The Nigerian elections have shown a rare example of an African country playing (mostly) by the democratic rules, often seen as an essential condition for long-term investment decisions. Over 11 million first-time voters were registered in a total of 93.4 million voters, 40% of whom were 18-35 years old. The incumbent, President Buhari, stepped down […]
Category Archives: Portfolio
Professional Writing Writing
They awoke…
The hidden past of the bisexual pronoun Those of all political and cultural persuasions [...]
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2026 Ahem
BABY FAIRYLAND TWITTEN: March 2026
Ahem I was about to open a pile of birthday cards when I was encouraged [...]
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30
Mar
Mar
2026 Ahem
QUOTIDIAN HAMMERHEAD HIPPO: February 2026
Ahem Rain and colder weather in southern England dominated the first few days of the [...]
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02
Mar
Mar
2026 Ahem
SCUDDED PROPRIETORIALLY TRIMMINGS: January 2026
Ahem, During this interminably long month of heaving weather, our far south-east corner, ancestral home [...]
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02
Feb
Feb
2025 Ahem
QUERYING PAKKELEG CONVULSED: December 2025
Ahem Our Christmas celebrations normally start after we celebrate Gwen’s birthday on the 12th, when [...]
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01
Jan
Jan
Early this morning, in our house in the Tarn-et-Garonne, in southwest France, I awoke in the darkness. Not exactly unusual for me these days but I had an idea that although it was still very dark outside, it was close to dawn. I checked my watch: it was around 5.30am. Normally I only open the […]
03
Feb
Feb
Phase out animal agriculture? It’s the quickest and only intelligent way to reverse climate change. But is it the easiest way? There seem to be few candidates for a genuinely easy way to stop and reverse climate change, but if people in their billions stopped buying and eating food made from or by animals over […]
I’m against Covid. I’ve had a primary, secondary and a booster. I had a reaction the first time that made me regret the vaccination for a couple of hours. Then after that I didn’t regret it, and when my best friend’s sister passed away some time later from Covid, more than a month after contracting […]
Just 50 years ago, most large companies saw brands as the prime creators of value, but they hardly troubled to assess corporate reputation. It did not seem to create or even affect value. Investors focussed on share price, profit, turnover; connections were made through stockbrokers, agents and financial media. The practice of communications was simple, […]
24
Mar
Mar
Waving a British flag around in public to garner votes has never been a commonplace British activity. It used to be considered rather tasteless, and for colour coordination it’s not exactly the greatest fashion accessory. Waving the flag (when not at war) happened on military occasions, ceremonies of international sporting events, or when the Queen […]
17
Feb
Feb
Those of all political and cultural persuasions will be delighted to hear the exciting news. The old pronoun they, apparently re-purposed for new duty by the thought police, is not just a new way to hide gender-specific pronoun and possessive uses like he and she, him and her. In fact they was the word used […]
Op-ed, Portfolio, Blog
Brand value and reputation management after Covid-19: From PR to sustainable integrity
17
Jan
Jan
We have all lived through and are still living through significant changes in corporate affairs and communications in the past generation. The past year of confinements, restrictions and lockdowns has been disastrous for many businesses and instructive and insightful for those dealing with reputation management. But how to prepare for the new market conditions after […]
14
Aug
Aug
President Ouattara’s declaration threatens Cote d’Ivoire’s stability There has been civil conflict in Abidjan and outbreaks of violence all around Cote d’Ivoire since the declaration on 7th August of Alassane Ouattara, President of the Republic, to stand as a candidate for an unprecedented (and many say illegal) third time in the forthcoming presidential election on […]
12
Aug
Aug
Those of us who regularly use Facebook should be clear and precise about why we do, because powerful and compelling reasons are emerging to argue why we should not. For many Facebook users the advantages are obvious: we like to keep in touch with our friends and family, often with real time conversations or texts […]