I wrote this complaint back in February. Gray Hill Surgery, Caldicot, does not allow email complaints. Their complaints process is so difficult to negotiate. What I did is contact the main local NHS health board and they said that even
Continue readingTag: world war 2
Review: Before Bletchley Park – The Codebreakers of The First World War – by Paul Gannon
I have previously read a lot of material on World War 2 codebreakers and the likes of Alan Turing and their critical work against Enigma and the invention of modern computing during that period. Of course, codebreaking and cryptography is
Continue readingRiposa In Pace Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi has died today at the age of 86. It has been said that not a day has gone by in Italian news media over the past 50 years without him making headlines of some sort. He certainly was
Continue readingThe Nuremburg Code 1947
At the end of World War 2, after, in particular, the disaster of the Holocaust becoming apparent, many leading Nazis were hunted down and brought to trial to face justice for war crimes. One of the main international trials, indeed
Continue readingHappy 100th Birthday Henry Kissinger
Henry Kissinger is a political heavyweight. Of that there can be no doubt. Even the harshest of this US politician-come-guru, Henry Kissinger’s critics will have to admit that he is just that – a veteran in the ring of international
Continue readingReview: MI9: A History of the Secret Service for Escape and Evasion in World War Two – by Helen Fry
I randomly found this book on the shelves of Caldicot library. I read a lot of books on U.K. Intelligence services: MI5, MI6 and GCHQ. During the war…. Mt grandfather (GaGa) was in 618 Squadron RAF and 143 Coastal Command.
Continue readingZlata’s Diary – A Child’s Life in Sarajevo – by Zlata Filipović
What’s a grown 45 year old male doing reading a little Bosnian girl’s diary you might ask yourself. Well, it cropped up as a recommendation in a documentary on the war in the former Yugoslavia, a subject to which I
Continue readingReview: Zlata’s Diary – A Child’s Life in Sarajevo – by Zlata Filipović
What’s a grown 45 year old male doing reading a little Bosnian girl’s diary you might ask yourself. Well, it cropped up as a recommendation in a documentary on the war in the former Yugoslavia, a subject to which I
Continue readingReview: War and Peace – by Leo Tolstoy
‘War and Peace’ needs no introduction. It holds its place in the minds of contemporary society as a literary classic. One cannot pick up a newspaper article on great books without a passing mention of Leo Tolstoy’s masterpiece. Like other
Continue readingReview: Behind The Enigma – The Authorised History of GCHQ – Britain’s Secret Cyber-Intelligence Agency – by John Ferris
This is a weighty tome (800 plus pages) and the authoritative history of perhaps the least glamorous of the U.K.’s principal security services. However, the facts illustrated in this book clearly demonstrates the critical role GCHQ plays in national security
Continue readingReview: Behind The Enigma – The Authorised History of GCHQ – Britain’s Secret Cyber-Intelligence Agency – by John Ferris
This is a weighty tome (800 plus pages) and the authoritative history of perhaps the least glamorous of the U.K.’s principal security services. However, the facts illustrated in this book clearly demonstrates the critical role GCHQ plays in national security
Continue readingReview: MI6 – Fifty Years of Special Operations – by Stephen Dorril
This detailed 800 page book covers fifty years of MI6, the UK’s foreign espionage service. From relatively humble beginnings during the second world war, MI6 grew to become a leading foe of Soviet Russia and its notorious KGB. The book
Continue readingReview: The Last Gangster – My Final Confession – by Charlie Richardson
Charlie Richardson was an important figure in the London Underworld during the 1960s. The Krays often overshadow The Richardsons in terms of their notoriety as London gangsters but, as is clear from the revelations in this book, The Richardson family
Continue readingAccount For The Nationalist Victory In The Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War lasted for three years from 1936 to 1939 and was ultimately won by the Nationalists. This victory was far from certain at various points of the conflict and this essay shall explore the many factors that
Continue readingReview: Women and the Second World War in France, 1939-1948: Choices and Constraints – by Hanna Diamond
This book focuses on the role of French women during World War 2 and the immediate aftermath. It is clear that the women of France bore the brunt of dealing with the occupier, very often their men away, detained as
Continue readingReview: Catch-22
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is a 20th century classic novel I had to read. It is a fascinating story of the Second World War which grows ever more absurd as Yossarian proceeds on
Continue reading