My friend and Old Portlians club-mate Ian Bashford was killed on 25 September 2016 while competing in the Duo Normand Cycling event in France. Ian was hit by a car 200 metres from the finish line and was killed instantly; he was not at fault. Ian was a professional  car and cycle mechanic and his … Continue reading Bash’s garage

Film is a relatively simple art-form but there are a few basic requirements: A (good) story. Interesting and believable characters Er, that’s it. If it’s a musical it’s a little more demanding because that requires songs, preferably with hummable melodies and audible and well-crafted lyrics. Think of the great musicals that live in the memory … Continue reading La La Land

Very few comedy series know when to stop. They tend to carry on, becoming less and less funny, while the locations become more outlandish, the situations more contrived and the scripts degenerate into self-parody. Some know when to stop – in particular ‘Fawlty Towers’ – John Cleese and Connie Booth made 12 perfect episodes and … Continue reading Life on the Road

Photographs taken with a Holga camera. The cheap, plastic construction leaks light and causes unusual effects on prints. These pictures were all taken in Swanage in Dorset.  

Photographs taken during a day trip to Whitstable in Kent with my daughter Rachel on 14 September 2016.  

Photographs taken during a day trip to Paris with my daughter Rachel on 25 May 2016.  

Photographs taken during a trip to St Petersburg, Russia with my daughter Rachel in June 2012.  

Photographs taken during a trip to Vienna, Austria with my daughter Rachel in November 2014.  

Millar’s second book following his autobiography (Racing through the Dark) is a sort of diary of his last year as a pro racer with the Garmin team. Rather than chapters, it is a series of short (sometimes half a page, sometimes more) vignettes including sections on training, his family, other riders, races he was involved … Continue reading The Racer – David Millar