Jings! Have ye seen the new Broons book? It’s awfy!
Quick note: UK readers north of Tyne will know what a “Broons” book is. They’ll probably also be familiar with “Oor Wullie”. Both are comic strips that have been running since 1936 in the Scottish weekly newspaper, The Sunday Post, and republished in annual compilations. The latest one, though, is truly shocking. When I was a boy, […]
Hello! I’m back with a new book!
I have taken a sabbatical from blogging for a few months while I got on with the crucial task of actually writing another book, and I’m delighted to announce that it’s just about ready and I could not be more excited about it! It’s called The Dog Who Saved The World, and this is the […]
World Book Day – a plea
This World Book Day (March 1) you can do something different AND help out a child who really needs it. You see, I’m afraid I’m a bit of a stickler when it comes to World Book Day costumes. Yes, I know parents are busy and that sometimes it might be easier to stick your kid […]
US cover for “Invisible”
This is the cover for the US edition of “What Not To DO If You Turn Invisible” by the British artist Mat Saunders. I love it! “Invisible” is published in the US in October 2018.
Keith Chegwin & some of his “best” jokes
I cannot claim to have known Keith Chegwin very well, but I worked with him quite a few times during my days in TV. I reconnected with him more recently through Twitter. Yet, when asked “who was the nicest presenter you ever worked with?” my answer was, invariably, “Cheggers”. I was sad to learn of […]
Likely Lads locations
The death of Rodney Bewes, who played Bob in the 1970s BBC sitcom Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads, reminded me of how, as a child, I’d watch the programme hoping to recognise a local location. I often did. The two-handers between Bob and Terry still crack along despite the passage of the years (although […]
My new website!
Well, this is it! It’s a very personal thing, a website, I have discovered. I am almost as nervous about launching this as I am about a new book.
Diana, Richard, Judy and me
It is – as anyone with a pulse must realise – exactly twenty years since the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, and I have been reminded all this week of the tiny part I played in the strange events of the week immediately following the shocking news. As well as the inevitable tributes and […]
My poor old piano: what do I do?
My piano has been ruined and I don’t know what to do about it. I can honestly say my piano has – by quite a long margin – given me more hours of pleasure than any else I own. I’m no great player. I’m a thumper who settles for “good enough”, but I practice almost every […]
Yay! I won an award!
Oh God, is he boasting about that award? You’d think he’d won the Nobel Prize. No, not the Nobel Prize, but the Awesome Book Award, voted for by children in 46 schools across England’s southeast, and I couldn’t be happier that Time Travelling With A Hamster won. Apart from anything else, it was a fun evening. Each […]
