1944 - The end is nigh

At Monte Cassino, a failed gamble
They bombed the monastery, angered the Pope
But the Nazis hid well in the rubble
And made it harder for Allies to cope
Rome freed, D-Day in June, Parisians group
To welcome De Gaulle, then Caen and Brussels
Taken, but problems in Holland. The scope
Of Nazism shrinks, but informers tell
On Anne Frank's family. Warsaw rebels
Too soon, the town destroyed, Soviet tanks roll
In after the Germans leave. The Japs hope
Their suicidal banzai tactics will
Deter Yank progress, enough islands fall
To bomb their mainland - tightening of the rope

1943 - Calm down, calm down

The siege of Leningrad, and Stalingrad
Then Kursk, Soviet defence becomes attack
White Rose students, Warsaw Ghetto Jews said
No to the Nazis though prospects were black
As villages are torched by the wolfpack
In Belarus, and Chinese massacres
The new Chinese leader is Chiang Kai-Shek
Attending meetings with Allied leaders
Sicily invaded, Mussolini's
Replaced, mainland Italy invaded
Naples spontaneously rises to kick
Out the Germans. Young John F Kennedy's
A hero, saving his crew's lives, a hard
Swim in the Pacific, but they get back

1942 - Come on now, stop fighting like children!

The US fights Japan in Philippines
The Coral Sea, Midway, Guadalcanal
Eventually halting the Japanese
Though ill-equipped Britain could do little
To save Singapore, Burma - so brittle
Its eastern Empire - Gandhi arrested...
The Desert Rats finally beat Rommel
And Montgomery is well tried and tested
The Germans regroup in Russia, undid
The Soviets at Kharkov, but Stalin learns
To take Red Army advice, and this will
Help them win this winter at Stalingrad
At Wannsee they plot that by any means
Camps will be built and solutions final

1941 - Oops - it's another war on two fronts

The '41 North African campaign
Saw Brits and Aussies beat Italians
But not Rommel's tough Afrika Korps men
Despite Lindbergh's views, Lend-Lease now begins
The States in naval conflict with Germans
Vichy France headed by Petain, Laval
At least they stop France fighting for 'the Huns'
FDR works closely with our Churchill
And seems to ignore warnings about Pearl
Harbour soon being attacked by Japan
Yugoslavia's new king, his allegiance
Switched to the Allies, means Hitler curtails
Invasion of Russia til the Balkan
Area is subdued, ruining all his plans

1940 - He missed the bus but caught the express train

1940, start of food rationing
In Britain. Over in the USA
Conscription into the army begins
And they lend ships and build aircraft though they
Are still neutral. Germans invade Norway
And Denmark, while Russia fights in Finland
Just after Chamberlain thought he could say
'Hitler has missed the bus.' That's not the end -
The Germans invade Benelux and send
The Brits scrambling from Dunkirk, then forging
On to Paris and French surrender. Play
That recording of Churchill's speech to fend
Off bombs falling on London, and falling
On Coventry and Sheffield day by day

1939 - Best of enemies

1939, year of infamy
The carving up of Czechoslovakia
France reneges on commitments over the
Eastern end of Europe, leading to a
Free hand for Germany and for Russia
In doing what they like, splitting Poland
In two, half each, even though Herr Hitler
Has written of his hatred of Slavs and
Communists, though Stalin's Soviet Union
Did also confer with the Allies. We
Do not want to deal with them, however
So they've been forced into a pact with them -
The Nazis - who plan to crush our Navy
In secret plans by 1944

1938 - It'll be Snow White on the night

It's Christmas Day today must I must write
About history, as still is my wont
As I go through the years. This silent night
I'm up to 1938, which won't
Bring peace or joy to mankind, but the sound
Of goose-stepping troops first in Vienna
Then before long in the Sudetenland
Not only that, but Jews were forbade a
Passport to freedom by exterior
So-called democracies...and Crystal Night
Wasn't enough to change that. Underground
Oil reserves found in Saudi Arabia
That hitherto nomadic tribal site
And we see the first screening of Snow White

1937 - Not a lot of laughs to be had

The Moscow Show Trials continue this year
Of '37, of Old Bolsheviks
Army men, and anyone causing fear
In Stalin's mind that he could be out-tricked
And less popular than them, and so strict
Methods of gaining confessions were used
Those who weren't shot after the sure verdict
Were sent to labour camps and there misused
Mostly soon dying anyway. The fuse
Of war was lit in the east, China's near
Neighbour Japan invading with some quick
Victories but terrible massacres
Falangists also wreak abuse through war
In Spain, where Nazis mount aerial attacks

1936 - We three kings of Britain are

In this old year of 1936
King George V dies, and Edward VIII
In turn gives way to that King George VI
You know, the one that stammered but did great
In the end with his radio speech. The flight
Heroine Amy Johnson cuts the tape
Opening the first Butlins holiday site
In Skegness. He climbed a ladder to take
Baby Lindbergh four years earlier, now baked
On the electric chair, a German sits
The Arabs in Palestine rise to fight
Increasing Jewish settlers on the make
Peter and the Wolf, and Gone With The Wind's
Out there to hear and read if you can't wait

1935 - The dust doesn't settle

In '35 Italy rules Libya
The first briefs and the first canned beer are sold
An attempted Greek coup ends in failure
The Germans rearm despite what was told
In the Versailles Treaty. The worst Dust Bowl
Period hits the States. Meanwhile Sun Myung Moon
Thinks he is taking over Jesus' role
FDR's New Deal continues and soon
Things would improve there, but sadly a loon
Shot Huey Long in Louisiana
His wealth redistribution movement killed
Comedian Will Rogers crashed to his doom
Italy attacks Ethiopia
And Mao's war strategy becomes more bold

1934 - Bad start, happy end

Today I felt real ill after last night
I threw up in the morning and then went
To work, not feeling well enough to eat
Until lunchtime, when I went out and spent
A quid or two in the small newsagent
A pie, packet of crisps and a Daim Bar
Which used to be called Dime Bar, when it meant
Something, but, hey, there ain't nothing like a
Daim, because it's meaningless. Rushed home for
A phone call about mortgages, and quite
A long call it was. Then out with a friend
I've not known long. Did not go to a bar
We went to the Quays where we had a bite
Then back to hers, now I'm back home again

1933 - Deal or no deal

In '33 Hitler is Chancellor
The Nazis enact laws imprisoning
The German people, and against the Jew
All their opponents are stopped from working
In professional careers. The first drafting
Of the plan for a state called Pakistan
In March, FDR takes over, begins
The fearless New Deal for Americans
His fireside chats on the radio and
Big schemes to fight the Depression which were
Still not socialist. Dow Jones starts rising...
Germany, Japan leave League of Nations
Einstein emigrates to America
Stalin and Co leave the Ukraine starving

1932 - In a depressed state

In '32 German democracy
Fell, a victim of the Great Depression
Unelected Chancellors by decree
And by degrees, thanks to old President
Hindenburg, called quite a few elections
But the voters sadly voted Nazi
In increasing numbers. Coalitions
Being what they are, just wouldn't hold, and the
Reichstag being dissolved repeatedly
Hermann Goering as Senate chairman- he
Supported Hitler's tough machinations
The President and Chancellors thought they
Could outmanoevre Adolf. Unhappily
They were wrong, and he'd be Chancellor soon

1931 - Things were falling apart

In 1931 a republic
Replaced Alfonso's monarchy in Spain
His price for supporting dictatorship
Anti-church, pro-autonomy, Catalans
Were free, but soon the army would regain
Unity under Franco. Ataturk
Transforming Turkey as financial pain
Spreads from the States to Europe, does its work
In Austria, damning Germans to the murk
Of poverty and racism. The sick
Mind of Hitler almost flows down the drain
With niece Geli's suicide. And a stark
Warning from China, invaded by trick
Japanese dynamite on railway line

1930 - Not so magic bus

Walked miles and miles, my heels are both aching
But it was nice apart from at the start
When me and Josie got wet while standing
At the bus stop for a bus that's so late
It doesn't come at all. Twice we got wet
Two showers at that bus stop, all for naught
But some nice guy stopped his car and said 'Get
In!' and took us to town. We later caught
The bus from town to Altrincham, we thought
We could spend some time at the skating rink
It was full though, no tickets could be bought
So we got the tram to Manchester, walked
Through the Christmassy town centre, finding
A rink there, and no rain - it's time to skate!

1929 - Another one bites the dust

The Wall Street Crash of 1929
May or may not have caused the Depression
But it caused panic and banks lost big time
Which meant there was no money left in them
So many went bust. And just about then
The Dust Bowl covered the Mid-West, causing
The Grapes of Wrath. Chicago's Al Capone
And friends wiped out some rivals, by luring
Them into a room and machine-gunning
Them, then leaving dressed as cops, but Al's time
Was nearing an end, like Prohibition
St Valentine's Day was not so loving
That year, but at least the Pope could show signs
Of hope, in his new state, the Vatican

1928 - All these things that I have done

It's been a busy day off work - I got
Up sort of early (for me), had a shower
Hair wash, orange juice, but no breakfast yet
Read up on 1928, bit lower
On incident than some years, but some dire
Serial killers that year. Ate, then out to
Post Christmas cards and get some post from Claire
And next year's calendar from the depot
(Which I had designed a few nights ago
Online). Got food too, and read for a bit
Watched the news, wrote some lyrics, phoned to clear
Up my mortgage arrangements, watched a show
(The Last Waltz) on disc, practised my songs, put
On two new CDs, wrote this... Next? Not sure!!

1927 - Two big wheels

Two great men of history, prominent
In 1927, were Gandhi
Instigator of new non-violent
Tactics of opposition, and Trotsky
Soviet theorist and organiser, he
Did as much as anyone in '17
To win in Petrograd, the Red Army
Subsequently expanded, a machine
With Communist heart. Mahatma was keen
To overthrow British rule, to prevent
India's split by religion, and help the
Untouchables, though some vented their spleen
Tried to kill him, and did so in the end
As did power-hungry Stalin to Trotsky

1926 - Unlucky strike

1926, and the General Strike
Lasted for a few crucial days in May
Led by the miners. Churchill didn't like
Their disruption of transport, felt okay
With using force of arms, but Baldwin stayed
Moderate, and it cooled down, miners losing
The fight for reasonable hours and fair pay
Post-war exports slump virtually dictating
Poor conditions, but sympathy resting
With the poor workers long after, just like
Their eighties counterparts. In China, they
Were in turmoil, three governments competing
For power. The Kuomintang alliance broke
With the Communists, and so it would stay

1925 - Fear of fun

What's going on? Well, Christmas is so near
Yet I've just started preparing for it
Last night online, bought Louis' computer
At lunchtime (on strike) Christmas cards were wrote
And dished out at work. The plan for tonight
Is to watch a game in the Walkabout
Chelsea against Man City, although it
Should have been supporting Janet who's out
Doing her Jewish comic act. I thought
She was good last time, and ideas appeared
In my head that I'd like to once more treat
An audience to my own humour, without
Getting as nervous or as sick with fear
As in the 90s, when I tried and quit

1924 - Latest news from 1924

By '24, Stalin's firmly in charge
Purges increase in scope, fear and famine
This year sees Ramsay MacDonald emerge
As the first Labour PM of Britain
Though soon replaced by Tory, S. Baldwin
Hitler's in prison, writes a nasty book
In the States, the new big thing is Gershwin
While Coolidge says little and rides his luck
Not so Matteotti, stabbed in the back
Of a car by fascists. It's not alleged
The Duce knew, but the King seems sanguine
Mallory may climb Everest but gets stuck
Germany's reparations payments urged
While Ibn Saud takes Arabia for his kin

1923 - Living and dying on an island

In '23 the Irish Civil War
Concluded with a Free State victory
The IRA, some of whom had been for,
Some against the Anglo-Irish Treaty
Had fought among themselves, but the anti-
Faction ran out of steam, de Valera
Admitting defeat, though reluctantly
And with Fianna Fail in later years
He'd stay put, but with Lemass taking a
More pragmatic, modern way than before
Disaster in Japan in '23
A great earthquake, Tokyo, Yokohama
Flattened, then burned by fire, so now the law
States buildings must be strong, people ready

1922 - In search of a lost year

This was the year 'Ulysses' was published
As well as Joyce, another genius, Proust
This year found his life and his work finished
Joyce, Proust, and Picasso all drank a toast
Together no doubt when they met, this most
Select dinner also attended by
Diaghilev and Stravinsky, and Proust
It's said, annoyed pretentious Stravinsky
By asking 'Do you like Beethoven?' Why
Did right-wing Germans shoot Rathenau? This
After Erzberger last year, showed the truth
The rise of intolerance in Germany
This year also saw the March of Fascists
On Rome, and the BBC's birth to boot

1921 - Vanishing borders

The eurozone's melting like Arctic ice
Maybe that's because of iron German rule
And French collaboration - that's not nice
We learn about democracy in school
But where's the process, the vote? They can't fool
Even their own populations, who shout
Their opposition, demonstrate, and call
For occupation of Brussels, Frankfurt
In tents they shiver, maybe long-haired louts
Or maybe our future, outside the vice
Of centralisation of capital
Billionaires controlling shadow markets
These are the new dictators, force applies
Once more like in the thirties, harsh and cruel

1920 - The twenties start to roar

Sacco and Vanzetti, bombs in Wall Street
J. Edgar Hoover investigating
Reds, who back in Russia would soon defeat
The Whites, Kolchak caught, eastern troops freezing
New American President, Harding
The League of Nations moves to Geneva
Prohibition starts, stops Yanks from drinking
Turkey loses its empire, new leader
Zionists move to Israel, post-Balfour
Ireland partitioned, North and South discrete
The Southern IRA freedom-fighting
Kapp Putsch, Ruhr Red Army, early Hitler
Greece tried and failed to expand to the east
In 1920 this was happening

1919 - Red Terror

The Communists were still ruling Russia
In 1919, invading Ukraine
To suppress independence claimed last year
The other republics would get the same
The Cheka spread Red Terror, all untamed
Lenin would beat the Whites at all costs. In
The States, large labour strikes broke out, the flames
Of reactionary counter-revolution
Were fanned there, as with German rebellion
By the left's motley crew, brief disorder
Put down by the Freikorps, war veterans
Hired by the Weimar regime. In Scotland
There were even tanks in Glasgow, the fear
Everywhere, Bolsheviks bringing ruin

1918 - World War One (Part Five)

1918 - the map redrawn again
Though uncertainty dragged on til '19
The western front joined by Americans
The exhaustion of the German machine
Their best men gone, sapped by the Somme and Aisne
The Marne and Amiens, despite the end
Of the eastern front, Russia's men being
Removed from the war, communist Lenin's
Priority being the preserving
Of Marxism itself, Lithuanian
Ukrainian, Georgian, Armenian regimes
Poland freeing themselves, and the breaking
Up of Austria and Hungary. German
Sailors mutinied, end of war's dark dream

1917 - World War One (Part Four)

1917 - year that shook the world
Everything was collapsing all around
The flag of Armageddon was unfurled
On fields of France and Flanders' muddy ground
Vimy Ridge, Passchendaele, the Aisne, all drowned
In mud and bullets. The Germans' supplies
Low from British sea blockade, meant they'd mount
All-out U-boat war. When Americans died
In merchant ships bringing arms, the Yanks cried
For revenge, and mobilised. Russia's spoiled
Empire, by war finally overthrown
First the Tsar in February, then they tried
Pursuing liberal war, but soviets hurled
Them out, abolishing all bank accounts

1916 - World War One (Part Three)

Zeppelins drop bombs on London and Paris
Unreliable, liable to catch fire
Tanks cut through barbed wire to the Somme trenches
Of the Germans, but casualties were high
A million, 60% the Allies
The Somme was a sideshow, because Verdun
Was where the real German thrust lay - it lies
Before the plains of Champagne that lead on
To Paris. The French held firm. Attrition
There and even more at the Somme, the kiss
Of death, battle of equals, shells and wire
Yet France was a sideshow - the real German
War aim had been Russia, and maybe this
Tantalising goal would tempt them again

1915 - World War (Part Two)

In 1915 the World War progressed
Not at all, trenches static, give or take
The odd mile. U-boats and ships clashed from west
Of Chile to Korea. Both sides make
Advances, the British trial the break-
Through of the tank, while the Germans try gas
On the Russians, then the French, the Canuck
And Brits fighting near Ypres. The stalemate was
Established in the west, so the ruse was
To help Russia in the more fluid east
A sea route to supply them. But mistakes
Were made at Gallipoli. There were wars
At home as the Liberals split - Asquith's best
Had failed, and Lloyd-George now played for high stakes

1914 - World War One (Part One)

Franz Ferdinand was shot, Sarajevo
Late June '14 by a cross Bosnian Serb
He was the heir to Austria-Hungary, so
The Austrians felt justified to disturb
Serbian land. The Germans thought this superb
Russia will react, mobilise, and then
Germany will react in turn and curb
The growing Russian military threat when
The German force was still the stronger one
France was allied to Russia and also
Britain, who said they would stand by Belgian
Neutrality. The Germans struck east, though
Also west, soon into stalemate absorbed

1913 - Lucky or unlucky strike?

I'm on strike today along with Unite,
Unison, NUT, and my union
The PCS, and others, in a fight
To protect contracted work conditions
That includes the lure of decent pensions
Which was used to recruit us way back when
We began our jobs. The media often
Allow the public service workers none
Of the unstinting approval given
To those in private jobs, as though we might
Dispense with schools, hospitals, museums
Or institute mass privatisation
Cuts become easier, all done for profit
(With socio-economic destruction)

1912 - That sinking feeling

The Republic of China created
The age-old monarchy is gone for good
Lenin's Bolsheviks now separated
From Social Democrats - they felt more red
Scott's disastrous South Pole trip leaves all dead
The Titanic hits an iceberg and sinks
The total drowned reaches fifteen hundred
The Royal Flying Corps first spreads its wings
Sarah Bernhardt appears in early films
Emperor Meiji by Taisho succeeded
The Balkan states throw out their Turkish lords
W.C. Handy's blues widely sang
Woodrow Wilson is this year elected
The year is 1912. Knew that? You should!

1911 - Speed of life

Why did Gary Speed do the deed, and hang
Himself? This is what's perplexing us all
Not a household name, just a family man
Which makes it odd, ununderstandable
A player and manager of football
He played for Everton and later Leeds
Later on Bolton, and at Newcastle
Then after retirement, chosen to lead
Sheffield United as manager. Freed
After a few months to manage Wales, and
After a rocky start, resources small
In players and cash, started to succeed
Was it depression? Scandal? What had stung
Him into this, made him suicidal?

1910 - The ends of three eras

In 1910 Edward VII died
George V, Vicky's grandson, took his place
Two years before, in Lisbon, on a ride
King Carlos had been shot. The growing pace
Of Republicanism would replace
Young King Manuel II, two years on
In Mexico, old Porfirio Diaz
Thirty-year dictator, rigged elections
Which Madero had more than likely won
This sparked a revolution, the poor tried
To free themselves - Villa, Zapata raced
Around the sierras. First Huerta, then
Carranza stabilised then liberalised
But even then, Mexico knew no peace

1909 - Family round-up

Some family news, not said much for a while
My divorce from Tania was finalised
In late October, so now I'm single
Officially! In March, Pearl got her prize
Award of first-class degree from the spires
Of Oxford, and moved into a shared flat
In Islington, then got work she admires
In a TV company's office that
May lead upwards. Louis' been forced to wait
For a London job but he's won in style
Last night he heard he'd got one, though surprised
Researcher for horror films - how 'bout that?
Vera crashed her car but she's teaching still
Little Josie's writing won a school prize

1908 - The Balkan time-bomb winds up

The Treaty of Berlin carved up the east
Thirty years before, but the aftershock
Was still rumbling on. The Ottoman beast
Was staggering to its fall, hands of the clock
At ten to midnight. Time for the Young Turk
Revolt, marching from Thessaloniki
To Constantinople, where they then broke
The Sultan's power. Bulgaria, though free
In fact since '78, officially
Declared independence, its tsar increased
His ego and desire for land, but look -
Austria-Hungary's old Franz-Josef, he
Annexed Bosnia, which before he just policed
Serbia and Russia took this painful knock

1907 - Softened drinker

A lot of drinking in these last few nights
And meanwhile every night I am disturbed
Waking at three or maybe four and quite
Unable to drop off again. Being served
Pints or knocking back cans is what I've learned
To reduce lately, so I'm unused to
The side-effects, and in a strange reverse
Of the expected, though sleep starts on cue
It doesn't stay long - wakefulness breaks through
In mid-dream, and music, recent delight
Or disappointment circles, won't disperse
Despite cumulative weariness. True -
I've had a few nights out but socialite
Times are on hold - time to save, stay sober

1906 - Year of disasters

It seems unfair to blame San Andreas
I'm not really sure that it was his Fault
That way back in the year 1906
San Francisco was rocked and what was built
Largely fell down or caught fire, and it killed
About 3,000. However, far worse
Was a quake a few weeks later that chilled
Chile, when Valparaiso appeared cursed
Despite its name suggesting paradise
And 20,000 died. And now let's pause
To remember those drowned in water-filled
Hong Kong a few more weeks on, in the course
Of a typhoon and tsunami. This was
Enough to cause belief in mankind's guilt

Wed 23 Nov

1905 - Revolutions in Bern and St Petersburg

1905 was great and terrible
That year Einstein published five great papers
Explaining Brownian motion, particle
Activity, the action of light, laws
Of relativity, with few real flaws
In his theories despite a humble post
As a patent officer in Bern. Course,
He was a scatter-brain in some ways - most
Mythical mad scientists are. The coast
Of China near Korea, littered with piles
Of Russian and Japanese dead, bled for
Tsar Nicholas, led to extreme unrest
That and the poverty... The crucible
Of Bloody Sunday, soviets grabbing power

1904 - Bloomsday

June 1904 - James Joyce meets Nora
And she sticks to him like a Barnacle
The writer - once a musician - and her
The Dublin hotel worker - odd couple
By all accounts she was quite sexual
And he became smitten, this geeky guy
And their episodes were influential
On the tone of his nostalgic story-
Telling, famously, or infamously
In 'Ulysses'...Is Molly just like her
In tormenting Leopold, unfaithful
At least in her or in his fantasy
Is this what would gnaw at Joyce the writer
As he worked and she grew irritable

1903 - Flying tonight

The first-ever heavier than air plane flight
Took place in 1903, the balloon
Superseded, thanks to the Brothers Wright
All those millennia when up a mountain
Was the only way to have the vision
Of looking down upon a bed of cloud
Up where the sky is always pristine blue
And the sun blinds you above the white shroud
When clouds are gone the land is now allowed
For study - famous coastlines come in sight
Peninsulas, rivers reflecting sun
Whole towns and cities, tiny cars on roads
Cheap flights pollute but we love the sheer height
And the world spread below our tube-shaped room

1902 - Long day's journey

My brother's fifty today, a landmark
Our older sister, she's already there
Soon it'll be my turn. Once in the park
We played cricket in those two hot summers
'75 and 6, and that was where
My brother poured our Dad's ashes beneath
A new tree, later vandalised. Prepare
Now, on the coach to Birmingham, to see
The old places transformed - through gritted teeth
Trying to recall things past in the dark
Recesses of memory, the old centre
Of Birmingham, then by train or bus, leave
For Lichfield, where I'll meet Robin and work
On getting drunk in The Feathers later

1901 - Anarchy in the USA

In 1901 Queen Victoria died
As did US President McKinley
Vic died of old age on the Isle of Wight
Mac of two bullets at close range when he
Was at Buffalo Expo - anarchy
The alleged motive, but the assassin
Was a disaffected loner, quietly
Submitting to grisly execution
In the electric chair, no real good done
Unless to protest against the great tide
Of big business and titans like JP
Morgan, relentless consolidation
And mergers. Teddy Roosevelt decried
The worst excesses of those trusts quickly

1900 - Twentieth century blues

Welcome my friends, welcome everybody
To the start of the twentieth century
I don't want to Boer you but the GB
Army fought at Spion Kop so bravely
And relieved Ladysmith later to the
Relief of our empire and Treasury
King Umberto I of Italy
Was shot four times by anarchist Bresci
The next incumbent of that monarchy
Ruined it (too close to Mussolini)
Old Queen Vic visited London City
She proclaimed Australia a new country
The Filipinos fought the Yanks fiercely
The Labour Party starts led by Hardie

1899 - More pink bits on the map

The Boer War began 1899
Between Britain and Dutch expatriates
Who had settled South Africa in time
To create Transvaal and Orange Free State
The British had Cape Colony, the great
Kimberley mine, and lots of their settlers
Now living on Boer-ruled land would await
The sight of 'liberating' Brit forces
The whole of SA under auspices
Of Queen Vic's regime would suit them just fine
At first the small army of Lord Roberts
Was besieged here and there. At last, success
At great cost, more troops, Kitchener did fine
But only using camps that concentrate

1898 - The eagle spreads its wings

1898 was the only year
Of the conflict geographically wide
Known as the Spanish-American War
In which the Yanks grabbed Puerto Rico, tried
To grab the Philippines, grabbed Guam, allied
Themselves to the Cuban independence
Fighters, where Teddy Roosevelt's rough ride
Gained him popular political points
Guantanamo Bay however remains
De facto US land on Cuba's shore
By December, Spain's vast empire had died
Hawaii's republic was rendered defunct
By US annexation, as earlier
They'd removed its queen who'd bravely defied

1897 - I obviously don't belong to Glasgow

Alarm at five fifteen, I had to rise
In late night darkness and head for the train
Battle against time, against weariness
Transported up to wild Scotland again
Saw horrid tribes clad in kilts, quite insane
They brandished their cabers, whisky and gin
In rushing rivulets gushing doon glens
I saw Little Yins and saw a Big Yin
Deep fried Mars Bars were gi'en me for din
I'm back in Sassenach Land noo, but pies
An fries and a' that made me fat, ma brain
Reelin' in the beers...Yo, Mr Salmond...!
Er, oh dear, sorry, I apologise
Glasgow was quite normal, with spots of rain

1896 - I need to talk about we need to talk about Kevin

Last night, though somewhat drunk, I read the last
Hundred pages of the recent novel
'We Need to Talk About Kevin' ... The list
Of films at the cinema proved a thrill
Because the Cornerhouse alone was still
Showing the film of the book - how lucky!
The book was linear but Lionel
Shriver did shuttle back and forth in the
Narrative, which was epistolary
The film was like that too, the first part fast
Shuttling, then settling down to family hell
The son just didn't like people, you see
So he became a high school terrorist
And proud of it, Mom was ashamed to tell

1895 - Wilde is the wind

In 1895 they held a trial
In London's fair city - or was it fair?
Of well-known poseur and wit Oscar Wilde
'Earnest' had opened earlier that year
A play that's proved enduring, to be sure
Wilde brought a libel case against big old
Marquess of Queensberry of boxing lore
Whose third son, Lord Alfred Douglas, grew cold
Towards the infamous Irish wit, sold
Too much on shocking, maybe, though meanwhile
His tall compatriot George Bernard Shaw
Got away with being left-wing. Wilde rolled
The dice and lost, open homosexual
Behaviour being a scandalous affair

1894 - 11 11 11 11

Eleven eleven eleven e-
Leven came and went within a minute
This was at eleven a.m. today
Eleventh hour, day, month, year - this was it
A full two minutes of complete quiet
In the office, not even some typing
The eerie feeling then manifested
That someone remote was now controlling
Our wills and thoughts and we were consenting
Out of if nothing else conformity
For I have no relative death credit
And so my thoughts float through the window, free
To settle on drivers ignoring it

1893 - Death and Texas

In 1893 dear Dorothy
Parker was born into this vale of tears
She slagged off everyone, and later she
Was blackballed at the McCarthy movies
One of her books was called Death and Taxes
Now today in the Republican race
We've seen on the TV Death and Texas
When Rick Perry just had to shut his face
And his race died, and then so did his place
Opposing Obama in the 20-
12 election. Lest we forget, Rick, he's
Injected more Texans than other guys
The favourite is, well may be Mitt Romney
Let's hope it's no-one who likes Tea Parties

1892 - Only the Berlusconi

A round-up of the news that's big today
There's always plenty of good news stories
In Europe, finances are all astray
And the big story now is Italy's
Seven per cent bond yield. Berlusconi's
On his way out, apparently. Football
Controversy over whether poppies
Can be worn or cannot be worn at all
Have UKBA been too reasonable
Even slack in their checks? Theresa May
Is under fire as immigration is
A hot topic. Celebrity Jungle
Is about to begin again, hooray
And that's my sonnet news analysis

1891 - Not so Pathetique

By 1891 Pyotr Tchaikovsky
Was the most famous Russian composer
The year before, ballet Sleeping Beauty
Debuted, and soon to come, The Nutcracker
Late '80, the 1812 Overture
Was tossed off without too much emotion
On Pyotr's part, even though he loved Russia
After all they'd loved 'Eugene Onegin'
And Swan Lake approached ballet perfection
Arrangements fitting choreography
In '91 he was the conductor
On the night the Carnegie Hall opened
In that far-off western New York City
Two years later he died of cholera

1890 - Kaisers and tsars

Two years ago in 1888
Was the Germans' Year of Three Emperors
Wilhelm I died at ninety, a great
Period of German growth and success
But Bismarck had used Machiavellian ways
To manipulate the king, keep a grip
On actual power. Frederick III was less
Authoritarian, but throat cancer stopped
A more liberal Germany as he slipped
From life. Wilhelm II seemed to hate
His mother, Queen Vic's daughter, Vic, and forced
The building of a rival navy. Tipped
Also toward war, Russia would regret
Liberal Alex's death by mad bombers

The last line refers to the assassination of Tsar Alexander II in 1881.

1889 - Impressions of Paris

1889, Belle Epoque, Paris
Small matter of a tower built by Eiffel
I wouldn't like to build something like this
I wonder if construction workers fell
You could fall in Seine if you're not careful
Then there was the contrast of boulevards
With Montmartre on its hill, a village feel
And at its foot, in Pigalle, the reward
For a tough week exploiting Communards
Was to watch La Goulue exploiting this
And that part of your body and your soul
Toulouse-Lautrec painted her while the arts
World chin-stroked at all those Impressionists
And starry-eyed Van Gogh painted nightfall

1888 - Ripping yarn

1888, the mysterious
And deadly Jack the Ripper stalks the streets
Of London - Jack the knife, meticulous
And out of control, surgical and neat
Extracting organs, slashing through the meat
Some say he was a lord, even a prince
The Queen's doctor... He hated prostitutes
Or did he just like turning them to mince
For some sick kick? He left few fingerprints
To the chagrin of the East End coppers
It counts as one of their saddest defeats
He slunk down some dark alley in the mist
Some say he hopped on a ferry, got lost
In Europe. To the rope he was a cheat

1887 - Not always crashing in the same car

Went out for a few pints with John after
Work, to Bar Fringe, then the Crown & Kettle
And then I walked a short distance over
To ex-wife V's flat, not seen for a while
She's recovering from a terrible
Car crash in which her car was wrecked, so now
Neither parent of Louis or of Pearl
Can give them a lift anymore, although
I can hire a car from the Club. I saw
My first Car Club invoice - it was a mere
Twenty-eight quid. Last night a horrible
Pile-up on the M5, lorry and car
Intertwined and in flame, lives ended near
Taunton... Blue flashing lights, twisted metal

Friday 4 - Sat 5 Nov

1886 - Headlines from 1886

Britain grabs Burma, Benz invents a car
Gladstone proposes Home Rule for Ireland
Parnell supports it, the Orange Order
Does not. It's defeated in Parliament
In early May, Chicago's Haymarket
Riots, an anarchist bomb, people killed
And May Day is born, the labour movement
Commemorating it all round the world
Emile Berliner starts to make records
In flat disc form, the musical future
Coca-Cola's made by John Pemberton
In Georgia, and after his death, bottled
Strange death of Ludwig of Bavaria
In a shallow lake, mysteriously found

1885 - African fire sale

The scramble for Africa was full on
By 1885, so much so that
They had to hold a conference in Berlin
To decide which Europeans could have what
Bismarck chaired, of course, without his helmet
Most of the time, Germany now a power
Able to grab land at the last minute
Before it all went, and Tanganyika
Cameroon, and what is now Namibia
Went to them, perhaps by dice throw. Britain
Was already in Egypt, although that
Was Ottoman-owned, and South Africa
Boers notwithstanding. Leopold (Belgium)
Grabbed the Congo, creating the dark heart

1884 - Fabulous Fabians

In January 1884
The Fabian Society arrived
A social democratic group before
The birth of the Labour Party relieved
It of its leadership role, but its gift
Was to be a think tank for left wing views
More left-wing than Gladstone's Liberals, less soft
On bosses and exploitation of those
Poor workers in the teeming towns, abused
Hired and fired at will. Long after Labour
Was born in 1900, they still proved
A valuable force. Membership includes
Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, G.B. Shaw
And Bertrand Russell when they were alive

1883 - Busts and lusts

Here in the National Portrait Gallery
Is where I've spent most of today, looking
And learning. I enjoyed the Regency
And Victorian portraits most, refreshing
My memory of much recent reading
Much of it centred on political
Themes, Tory and Whig fights never-ending
The Prince Regent / Queen Caroline scandal
And what about William IV? Angel?
Certainly not, illegitimately
Fathering ten children, yet still failing
To provide an heir, meaning it then fell
To Frederick's daughter Vicky, and Freddie
Had a mistress (her bust was nice-looking!)

By 'bust' I mean a head and shoulders sculpure, of course, not her BUST...

Tue 31 Oct

1882 - St Paul would be turning in his grave

A morning walk up the road to Camden
A thriving market, absolutely full
Of tourists. I bought books, CDs and then
Ate an excellent pie and mash while all
London seemed to push past, then to St Paul's
Which was on the telly tonight, protests
And tents, we saw them ranged next to its walls
Read posters, banners, drawings, then we crossed
Millennium Bridge to Bankside and soon passed
The reconstructed Globe Theatre and on
To Tower Bridge. It was a wonderful
Mild evening, but our feet needed a rest
We returned to Pearl's flat, Caledonian
Road, bought takeaways... and I think that's all

Sun 30 Oct

1881 - Midnight in London (and Paris)

First full day in London, a sleepless night
Following over-indulgence in drink
A walk with Pearl round Islington, a bright
Warm late October day, and then walking
To Bloomsbury, in Skoob bookshop choosing
Five books there... Could only find Starbucks
To piss in, so we made do with drinking
Their crap coffee, back to the flat, left books
There, then to Camden Odeon to look
At a Woody Allen film, called 'Midnight
In Paris' - plein de familiar settings
Didn't go drinking - Pearl had a headache
And I'm still dehydrated, so I'm right
In front of the TV - football's showing!

Sat 29 Oct

1880 - Long coach journey into night

Sunny Manchester, rainy in London
Strange though it seems, that's how it was today
The coach trip should be five hours' duration
But motorway hold-ups meant a delay
In arriving of 90 minutes. They
Got us to Victoria at 6:20
I got the tube to King's Cross, left up the
Caledonian Road, then a curry
With daughter Pearl, two pints of Blue Moon, we
Chatted in 'The Driver' then home again
To number 296 Cally Road. Hey
I'm not sure what tomorrow brings, to be
Honest, but let's hope it will bring some fun
And that I make the most of this short stay

Fri 28 Oct

1879 - Guns against spears

The Brits really were a rum bunch back then
In the nineteenth-century and earlier
Take Southern Africa, someone take them
Well Britain took everything, and that's where
It was trying to grab land, even where
Other colonists had arrived there first
Such as the Dutch emigrant and farmer
(Or 'Boer' in Dutch), not forgetting the cursed
Africans themselves, Hottentots, or worse
Those warlike Zulus, spear-carrying men
Of great height and width, seeming without fear
Yet Cetshwayo, their king, did his utmost
To placate Bartle Frere's war-provoking
Policies, pitting guns against the spear

1878 - The Balkans - support act for World War One

1878 saw the Russians
Successful in their anti-Turk campaign
The French were still weak after the Prussian
Defeat, and concern expressed by Britain
Over Russia's success and Ottoman
Decline led to a Bismarck-led conference
In Berlin, which lessened the Russian gain
Reducing the size of the Bulgarians'
Land, still nominally Turk-held. Offence
Was created by that, and Austrians
Being given Bosnia. Serbia blamed
Them for restricting its independence
To a small patch, while Macedonians
And Muslim Albanians had unmet claims

1877 - Recorded history

New Jersey, 1877
A relatively young man called Thomas
Edison invents the phonograph and
Ushers in recorded sound and records
Although Emile Berliner's idea was
To make it flat and round and playable
On both sides, A side, B side, twenty years
Later, and that product was the staple
Medium for most music fans up until
The 1980s. I remember when
I was a toddler, getting grubby paws
On my parents' discs - Ken Dodd, the Beatles
I became a paper boy, bought my own
Round slices of heaven, glamorous noise

1876 - Feathers flying

The North American Indian Wars
And the main characters of the Wild West
Created legends, kids' games and quick draws
Cowboys and Indians, films and all the rest
The Last of the Mohicans was the first
Major novel or work of art that fed
This hunger, but Buffalo Bill did best
With his Wild West Shows, touring with his friends
Texas Jack and Will Bill Hickok, whose end
Came in a saloon card game, while robbers
Such as the James gang raided banks and worse,
Shot innocent men, even raiding trains
The Great Plains, the West, also Florida's
Deep south saw natives killed, moved and suppressed

1875 - Pretty Car Club

I have to say that I really enjoyed
Driving my City Car Club car today
I put my foot down, felt the car explode
With acceleration, and the brakes, they
Had incredible power to delay
Our progress instantly, make the car jerk
The only thing was, well, I had to pay
Quite a lot of money to make this work
I considered leaving the club, to ask
For my fee to be returned, then I thought
To access these cars any night or day
Now I have no car, that's a real perk
Even if ordinary hired cars are owed
Less by us to take ourselves far away

Sun 23 Oct

1874 - Cafe rock scene

I'm here in a cafe in Tyldesley town
It's on the way to Wigan, don't you know
Open mike night, five minutes to put down
One poem and one song, guitar borrowed
Steve Miller, and then Cheryl's poems flowed
Then it was me, then Laura and then Dave
Petrova was next, I think... I'm not proud
My memory's poor... but the listeners gave
A good response. Rob was next, talk of graves
And death, Halloween style. A lady, then
A group called A Means To An End, followed
By sausage rolls, judging by the smell...Have
A bite to eat, then the main acts. First on
Bob Kettle, then Gordon Zola... then who?

Sat 22 Oct 2011

1873 - Sic semper tyrannis

At work yesterday I heard Gaddafi
Was captured, and soon after, he was killed
When I got home late I saw on TV
The footage, though indistinct, and was chilled
I didn't feel sorry he was jostled
But he should not have been shot without trial
The Libyan authorities may have called
For him to be taken alive but, while
The fighting lasted, couldn't keep control
From far-off Benghazi or Tripoli
Of excited young men with guns, all thrilled
Not to say angry to have caught this vile
Dictator of forty-two years. Now he
Is a paraded corpse free to be filmed

1872 - Trams, buses and food

My son Louis has gone down to London
Tomorrow he has a job interview
As researcher for horror films - that is one
Job that out of so many he can do
I wish him good luck, good luck to you, Lou
Meanwhile here in Manchester, I got pissed
After work, Ange's birthday, we went to
A Greek restaurant, glad I didn't miss
Gas Lamp, then Tiger Lounge, then Greek grub. It's
Difficult writing poetry when one
Is slightly drunk. Tracey had had a few
So she needed help. The tram came, she missed
It, but I made sure that she got upon
The tram to Sale, for I still had a clue!

1871 - Shitty Car Club

I thought City Car Club was the answer
To my current carless situation
But at the moment I'm going nowhere
And if they don't improve I may just end
My membership as soon as it's begun
The pricing on the website says that it's
Forty two quid to hire a runaround
For twenty four hours, and fuel's not a cost
But when I try to book, the estimate's
Sixty four quid - mileage IS a factor
It seems therefore like the whole thing's a con
I tried ringing them but the lines were crossed
They should ring back but as it gets closer
To 8pm, they won't, they'll just go home

1870 - Frantic France

In 1870 Napoleon
The Third of France's Second Empire fell
At the hands of the newly strong Prussian-
Led North German Confederation, well-
Defeated in a month or two, the real
Cause was Bismarck's provocation over
The issue of the Spanish throne. The full
Might of the Germans, marshalled by Moltke
Easily won the Franco-Prussian War
Encircling the French up there at Sedan
They besieged Paris which fell when they shelled
It. 'New republic!' announced Gambetta
Despite this, Paris was run by Commune
Till the French army quashed it very well

1869 - Parliamentary debate on Hillsborough

They're talking now after twenty-two years
In Parliament about the Hillsborough
Disaster of '89. It appears
To be becoming at last de rigueur
To uncover what they used to cover
After scandals of MP's expenses
And Bliar's Iraqi dodgy dossier
After erecting hurdles and fences
And hiding behind legal defences
News International's rag disappeared
Following Murdoch's tactical error
Yet while phone hacking must be defenceless
More so the London right wing media smears
Of Liverpool, when the blame lay elsewhere

1868 - Ferment and tumult in '68

1868, more and more happens
Andrew Johnson, US Prez, is impeached
The Meiji Restoration in Japan
Brings to an end the shogunate, to teach
Modern ways to the samurai. The snatch
Of North American Native lands progressed
As nine thousand Navajos had to march
To their inadequate new place of rest
And reservation. Trades Union Congress
Met in Manchester, so the north could stand
Up for itself in motion and in speech
The previous year the Manchester Martyrs
Were hanged for being seditious Fenians
Now London watched the last public rope stretch

(The last line refers to the last public hanging in Britain, of Michael Barrett, probably another false conviction and execution of an Irish nationalist)

1867 - Canada!!!

In 1867 the big land
Of Canada as we know it today
Came into being, the Dominion
Including Quebec, Ontario, a
Few others such as Nova Scotia. Hey -
I'm struggling now - it's quite a mystery
Such a big place but so little to say
So strange for such a big wealthy country
English-speaking, long land border with the
Best-known state, or states, in the world, the grand
Old - sorry, new - United USA
Oops, shouldn't have mentioned the enemy
Of Canada, from who they stand apart
But not distinctive in any great way

1866 - Comment is me

Some recent news items that come to mind
Gaddafi's still being hunted in Libya
Americans are becoming less blind
The 99 per cent protesting there
Assad's under pressure in Syria
Yulia Tymoshenko's jailed in Ukraine
Corruption all over the old Russia
Though it's not the jailed that's always to blame
Greece tottering, how long they'll play the game
Of the eurozone, who knows, and behind
Them there's other weak points under pressure
Like Italy, Portugal, Belgium, Spain
Liam Fox, ex-Defence Minister, finds
Foxhunting's still a sport - goodbye to ya!

1865 - Dramatic denouement

John Wilkes Booth, handsome, successful actor
Adored by women, even drilled for oil
So believed in the cause of slave-owners
That he hated Abe Lincoln above all
And plotted to kidnap him and then sell
Him back from Virginia to Washington
In exchange for Confederates, hoping still
Despite Robert E. Lee's surrender, some
Southern military revival would come
Having played such characters of Shakespeare
As Richard III and Hamlet, turmoil
Naturally wracked his brain, Booth took his gun
Hid behind the balcony, Ford's Theater
And popped one in Abe's head, fled, and was killed

1864 - War-torn, war-torn, everywhere

There was trouble in 1864
Most famously in the US of A
Where they were nearing the end of their war
Between the slave states in Confederate grey
And Union soldiers in blue, on the way
To victory, trampling the grapes of wrath
As Sherman did on that March to the Sea
From Atlanta to Savannah. The path
To white settlement of New Zealand with
Its green hills and mountains was blocked before
And after by hostile Maori tribes. They
Elected their own king. Some fought til death...
Danish and Prussian wooden ships fought for
Control of Schleswig-Holstein in the bay

1863 - Departmentalised

Had to rise at 5:25 am
To get the train to Manchester Airport
From where I flew early to Southampton
For a meeting during which tax was talked
About for three hours or so, some being taught
New things and enjoying it, me hearing
The same sort of things as usual, a sort
Of dissatisfied rumbling and grumbling
And people talking about retiring
From HMRC as soon as they can
Myself, I can more easily be bought
Or maybe can't afford to pack it in
At present I intend to carry on
In the department that now seems so fraught

1862 - Bismarck left his mark

1862 - Otto von Bismarck
Becomes the prime minister of Prussia
He always stayed loyal to the monarch
Friedrich Wilhelm IV, his successors
Wilhelm I, Frederick I, and the
Military Kaiser Wilhelm II
Otto united Germany. Austria
Would never be as glorious again
Few imperial ambitions, so Britain
Was not rivalled or threatened, but he looked
For some African lands like all others
He retired after Wilhelm II
Made clear their differences. Otto saw dark
Shadows ahead, great European war

1861 - Life without a car

There is life without a car, but it's not
As we know it, those of us who had one
My day with Josephine, it almost went to pot
Because of steady rainfall that fell down
Wilmslow Leisure Centre, we were hidden
In there as it fell, eating quite cheaply
But why did she not eat her burger, then
Pretend to be sick somewhat comically
I didn't mind, we had fun, and Josie
Met her school pal Roman there, and then met
Maisie in Yogberries, two shakes, then on
To her house and then the train home for me
It was dark and the rain meant I got wet
Cycling to Salford... Leg muscles have grown!

1860 - Italy kicks out

Like a baby a long time in coming
Italy finally kicks its long leg
The '48 rebellions failed, teaching
Small Piedmont-Sardinia now to beg
For French help, which Cavour did, but a big
Favour was done by the Carbonara
Secret society's Orsini who flung
Three bombs at Napoleon, French emperor
Which pricked the latter's conscience. At Plombieres
He agreed to help Cavour removing
Austria from North Italy. Habsburg
Out, and the Bourbons too, the south area
From Sicily to Naples uniting
With the north, under Garibaldi's wing

1859 - Wheels good to me

I left work at lunchtime to sort the car
Sale. The car was at a Moss Side garage
I got on my bike - luckily not too far
To get the paperwork done. By and large
I avoided the showers and I forged
My way to Trafford House on Chester Road
A busy DVLA place. Managed
Transfer of ownership, then Stretford Road
Towards Hulme and Moss Side, cycling toward
Cedric's Motors. Gave him the form, and our
Agreed sale fee, a hundred quid, foraged
From his drawer into my pocket. Not loads
But gratefully received. Me and Lou saw
England's game and Wayne Rooney's sabotage!

About Friday 7 Oct but written on morning of Sat 8 Oct

1858 - Fiesta Farewell

Farewell to you my dear Ford Fiesta
You've been with me since 2004
My first car was a green Ford Sierra
In October '96, but before
Long it had dents and scratches on its door
When I jammed it against my own brick wall
Trying to drive onto my drive - oh lor!
In February '02 I bought a small
Black Fiesta that at the time my girl
Chose for me, but lack of oil killed that car
Engine, and so from Wilmslow Ford Polar
I chose a cheap dark red three door. A real
Bad smash the next month to its front bumper
It's been great since but now it's fucked for sure

1857 - India rises

In 1857 India
Rose against the East India Company
Which employed British and Indian soldiers
And annexed ever more territory
Lately the Punjab, but was felt to be
A bad thing by the old landlords and by
The dispossessed Indian nobility
And royals with no male heirs when they died
The rebellion was northern, hue and cry
In the Bengali army with gunners
Handed pig and cow fat-smeared weaponry
Insulting to their religions. Their side
Killed relatively few trapped Britishers
Harsh revenge, then direct rule by GB

1856 - Opium of the Chinese people

Hey China, get hip, tune in and turn on
We'll sell you drugs to help pay for our tea
OK, there was more to it, but Britain
Did not mess about in those days when we
Ruled the waves and the markets forcefully
Using the gun to conquer Asian lands
Or in China's case, enforce some treaty
Free trade for our merchants among demands
Open your ports to the west! Also France,
The US and Russia sent forces and
Technology beat sheer numbers quickly
After Pearl River, Britain could expand
Its small Hong Kong base to include Kowloon
Russia gained land and Vladivostok's sea

1855 - Lone star state

I'm writing this and then I'll play guitar
And after that I'll watch a film, I think
'The White Ribbon' by Michael Haneke
A German film - why not give it a fling?
Could I do all this if I was living
With a woman? But surely, she's worth more
Than all that? It's something worth debating
There's no right answer, of that I'm quite sure
And these things are usually determined for
Us by fate, allied to our lonely fear
Physically and mentally we might shrink
Inside a shell of solitude, but your
Individuality is your star
And guide to happiness - follow its blink

1854 - Crimea and punishment

How important to history is war?
Sometimes maybe it seems over-rated
It reappeared in 1854
The Turks and Russians hotly debated
Ownership of Wallachia. Things heated
Further with Russian ships departing from
Sevastopol, a port that's located
On the tip of Crimea, going on
To disrupt the western empires upon
The Mediterranean, trying to score
Some points for the tsar. Had he competed
Better, the British Empire might have gone
A lot sooner, the French too, but we saw
Instead Russian state weakness created

1853 - October is the hottest month

Late September and early October
Have been so hot it's unbelievable
Although tomorrow, they say the weather
Will include rain. Today saw loveable
Josie on Saturday as usual
But first saw Robin and new girlfriend called
Hazel. Not seen my brother for a while
I took them to Man City's ground, not filled
With crowds as they are away today. Spilled
Some cash on a real cool City top for
Louis, who is a fan. Remarkable
Piece of luck. City are the club who hold
The F.A. Cup, and it was displayed there
Lots of great pix taken on my mobile

1852 - Sonnet to a non-existent sonnet

Yesterday I did not write a sonnet
I confess this most egregious of sins
Office afternoon I could've done it
But straight after that I went out drinking
And not till 2 a.m. did I get in
By then I was well sozzled, pickled, drunk
And after a quick chat with Louis, then
I had to turn in, had to flop, kerplunk
Onto the bed, and I never once thunk
About the daily sonnet - what a twit
I don't forget to write very often
In more than five years I've carefully clung
To sonnetary routine, but I admit
I forgot. Oh no - what was I thinking?

1851 - Europa faux-pas

Everyone should be in the eurozone
A common currency for different states
It's turned out to be such financial fun
So simple without the old exchange rates
Although I must admit to calculate
Which cent coin is which when held in the hand
Ain't easy, nor is it to inculcate
Prudence by the Greeks and Italians
They spend, they don't save, unlike the Germans
Yet the Germans must now spend to save one
And all other members, must stimulate
The European body, moribund
Though it seems right now, propped up by big loans
Like a dependent's fix of opiates

1850 - Don't blame the potato

In 1850 the Irish famine
Was still oppressing the population
Many look back now and looked back even then
At the somewhat cruel administration
Back in far more comfortable London
And on those landowners' country estates
With servants dishing up piles of protein
Much of it meat and grain onto their plates
Grown and grazed in Ireland. As mortal waste
Followed potato blight that struck hard in
'45, food exports just carried on
Profit above relief, farm tenants chased
Out of their cottages to save paying
For food for them. Starvation, one million

1849 - Burdened by kilt

Awoke at 4 a.m. - at 4 a.m!!
The reason? My alarm was set for 5:
15, and I waited for the alarm
To go off - prone, but mentally alive
The Glasgow train by which I would arrive
In Bonnie Scotland left at half-past 6
And it would not be worth staying alive
If I missed it - my career would be nixed
No salary, no mortgage, mortar, bricks
I'd almost certainly come to self-harm
Although cowardly enough to survive
And continue to dodge life's artful tricks
Anyway, that disaster did not come
And at the meeting, full and frank talk thrived

Tue 27 Sep

1848 - Birth of the nations

The year of revolutions, '48
All kinds of tension, upheaval, unrest
The French July Monarchy met its fate
A new Second Republic drew first breath
While workers fought in Paris. The Chartists
In England briefly seemed a real threat
Perhaps seeing the German Parliament
In Frankfurt, and the mass of French voters
All having their say, yet the British got
Their way more peacefully, just had to wait
A few years, till the Liberals flew the nest
And took their seats. Hungary, Denmark, wars
South America, conflict, and the state
Of Italy soon to be born and blessed

1847 - Written in the stars

Looking back at 1847
The year was notable for two main things
The conclusion neared of the Mexican-
American War which, it's true, did bring
New lands to American belonging
New Mexico and California
But should these lands be free or slave-owning
That debate rumbled on to civil war
Soon the gold rush would draw men westwards there
Meanwhile in England's green and pleasant land
Bleak winters on the moors caused suffering
And early death, but not until Jane Eyre
And Wuthering Heights were dreamed of and written
By the Bronte sisters, candles flickering

1846 - Pitch almost perfect

The football season's proving interesting
England look set for Euro 2012
Wayne Rooney's doing the headline-grabbing
Manchester United's balding Scouse elf
Manchester City have excelled themselves
Leaving Chelsea to fight for third with Spurs
Arsenal need quick improvement in health
To compete with the top four, short on stars
Could this be the year Lancashire suffers
Bolton and Blackburn are both struggling
And will Wigan at last be overwhelmed
One division below, Derby, winners
Again, now third - our fans will be getting
Excited - promotion, glamour and wealth!!!

1845 - Recuerdos de Espana

Relaxing on a Friday evening with
Classical music from Madrid - Simon
Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic
Looks and sounds good on this television
memories not of Alhambra but northern
And central Spain, even the Teatro
Royal itself, from 2009
That October I had a real good go
At seeing it all - Burgos, Toledo
The Basque Country, Navarre, Gijon, Madrid
Mountain ranges both wooden and barren
Salamanca, Santiago, Vigo
Even Portuguese Porto, ending with
Bilbao, then Biarritz... Travel heaven!

Fri 23 Sept

1844 - Work and the weather

First day back at work for, well, quite a while
Woke early, got in early, did a lot
Just as well, as there were lots of emails
And two meetings, but at least I've now got
My feet back under the desk. It's not hot
Any more. I had to wear a T-shirt
In bed last night, and, walking to work, what
I noticed was, my hands were cold, the first
Instance of this since maybe last March. Worse
Than that though is Switzerland. I'd read while
On the train to Lausanne, more than a spot
Of snow had already fallen, a burst
Of white around St Moritz. Had to smile -
It seemed such an English news story plot

1843 -Haute cuisine de Salford

A quiet night's sleep in my bed, not a dorm
Typed up my holiday sonnets before
Collecting Pearl, who wasn't at all warm
The wind blew strongly. At first we weren't sure
Where to go for lunch, or to park the car
So drove to Salford Quays and ate inside
Cafe Rouge, sheltered from the gusty roar
She's happy in her job but can't decide
Whether to take promotion - she's worried
About going freelance, with its short-term
Contracts. Shopped for books, then took her sister
Josie for tea - a Chinese meal with fried
Rice, in the Alderley Rose. Time had come
For Josie to go home to sleep and snore...

Wed 21 Sept

1842 - Goodbye, Lausanne

A sunny day to close the holiday
My final few hours spent among the Swiss
A full breakfast in Zurich, on my way
By tram to the station, carrying this
Heavy bag of mine, weighing down my wrist
And dodgy left elbow - repetitive
Strain from guitar-playing - Bern-bound, I'll miss
This interesting country, so expensive
Bern to Lausanne - I'll be quite sad to leave
This lakeside town, my favourite, I would say
Of those I visited. Pretty Swiss Miss
Or two sitting in the sun - attractive
View of girls and mountains. A train delay -
I almost miss the plane home - near crisis!

Tue 20 Sept

1841 - The gnomes of Zurich

I've looked all over, combed each street and bridge
But I still can't find the gnomes of Zurich
From a tram window, scanned each likely pitch
But I still can't find the gnomes of Zurich
Leprechauns I've seen on St Stephen's Green
Abominable snowmen on high ridge
Defeated it seems, though I've never been
For I still can't find the gnomes of Zurich
I climbed a high church tower, surveyed the scene
From where old Ulrich Zwingli used to preach
Checked the apartment lived in by Lenin
No little men in suits looking quite rich
I've looked all over, combed each street and bridge
But I still can't find the gnomes of Zurich

Mon 19 Sept

1840 - Bern to be wild

My feet ache even more - I've walked round Bern
Now, as well as an exhibition in
Lausanne before I left, my one concern
In going there was just the visiting
Emmanuelle, who was exhibiting
Her range of clothes, called 'Vetements Joyeuses'
But specifically raincoats for women
Which she designs in eyecatching colours
Dodging the rain after we said goodbyes
I got the bus downhill to Gare, Lausanne
Got bags from hostel and then caught the train
Via Fribourg to Bern, casting my eyes
On the lake, then green landscapes as we turned
Northwards away from the jagged mountains

Sun 18 Sept

1839 - Mist on the water

My feet ache - well, I've walked round Lausanne, twice
Once this morning and again this evening
And if you don't know, it's a hilly place
Especially if you take some wrong turnings
I took the train to Vevey - exciting
It was, despite the rain - the lake, the peaks
Then beyond Montreux to the once chilling
Chateau de Chillon which held many treats
Not least its cast of actors and their feats
Of medieval lifestyle, medieval dress
Lots of good photos and some interesting
Anecdotes to tell. Reached Montreux, walking
By the lake, sunny again... But my feet!
Back to Lausanne, bought more food, but the price
Is mounting, despite my penny-pinching

Sat 17 Sept

1838 - Mountains and fountains

So hot and sunny again, Geneva
Was as its best, but where was the Jet d'Eau?
You know, the giant fountain that is the
Symbol of the city... We waited for
It to be swiched on and then watched it grow
To such a height, splashing the watchers on
The narrow jetty. Then Old Town, MAMCO
(Art gallery), River Rhone, and Mont Blanc
View from the lakeside and then later from
The train to Lausanne. Hostel and shower
I'm tired because dorm companions are so
Thoughtless sometimes, waking up everyone
And snoring all night. Got to go to the
Local shops before they close, don't you know?

Fri 16 Sept

1837 - D'ye never go to Geneva?

A lovely sunny day to start it off
Morning spent reading about Switzerland
Made a few notes, checked maps, packed and set off
For the airport. A fairly late flight, and
Dark when the easyJet flight came to land
In Geneva. Talked to a French lady
On the plane who sells French cheeses - that sounds
Funny, doesn't it? It proved real easy
To get the train from airport to city
So much so that I spent more than enough
Time and money in a pub, made a friend
Of a bloke from Nottingham who's really
Clever and works at CERN where they do stuff
Like scary atomic experiments

Thur 15 Sept

1836 - Tex-Mex, Oz and Swiss

In 1836 the Alamo
Battle took place, as the fight for Texas
Against the Mexicans started to glow
Red hot. Not a lot else, except perhaps
Charles Darwin's Beagle voyage, Galapagos
Behind him now, the wide Pacific crossed
Exploring round Sydney, Australians
Meanwhile evolving their new state, those lost
Souls from British prisons settling the west
Round Perth, that most remote town. Tomorrow
I'm off to Switzerland. No Brenner Pass
By car. First I'm touring the scenic coast
Of Lake Geneva, then by train I'll go
To Bern and Zurich. Time to meet the Swiss!

1835 - Handy Andy

A standout figure in pre-Civil War
America must be Andrew Jackson
Of Northern Irish stock, with bright red hair
His family suffered and died when Britain
Tried to prevent US independence
He was wounded when he refused to clean
A British officer's boots. Lawyer, then
Military man, and soon, at New Orleans
In 1812, that battle won was seen
To propel him to President, after
He'd made money as a slave landowner
In Tennessee, and most cruelly driven
The Indians from Florida. In 18-
35, he was shot at twice but saw
Another day, as luck spared him again

1834 - D'ye ken Bob Peel?

1834 - the year Robert Peel
First became Prime Minister, under William
The Fourth. Peel was northern, but with a feel
For Tory values, since he was the son
Of a rich industrialist. Melbourne
Was the Whig PM who had presided
Over the issue of voting reform
And Peel, a liberal Tory, now added
The Factory Act, and so regulated
The previously inhumane, awful
Working conditions, including children
Also, workhouses proliferated
A roof and bed for the poor, and a meal
For which, unlike now, they worked in return

1833 - Memories of ten years ago

Ten years ago today, 9/11
We'd say the 11th of September
2001, 2011
Blurs into one, even looks similar
A day easier than most to remember
I was told about it while out shopping
Then heard the second tower collapse on my car
Radio. Then I remember watching
The highlights on a loop - also sitting
In that rented living room, also stunned
Were big friendly Nick and sexy Sarah
Good housemates mostly, from my life long gone
Changes take place, mostly for the better

1832 - Strange changes

In 1832 the Reform Act
Came in, which awarded more men the vote
Though still a minority. Heirs of Pitt
Opposed, but pressure mounted till it broke
Conservative resistance, and the joke
Of rotten boroughs, and voteless large towns
Was ended for good. Someone new awoke
This year, the year of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson's
Birth - enigmatic author, and Britain's
Most famous weirdo, seemingly trapped
In childhood, yet clever beyond reproach
Clearly he was attracted by children's
Innocent virginity but still met
And impressed adults too with what he wrote

1831 - A hunchback whale of a tale

Dating from the year 1831
Is a great novel by Victor Hugo
And it's called 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame'
One description from it still haunts me so
And that's the view of Paris seen as though
You were scanning the cityscape from up
The cathedral, four hundred years ago
That, and the tragic end when she's strung up
That's Esmeralda, despite being shut up
For her own safety in the tower by shunned
King Kong / Elephant Man / Quasimodo
She didn't stab Captain Phoebus, but stop
The mad mob you could not. The gypsy scum
Must be taught a lesson. This girl must go

1830 - The Belgian mystery explained

This year saw exciting times in Belgium
The country as we know it created
Breaking away with its revolution
From the United Netherlands which had
Been put together by various allied
Victors over France as a buffer zone
Against it. This didn't work - united
It wasn't, for it contained Francophone
Catholics in the south, known as Walloons
As well as Flemish Catholics, hard done
By, they felt generally dominated
By those northern Dutch Calvinists, and groaned
Under William the First, but now had come
In 1830 to their own statehood

1829 - Train of events

In 1829 the early train
Stephenson's 'Rocket' won the Rainhill Trials
Between four engines on the flat terrain
His company won the contract, the miles
From Liverpool to Manchester uncoil
Rapidly now, without horse power, just steam
Meanwhile Greece was at last free, its struggles
Freeing it from the Ottomans, the dream
Of Byron coming true, though he'd not seen
The great day, but his death was not in vain
To this day the Greeks and Turks both revile
Each other and Cyprus is now the scene
Of a fierce dispute, while others remain
Unlike mosques in Greece, long since smoking piles

1828 - A classical act

In 1828 Franz Schubert died
The year after Ludwig van Beethoven
Schubert was a relatively young lad
From Vienna, while Ludwig was from Bonn
Though he moved to Vienna later on
Beethoven began as the new Mozart
Child prodigy, influenced by Haydn
The latter also teaching young Schubert
Strangely, these two were both less than forward
With the ladies, neither married, though tried
In Beethoven's case, dismissed as common
By Josephine, his aristo sweetheart
Schubert may have had syphilis, typhoid
Fever possibly, so soon was he gone

1827 - Barbarians from Barbary and elsewhere

Piracy is a serious thing, of course
Even today, Somalis make the news
Each time they rob or kidnap. There were wars
Fought over this in the past. One of those
Was in the time of Barbarossa, close
To Mediterranean ports here and there
Much later France and the USA used
To lose ships and men round about Algiers
And Tripoli. Barbary pirates were
To blame, and so on Africa's north shores
Were trained the guns of navies, and then Charles
The Tenth of France invaded soon after
An Arab chief had struck a Frenchman's face
They stayed for 130 years

Mon 5 Sep

1826 - A rare British win

A humdrum day I suppose, feel a bit
Low on energy and inspiration
So I watched the athletics, saw a Brit
Win the 5,000 metres - what a run,
Mo Farah! Let's hope what he has just done
He can do in next year's Olympics which
(I expect you know) will be in London
Expectation's rising to fever pitch
For that, and less so for England's too-rich
Football team. Yes, it showed some fine spirit
In beating the hapless Bulgarians
But when the finals arrive, will it switch
As usual, to spiritless, gutless shit?
It's better to laugh at than support them

1825 - Cycling in the rain

I told Josie it was raining today
But she was still determined to cycle
But my back tyre's flat, I kept trying to say
These words must all have been inaudible
I have no pump - to ride's impossible
Anyway, before seeing her I bought
A pump from Halfords, and though difficult
Stuck her bike in my car, and soon we'd got
Her saddle raised (her knees were getting caught
On the handlebars - she grows every day)
Drove to my flat where I pumped my tyres full
And off we rode to Salford Quays, tried not
To get wet. A mad dog jumped in my way
And at great speed it headbutted my wheel
Sat 3 Sep 2011

1824 - What is to be done, part 47b

In my mind I am as ever struggling

To decide what I should now focus on

I've tried comedy, poetry, writing

Scripts, novels, philosophy, but not one

Of these has borne fruit so far, but there's some

Hope yet maybe from the comedy song,

A niche less competitive, for income

Since it combines all that singly goes wrong

But combined could please various types of throng

Recently I've tried guitar and singing

Though it makes me nervous. To make it fun

Could be the key, could be where I belong

In the realms of spontaneous ad libbing

Combined with rehearsed witty words and tune

1823 - Another venue closes

It's the last night at 'Gigs' - it's closing down
Upstairs from Butterflies, up in Bolton
The scene of many fumbling tries at sound
As well as poems which could come undone
This place is shutting down, these nights are gone
Like summer with its heavy banks of cloud
Today as autumn starts, we got the sun
I predicted the change - of that I'm proud
Tonight I did my Amy song - the crowd
Liked it, I think, though Jeff Dawson, the clown
Disparaged this classic! Fingers and thumbs
Admittedly misbehaved, but that's rude
He winds me up each time, but it's in fun
I hope. He's no great shakes. Still I go on...
Thur 1 Sep 2011

1822 - Shelley on the sea shore

1822 - Percy Bysshe Shelley
Is washed up on the shore of Italy
His friends Byron, Leigh Hunt and Trelawny
Cremated him there for health and safety
Reasons, though legend has it that Mary
His wife, or Hunt, grabbed from the funerary
Pyre, Shelley's smoking heart, eventually
Buried in Bournemouth, on her death. Did he
Help Mary to write Frankenstein? Likely
Since he did write its foreword, and probably
Helped her with the plot. He was thought badly
Of by his contemporaries, too free
In many ways, leaving wife and baby
And roaming Switzerland and Italy

1821 - Lake through the heart

In 1821 the suicide
Of John Polidori was not big news
Yet he was the first in English to write
Of vampires, one long June night on the Swiss
Shores of Lake Geneva with Percy Bysshe
Shelley, Lord Byron (whose doctor he was)
Mary Shelley and Claire Clairmont, who wished
To be Byron's love, but became the cause
Of his hate. In 1816, all those
Named read horror stories, then spent the night
Writing their own versions, which still amuse
Americans (and others), make dollars
Especially from the teen market. The side
Of Lake Geneva, soon meant for my eyes

1820 - Today's to-do list (mainly done)

August Bank Holiday, I've seen a lot
Of things on TV and on computer
The world athletics championships were brought
Live on TV all the way from Korea
I also studied German, to prepare
For my Swiss trip next month, while races ran
And hammers were thrown, and then i-Player
Was used to watch Gilbert O'Sullivan
And Eddie Waring, a Bill Hicks programme
And some Edinburgh Fringe stand-up slots
I'm writing this at seven. Next, guitar
Practice, with a new list of songs to run
Through in September, then a film I got
From the library...and then I'll be knackered

1819 - Mary Anne was not a man

In 1819 George Eliot was born
As Mary-Anne Evans, for she was not
A man, but came up with the nom-de-plume
So literary sexism could be offset
For a serious writer could be upset
By that kind of thing, do her work real harm
By not being read or published, a regret
That would kill the muse. Grew up on a farm
In the Midlands, views too modern for some
On religion and lifestyle. She was scorned
For not being a looker. Then she got
With a married man, causing some alarm
She spent time in Geneva, then went on
And up, for it was Middlemarch she wrote

1818 - The horror, the horror

In this year, that's the year 1818
Was published an early horror classic
Yes, it was Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
It set the standard for all horror schtick
Not sure though if he had bolts in his neck
Or was that Herman Munster? Hmm, dunno...
Since movies were invented, there've been flicks
Like Nosferatu haunting the shadow-
Filled cinema auditorium... Though
These were just 2-D celluloid, we'd Scream
When directed, or jump at each door's click
Hitchcockian suspense... See Saw? Er, no...
D'you want to see my chainsaw, pretty teen?
'Scuse me, my Ma's in the cellar... She's sick

1817 - Stage of development

So pleased I got today off, flexi-time
Enabling me to prepare properly
For a Bolton gig... OK, open mic
But these things often seem sent to try me
Today the problem was the battery
In my guitar had died since I used it
Last (ages ago) and it died on me
On stage which could have meant I died with it
But no, although the amps didn't work, grit
And humour saw me through, and they all liked
The act even if it was comedy
Mixed with music. But people sang lyrics
Of my song 'Barbecue In Crewe' as I'm
Singing it for the first time. I'm happy...

1816 - Food and drink

I've been out after work, the Marble Arch
Pub, Up Rochdale Road, was where we four went
Did it used to be called the City Arms
I have vague memories of times way back when
Especially vague, since I was drunk back then
In the early or mid-nineties. After
The Marble Arch we went back towards town
A Chinese restaurant, going by the
Name of the Glamorous, the area
It's in certainly not that, but no harm
Done. I got a lift home, after Neil lent
A lift to John up Liverpool Road, where
The Indian and Japanese places swarm
With punters after good meals for less spent

1815 - A little dust-up at Waterloo

In 1815 there was a to-do
In what's now Belgium, then the Netherlands
We're familiar with the name 'Waterloo'
Though younger folk associate it with trains
But the station's part of celebrations
Like Trafalgar Square is, of victories
In the Napoleonic Wars. Stations
With battlefield names abound in Paris
On the Metro, so it's not just the Brits
Who do this. The Romans built arches too
After twenty-five years of disturbance
Waterloo checked French imperial hubris
For long enough for others to come through
As worthy opponents - Germans, Russians...

1814 - Wars are to win or Toulouse

In 1814 Napoleon lost
The fight against the Russians and Prussians
Since Moscow he'd been forced back at great cost
Of land and men, now left with untrained sons
To fight for him, but the Parisians
Saw their own proud town ground down, enemy
Troops entering, and the Emperor gone
In exile to Elba. Arthur Wellesley
(Wellington) took Toulouse. Meanwhile, GB
Was also at war with the States across
The ocean, setting fire to Washington
DC this year, defending valiantly
The invasion of Canada, but lost
A fight next January in New Orleans

1813 - You are now entering Free Libya

Libya is at last feeling that it's free
From Benghazi to Tripoli. The grip
Of 42 long years of Gaddafi
Is almost loosened, its last fingertip
Clings as he prepares to fall off the cliff
The Transitional National Council
Is talking to NATO on how to slip
Painlessly from dictatorship to full
Democracy, with the quite difficult
Aspiration of that democracy
Not yielding to that backward-looking trip
Into theocracy, or some tribal
Split which would make more martyrs. Now to see
If the Syrians can pull off the same trick

1812 - The gates of Moscow

In 1812 Napoleon came to grief
At the hand of Russia's General Winter
Invading in the quite insane belief
That long-term gains from lightning strikes follow
In a country so vast, apart from the
Technologically undeveloped lands
Like Australia, North / South America
Africa, even China, but no chance
Of conquering Russia, far too far advanced
To be subdued for long, thanks to dead chiefs
With modernising vision, like Peter
And Catherine the Great. Even Hitler's tanks
Met the same icy fate, Moscow relieved
By snow, then driving out the invader

1811 - What's goin' down in 1811, y'all?

1811 was a busy year
All sorts of stuff was going on, trust me
Of course there were Napoleonic Wars
Mainly in Spain, but also Denmark's sea
Egypt's Albanian boss, Muhammad Ali
Also known as Ali Pasha was at
Constant near-war with Ottoman Turkey
Later, but now he was removing that
Centuries-old Mamluk rule. King George mad -
Official! Regency, under George Four
As he would become. Paraguay, Chile
Venezuela, join other states who had
Broken free from Spanish rule. Luddites were
Rising up, and the Yanks beat Tecumseh

1810 - Before going down the pub after work

I'm exhausted, woke up quarter to six
Each morning it gets earlier, it seems
Not drinking's working out okay, the trick's
Getting to sleep and staying deep in dreams
Sufficiently long. If not, when light streams
Under the morning curtains, it's okay
At first to get up early - it's a shame
Later when weariness is here to stay
Energy and attention start to stray
Mid-afternoon feels like midnight. Tocks, ticks
Each second clicks by, slow in the extreme
A drink after work? Can't stay out to play
That late, think I'd rather head home... But mixed
Feelings now... The pub may be the best scheme...
Fri 19 Aug

1809 - Sketches of Spain

In 1809 the Peninsular
War was dragging on, bloody and costly
In lives. The Spanish and Portuguese were
Treated by Napoleon's well-trained army
Brutally, and for what? Was it glory
Or greed on France's part? Madrid had fought
Back the year before, the Second of May
Rising being famously, movingly caught
In Goya's painting. Other sketches might
Also have been imagined from that war
Producing many monstrous shadowy
Charcoal images I studied when brought
Last year to Manchester..... Saragossa
Corunna, Porto, Talavera ... Cry!

1808 - Sheepish sonnet

So much to do and I'm a bit knackered
Cos I woke up before seven o'clock
By my standards I was an early bird
But it's OK, I got more done at work
However, I still need to play some rock
On my guitar (are my songs rock?) and I
Also have football and films I must look
At... and chores, and I should eat frozen pie
(After I've heated it!) and bye and bye
I'll be ready for blissful sleep in bed
Everything done, content for sheep to flock
Before my eyes... I decided to buy
Sheep's cheese at Sainsburys, so a whole herd
Of woolly fellows should appear, with luck

1807 - Hacked off again

They're starting to get bored of the riots
And now the top news story's phone hacking
Again, like it was in those recent months
The Murdochs back in the dock, and squirming
As disgruntled MPs turn the grilling
Up a notch, till the once-powerful are toast
Meanwhile the rioting teens are all finding
Themselves in jail, though some could only boast
Of taking bottles of water, though most
Were after a new phone, daughters and sons
Smiling on CCTV then, crying
In the cells now... Now welcome back the ghost
Of the hacking scandal. Meanwhile my funds
Are improving as I keep on saving...

1806 - Praise the Lord and pass the ballot paper

In America the Republican
Presidential candidates are coming
Out from the shadows into the open
A faith in God seems to be the first thing
They feel they must declare, like arriving
At an airport, revealing your baggage
To millions of inspectors, then going
Through a religious X-ray arch to gauge
Their fitness to enter office, the cage
That's oval-shaped, the goal for which they run
To be a ceremonial head, doing
As little as possible, disengage
From progressive programs soon as they can
Saying it's the old values they're keeping

1805 - Goldsinger

Got up, cleaned the flat and then wrote a song
Called 'End of the Golden Age' - that's a phrase
I've used before in a poem not long
Ago, but before the riots took place
The long-term crisis is hard to erase
From tha annals of probability
After all, population grows apace
Especially the poor, as together we
Exhaust resources like oil, kill the sea
No war or threat of war makes us less strong
Less united, selfish, where no-one stays
At home to teach their kids civility
Where jobs are long gone, the tormented young
Sold what they can't afford - for them, hard days

1804 - Glory and misery

In 1804 when Napoleon
Upset Beethoven, turning power mad
Crowning himself emperor in Notre Dame
Once more we saw corruption, though some said
It was for the best after years of bad
Governance by the Revolutionaries
Beneficent dictatorship's a good
Thing if the leader only focuses
On the good of his people, but this was
Not so, despite the Code Napoleon
A better legal system than they'd had
He was a military man, bound to seize
Not just power but land with a loud cannon
Where few could stop him drench that land in blood

1803 - Home or away?

My daughter's been on holiday in Wales
This week, and sadly there's not been much sun
My little girl, now eight, can't tell us tales
Of many trips or adventures, foreign
Or domestic, because me and her mum
Split up. She went to Italy when a baby
And obviously no memories remain
East Anglia when she was four, there'll be
Some recollection, like there'll be when we
Went to Dorset in '08. British gales
Rainstorms and summer clouds spoil every one
Of those British holidays. Only three
Were sunny that I can recall. It fails
Every time. I'm thinking of Switzerland...

1802 - Mass debates

I worked hard and I achieved miracles
At work today, it seemed, and left quite late
Then cooked my tea and watched the news, its tales
Of financial and societal straits
Afflicting us all. Russia Today baits
Us here in western Europe even more
Than those bloody BBC hypocrites
With their debates designed just to obscure
The truth we all know, the rich and the poor
Question Time's back tonight, with raised hackles
No doubt, about the riots, mass debate
Partisan views or idealistic blah
I can't help feeling that the liberals
Among us will be struggling in this fight

1801 - Eye witness account of the trouble in Manchester

As yesterday's train got to Manchester
I was tipped off that there might be trouble
In a text sent just then by my daughter
And sure enough as I came down the hill
From Piccadilly Station I saw all
These cops, some on horseback, guarding the way
To Market Street, now inaccessible
I threaded my way round to St Ann's Square
Where youths, intoxicated with power
Were looting the Three mobile phone shop there
A shop I've been in to get technical
Help with my phone difficulties. So they
Are suggesting solutions, but from where
Is the money coming to make us well?

1800 - Train of thought

On the Newcastle to Manchester train
Meeting all done, tax not really taxing
There'll be no taxi home - walking again
Music ringing in my ears, me singing
In my head only, or they'd be thinking
Here comes a madman. (Don't want them to know!)
To immature fantasy I still cling
But it keeps me young, well I reckon so
Don't want to grow vegetables yet, no
Not got green fingers, but got a keen brain
Even if only for a few small things
And those small things are what I want to grow
Safely out of sight, there they will remain
Unless fate determines their revealing
Tue 9 Aug

1799 - Revolution number 99

They set a bus on fire in Tottenham
And next day some kids threw rocks at the police
In Enfield. Walthamstow and Edmonton
Apparently also had serious peace
Disturbances on their normally safe streets
In other words, after the first outbreak
The kids of those places wanted a piece
Of the same action - well, it's fun to make
A riot, burn a cop car, and to take
Electrical goods from shops, be shown on
The telly, but I do wonder if these
Are just kids showing off, or should we wake
To a harsh new climate since things began
To go downhill almost as fast as Greece

1798 - Ireland briefly unites (without the support of the Catholic Church)

In 1798 the Irish rose
Hoping to imitate America
And France, short haircuts and less well-disposed
To Protestant or Catholic dogma
Two years ago in Bantry Bay, offshore
The French fleet were pinned, till they sailed away
This time, the Irish, though many, were poor
As an army, just guerrillas, and they
Were betrayed and hunted down every day
They therefore launched their rising which arose
Near Dublin Castle, but the British were
Forewarned and little was achieved. They say
Terrible things happened as the Brits closed
In on Wolfe Tone's rebels, rape and torture

1797 - Wallies and vomit

I got really wrecked last night, yes, it's true
I only had five pints, but they were mixed
Beer and strong cider - that you mustn't do
Or like me you will end up being sick
And I was, this lunchtime - the kitchen sink's
Where I threw up quite noisily, neighbours
Stirring below as if they'd heard the thick
Liquid hitting the stainless steel, a noise
They could hardly have missed - it had such force!
After that I felt much better, thank you
And no longer felt nauseous. It's the kick-
Off of the new season - Football Focus
Was watched with - well, more focus - since I threw
Up, and that was followed by athletics

1796 - Beer talk

Tonight I'm off out for a pint or two
In the Crescent and New Oxford, Salford
It will be boring on my own, with Lou
In London, so I'm off out with Dermot
Far nicer I hope to drink such a short
Distance from home. It's right on his doorstep
Me, I'll have to stagger up Oldfield Road
If the chippies are open I will help
Myself to a sausage, gravy and chips
Last time I was at the Crescent, the brew
Fair blew my mind, I drank so much I sprawled
On the road as I tried to cross, but felt
No pain at the time, but the next day, oooh...!
Here's to the beer down in Salford Crescent
Fri 5 Aug

1795 - They tried to make me go to Bolton, I said no no no

I've chickened out but who can say I'm wrong
I've chosen not to drive up to Bolton
To play my part in open mic and song
And instead I've bought fags and got cans in
Well it's a warm evening, I'm on my own
And I don't have anything to prove, not
To the same people, not over again
Especially those who can act like a twat
It's my decision - practising has got
Me so far but I've still got quite a long
Way to go before it turns into fun
And admiration, not ordeal or sweat
Or ultimately, regret. I will bring
My guitar and me out when I can stun
Thur 4 Aug

1794 - Northern sun

It's lovely to have hot weather at last
Not since April have we had a long warm
Spell, but here we are in early August
Enjoying a heatwave, not Benidorm
Or Rio, but who wants to fry? The storm
May follow, but for now enjoy the sun
And see the British in their summer form
Red shouldered, red necked, tattooed, all as one
Sitting outside the pubs trying to have fun
Despite the traffic always rushing past
The dusty pavement tables. Our forlorn
Post-industrial landscapes are transformed
Into a playground where blue skies and rust
Red brick fuse into a less hostile home

1793 - France goes mental

The year of '93 saw Louis' death
By guillotine in cold January
Marie Antoinette breathed her final breath
That October - the end of royalty
And for the Republic, a victory
Magnified by some successful actions
Beyond French borders - Belgium, Italy
And even into the German Rhineland
At this time, at Toulon, Napoleon
Used his artillery skills to good effect
Before long he was exiled far away
Fighting Austrians, losing to Lord Nelson
At the Nile, but kept at distant arm's length
So he couldn't take over in Paree...
Tue 2 Aug

1792 - Poor America

The weather's like June though it's now August
Still, at least the States have agreed on debt
Reduction, thus avoiding a catast-
rophe on a world scale. Max Keiser said
Barack Obama was a mere puppet
Of Wall Street. It figures. American
People, you're being screwed by the rich set
Deliberately, though each politician
Namechecks you in each speech each time they can
Really they seem to hold you in disgust
Still, no economic meltdown just yet
If only five years ago I'd had funds
I could have bought gold like they all advised
But I was poor then and now, so sod it
Mon 1 Aug

1791 - Carpet Man becomes Bear Man

Fun day yesterday, but Sunday today
Nevertheless I read the Istanbul
Guide book I took out from the library
Along with the Berlin book. What a fool
I felt as I read. It contained the rules
On haggling in Turkey I wish I'd known
When I was there a year ago and fell
Victim to the carpet 'bait and switch' men
Still, enjoyed reading about it again
Intiklal and Taksim, the memory
Still burns bright, and Orhan Pamuk as well
Walked to town for my dose of tattoo pain
The Berlin bear's now on my arm - he's a
Cutie, and I learned some Greek too - how cool!!!
Sun 31 July

1790 - The Ancient Mariners of Ashton

Spending a night in the Indian Ocean
Is not suitable for the faint-hearted
The rise and fall of your expectation
Of being served leaves you disappointed
We all turned up at the time appointed
The restaurant of that name made us seasick
Tossed aside, crossly discussed, debated
Were our options, rescue unrealistic
Dashed hopes, plate-smashing wishes, as fish-like
Waiters with bright teeth dished up for someone
Else, while stood on deck, now heavy-hearted
Dry-lipped, albatrosses around each neck
We waited for the end, for night to come
To be ancient mariners of Ashton fated
Sat 30 July

1789 - The times they were a changin'

The year 1789's the year
That's remembered for historic events
There certainly was something in the air
Back then in revolutionary France
The English had already tried these things
But felt they'd gone too far and then backtracked
The French upheavel, more like the Soviets
Sought a brave new world, old order hijacked
And ground to dust to the sound of heads cracked
Centuries of oppression breeding fear
Among the oppressors of violence
Calendars restarted, clocks once more ticked
Then blood-red dawns fade into light more clear
If greyer, where we once more start the dance
Fri 29 July

1788 - Travels in Salford and Liscard

I've tried to sort out emails and Facebook
At least is working, but I can't publish
On Blogger. Next, I must take a quick look
At Kodak Gallery, try to finish
The uploading of pictures. How I wish
It would all work! Today I walked along
The Irwell in Salford and saw the pix
Hanging in Salford's Gallery, liking
To get out in the sun but not spending!!
Last night by the way, had a bit of luck
Won the prize for the favourite poem which
Was chosen by Stella! Thanks dear! Singing
Was Jo Bywater, who played with great pluck
Like last time. Liscard rocked to some great licks!
Thur 28 July

1787 - Email travails

My email's not working at all right now
But never mind, no time to fix the thing
Tonight, no, because time doesn't allow
And also, this chair on which I'm sitting
Is approaching the end of its innings
And about to collapse through overuse
Not only can I not do uploading
Or emailing, for which there's no excuse
But any minute now I won't refuse
The laws of gravity and I'll crash low
On the floor, accompanied by bruising
It's hurting my back because it's not used
To sitting in a twisted shape just so
I stay on this broken chair while typing
Wed 27 July