What do breakfast kippers, a curry and a book about law all have in common? No, this is not the start of a bad joke, but the reality for one mother. Harriet Harman’s mother to be precise – cooking breakfast for her retired...
Read More“We read to know we’re not alone.” If, like me, you sat in a darkened cinema in the early 1990s watching Shadowlands, all the while trying to stifle unrelenting tears, then you may remember this line....
Read MoreI am sitting in the spectacular Living Worlds gallery in Manchester Museum. It is one of those cold autumnal nights where darkness is drawing in, winter coats have come out of hibernation and everything is a little bit eerie....
Read MoreI have a bone to pick with Melvyn Bragg. In another life, I used to go to all sorts of posh events. There was the time a friend and I tried to inveigle our way into the V-VIP room at the Moulin Rouge after-party (there’s...
Read MoreAs we approach the end of 2022, we’re looking back at the things that have brought us immense comfort during the year. For the team at Northern Soul, books were once again a great source of joy, and we spent an awful lot of time...
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