Tag: alcoholism

Peter Cook

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Originality of thought and a command of words give him a maturity of style beyond his years. In speech or essay he is never dull and his work should always be interesting. — Peter Cook’s school report, aged 14

I know I’ve been destructive. What I do reflects the idiocy and chaos within myself. — Peter Cook

In the self-congratulatory world of show business, the word “genius” is used casually and often, and “comic genius” more than most, but in its original sense it is occasionally appropriate. (more…)

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What matters most is how well you walk through the fire. — From an interview with Charles Bukowski

Sometimes the first lines of novels become as famous as the novels themselves. Think of some of the classics: (more…)

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Adrian Chiles
The Good Drinker: How I Learned to Love Drinking Less
London: Profile Books, 2022

See also: British TV & Cutting Down on Booze

Alcohol is a two-edged sword. On the one hand it makes life fun and turns strangers into intimate friends in the course of an evening; on the other, it makes a person dysfunctional. Very dysfunctional. Productive time is lost, relationships are damaged, and health is harmed. (more…)

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The following essay originally appeared in the January 1992 issue of George P. Dietz’s Liberty Bell magazine, and is reprinted from the Revilo P. Oliver online archive. (more…)

Deputy PM Dominic Raab wants to assure you that free speech will be given “trump card status” under the UK’s controversial Online Safety Bill.

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Ukraine? The brochure looks nice

It is not clear that the British government quite understands the habits of the mercenary soldier. After its dithering Foreign Secretary Liz Truss indicated that British citizens were free, should they so wish, to go to Ukraine and fight against Russia, she sympathized with these would-be Lord Byrons. Her staff reminded both her and the men ‘o war of the latest travel advice on its website: (more…)

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I took a rare day off on Memorial Day, but it had nothing to do with mourning dead American soldiers. Naturally, this didn’t stop me from being bombarded by the endlessly treacly and corny “conservative” online finger-wagging about how I need to honor all the dead soldiers who ostensibly shed their blood to protect my freedoms. (more…)

British television presenter Adrian Chiles

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Not too long ago I got an app for my streaming service that features British TV shows, which led to me developing an obsession with reality shows featuring poverty-stricken Englishmen and their troubles.

Naturally, I’ve fallen down a rabbit hole of voyeurism and judging. (more…)