Lesson for self. If you buy new insoles for your shoes, it might be sensible to loosen your laces. Halfway through today’s walk, I did just that and, magically, any pain I was experiencing just disappeared. The walk itself was a real mixture of terrain today. It started with a visit to Hardraw and its…
Breakfast at the sheep farm was simple. No choice of tea or coffee here. It was very strong Yorkshire tea or nothing. But it was quite good. The Pen y ghent cafe was shut this morning so I had to stock up at the post office. Pork pie, crisps and a Mars bar. Not exactly…
Pretty close to a perfect day’s walking. Malham Cove got me off to a gentle start in beautiful autumnal weather. Then I climbed quickly (possibly a bit too quickly) up the side on to the limestone pavement above it. A gentle saunter led me to Malham Tarn, which literally glistened in the sunlight. Then it…
I had forgotten that train journeys at the weekend can be tricky. In a moment of what may turn out to have been genuine madness some weeks ago, I decided that I would take a week off work and do some walking. So, this morning I left London with GNER to head north to Malham…
Staff awaydays don’t have to be spent in a stuffy hotel. We’ve just had a great day out at Alton Towers, where I’ve learned a great deal about myself, my team and our general ability to cope with stress and potential danger… Only three of us were brave enough to go on ‘Oblivion’, but we…
An early morning start today to catch the first Easyjet flight out of Stansted to Belfast. Then a quick run in a hire car up over the mountains to Derry, where Ruth and I met the Principal of the North West Institute of Further and Higher Education. He wants to start a Career Academy, which…
It was the first day of Wimbledon today, so we should have expected it. The rain lashed down. Parts of Birmingham and Gloucestershire were under water. In London, the forecasted showers were more like a monsoon, with the added excitement of wind to move the rain from vertical to horizontal. And today was the day…
Someone in the FT wrote recently that there’s no middle ground on rollerblades. Apparently, you either leap to your feet and zoom about confidently like a Starlight Express chorus-girl or you stand jerkily like a newborn foal and roll awkwardly away with arms flailing, like a cartoon character on a banana skin-strewn pavement. Actually, I…
New York last week, Great Yarmouth today. I’ve never been to Yarmouth before. It’s a really lovely town. I tend to think of British seaside resorts as being rather sad, diliapidated places. The one I know best, Weston-super-Mare, certainly is. But Yarmouth was very busy with holidaymakers, making the most of a beautiful day. I…
Amongst my meetings today was with someone whose office has to have the best view in New York. Dick Parsons is the Chairman and CEO of Time Warner and he’s interested in supporting the Career Academy movement in the UK. This morning, immediately before my meeting, I read in the New York Times that he…