Sidelines

  • The best camera

    The best camera

    My point-and-shoot camera turned out to be the best camera in the world yesterday.

  • Seeing purple

    Seeing purple

    The Moor is at peak-purple at this time of year, with the heather in full bloom.

  • Bookshelf triage

    Bookshelf triage

    When bookshelves become full, only the fittest volumes survive.

  • The nearly dead tree

    The nearly dead tree

    Each spring, I visit a particular corner of the Moor to check if an old friend has managed to survive another winter.

  • In the wilderness of Wirral

    In the wilderness of Wirral

    An unwelcome modern intrusion into one of my favourite wildernesses takes me on an unplanned medieval journey in reverse.

  • 2013: a year in photos

    2013: a year in photos

    My third annual video slideshow review of the year.

  • Hell or middle-management training? Ask Pope Benedict

    Hell or middle-management training? Ask Pope Benedict

    The former pope reportedly sees management training as torment. As a conception of hell, it makes more sense than everlasting fire.

  • Anglesey

    Anglesey

    About my—and my mum’s—childhood holidays on the Welsh island of Anglesey.

  • Glorious melancholy

    Glorious melancholy

    My photos from an out-of-season weekend at the seaside.

  • Wild Cat Island

    Wild Cat Island

    Three and a half decades after I first became enchanted by the place, I finally set foot on the island that inspired Arthur Ransome’s ‘Swallows and Amazons’.

  • The return of the delicate flapwort

    The return of the delicate flapwort

    On a second expedition I made in search of a rare plant. This time, I accompanied someone who knew what he was doing.

  • Ensemble 10/10 programme

    Ensemble 10/10 programme

    One of my photos has been used on the front of the 2013–2014 season concert programme for the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra’s Ensemble 10/10