This morning's Independent suggests that all the pressure around the News of the World mobile phone hacking case may have led to a u-turn by the Metropolitan Police.They say that Assistant Commissioner John Yates has asked the New York Times to provide any new material it had relating to the matter, including an interview with former reporter Sean Hoare, who has claimed that Downing Street communications chief Andy Coulson knew about News of the World staff eavesdropping on private messages when he was editor of the paper.Meanwhile former Liberal Democrat MP, Lembit Őpik has stepped into the row by questioning Mr. Coulson's competence and calling for him to stand down:Mr Őpik, who believes that he too was a victim of phone tapping by Mr Coulson's former paper, the News of the World,...
My brother, Jon, and his girlfriend, Vanessa, at the Minnesota State Fair. I love this...
There is an interesting piece by Andrew Rawnsley in this morning's Observer in which he outlines the dilemma facing the five candidates for Labour leadership - embrace the Blair legacy or reject it.Rawnsley makes the valid point that whatever his faults Tony Blair knew how to win elections, and he did so by grasping that political parties must constantly renew themselves to keep up with events, the world and the voters. His key insight was that centre-left parties win and hold power only by creating a broad appeal which embraces not just their natural and traditional supporters, but also voters without any tribal allegiance to Labour.None of the candidates he says, really comprehends how anyone cannot be as Labour as they are. That is an essential problem that is already reflected in the...
'Dwi wedi rhyw ystyried 'sgwennu pwt am S4C ers tro. Mae'n eithaf anodd serch hynny oherwydd bod y cyfryngau print prif lif am unwaith ymhell o flaen y blogosffer, a chyda mwy o fynediad i wybodaeth gywir. Gweler dwy erthygl dreiddgar iawn gan Gwion Owain yn y cyhoeddiadau cyfredol o Barn a Golwg er enghraifft. Roedd hyd yn oed Lol yn eithaf dadlennol.Wna i ddim ail adrodd beth sydd wedi ei ddweud yn yr erthyglau hynny, maent wedi eu 'sgwennu gan bobl sydd ar y tu mewn fel petai - ond mi hoffwn wneud sylw neu ddau fel rhywun sy'n edrych ar bethau o'r tu allan. Problem ganolog S4C ydi'r ffaith ei bod yn derbyn swm sylweddol o arian cyhoeddus er nad oes yna lawer iawn yn ei gwylio. Yn hyn o beth mae'n unigryw fel sianel deledu yn y DU. Fel mae Gwion yn ei awgrymu yn ei erthygl yn...
If the Sunday Independent is right and UK Ministers are to issue licences to farmers in England to cull badgers in an attempt to curb the spread of tuberculosis in cattle herds, then this government is about to make a momentous mistake.The paper says that the Government will launch a public consultation later this month on the precise details of the scheme, which would allow landowners who can prove the measures are necessary to cull and vaccinate badgers over an area of at least 50 square miles.This move is being taken despite a decade-long study, costing £35m, by the Independent Scientific Group on Cattle TB, which concluded that culling cannot "meaningfully contribute" to control of the disease because it displaces the badgers, spreading the disease over a wider area.They must surely...
The Sunday Independent reports that the former head of the Army has accused Tony Blair and Gordon Brown of letting down British troops in Iraq and Afghanistan:They say that in his new book, Leading From the Front, General Sir Richard Dannatt branded Mr Brown "malign" for failing to fund the armed forces adequately and said Mr Blair lacked the "moral courage" to make his then chancellor deliver the money that was needed:In his book, Gen Dannatt says that evidence for Iraq's possession of weapons of mass destruction - the official justification for Britain's involvement in the 2003 invasion - was "most uncompelling" and the planning for the aftermath of war an "abject failure".While the 1998 Strategic Defence Review (SDR) provided a "good framework" for defence policy in the Labour years,...
Half my family have got diabetes, one of Anna’s best friends has it and one of Morgan’s 5yr old friends has just been diagnosed too. No doubt diabetes has, or will affect someone you know too.
So, I’m going to brave the monsters of Lake Bala and do a sponsored swim in aid of Diabetes UK.
Please sponsor me, either let me know how you can help in person or donate via JustGiving here: http://www.justgiving.com/Al-Cole
Every little helps, so thanks in advance for your......
I’ve been getting back into swimming recently. Swimming in a pool is great, but as I have to drive 10 miles to get to the nearest pool just popping in for an hours session takes over two hours and therefore isn’t very economical as far as time or money goes. I therefore decided to try some open-water swimming and recently bought a TYR Hurricane wetsuit specifically for this purpose.
As a windsurfer, surfer, kite-surfer who lives on the beach I spend most of my time in a wetsuit and have quite a collection of them. The TYR Hurricane is specifically designed for swimming, particularly Triathlons. It is essentially a full smoothskin suit with short legs, flexible thin neoprene on the arms and shoulders and a 5mm torso and legs. It is the bottom of the range of the TYR suits...
Here’s Nicks Next Pastel Painting and its a bespoke size, pretty large at 19 x 28 inches. I think the photos have come out a little bluer than the original however when I take the final photo with the photography lights Ill make sure the colour is correct. I have some lovely photos to blog of a client with a portrait next and also Paco’s portrait is framed and ready to send to the client so I will also add photos of that too!
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The Daily Telegraph reports that Tony Blair had a hostile reception when he attended a book signing in Dublin yesterday. They say that shoes and eggs were thrown at the former British Prime Minister by anti-war protesters as he arrived at a bookshop in the Irish capital. However, the missiles did not hit him:Activists clashed with Gardai as they tried to push down a security barrier outside the Eason store.Campaigners, who turned out in the pouring rain, were chanting: "Hey hey Tony hey, how many kids have you killed today?"They also shouted: "Tony Blair war criminal" and "blood on your hands".There was tight security leading up to the book signing event, with undercover detectives mingled with the crowds taking names before Mr Blair arrived at the shop.The city tram service was suspended...
The death of Cyril Smith yesterday marks the passing of an era in Liberal politics. Cyril was a maverick, but that is not a bad thing. He was Mr. Rochdale, but he was also a politician who was not afraid to speak his mind irrespective of the consequences, and who wore his principles on his sleeve. To me that is the mark of a good liberal.Skimming through David Steel's autobiography again, just now I was struck by just how awkward-squad Cyril was. He opposed the Lib-Lab pact in the 1970s at every opportunity, speaking and voting against it at special conferences, standing out as the lone MP within the Parliamentary Party at one stage to seek the end of the pact, but ultimately he was a party loyalist who threw his considerable weight behind the leadership at a crucial moment to prevent a...
Felly neithiwr mi gyrhaeddais Rachub fach drachefn. O fod yma ychydig ddyddiau’r flwyddyn mae’r ddelwedd berffaith sydd gennyf yn fy mhen ohoni yn dueddol o gael cnoc go hegar ond fydda i wedi hen anghofio unwaith y byddaf nôl yng Nghaerdydd. Weithiau dwi’n meddwl fy mod yng Nghaerdydd o hyd, am lawer hirach na thybiais, megis estrys â’i phen mewn bell dywod. Haws ydi hi, wedi’r cwbl.Ond, na, er gwaethaf popeth fy Rachub i ydyw o hyd, ar ei newydd wedd ai peidio, a’m Arfon innau ‘fyd. Canai Nain o hydShow me the way to go homeSir Gaernarfon neu Sir FônA dwi wastad wedi uniaethu gan fod Môn, Mam Cymru (sy llawn blydi weirdos a dyna ddiwadd arni), wedi bod yn rhan lawn cymaint o’m mywyd ag Arfon gadarn. Doedd dim yn well gen i na phan fues yn nhŷ Nain ‘stalwm bob...
As per usual, the children go back to school and the weather is gorgeous. According to the Borth and Ynyslas Weather Station it was the 2nd warmest day of the year, the warmest being back in May. Not only that but the surf was really good yesterday as well. It wasn’t huge but it was big enough with a really well organised, long-period swell.
I obviously went for a surf and at times the offshore winds and the strong rips meant that the waves were almost atationary. They were holding up for ages with gorgeous long, steep faces. I was able to take what would normally be suicidally late take offs and get away with it. Lefts and rights were peeling off the sandbanks perfectly and I had all the waves I wanted.
It was a lovely evening too. Morgan went off to beavers and Anna and I had...
We’re into September, the nights are cooler, autumn is on its way and the range of moths we’re getting in the moth trap is changing to reflect this.
There were a few new ones in the trap last night along with large numbers of Setaceous Hebrew Characters, but the Large Yellow Underwings and Dark Arches that were so prevalent during the summer are in decline.
1 x Flounced Rustic
44 x Setaceous Hebrew Character
7 x Small Square Spot
13 x Flame Shoulder
8 x Large Yellow Underwing
1 x Archer’s Dart
2 x Dark Arches
3 x Gold Spot
2 x Purple Bar
1 x Tawny Speckled Pug
2 x Dark Sword Grass
2 x Rosy Rustic
1 x Common Wainscot
1 x Large Wainscot
2 x Shuttle-shaped Dart
1 x Common Marbled Carpet
2 x Sallow*
1 x Square-spot Rustic*
1 x Mouse Moth*
Here are the new ones, and a new...
Below is a section from my novel The Way Forward. Buy it now from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk.----------------------------------It made an interesting sound, my brain slamming around in my skull. If I had to re-create the sound, I would take a two-by-four, encase it in Jell-O, and bang it against a pipe while dropping a piano down an elevator shaft lined with old mattresses. I'd probably also do something unpleasant to a cat.My eyes partially focused and I was on the floor, staring up at a group of Chinese girls peeking out at me from behind their doors. The group melted into four girls, then three, then two, then one and a half."Hello," I said, offering a weak smile.The 1.5 Chinese girls looked at me in horror. Her heads darted back behind the door, and I heard the lock turn. Before...
Dim ond rhywbeth bychanDim digon, dim gwerthDim gymaint a ti'n haedduDdim yn berffaith, na'n brydferth.Cadw fo yn saff ond paid a'i guddiadNid ar silff y mae o fodNid ei golli na'i falu yw'r bwriadOnd ei ddangos a bod yn falchEfallai nad ydio'n euraidNa'n sgleinio fel tonnau haulOnd dyma'ng nghalon, dyma'n enaidY gora geidi genai, fythHwyl a sbriiBach yn rybish sori, oni jesd isho trio neud wbath gwahanol i ddiwrnod pethau...
Os ydym i gredu'r cyfryngau mae peth optimistiaeth ynglyn a'r trafodaethau rhwng llywodraeth Israel a gweinyddiaeth Glan Orllewinol yr Iorddonen. Mae gen i ofn bod yr optimistiaeth hwnnw yn ol pob tebyg wedi ei seilio ar dywod ac yn ei dro mae hynny oherwydd bod problem sylfaenol ynghlwn a strwythur y trafodaethau. Mae'r gwendid yma wedi tanseilio ymgeisiadau yn y gorffennol i ddod a heddwch i'r Dwyrain Canol - ac yn nes at adref na hynny.Mae'n hawdd anghofio heddiw bod sawl ymgais wedi ei wneud i ddod a'r rhyfel yng Ngogledd Iwerddon i ben cyn y cafwyd llwyddiant cymharol gyda chytundeb Dydd Gwener y Groglith. Un o'r methiannau cynnar oedd Cytundeb Sunningdale yn 1973. Ceir dyfyniad eithaf enwog gan gyn ddirprwy arweinydd yr SDLP (y blaid genedlaetholgar gymhedrol yn y Gogledd),...
This 'guide pony' was spotted in an Apple Store somewhere in the US.
You may also be interested in watching a video of pub that visited a......
Ers 2007 mae’r cwmni sy’n casglu breindaliadau cerddoriaeth ar ran cyfansoddwyr – ‘PRS for Music’ wedi bod yn torri’r taliadau ar gyfer cerddoriaeth sy’n cael ei chwarae ar Radio Cymru; cam oedd yn bygwth bywoliaeth nifer o gyfansoddwyr ac artistiaid Cymraeg. Fe ffurfiwyd mudiad ‘Y Gynghrair’ gan y diwydiant yng Nghymru i ymateb i ac ymladd yn erbyn y newidiadau.
Fe gomisiynwyd adroddiad i edrych ar y posibilrwydd o greu corff Cymreig i gasglu breindaliadau. Awduron yr adroddiad yw Arwel Elis Owen a Deian ap Rhisiart a mae’r adroddiad nawr wedi ei gyhoeddi ar wefan Y Gynghrair.
Mae’r adroddiad yn argymell sefydlu corff newydd i Gymru fel dewis amgen i’r PRS.
Yn yr adroddiad, nid yw S4C na’r BBC yn gweld angen am...
Dydd Iau oedd ein diwrnod cyntaf yn ol yn yr ysgol ar ol gwyliau yr haf.Yn anffodus mae Lowri wedi symud i fyw i Bwllheli sydd yn golygu ei bod hi wedi symud i Ysgol Cymerau.Tywysogion Cymru ydi ein thema y tymor hwn a cawsom wneud gwaith am furlun o Llywelyn ein Llyw olaf yn Llanelwedd – sydd yn dangos lle cafodd ei ladd. Cawsom hefyd gem o griced yn y prynhawn.Hefyd mae yna nifer o blant newydd yn yr Ysgol – Megan, Deio, Caio, Cai, Owain, Osian, Erin, a Harri.Ac ar ol amser chwarae cawsom ni gyngor ysgol. A chawsom bledleisio i weld pwy oedd yn cael swyddi yn yr ysgol.Y cadeirydd ydi Steffan Toplis a’r is gadeirydd ydi Owain Hedd. Yr ysgrifennydd ydi Elliw Haf Lewis a’r is ysgrifennydd ydi Geraint Davies.Elan a Charlotte(Lluniau i...
I’ve just been out to try out my new open-water swimming wetsuit again. This time I went for a swim in the estuary in perfect condition. Warm, sunny and with no wind so the water was as flat as could be. It was pretty much high tide too so not much in the way of currents.
I swam from the beach out around the cockle beds and into the Leri, around a buoy there and then back. last time I did an open-water swim I wore my GPS watch on my wrist but I think the movement of my arm meant that it over-recorded the distance I’d traveled.
This time I wore it on my ankle to try to overcome that problem but for some reason it didn’t seem to record at all. Don’t worry, I have a ‘Plan C’ – Next time I’ll try putting it under my swimming cap.
This is where I...
Prin iawn bod chi ddim wedi clywed am hyn eto, ond mae’n ddiwrnod Pethau Bychain heddiw ’ma, ac mae’r rhithfro ar dân fel Ysgol Fomio Penyberth ers talwm. Yn anffodus, bydd rhaid i mi golli’r rhan fwya o’r miri wrth iddo ddigwydd, gan ein bod ni’n disgwyl ymwelwr arbennig yn y man, ond byddai’n trial dal i fyny nes ymlaen.
Dw i wedi dechrau blog bach ar yr ochr, sy jyst yn gasgliad (dyddiol? gawn ni weld) o gerddi dw i wedi dod ar eu traws ac yn hoffi am un rheswm neu’r llall....
Traeth Towyn, TudweiliogO'r hyn dwi'n cofio gefais fy nghyflwyno i Draeth Towyn gan fy nwraig dros chwater canrif yn ól. Dwi ddim yn cofio mynd efo fy rhieni fel plentyn (er mi aethon ni i bron pob cwr o Gymru fach!), ond roedd teulu fy ngwraig yn hoff iawn o'r llecyn bach hyfryd o amgylch Tudweiliog, ac yn aros yna pob haf mewn amrywiaeth o fythynod 'sylfaenol' ond cartrefol. Roedd traethau gogledd Pen Lly^n yn canolbwynt i'w gwyliau nhw - ac yn enwedig Traeth Towyn, un gymharol anghysbell i sawl, ond yn weddol hawdd i'w gyrraedd er hynny.Pan gyrraeddon ni'r traeth dydd sul, roedd hi'n braf ond yn chwythu'n gryf. Mi brofion ni lli go lew, a chanlyniad yr heulwen ar ein cyrff, a chuddwyd rhywfaint...
So [wi’n joio shwd ma’r Americanwyr yn dechre’u blogs gyda “So” o hyd], co ni ma unwaith eto ar drothwy ymgyrch rhagbrofol arall gyda tim Cymru. Montenegro oddi cartre heno am 18:30 (yn fyw ar S4C) yw’r gem gynta, a wi’n siomedig ofnadw mod i ddim mas yna gyda’r tua 500 o Gymry sydd wedi neud y daith Trains Plains and Automobiles-aidd i gyrraed Podgorica. I fod yn onest, wi wedi gadael i’r busnes mynd i weld Cymru oddi cartre fynd ar gyfeiliorn dros yr ychydig flynyddoedd dwetha. Ma fy ‘ngyrfa’ wedi mynd a fi i Oslo (2 waith), Helsinki, Milan, Baku, Vienna, Dulyn, Manceinion, Limassol, Bilbao a Belgrade dros y 10 mlynedd dwetha, ond sai di bod “away” ers Bilbao yn 2006. 4 mlynedd o dosturi. Ma unrhywun sydd wedi teimlo’r wefr o ddilyn Cymru oddi cartre yn...
Peidiwch gofyn sut ond dwi wedi cael gafael ar raglen sy’n cael ei ddefnyddio yn fewnol gan S4C. Dwi wedi ei roi ar y we i bawb gael ei weld.
Mae’r teclyn yn creu syniadau ar gyfer rhaglen, ar hap, gan ddefnyddio cronfa ddata helaeth. Os ydych chi’n gynhyrchydd, efallai bydd hwn yn gymorth i chi feddwl am raglenni rhad wrth i’r toriadau ddod i mewn flwyddyn nesa.
Braidd yn ‘hit and miss’ yw hi, ond nawr ac yn y man mae’n dangos awgrym ar gyfer rhaglen fyddai’n berffaith ar gyfer gwylwyr S4C.
Os ydych chi am awgrymu unrhyw welliannau neu ychwanegu unrhyw wybodaeth i’r gronfa ddata, dwedwch wrtha’i isod!
Ewch ati i greu......
Anybody reading the lead article in this morning's Western Mail, reporting that Culture Secretary, Jeremy Hunt has signalled his intention to allow ITV to ditch its commitment to regional news, could be forgiven for thinking that there has been a major government announcement. However, the second sentence in the article gives the game away. It reads:Mr Hunt confirmed he is to persevere with a policy of introducing a network of smaller, city-based local broadcasters, freeing ITV up from its obligation to provide a Wales-wide service.In other words the Culture Secretary is following precisely the same policy, unchanged from when he came into government. How ironic that a lead newspaper article on news provision is not in fact news.Nevertheless, there are some important issues raised by the...
Dwi bron yn teimlo’n ddiog ar ddiwrnod Pethau Bychain yn blogio achos, i bob pwrpas, gwneud yr un peth â dwi wedi’i wneud ers saith mlynedd ydw i. Dwi’n siŵr, ac yn gobeithio, y bydd y we Gymraeg yn llawn gweithgarwch heddiw. Fyddai’n braf meddwl y bydd pawb yn blogio ac ambell flog newydd yn dod i’r amlwg. Ar y llaw arall fe wyddoch be dwi’n ei feddwl am drydar...Gyda thaith i’r gogladd ar y gweill, a’r paratoadau meddyliol dwys sydd ynghlwm wrth hebrwng y Dwd yno, dyna’r oll ‘sgen i ddweud am heddiw. Yn fuan eto,...
Sometimes the familiar just catches your eye. I see these things everyday of my life and something about the contrasting reds and greens always catches my eye. I can never do them justice in a photograph – probably a failing on my part rather than that of the subject. They probably only appeal to me as they are so familiar but maybe someone else will like them too....
The tape shows two police officers, on foot and in riot gear, slam McKenna into the......
The stupider of our two cats, Donna, went missing on Monday.
I came home Tuesday night expecting her to have returned: nothing. I supposed she’d jump onto the bed in the middle on the night…but she didn’t. We called from the garden, from the back bedroom window out across to the bowling green where she would go to watch pensioners play bowls matches on summer afternoons. We walked around the streets, shouting for her. Nothing.
We found her on Thursday night, miaowing from behind the locked doors of the garage of a house in a cul-de-sac just around the corner from us. Once we’d found the owner and had the garage opened up Donna appeared from a dark corner, very grubby and big-eyed. Back home she gulped down two portions of catfood, spent five minutes lapping...
