Many yoga classes begin and end with the practice of chanting. Chanting aims to purify the mind by increasing both the mind and body’s attention. This in turn helps various people focus on the present, silencing the noise around them by releasing a smo… read more
As September starts in the northern hemisphere, for me (and I suspect many others) this means one thing – ‘back to school’. This could be both memories of one’s own school days, or the relief as a parent or carer that ordinary term time routines can re… read more
In my spare time I have often pondered what would count as the ‘Seven Wonders of South London’. The Catford Cat and the Croydon IKEA towers no doubt, but the Crystal Palace transmitter and the Crystal Palace dinosaurs? And how do you separate the compo… read more
Above: Jack Carey in 1957. Photo copyright © Neil Hornick Jack Carey was an English teacher and poet. His poetry was first published in 1958, in The London Magazine. Further poems were published in a range of journals and anthologies over the years, an… read more
This week the sad news of Michael Parkinson’s death was announced. Known as the ‘king of the chat show’, Parkinson had a rich television and radio career. Which included most famously presenting his own show Parkinson, and, from 1986 to 1988, Desert Is… read more