Monthly Archives: March 2021

Prince Harry and high heels (Rousse)

Posted on March 15, 2021 by Dreamaticus

I travelled to locked down London for training as a new member of the British Secret Service. England’s capital city looked, and sounded, very quiet. I could even hear bird song through the closed top deck bus windows. Soon I … Continue reading →

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REF2021 criteria and Woody Guthrie mix-up (Rousse)

Posted on March 14, 2021 by Dreamaticus

At first glance I thought that my colleagues had pasted up the criteria for REF2021 submissions. However, on closer inspection, I saw that sheets of A4 paper glued to the wall were covered in Woody Guthrie song lyrics.

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Duke and Duchess of Cambridge play Settlers of Catan (Rousse)

Posted on March 14, 2021 by Dreamaticus

I laid out the board for a game of Settlers of Catan with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and related to Prince William the details of a memorable day two decades earlier. ‘Due to summer flooding, we had to … Continue reading →

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Football obsessive forgets his manners (Rousse)

Posted on March 12, 2021 by Dreamaticus

I hadn’t seen SA – a boy I first met aged 7 at primary school – since a school reunion in 2011. I thought that he would have better manners at our surprise meeting than to start the conversation with … Continue reading →

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Jason Isaacs, tattoo artist (Belle)

Posted on March 4, 2021 by Dreamaticus

Jason Isaacs was a local hero on the housing estate. He wore an almost floor length black coat and his frequent mysterious disappearances were the subject of thrilling speculation. When we met on the street, he took me by the … Continue reading →

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Royal family lookalike con (Rousse)

Posted on March 4, 2021 by Dreamaticus

The excitement was raw: every single one of us would have 30 minutes or so to chat with a royal couple! My friend found out first that hers was the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Mine was Diana, Princess of … Continue reading →

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Cabbie bride of Christ (Rousse)

Posted on March 4, 2021 by Dreamaticus

The roads were treacherous so we hired a nun taxi driver to take us over the snowbound hills. She skidded (safely) just a couple of times. The only real inconvenience of travelling with a cabbie bride of Christ were the … Continue reading →

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An icy dip on Christmas Day (Rousse)

Posted on March 3, 2021 by Dreamaticus

So delighted was TPR to be with his entire family again, on arrival at his mother’s house for Christmas he disappeared straightaway into the large cinema room with his sisters. That left me with his step-father to set the table … Continue reading →

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Red and white woodpecker gate-crashes class (Rousse)

Posted on March 2, 2021 by Dreamaticus

I heard a knocking from above, looked up, and saw a beautiful red and white woodpecker tapping on the wooden classroom chandelier. I stopped the class so that we could all take out our phones to photograph the beauty.

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