By James Aitchison In London, just five miles east of Buckingham Palace, a mysterious underground language has evolved. An English language wherein words such as “frog”, “soldiers”, “Aristotle”, “whistle” and “butchers” do not mean what they are supposed to mean!…
By James Aitchison He was known as the king with the funny name, a self-appointed Muslim ruler who survived 55 assassination attempts, a dictator who fled to The Ritz in London and died in obscurity in France. And while history…
By James Aitchison He was born a British prince. His father was Queen Victoria’s youngest, brightest son. He was educated at Eton. Lewis Carroll, a family friend, dubbed him a “perfect little prince”. Yet he was denounced in Britain as…
By: James Aitchison Two men, both Edgars, born in the same year — 1875 — would become the most prolific authors of the twentieth century, creating two fictional characters that have never ceased to capture the world’s imagination — King…
By: Edmund Fulton Happiness, what is that even? And more importantly, how do you gain it? Some would say happiness can be found in buying a new, expensive car, or a bigger house. Others would say it is important to…
By: Edmund Fulton One life, that’s what you get. Not more, not less, so do something with it. Every day is another chance, so use it wisely. Don’t waste precious time being stuck in the past, sobbing over something you…
By James Aitchison Long before Ian Fleming, John Buchan, Graham Greene, Eric Ambler, Len Deighton and John le Carré, there was Erskine Childers. His book, The Riddle of the Sands, published in May 1903, is arguably the first spy novel…
By James Aitchison Langston Hughes, the Poet Laureate of African America, had a great ear for rhythms and stress, able to propel ideas and demands for racial justice through urgent jagged verse, a “jazz” poet who harnessed popular music such…
By Yoobin (Annika) Song The socialists of the 19th and 20th centuries launched a formidable challenge against industrial capitalism, employing art as a powerful tool for critical analysis and critique. In works such as “A Pyramid of Capitalist Society,” (fig….
By: Roopa Menon The First Way Wear your best clothes. Statistics reveal that people who wear their favorite attire just before killing themselves suffer less. If you are not a sucker for statistics, don’t bother. Choosing where you commit the…