Barrie's Podcast

Many commentators will agree that since the vote for the UK to leave the European Union, the views of the general population have become increasingly fractious and divided in attitudes towards ‘foreigners’. Nothing is new, and the British have always been suspicious of their European neighbours. The Daily Mail, Express, Sun and, indeed, Facebook and Twitter are all currently having a field day in...

The phone rang; it was a colleague in Las Palmas telling me that the police were in the middle of a response to a potential terrorist incident in the city. A suspect package had been placed in front of the door to the garage of the central offices of the National Police on the island. The building was sealed off, traffic was prevented from entering the road, and anti-terrorist officers arrived to...

Witnessing first hand some of the very unpleasant bullying directed at one of the talented contestants on a popular television programme shocked me. There was one particularly unpleasant post, which was challenged by several people. As well as several expletives, the writer claimed that “I’ve got the right to express my opinion!” before his post was reported and subsequently blocked. © Barrie Maho...

Glass, with its transparent quality, can serve as a metaphor for clarity and purity, and the interplay of light through glass has long captivated human imagination, and encouraged contemplation of God.   In many spiritual traditions, including Quakerism, light symbolises illumination, knowledge and the presence of God, the Light, or Whatever we wish to call it. The interconnection between glass an...

The ongoing debate about assisted dying in the UK and in many other countries is much more relevant to me now that I have been diagnosed with terminal cancer.  Don’t misunderstand me, I currently have no intention of going anywhere for a while and, of course, I am determined to prove the doctors wrong. Despite the bravado that cancer suffers often display, in those dark hours of the night, like so...

It’s always interesting how some of the strangest thoughts and ideas pop into our minds when we have a quiet mind. Yesterday, I started thinking about photography; I’m referring to ‘real photography’ involving non automatic cameras, 35mm film and chemical processing, which I have not thought about for many years. © Barrie Mahoney 2023 Join me on Facebook: @barrie.mahoney To find out more about Bar...

At risk of sounding both a prude and a party pooper, Halloween is one of the annual rituals that I detest with a vengeance. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a good party as much as the next person, but this tacky, heavily commercialised celebration of evil is, for me, a step too far. Also, I don’t think it is too unreasonable to refuse to answer the doorbell when ‘trick or treaters’ come calling after...

I am often asked what I consider to be the essentials when planning a new life in another country. My answer is always the same, to learn the language.  © Barrie Mahoney 2023 Join me on Facebook: @barrie.mahoney To find out more about Barrie and his books, go to: http://barriemahoney.com/  

I am sure than many readers will recall times talking to children when an imaginary friend enters the conversation. Children chat happily with their imaginary friend, whether they wish us to be involved or not. I often wondered if the imaginary friend really was imaginary, but really was there and could be seen and interacted with through a ‘third eye’. During my work with young children, I conclu...

Most of us will have been shocked and horrified by the current criminal case involving the murder of many babies who were in the care of a young and deeply troubled nurse. Yet again, the wilful destruction of life is on our minds and challenges our understanding of goodness and, indeed God. Why did this happen? Why was it allowed to happen? Who is ultimately responsible? These are just some of the...

“Oh, she’s an angel”, or “Thank you, you’re an angel” are comments that I sometimes hear, and often following an act of kindness or generosity. Maybe such comments are more common in the older generation nowadays, but I am used to hearing them. It is always a comment that startles me for a moment, and I wonder... © Barrie Mahoney 2023 Join me on Facebook: @barrie.mahoney To find out more about Bar...

The article claimed that Denmark, Switzerland and Norway are the most unfriendly destinations for immigrants Despite the generally high quality of life in these countries, they are just not friendly enough with poor attitudes to immigrants and a local culture that is difficult to get used to. These ‘sinners’ were closely followed by Germany and France that ranked 56th and 57th in a list of 67 coun...

Although, I understand that the suffering and welfare of people come first, I know that I am not the only one to be distressed about animals caught up in such disasters. There is rarely any mention of animals caught up in flooding, fire and other tragedies that appear on our television screens, and little is ever reported.  It seems that animals suddenly become invisible during times of crisis, ye...

I discovered the “Fruit of the Gods” the other day. More accurately known as persimmon or Sharon Fruit, this delectable fruit has been tempting me for a while, but somehow I didn't have the courage to try one. As feeble as this may sound, I have been caught by strange fruit and vegetables before, and the prickly pear being a particular unfortunate experience, which is a story for another time. One...

We remember and celebrate the foundation of the National Health Service by the Labour Government on 5 July 1948. The NHS, despite its current difficulties with funding, staffing levels and retention of staff, is one of the very few areas that unites most of the country. It is often described as the country’s national religion and supported by most people. Despite current difficulties in accessing...

For me, peace and meditation is often best achieved within the tranquillity of an old building: a church or chapel, or maybe a quiet National Trust property. When we enter a building for the first time, we often immediately sense if it is welcoming or not, and whether we would feel comfortable there. The reasons are unclear, and we may not know why we feel this way, but it is real. This feeling is...

Looking at the broader issues. Is it right for aircraft to be joyriding the skies in a show of machismo during the climate crisis? Given the huge costs of energy and fuel poverty in the country, is it right to be casually flouting an endless supply of aircraft fuel for joy riding? What about pollution of both the atmosphere and noise? Yes, the pilots are well trained, gifted, and clever individual...

Once upon a time there was a Spanish civil servant, an engineer, who was asked to collect an award after 20 years of loyal service to the Spanish state. On further investigation by his superiors, it turned out that he had not appeared for work for the last six years, although this could possibly be as many as fourteen years, no one is quite sure. Someone seemed to remember him popping out for lunc...

My first encounter with a squirrel was not a happy one. I was about five years old, and we had just arrived for my first holiday in Bournemouth, staying with my elderly great aunt in her Victorian home. I still remember entering the old house through a small conservatory that housed many glass cases in which were collections of stuffed birds and animals. I clearly remember several small birds trap...

Those of a certain age will know just how important tea is to the psyche and general well-being of most Brits. Most of us were weaned on the stuff and it runs through our veins in copious amounts. It is what makes Britain great; it is the stuff of Empire, Winston Churchill, Shakespeare, Harry Potter, Hugh Grant and cream teas. Indeed, it is a well-known truism that you are not a real Brit unless y...

Islands have always fascinated me, and I also love a good story, which is probably why one in particular sticks in my mind. That book is Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, which was first published in 1719. It is the story of a castaway who spends thirty years on a remote tropical island. It is hardly a carefree holiday for the poor man, since Crusoe has to contend with mutineers, captives and cannib...

It is Europe Day tomorrow, which I will of course toast with a glass of my favourite rioja, and it seems appropriate that I write about bananas. Why bananas, and what’s the link with Europe you may be asking. Well, I often write about bananas, because I like bananas, I like eating them and we also have a very large banana tree growing and fruiting in our garden, which provides endless entertainmen...

I am often told that Brits on holiday like nothing better than to get out of bed long before their all-inclusive breakfast has even hit the frying pan, and to chase outside to the swimming pool in their boxer shorts or bras (or possibly both) to place a vivid Union flag towel on the sunbed of their choice. It is even more exciting if there is a mad competitive dash with the Germans, with Brits gai...

I don’t want to be too depressing as summer approaches, but we will soon be heading into the season of coughs, colds and flu once again, together with the misery that such conditions bring. In most cases, these illnesses are relatively short-lived, but can be unpleasant, inconvenient, and annoying, and also serious in cases where there are underlying health conditions.  © Barrie Mahoney 2023 Join...

“I don’t like funerals” alongside “I don’t like hospitals” are two comments that I often hear. These comments always make me cringe, and I always feel like responding with “Does anyone?”, but I usually manage to bite my lip and smile. It is a truism that none of us like to dwell on illness and death, but both are a fact of life that we mostly conveniently ignore until it hits us when we are least...