Compared to the heroism of the ‘Remontada’ against PSG,last night’s defeat at the hands of Juventus was sadly a much more mundane affair. It was huge of Barca fans in the Nou Camp to wave their flags and chant for the team as the final seconds ticked away, but the occasion did not really warrant it. Barca was crushed i their own stadium.You don’t expect that in the Nou Camp, let alone in the Champion’s League. Last night’s match showed Juventus magnificently resilient in defence and Barca less that heroic …
El ejemplo de Churchill
A pocos pasos del terrorismo que ayer sacudió la ciudad de Londres esta una estatua de Winston Churchill, corpulento en su abrigo de trinchera, y con una mirada enfocada y resuelta, toda una imagen de un pueblo que ha conocido y sobrevivido, con orgullo y victorioso , momentos más amenazadores de su historia. En el momento que el terrorista empezó su paseo endemoniado a través de Westminster Bridge, camino del Parlamento, me encontraba a cuatro cuadras después de haber almorzado en mi club cerca de Trafalgar Square con un amigo …
Warsaw Diary
There was a long queue at passport control at Warsaw’s Chopin airport on arrival from London. ‘Never happened before’ said a young polish lady. I and another British national looked at each other with the thought passing through our minds- is Brexit already with us? It turned out there were a couple of police officers who had turned up late for their shift and in the end we all swept through the EU lane relatively smoothly- but for a few minutes it did make one think, how …
La Sra May: Entre patriotismo y nacionalismo
La perspectiva de la otra ribera escribe Jimmy Burns Marañón Escribo declarando al principio mi ‘status’ de ciudadano Europeo, nacionalidad británica, nacido en Madrid de una madre española y padre británico, educado en el Reino Unido, que desde 1953, cuando naci, he pasado la vida compartiendo culturas,a nivel personal, profesional y políticamente. Por lo tanto, desde esta posición por lo menos híbrida, permítanme intentar formular algunos pensamientos personales sobre el discurso de la señora May, y lo que podría producirse para el futuro de las relaciones entre …
Mrs May between patriotism & nationalism
I write as a British national, born in Madrid to a Spanish mother and British father, educated in the UK, bit who since 1953 has spent is life straddling two cultures, personally, professionally, and politically. So from this hybrid position , let me attempt to formulate some personal thoughts on Mrs May’s speech, and what it might auger for the future of UK-Spanish relations. As an exercise in political speech making and delivery, May’s rhetoric and poise appealed to a British sense of identity rooted in history with …
‘Silence’: A film worth discernment
I am grateful to Father Nye, a wise old Jesuit friend for advising me to go and see and make my own mind up about Silence which arrived at my local London movie house on New Year’s Day. ‘Only don’t expect humour. It doesn’t have any’, ‘he added. Up to that point a reading of some reviews had led me to thinking I might avoid it. The suggestion was that this was an overlong and dark film, with a somewhat leaden dialogue, a miscast central character, and containing scenes of …
The UK in three halves
By any standards of the UK’s collective diary, Monday of this week was a day worthy of popular attention-and reflection. Three events between them seemed to define the noble and the less worthy of the UK nation, and humanity generally. It began with news that young victims from Syria and other conflict zones stranded in Calais were to be reunited with their families across the Chanell. It developed with live coverage of the celebration of the team GB Olympic and Paralympic teams. By day’s end millions of football …
