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by Chris Harris I’ve thoroughly enjoyed watching Banjo and Ro’s Grand Island Hotel on BBC Scotland. It’s beautifully filmed, Banjo and Ro are engaging, and their enthusiasm for breathing new life into a neglected historic building is infectious. Watching them tackle the enormous challenges of restoring Ulva House on the Isle of Ulva has made for compelling, well-produced television. I’ve also…

by Chris Harris A Reassuring Statement… But Not the Full Story At first reading, the Board’s financial statement of 29 June is encouraging. It confirms that Lewes FC’s operating budget is fully funded through to May 2027, removing any immediate concerns over whether the club can complete the coming season. That is undoubtedly welcome news for players, staff, volunteers, Owners and supporters…

A long goodbye with love as Lewes FC enters a different era What I Want to Communicate to Local People About Lewes Football Club A long goodbye with love as Lewes FC enters a different era. Pete Bull Lewes FC has built one of the most powerful stories in non-league football: supporter ownership, Equality FC, women’s football, community benefit, and the idea that a small club can do things…

by Chris Harris It’s so rare that I can find a day where I just decide to devote it to strategy and planning my book. So, it was great to realise, after a very long morning, probably six hours of studiously investigating and plotting, I’d gone backwards! I am just awaiting a couple more illustrations from Louise, and with the writing finished, it was time to put into action all of those hours I…

A personal appreciation of The Ruts’ classic Staring at the Rude Boys, the connections between punk, reggae and ska, and why The Crack remains one of the greatest punk albums ever recorded. by Chris Harris etc There are certain records that seem to encapsulate an entire period of British music within a few short minutes, and for me Staring at the Rude Boys by The Ruts is one of those rare…

by Chris Harris One of the more unexpected consequences of starting a podcast is that you eventually have to listen to yourself. At first, that sounds rather exciting because you’ve finally managed to record something, upload it successfully and put it out into the world. Friends and family say encouraging things, a few people listen, and for a brief period you can convince yourself that you’re…

by Chris Harris Few English idioms are as satisfying as “hit the nail on the head.” It is short, visual and instantly understood. We use it when somebody identifies a problem perfectly, explains something accurately or arrives at exactly the right conclusion.If a friend finally works out why a relationship failed, they have hit the nail on the head. If a journalist sums up a political issue in…

An innocent rhubarb growing competition between a couple of best friends escalates into full scale growing combat and violence in Part I of this tragi-comic satire. Part 2 later this week. by Chris Harris Illustration by Louise Turner Big Dave and CJ were the best of friends. They spent the first twenty years of their adult lives drinking, partying, going to gigs, clubbing, football matches,…

By Chris Harris Interesting Finds: The Last Picture Palace Seats Inside the Story of Brighton’s Lost ABC Cinema There is something strangely emotional about old cinema seating. Not antique furniture in the traditional sense. Not polished mahogany or aristocratic country house pieces. Cinema seats were built for ordinary people. Thousands upon thousands of them. Yet somehow, when they survive,…

by Chris Harris The Toads World Championship. From Sussex Alehouses to South American Taverns From Toads to Sapo and Tejo Walk into the right Sussex pub and you may still find it lurking in a corner: heavy brass discs, a scarred lead board and battered scoreboards hanging on walls stained by decades of smoke and conversation. Nearby will usually be a group of players taking the whole thing far…

by Chris Harris Part two of a short story, the local church roof is callously stripped, incompetence, character assassinations, indignation, in a fast-moving tragi-comic yarn in two parts. A conclusion ir reached in this speedy and funny whodunnit. Set in the fictitious village of Denham and Lewes, East Sussex. Original artwork by Louise Turner. Podcast about the story…

by Chris Harris Let’s be honest, I like to do things quickly. I have a whirlwind of a mind and an insatiable desire to get as much done as possible, as quickly as possible. It hasn’t always served me well, but it’s simply the way I am wired. Running an online business, writing two books, maintaining two blogs, and dealing with all the other clutter in the dustbin of life leaves little room for…

Part one of a short story, the Sussex pub game Toads, the local church roof is callously stripped, incompetence, character assassinations, indignation, in a fast-moving tragi-comic yarn in two parts. Set in the fictitious village of Denham and Lewes, East Sussex. by Chris Harris Original artwork by Louise Turner. Podcast about the story etc. Toads! Our First Podcast. A Jealously Guarded…

by Chris Harris and AI The oldest animals at Dripping Pan Farm still remembered the days before the Revolution. Back then, the Farm had been tired, threadbare and permanently short of feed. The owners in charge barked orders from the 70s clubhouse while the ordinary animals huddled together beneath leaking roofs and rusting turnstiles  watching Ryman Div 3 football. The stronger beasts did the…

“It is a situation most perplexing, Miss Lemon,” Hercule Poirot declared, twirling the ends of his immaculate moustache with grave precision. “You remember the Mercury 13 investigation from a couple of years ago? The situation, I regret to say, remains most… unsatisfactory. There are inconsistencies, contradictions… and, how do you say, a distinct aroma of something not quite right.” Miss Lemon…

by Chris Harris Origins and First Recorded Use “Old habits die hard” is one of those phrases that feels like it has always existed, and in many ways, it has. The exact wording dates back to 1837, when Nathaniel Hawthorne used it in his novel Fanshawe: “Old habits die hard.” That simple, direct phrasing has endured ever since. However, the idea itself is far older. Classical writers like…