There is a small brick wall that separates my driveway from that of my next door neighbours, it is only a foot or two high and when I am washing my car it comes in handy as a place to store the debris from inside my car whilst I attack the carpets with the Dyson. [...]

The English Football Association are in talks with FIFA to allow the England team to wear a Poppy on their shirts during the game on Saturday against Spain. Evidently FIFA’s regulations do not permit international shirts to carry any ‘political, religious or commercial messages’. This indeed is a very noble pledge by FIFA, but I [...]

There can be no denying it. The battles of Menin Road, Polygon Wood and Broodseinde were successful. The German army were taking a hammering, were demoralised and there was even talk of tactical withdrawal. Haig sensed the panic in the German ranks and urged Plumer to renew the offensive, he was convinced the Passchendaele Ridge [...]

Now, I don’t normally read too many newspapers, firstly because I don’t get a great deal of time to do so, but mainly because I am not that interested in which footballer is bedding which whore, or if Paris Hilton is partying in Vegas without any knickers… But today is different, because as I was [...]

Almost all of us have a family member who fought for King and Country during the First World War. With digitisation of army and pension records, as well as medal cards, ancestry.co.uk is a great resource for anyone wanting to find out more about their family heroes from WW1. There are a vast number of service [...]

I had the pleasure of hosting my European marketing colleagues at work this week, along with some senior members of our corporate marketing management team. During the meetings I put together a ‘cliché tax’ system where a small fine (20p or 20c depending on where you came from!) was paid every time someone said one of a set of [...]

This was the most common star awarded for any overseas service during 1939-45 although airmen/aircrew who took part in the Battle of Britain also were awarded this star. This star was authorised during the war, so personnel are often pictured wearing the ribbon whilst still engaged in the war. It’s ribbon has three equal stripes [...]

At last, the Cycling the Line press release has now been issued. I sent it out to a handful of military/history magazines yesterday and it will go out to a wider audience later in the week.. Cycling the Line to Raise £10,000 for the Royal British Legion 2 Guys, 2 Cycles, 580 miles of WW1 [...]

The BBC has asked the poet Laureate, Carol Ann Duffy, to write a poem to commemorate the passing of two of the last WW1 veterans, Henry Allingham (who’s funeral, with full military honours is today), and Harry Patch, who’s funeral is scheduled for next week. The poem is vivid, powerful and moving, I have transcribed [...]

I suppose it was bound to happen at some time as they couldn’t physically live on forever, but nonetheless it is very sad that Henry Allingham and Harry Patch both passed away this week, leaving the UK with just one physical link to horror and carnage of the ‘War to end all Wars’. Henry Allingham [...]