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Victorian Manchester: ‘Bank Robbery And Suicide’ in Didsbury

Admin | Thursday 10 May 2007

We tend to think that guns, robberies and violent crime in Manchester are modern phenomena. But there was lots of it going on in Victorian times too. Even in Didsbury (heaven forbid).

Data collection by United Utilities’ foreign call centres

Admin | Thursday 10 May 2007

Recently I mentioned how I called United Utilities and was asked for my date of birth for ‘data protection’ reasons. I refused to give it and they wouldn’t discuss my water bill.

Update on the eye test/spectacles drama with Boots Opticians. But good service from Glasses Direct

Admin | Tuesday 24 April 2007

This is an update on this entry. Very pleased with the spectacles from Glasses Direct. I ordered a semi-rimless pair for distance (£25) and a pair for reading (£15). I placed my order by telephone on Wednesday 28 March and they arrived just over seven days later on the Thursday. I’m going to order a … Update on the eye test/spectacles drama with Boots Opticians. But good service from Glasses Direct

Posterior Vitreous Detachment — update

Admin | Tuesday 10 April 2007

A surprising number of people have found my blog when searching for ‘posterior vitreous detachment’, after I wrote about what had happened to me. So I thought I would do an update. I’ll tell you up front that it is relatively good news.

Guardian, Lonely Planet, Hewlett Packard ‘photographic opportunity’

Admin | Friday 6 April 2007

Fifteen years ago, when I earned part of my living as a freelance photographer, the going rate for a cover shot on one of the small magazines that I worked for was £200. The magazine sold 12,000 copies each month and that payment gave the publisher the right to publish the image one time only.

Cowboy opticians and cheap spectacles (hooray)

Admin | Wednesday 28 March 2007

I could write a book about my bad experiences with opticians over the past twenty-five years.

Manchester and slavery

Admin | Tuesday 27 March 2007

Manchester’s wealth was founded on the cotton industry and dependent on slave-grown cotton. But the city was also at the centre of the anti-slavery movement.

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