Blog
We all love a good loser, but ….
The post-election parties are still in full swing. While it's great to celebrate a victory, our unsuccessful parliamentary candidates are also showing their appreciation to those who supported them in the gruelling run-up to May's general election. Last night I joined...
Enjoying our agricultural and environmental heritage
If you didn't manage to visit one of the 400-plus farms at the weekend which opened their gates to local communities during Open Farm Sunday, then you can find out more by playing this video I recorded for the NFU. It shows families having a wonderful time learning...
David Miliband and his two adoptions
I confess to having had a soft spot for David Miliband as he linked my blog to his website as Environment Secretary (I thought he was impressive), and later Foreign Secretary (not so impressive), and I considered this quite an honour, especially as I was endorsing his...
John Bercow outlines his vision to revive the Chamber
These are two videos I made of John Bercow, Speaker of the House, outlining his vision to revive the Chamber in the House of Commons to the Hansard Society on Wednesday. In the top video, he describes how he is keen to get more ministers back into the Chamber, provide...
Diane Abbott storms into Labour’s leadership contest
If Diane Abbott can score an own goal and win the support of Labour leadership rival David Miliband who also persuaded a string of his backers to the same, will this heaven sent endorsement influence trade unions and other Labour supporters to do the same? It...
Cambridge’s £1 million golden clock, the Chronophage
Whenever I visit Cambridge close to where I live, I always have to stop and admire its latest attraction which has become very popular with tourist - a £1 million golden clock created by an incredible inventor, Dr John Taylor, for his old college. It is an amazing...
Will John Bercow’s reform plans for parliament include more women MPs?
I know I won't be the only person keen to hear what John Bercow says in the Hansard Society's Speaker’s Lecture this week entitled "Reform in a new Parliament: Reviving the Chamber".I want to see if he will keep his word about the need to increase women...
A day of highly charged emotions
My husband and I are heading for the smoke today to see the Grace Kelly exhibition at the V&A, whose elegance and beauty is still unsurpassed. The story of the Hollywood star and Princess of Monaco continues to fascinate us all and I'm really looking forward to...
The Percy family and Island Hall
You will be pleased to know that my plucky author friend Jean Adamson has made an excellent recovery from her brutal attack by a ruthless mugger in our Cambridgeshire village, though disappointly the cowardly culprit has never never found.We are both garden lovers and...