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Throughout the month of March, the end-of-life charity Marie Curie will once again be holding their annual flagship fundraiser, the Great Daffodil Appeal. There’s only one chance to give someone the best possible end of life. And one chance for you to help fund care that makes that possible. Care that protects someone’s dignity –...

250 years ago, on 23rd March 1775, Patrick Henry, a Founding Father of the United States, gave a famous speech at the Second Virginia Convention. He called for America’s independence from Britain, saying “Give me liberty or give me death!” Henry’s widely praised oratory persuaded the convention, which included future US presidents Thomas Jefferson and...

Seventy years ago, on 11th March 1955, the Scottish bacteriologist Sir Alexander Fleming died. He was joint winner with Ernst Boris Chain and Sir Howard Walter Florey of the 1945 Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine for discovering penicillin. Fleming was not the tidiest researcher, and his discovery of penicillin came about more or less by accident,...

Reform the NHS, or half the population could end up in A&E. That is the dire warning of the medical director for NHS in England. Sir Stephen Powis says that the health service must ‘go for broke’ in delivering more care outside of hospitals, if the A&E system is not to face a total collapse....

Twenty years ago, on 10th March 2005, Irish comedian Dave Allen died – in his sleep, of sudden arrhythmic death syndrome. Allen – real name David Tynan O’Mahony – was best known for his observational comedy, but provoked indignation – sometimes outrage – by highlighting religious and political hypocrisy. O’Mahony was well connected: his father was managing editor...

As well as Greenland and the Panama Canal (and perhaps Canada), President Trump wants the Gulf of Mexico. On his very first afternoon in office, he ordered that the name be changed to the Gulf of America. Apparently American Presidents can do these things. And so, the US Board on Geographic Names was given 30...

It is Spring, and daily it gets easier to walk outside. But not easier to drive. Not on our pothole-plagued local roads. There are currently an estimated million potholes across the UK. And they need a staggering £16.3 billion to fix them. All in all, they are a “national embarrassment”, according to the chair of...

When you Spring-clean your home and shed this year, be just a bit careful about thrusting your hand into dark corners. You may get an unpleasant surprise. Noble false widow spiders put a record number of people in hospital last year. They may be less than 2cm long, but they are among the very few...

How do you choose the colour of flowers for your garden? This year, it seems that many of us will pick up on Pantone’s ‘colour of 2025’ for our homes, and plant variations of its ‘mocha mousse’ into our gardens. That means flowers in various soft chocolate hues of burnt browns, complemented by deep maroons...

All in the month of February The world of P G Wodehouse That Big Freeze of 1955 Eric Liddell – from Olympic star to Japanese internment prisoner National Nest Box week – 14th to 21st February Danger ahead for Britain’s canals That marmalade colour in cats ** Editor:  We continue our column that looks at...

It was: 175 years ago, on 23rd Feb 1850 that Cesar Ritz, the Swiss hotelier, was born. He founded several notable hotels including the Ritz and Carlton Hotels in London, and the Hotel Ritz in Paris. 125 years ago, on 27th Feb 1900 that the Labour Party was founded in the UK. Also 125 years...

Fifty years ago, on 14th February 1975, P G Wodehouse died. The well-loved British-born comic novelist, short story writer, lyricist and playwright who lived his later life in Long Island, USA is best known as the creator of Jeeves. He was always a prolific writer, publishing more than 90 books, 450 plays, 200 short stories...