Let's never go barmy

Attack of the Tiddly-poms


Mismatching socks may be considered charming,
Mismatching shoes are a bit more alarming,
Even if it's only yourself you are harming
And your nonchalance is completely disarming.

Please take care and let's never go barmy,
For if you do, I'll have to join the army,
The Foreign Legion, unless they debar me
But I'll never forget who you are and who are me.

What if we don't know each other from Adam
And disperse in perplexity neither can fathom?
If that should befall, I still want to say madam,
There are fine days ahead, let's have at 'em.

--
Stephen Moran

Syd's Coffee Stall closes after 100 years in Shoreditch

Last Brew After A Century Of Syd's Coffee Stallhttps://t.co/NSXfo96ol0 pic.twitter.com/8H9YmOucJ6

— Spitalfields Life (@thegentleauthor) December 22, 2019

And here is the richly illustrated report in Spitalfields Life. Stayed open round the clock during the London Blitz "serving refreshments to the firemen and auxiliary workers." It says the stall is now destined for the Museum of London.

London is open!

On International Migrants Day, I want to thank the millions of people who have come from across the world to make London their home. This city is improved immeasurably because of the history, culture, resilience, community and talent you bring to it. #LondonIsOpen pic.twitter.com/tQfsLrFOLC

— Mayor of London (@MayorofLondon) December 17, 2019

From the London Mayor. This is some consolation while our new government tries to isolate the country and continue their reign of chaos and destruction, as they cosy-up to the Trump/Putin axis of corruption.

We're fugued

Vive la résistance!

Hear what they're saying outside the media bubble

How can you not vote for Labour, seeing this joy and, actually, hope emanating from the general public. No slanted, wheedling newspapers or jumped-up, bloody-minded blabbermouths to twist things. Cross-tag the Tory blaggers. #BorisJohnson #ReadEmAndWeep #GeneralElection2019 https://t.co/yBLj1sMzuV

— Stephen Moran (@stephen_j_moran) December 12, 2019

Now, how can you not vote Labour? It defies belief that anyone would, unless it's with a nosepeg to back someone who can block a Tory...

Don't hide in a fridge - vote!

Tomorrow, this man could be your Prime Minister pic.twitter.com/VjgG5OIo7m

— Double Down News (@DoubleDownNews) December 12, 2019

If not now, when? "Get Johnson gone." It's polling day. You don't need your polling card, if you can't lay hands on it. Just go along and tell them your name and address and they'll find you on the list. Also if you've got a postal vote but forgot to send it, you can take that to the polling station too.

Vote tomorrow to evict the Tories

If you're not sure who to vote for, watch this. pic.twitter.com/rBCBLzfoRp

— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) December 11, 2019

With the right number of Xs in the right boxes, tomorrow night we can breathe a sigh of relief that the Tory nine-year reign of anxiety, discord, chaos and vandalism is OVER. But only if you vote for whoever is best-placed to defeat the Tory candidate in your area. If you're not sure, you can find out who that is at tactical.vote. It shows recommendations from all the tactical voting websites in one list.

If in doubt, vote Labour. Only Labour has a plan to resolve the Brexit impasse by putting a sensible deal to the people by summer. That summer vote will mark the end of Brexitmania and the resumption of progress and peace of mind. Labour will also nationalise the railways, restore the SureStart centres and much more. So go to it, do not fail to vote!

The alternative? Five more years of HELL under the government that has already brought you nine years of chaos. (Ed.)

Corbyn in Bristol: Save your NHS! Thursday's the day.

The Tories have had nine years to fund our NHS properly.

Don't believe them when they say they will now. pic.twitter.com/o3excDCvYF

— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) December 9, 2019

It ain't over till it's over! Coming around the final bend in the race, Corbyn is on the shoulder of Johnson, now for the sprint finish. He's giving it all he's got, so let's cheer him home. (Ed.)

Chingford: Retire sanctimonious I.D.S - Vote for Faiza

I know people have lost faith in politicians, but I'm asking my community - my friends and neighbours - to give me the chance to fight for the area that made me me. #votefaiza #votelabour #chingford #woodfordgreen #GE2019 #GTTO #unseatIDS pic.twitter.com/dtoukAwALt

— Faiza Shaheen (@faizashaheen) December 8, 2019

Watch this inspirational little video and listen to Faiza Shaheen talk about where she grew up in the constituency of Chingford and Woodford Green.

Thursday's election is a marvellous chance to give Ian Duncan Smith his P45 and start to repair the damage the Tories have done for nine years. End the chaos wrought by this bodging, amateurish government. Get Brexit resolved: a sensible deal, put it to the people, done, sorted by Summer. Don't vote for Bodger Johnson's three-wheeled crock of a deal, which will continue to drag the UK through more hell for years to come.

Revealed: Johnson's deal breaks up the UK

Boris Johnson is lying to you about his plan for Brexit and his own Government's report proves it. pic.twitter.com/KIH4O9Z9cZ

— The Labour Party (@UKLabour) December 6, 2019

You cannot trust Boris Johnson. Award him the Order of the Boot on December 12th. Vote for the candidates best-placed to block a Tory. Locally in northwest London we have Tulip Siddiq (Kilburn & Hampstead), Dawn Butler (Brent Central), Barry Gardiner (Brent North), Gareth Thomas (Harrow West), Pamela Fitzpatrick (Harrow East) and Ross Semple Houston (Finchley & Golders Green). Who have I missed?

Tactical voting? Luciana Berger is a former Labour MP who is now likely to take a lot of votes for the LibDems in Finchley & Golders Green, where they were a distant third in 2017. But won't that only let the Tory hold what was a Conservative/Labour marginal? Hmm. It may be possible to evict even the horrible Boris Johnson from Uxbridge & South Ruislip with tactical voting, if everyone gets behind the Labour candidate Ali Milani.

All over the country there are chances to get rid of the hated right-wing government ministers and MPs with a bit of clever voting. The first-past-the-post voting system can only be ameliorated if we coalesce in a progressive alliance against the Tory & Brexit Party troglodyte alliance (they are one and the same now). Another good thing would be to support the newly independent Tory moderates, kicked out by "Britain Trump" (Johnson) from their party for having hearts and minds that function above lizard level, unlike the remaining members of the Johnson government.

Check recommendations for tactical voting to block a Tory in your local postcode by visiting tactical.vote. (Ed.)

I still wear shirts

I still wear shirts I used to like
when I used to like shirts,
going to places I used to go
when I liked going to places.

For old times' sake I'll pull on
the same old thing I used to pull on
when I was fond of pulling on
that same thing I pull on now.

Oh but it's not the same.

--
Stephen Moran

Vote Labour in Kensington marginal on December 12th!

These nurses are campaigning for real change.

Get involved: https://t.co/EorcV7qJf0 pic.twitter.com/rXxWSHGg8p

— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) December 4, 2019

Listen to these GPs and the group of nurses with them, out canvassing in Kensington. If it's lost by one vote, the Tory MP might be the one giving Johnson a majority to have his filthy way with the NHS, and you will not be able to live with yourself if you didn't vote Labour in "super marginal" Kensington. Just saying!

Harrow West: Vote tactically to stop the Tories

Only a vote for Labour can stop the Tories in Harrow West. pic.twitter.com/DimufUPOJm

— Gareth Thomas for Harrow West (@GarethThomasMP) November 30, 2019

A vote for any candidate in Harrow West other than Labour's Gareth Hunt, the incumbent, is a vote for the Tories to continue their 9-year reign of chaos. It is not, in the words of the late Peter Cook, "time for a futile gesture at this stage of the war." Any vote that does not support the main challenger to the Conservative candidate in any constituency on December 12th, is a vote for at least another five years of HELL.

To find the candidate best-placed to defeat the Tory in your constituency, visit RemainUnited.org.

Never mind Black Friday, it's Willesden Green Saturday

November 30th is publication day for Willesden Herald's New Short Stories 11. "Fifteen stories like the dreams of fifteen nights." We paid a posh PR agency (Hartley Ailive) forty grand for that strapline and the particular shade of red in the logo and a series of inconclusive meetings with people, most of whom said nothing.

If you have any friends, please order copies for them as a Christmas box from Book Depository by clicking this link or Amazon UK. Thank you.

Edmondo Redmond O'Woodward (prop.)

Whiteleys reduced to a skeleton

Whiteleys in Bayswater today pic.twitter.com/IbEjF7v5Pg

— Spitalfields Life (@thegentleauthor) November 29, 2019

Where the hell am I going to park now, without that rooftop car park? I've got to get to Khans and Fortune Cookie with my guests and wander down to the art market along Hyde Park railings. Life is no longer worth living. {Don't post this, Feargal. I just wanted to show you what they've done. Edmondo}

The Willesden Herald's interview with God

Herald: Welcome, God, and thank you for honouring our very small blog, the last place I would have expected, with your first interview.

God: Not at all. As I think I said before, “The last shall be first.”

Herald: Haha. I like that.

God: I know.

Deadline Tuesday 26 November: Register before midnight

If you're in Willesden, your constituency is probably either Hampstead & Kilburn or Brent Central. Click the link to Register.

There's a DEADLINE to rewrite your future.

Register to vote by 11.59pm *tonight*: https://t.co/7bYgtgvPDL pic.twitter.com/UVO3jv7ZFi

— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) November 26, 2019

Hampstead & Kilburn is one of the most marginal constituencies in the country, at one time the most marginal, when Glenda Jackson won by just 42 votes. We don't like to mention it but the Willesden Herald did campaign for Glenda. In tabloid-speak, it was the Willy wot won it. (Or it might have been the opposite effect, almost causing a loss, but don't think about that.) At present, the seat is held by the redoubtable Tulip Siddiq, and she needs every vote to help defeat the catastrophic Tory B-team.

In Brent Central, Labour's Dawn Butler has been a good representative and let's keep her in place as well.

But you can't vote if you're not registered and you have up until 11:59 pm today (Tuesday 26 November) to register at your present address. If you're Irish (hello Kilburn!), UK or commonwealth citizen with a permanent UK address, you can register. Click the link: https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote.

The people who did good things

The people who did good things
and the people who did bad
are equally dead. Jesus and Hitler,
Mam and Dad, all sleep together
in the same big bed.

Atom splitters and dealers of dope
will sell no more bombs
and blow no more smoke.
Monica from next door and Mohangi
the axe murderer, snooze like babies
and will wake no furtherer.

Humble grower of rice and joiner of racks
are stretched without the weight
of the sky on their backs. Kindly nurses
and torturers have all gone bye-byes
and are not coming back. Their feet
are no longer killing them.

--
Stephen Moran

John Pilger: The Dirty War on the NHS

'John Pilger's new documentary, THE DIRTY WAR ON THE NHS, "goes to the heart of the struggle for democracy today", he says. Britain's National Health Service, the NHS, was the world's first universal public health service. Designed to give millions of people "freedom from fear", the NHS today is under threat of being sold off and converted to a free market model inspired by America's disastrous health insurance system, which results in the death every year of an estimated 45,000 people. Now President Trump says the NHS is "on the table" in any future trade deal with America. Filmed in Britain and the United States, this timely, compelling documentary touches us all and reveals what may be the last battle to preserve the most fundamental human right.' (Dartmouth Films)

New Short Stories 11 - first look - unboxing

The eagle, or anyway the secretary bird, has landed. Now available from Amazon.co.uk, Book Depository and Amazon.com.

Updated 13/12/2019

You cannot trust Boris Johnson with the NHS

Spread this video far and wide - it’s brilliant: pic.twitter.com/SdeU58pExC

— Mike Buckley (@mdbuckley) November 17, 2019

Don't vote Conservative in any constituency. Vote for the candidate with the best chance of defeating the Conservative, which you can discover by entering your postcode at RemainUnited.org. You can talk about policies and plans but the overwhelming priority is to ensure that Boris Johnson is not given five years to sell this country out to the Putin/Trump axis of neo-fascism.

Labour has a sensible moderate proposal that will actually settle the Brexit issue in a steady, sane way with voters given the choice between a workable Brexit deal that comes with a customs union and close market alignment or remaining in the EU. Those are the only two sensible options for this country and the Labour plan is the only way to resolve the Brexit impasse for once and for all, by next Summer.

All Johnson and the Tory B-team offer is another year of threatening "No Deal" and quite possibly ending up with that disastrous and stupid outcome, which they probably secretly want. Unless you're a hedge fund gambler, or offshore tax fiddler like Rees-Mogg, Redwood and the rest of the Tory B-team, your only sensible vote is for the candidate in your constituency most likely to block a Tory.

You cannot trust Boris Johnson. 
On December 12th, give him the Order of the Boot!

"Our imaginations are being held hostage by the car"

Our imaginations are being held hostage by the car. pic.twitter.com/C28JzMnm3Q

— Philip Boucher-Hayes (@boucherhayes) October 29, 2019

How to vote in the General Election

I did you a thing. A #VoteTactically thing. You're welcome. pic.twitter.com/SGTk2Wzd2Z

— Judi #FBPE 🖤 (@judi_sutherland) November 6, 2019

Coming Soon: New Short Stories 11 - preview

The 15 best international short stories, as submitted to the Willesden Herald in 2019. Editor: Stephen Moran. With an introduction by Gina Challen.

Front cover for New Short Stories 11.
Photo and design by Stratos Fountoulis.

Contemporary fiction from Britain, Ireland, America and Nigeria, from huge cities to very small towns and on several journeys. We're at work, at school, in homes, gardens, cities, in the countryside and on the road. There are crises, violence, tragedy, vengeance, reflection and recon-ciliation. Here are vividly evoked times and places, characters of every kind, and insights into their circumstances and relationships.

Editor: Stephen Moran. Fiction by JL Bogenschneider, Ursula Brunetti, Carol Dines, Derek Dirckx, Sarah Evans, Jeff Ewing, David Frankel, Ray French, N. Jane Kalu, Marylee MacDonald, Jaki McCarrick, Gerard McKeown, Jay Merill, Diana Powell, John Saul. With an introduction by Gina Challen.

Here are fifteen stories transporting us, like the dreams of fifteen nights. In one we remember a beloved teacher, a hated one and our friends. In another we are on a bus somewhere in Britain, on the way to losing our virginity. On another night we wake from a heartbreaking haunting in the changing seasons of Lagos, Nigeria. Or we're in Northern Ireland practicing with a friend's shotgun, and wondering if we can trust him. Then again we're in the Irish borderlands in a tale of neglect and revenge. We travel through remote parts of the US, a fugitive from the past, and hook up with a loner in his last days. Or we're in a surreal family circus, with a remarkable cast of characters, living out a poignant adventure. A nun travels on leave through small town America in search of family history and closure. We agonise over a doctor's ethical dilemma and a professor's marital crisis, drenched in a rainstorm. We're in Newport in Wales, trying to stay off the booze and achieve a reunion. We take something that's not really ours and turn over in our minds what would have happened if we hadn't. We spy on a swimmer as she swims naked in the sea every day till it all goes wrong. In a nightmare, there's a river, a forestry work camp, two labourers living on-site, and a dead body. We meditate and scroll through thoughts on the people, situations and how we interact with those around us, friends and neighbours. (SM)

Update 22 November
Now available for pre-order from Book Depository, Amazon UK and Amazon.com. At the time of writing, Amazon dotcom says it has availability within 2 days. Amazon UK is currently lagging behind that a little.

Saturday evening

View from the railway bridge (Chiltern Line, Sudbury Hill Harrow)