British old-timers still see their country as a flagship for the world, ruling the waves from its vast Commonwealth powerbase, an example to the world of a longstanding democracy, with centuries of the rule of law and traditional institutions. But today? The country is a patchwork quilt of an increasingly large population of black, Asian and Muslim peoples added to the indigenous Anglo-Saxon, all bringing different mindsets and cultural opinions to the mix. This brings an identity crisis. We're all confused and ill at ease. Added to this is the longwinded divorce proceedings known as Brexit. Elsewhere in Europe there is a sense of bewilderment and no-one really cares about us any more. The government is split, and if Corbyn's Labour gains control, he will lead the country into an equally stupid, socialist past where unelected unions rule the roost. SS Britannia is adrift in the waves, leaderless and rudderless unless someone somewhere marches up to the helm and takes control. My wish? An immediate second referendum before it's too late, this time giving the people full economic and other facts consequent on withdrawal. Otherwise it's a tragedy.
19th November 2017
...then I'll huff and I'll puff
And I'll blow your house down
old nursery rhyme
I grew up remembering by heart colourful oral stories of big bad wolves.They helped me make sense of the world and provided a moral framework. Yet here in the UK the Chief Inspector of Schools has said they are no longer to be taught in schools. Ask any schoolkid today and have they even heard of them? Something has been lost. On Tuesday the French PM promises tough new measures to combat homelessness, and on Wednesday here the Chancellor is to announce plans to build more homes. Yes, but will it be enough? Four months ago we ourselves bought an efficient new-build, affordable house in Bham. That's what's needed: more and more new, affordable houses like ours. Fly over the UK at present and you see acres of empty food-producing land, no longer needed. Houses are. So, Mr. Chancellor, forget the 'sacrosanct' green belt and build lots of new garden cities like beautiful Bournville here in Bham, comprising parks, green areas and transport links. At a stroke this will give young people their first, affordable, step on the housing ladder, reduce crime caused by homelessness and improve life prospects and the economy. No longer Old Mother Hubbard who lived in a shoe, but the little pig who built his house of bricks. That's the way to stop the big bad wolf.
And I'll blow your house down
old nursery rhyme
I grew up remembering by heart colourful oral stories of big bad wolves.They helped me make sense of the world and provided a moral framework. Yet here in the UK the Chief Inspector of Schools has said they are no longer to be taught in schools. Ask any schoolkid today and have they even heard of them? Something has been lost. On Tuesday the French PM promises tough new measures to combat homelessness, and on Wednesday here the Chancellor is to announce plans to build more homes. Yes, but will it be enough? Four months ago we ourselves bought an efficient new-build, affordable house in Bham. That's what's needed: more and more new, affordable houses like ours. Fly over the UK at present and you see acres of empty food-producing land, no longer needed. Houses are. So, Mr. Chancellor, forget the 'sacrosanct' green belt and build lots of new garden cities like beautiful Bournville here in Bham, comprising parks, green areas and transport links. At a stroke this will give young people their first, affordable, step on the housing ladder, reduce crime caused by homelessness and improve life prospects and the economy. No longer Old Mother Hubbard who lived in a shoe, but the little pig who built his house of bricks. That's the way to stop the big bad wolf.
12th November 2017
If I should die
Think only this of me
That's there's some corner of a foreign field
That is forever England
Rupert Brooke
Today millions will attend war memorials. Why oh why do we do this? I'm not talking about remembering those who have died. Heaven knows we must all remember those who have lived on this Earth - otherwise for what purpose their lives? No, I'm talking about sending young men, full of life, into front-line war zones where they are trained to kill and be killed. I know many are the times when mad despots rise to positions of power with murderous intent - Hitler and Stalin come to mind - and they must of course be stopped at all costs. So, what's the solution? Ask Alexa! I kid you not. Now is the age to stop all human killing. At last we have the technology to build and programme silicone robots to do the job of killing for us. They should be the soldiers of the future, programmed to wipe out just enemy robots in the field. Just think not only of the human lives saved but also the food, accommodation and salaries no longer needed. We know it can be done. Already countries like Japan have replaced human hotel staff, butlers, car makers etc, and surgeons use robots for delicate surgery, so why not replace human soldiers? On this day, at the 11th hour, make a wish: stop killing our young men in war for ever.
5th November 2017
"Remember remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason why gunpowder, treason
Should ever be forgot.."
Nothing like coming back to England and seeing everything with newly objective eyes. The above poem of course refers to Guy Fawkes when, in the 17C, he was caught in the cellars of the Houses of Parliament with several dozen barrels of gunpowder. It wasn't just his sentence as a traitor but the barbaric, inhumane, means of his execution - the most horrendous ever practised (hanged, drawn and quartered). So why, in today's more liberal age, are we still commemorating it by burning effigies of the poor man and lighting fireworks? Schadenfreude still? There are many news items today that could be deemed treason - acting against the interests of one's own country. Yet, what is in all the news this week? Sex. Lots of it. Since the days of Jimmy Saville, no man is immune. From celebrities to MPs. Could it be that the very salaciousness of the topic overrides more mundane, yet eminently more serious, crimes? Roll over Mr. Fawkes. You're soon to be joined by every male celebrity that ever lived. The police, as we speak, are uncovering every juicy bit of evidence over which they can possibly salivate. Meantime the real criminals - murderers, thieves, traitors etc. - are going scot free. Welcome back to England!
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