On Monday night, Arsenal scored one of the loveliest goals I’ve ever seen. And I say Arsenal, not Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, because practically the entire side made it: a team of specialists contributing to a sublime whole. I work with specialists. Universities are full of them. Not one of them has a right foot like Aubameyang’s …
When I was young I used to run cross-country. I was part of a great team. We won races. We took home trophies. I was not, however, a great runner. I was the makeweight in a team full of talent. My brother Bill, on the other hand, was a proper sportsman. He played cricket and …
A couple of weeks ago I had to use up my last couple of days of annual leave so I went up to the Lake District to camp and walk by myself. There were two reasons for going. One was for the sublime pleasure of those hills in Autumn. But the other was that I …
My friend Ed came over to my house on Wednesday, to eat roast chicken and drink wine and laugh. I’ve known Ed for a long while and the talk was full of remembering other evenings, other friends and other dinners. Food is good like that. Tom knows that feasting pricks the memory such that one …
It’s very hard keeping a secret. You people know about secrets, about what lies beneath the surface of a person. Without wishing to get too Shrek about it, people are like onions and uncovering the layers of a character is what actors are for. Some characters are all about keeping secrets, like yours, Ray, plotting …
I went camping this summer, in Dorset with my eldest, Miriam and my youngest, Silas. We pitched camp in our usual busy field a couple of miles outside Swanage, but then on our way to town for fish and chips, we passed a beautiful, empty, wide-open site, and our heads were turned. So back we …
I’m so sorry not to be there with you in the studio this morning. It sounds fun. Having said that, though, perhaps it’s for the best because I have a suspicion I might be just a touch intimidated because my word you’re a disciplined bunch. And, to be frank, I am not. But you, Tom, …
I’m a very possessive person. Not that I don’t like to share my stuff. Come round to mine for a barbecue or a cup of tea and it’s ‘mi casa es su casa’. You want to borrow a book? Fine. Drive my car? Go ahead. No. I’m possessive of my space. I have my spot …
I’ve been feeling old. I went climbing yesterday with my son Silas. We’ve been climbing together for about five years and his fearlessness and strength have amazed me from the start, but the difference now is that he’s a professional. He works at the wall every weekend and he climbs at a higher standard than …
So, I went to church yesterday. Obviously I needed some spiritual sustenance since, as both Wimbledon and the World Cup were resting, we found ourselves in the literally horrifying situation of no actual sport happening. Except for the Grand Prix, the cricket, the Tour de France, the rugby league… Oh. Now I am what’s called …