By Appointment

A Jan Morris anecdote for you; “I was a guest once at a Buckingham Palace reception for publishers and writers, … Continue reading By Appointment

When Sussex Wept for Alan Wells

There is a place in Sussex where the road falls away so suddenly and unexpectedly that, just for a moment, … Continue reading When Sussex Wept for Alan Wells

It’s blowing a gale but the sun is hot and warming, and I decide to brave the terrace. I’ve chosen … Continue reading St Ives

A friend was driving her mother through Ireland this summer and, as they tootled along, she was telling her the … Continue reading Recollections of the Cathedral Bees

There were periods in the eighties when, as a teenager, I would spend most of my evenings kicking a football … Continue reading Derek Pringle, King of the Slips

I have, in my loft, a box of keepsakes – old tickets, football programmes, postcards and letters, an ancient packet … Continue reading The All-Russian State Library of Foreign Literature

It’s early, still before nine, and I’m driving. The sun is bright and low, forcing me to squint, and the … Continue reading Collecting the Eggs

My name is Eric Wark and I am a booksniffer. It is a simple and habitual pleasure, almost unconscious and … Continue reading Booksniffing

It may have been 1997, but this was the Russia of the seventies. Soviet and grey. No snow to lift … Continue reading Почта

Not far from here there is an old cinder track. It follows a line of trees between the railway and … Continue reading Cow Tree