Author Archives: Derek Turner

EpiQR – The Spaghetti House, Kensington High Street

Spaghetti House, Kensington High Street Spaghetti House is conveniently situated almost directly opposite the entrance to Kensington Gardens (thus making it a perfect lunch stop after a morning wandering the parks). Unmistakable, its exterior sports a traditional “Italian” look; honestly … Continue reading

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ENDNOTES – Wagner, D’Indy, Handel and Verdi

ENDNOTES STUART MILLSON From Faust to The Flying Dutchman: Wagner from Scotland * An atmospheric collection by a French Wagnerian * Handel’s Xerxes * Proms farewell with Verdi Chandos records continues to set remarkable standards in recording quality and presentation. Two … Continue reading

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Sadness and survival in Labour’s lacerated heartlands

Sadness and survival in Labour’s lacerated heartlands BILL HARTLEY attends two strikingly different manifestations of Northern working class culture Two annual events took place in the North of England this year. One was the Durham Miners’ Gala, the other the … Continue reading

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Hell freezes over

Hell freezes over LESLIE JONES is engrossed by a wide-ranging analysis of an iconic battle The Stalingrad Cauldron: Inside the Encirclement and Destruction of the 6th Army Frank Ellis, 2013, University Press of Kansas, 512 pp., hb., US$39 According to … Continue reading

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Evil in the east – communism’s European legacy

Evil in the east – communism’s European legacy FRANK ELLIS finds much to admire in a survey of postwar communist totalitarianism Iron Curtain: The Crushing of Eastern Europe 1944-56 Anne Applebaum, Allen Lane, London, 2012, xxxix + pp.498, maps, photos, … Continue reading

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20th century tumbrils – the first victims of the Bolsheviks

20th century tumbrils – the first victims of the Bolsheviks EDWARD DUTTON enjoys a rare insight into the melancholy fate of the Russian nobility Former People: The Last Days of the Russian Aristocracy Douglas Smith, Pan Books, 2013, pb, 464pp., … Continue reading

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“Me too” history

“Me too” history FRANK ELLIS finds that the best that can be said about a new biography of Hitler is that it adds nothing to our understanding Hitler: A Short Biography A. N. Wilson, Harper Press, London, 2012, pp.190, Notes, Bibliography … Continue reading

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ENDNOTES – Vaughan Williams from Oregon – and an elegy by Herbert Howells

ENDNOTES STUART MILLSON enjoys Vaughan Williams from Oregon – and an elegy by Herbert Howells American conductors and orchestras have long been interested in British music. The two Leonards, Bernstein and Slatkin, both made memorable recordings of Elgar; Robert Shaw … Continue reading

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Photographs from last summer

Photographs from last summer I The blossoms of bindweed Strewn on Towton field like Meissen plates. Delicate dirt; if I turn them, Will there be crossed swords on their base?   II Deer-prints point to the sea, Sharp-stepped, firm-pressed, precise; … Continue reading

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English as she is spoke

English as she is spoke A commentator says that sloppy speaking means sloppy thinking When I took up computer programming, I realised how important it is for the language to be as simple and clear as possible. Any syntactical rule that … Continue reading

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