Mad Men – London-style

The old memory reacted to this portrait of Dylan Thomas by reminding me that when I joined the Kit Kat team at Rowntrees, his son, Llew was a copy-writer at JWT in Berkeley Square, W1. I chatted with him in the penthouse bar during my ‘induction’ visit in 1965 – a day-trip by Pullman from York which revealed some of the inner sancta of the agency and the luminaries who populated them.

Continue reading “Mad Men – London-style”

While it’s quiet…..

Despite the weather, it is no longer March, and St George’s Day, the Bard’s day, looms large. Soon we will lie back and think of England again, surrendering to the Missus the Muses once more.

So might one respectfully suggest the Management might update the competition links to reflect our new mood?

Smileys and things.

Where’s Gordon?

Former Prime Ministers Tony Blair, Sir John Major and Prime Minister David Cameron attend the funeral service

The media, even here in socialist Vikingland, are banging on about the cost of Maggie’s funeral – twenty new pence a head allegedly. So I thought I’d set the record straight, just to comfort the serried ranks of soon-to-be-late prime ministers who might feel obliged to decline the same honour in the interests of national thrift.  Continue reading “Where’s Gordon?”

The Wallace Collection

I realise this may be coals to Newcastle for many cherished colleagues, but for me my first visit to the Wallace Collection yesterday was a real eye-opener.  The venue was suggested by the friend I was meeting who recalled having been taken to see the collection at the age of nine.  Despite having taken her degree in art history, she had never visited it again.  Admission is free, though donations are gratefully received, and this makes it an ideal art gallery to visit if one is in central London with just an hour to spare.  The collection is in Hertford House on Manchester Square, just behind Selfridge’s.

http://www.wallacecollection.org/

This link gives an idea of some of the exhibits; not just paintings, but china, glassware, weaponry, and other objets d’art.  Continue reading “The Wallace Collection”