Ed Vogue's World

Today would have been my Grandad’s 100th birthday. Unfortunately he never made it through the century and the excitement of receiving a birthday wish from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. My grandad died at the notable age of 92 back in May 2013.  I’m not sure what Harry Maurice Eve would have made of the last 6 months, his generation had lived through much worse times than we are currently enduring but I’m sure the lockdowns and social distancing would have irritated him.  So this Blog today is dedicated to a man who quite literally I wouldn’t be here without and who is missed by all who knew him.  My Grandad shares his birthday with an international awareness day. The 19th September is International Talk like a Pirate Day!  In a world which is often so serious this day can add the suggestion of some levity.  This day was the brainchild of two Albany, Oregan gentlemen called Mark Summers and John Baur. The story goes that whilst playing racquetball in 1995 one o...

It is now over two months since the summer solstice, June 20th. Now all of a sudden we seem to have sped through the summer and are just about to screech into September.  The scorching hot days, the late night swim in the English Channel, the fast melting ice cream cones and the sunburnt neck all seem to be a distant memory. Waking up this morning the heating (the thermostat turned right down) kicked in with the gentle whumph of the boiler ignition. I’m not sure if whumph is a word but it is exactly like the onomatopoeic word for my boiler.  Just like the start of Mary Poppins the wind has changed, there is a chill about the place. Autumn is fast taking the place of Summer. As the children prepare to go back to school Christmas suddenly doesn’t feel that far away.  There are many other signs of the seasonal change, apples fallen from the branches, conkers exploding from their casings under the horse chestnut trees, the worm-casts on the lawn in the softer ground and the f...

I have been fascinated by time travel ever since watching Back to the Future when I was young. I always wondered what it would be like to go back in time, to see how buildings, towns and cities looked in the past, to smell the smells and experience the lives of the people living in the same space but a different time.  Of course as a kid I also watched Dr Who and although when he, now she, travels in the TARDIS this never really felt like pure time travel, as the Doctor also moved about in space visiting different planets, except during the reign of Jon Pertwee, where perhaps the lack of a BBC budget marooned him on planet Earth in a yellow car called Bessie.  No, I was more interested in how time affected one place. Perhaps the best example of this is in the 1960’s classic film telling of H.G. Wells The Time Machine, where George travels in time from his Victorian conservatory workshop through the First and Second World War’s watching as the local London scene changes ravaged...

I was talking to my son the other day about how big world events often have some lasting legacy and change peoples lives in small insignificant ways and sometimes more substantially. As time moves by and one generation becomes the next these changes become ingrained in the day to day world. They become the ‘new normal’.  My son was born after the attack on the Twin Towers in New York, on that day as I along with millions across the globe watched the shocking scenes of these man-made Goliath's falling to the ground people could feel in their bones that this event would change the world. And so it did. To my son’s generation this is just how the world is.  Trying to explain to my kids how the world was before one of the most influential inventions, the internet, is a futile. How can they even imagine how normal life could carry on when the internet and all its magic is so ingrained in their lives.  As we are all painfully aware we are living through one of those moments in ...

It’s been a few days since my last blog when I wrote about the issues relating to using data and statistics and as a result anomalies in the patterns will always be present. Yet in the case of the statistical algorithm used to determine the exam grades the outliers were individuals with hopes, dreams and aspirations. Young influential people starting out in life not statistical anomalies.  These ‘outliers’ have made their voices clear over the last week and as they have it has become apparent to all that perhaps they were not outliers after all, instead they were the norm. It appears after analysis of the results, by people much more qualified than myself, that a significant number of students have been treated unfairly compared to other groups.  Due to the nature of how this algorithm works it appears to have favoured private selective schools due to small group sizes and stable historical results. Schools and colleges with larger teaching groups and more ‘volatile’ past coho...

Over the last months throughout the pandemic we have heard a lot about statistics and statistical modelling. Statistical results are often held up to be absolute and are often reported in the media without the levels of uncertainty that naturally accompany them.  A good example of this was the statistic being banded around that bald men were more likely to become hospitalised with Covid-19 than men with a full head of hair. This would have caused a degree of alarm for the follicly challenged members of the population. It would suggest that there is a causal link between hairloss and Covid-19. Now perhaps there is I have not accessed the original information from where this came perhaps to do with male hormones?. However it is more likely that this is just a correlation and that the cause is age. Older men are more likely to have complications with the virus and statistically more older men are bald compared to their younger counterparts. Notice that I used the term statistically in...

As I write these words today I am reflecting on the fact that Ed and his Vogers should have been returning from a holiday on the Greek Island of Kefalonia. If you haven’t been then this island is a must, it is still fairly quiet and undisturbed by the party atmosphere that can inhabit those parts of the world. The food everywhere is deliciously simple, fresh and homemade. I have never found grilled sea bass better anywhere else I have eaten it. The pace of life is relaxed and good service can be found everywhere.  The real gem regarding this particular Ionian island is its coastline.  You can find a beach to suit every member of the family from gentle shallow warm waters to the crashing coastline of one of the top 10 beaches in the world.  It is a place that you can see I hold dearly in my heart. This year was to not be. Even though as a family we were the most organised we could have been in this post-pandemic era our holiday had to go by the wayside. Of course in hindsi...

I wrote some eight years ago about the great British BBQ. My views on outside cooking over hot charcoal have not changed. I still believe that the BBQ is a brilliant invention. Since that time I have learnt a lot about the art of this kind of cooking in that time and have been witness to watching and tasting some delicious grilled foods.  As soon as the Sun looks like it’s going to show it’s face the BBQ’s across the nation start to come out from hibernation. First they need some tender loving care to clean off the rigours of the winter season, to clean off the burnt on pieces of burgers and sausages left from the previous September, to remove the spiders that have set up home amongst the old charcoal ashes and to wash off the splattered bird poo from the lid.  Once this is done it is time to let the cooking commence.  Lighting the BBQ is an art in itself. The interweb is full of examples of people setting themselves, their loved ones and their garden sheds alight using a...

A have to admit that I am partial to watching a bit of golf on the telly box. There is something fascinating about following the players on a tournament like The Open. As an armchair admirer you get to see all the action. Every important shot can been seen with the commentary alongside that, on occasions, is as amusing as the Test Match Special of days past.  Members of my family, friends and work colleagues are all golfers and love the game. I have to admit to being intimidated by the whole thing. Golf is full of technical ‘things’. By ‘things’ I mean rules, etiquette, equipment, clothing and words. It’s all a bit too much. This is before I even get into the technique of a golf swing. Those people who know me will understand that I’m not the most coordinated of people. I can throw a ball pretty accurately and pretty far but the coordination involved in catching it completely foxes me. As far as I can tell the golf swing is incredibly involved, coordinating the movement of shoulder...

If you read yesterday’s blog offering yesterday you will have been subject to my views on internet shopping. As I discussed shopping online has its place but it certainly doesn’t beat the hustle and bustle of the real market place. In these current viral times an open air market may well be a safe way to shop if you are able to maintain the required social distancing measures.  I love a market. I love the sights and smells of the marketplace. At a food market you can probably manage to eat an entire meal by just snacking on the free samples that are provided. Slightly annoyingly I have noted that since the markets have reopened the ‘new normal rules’ seem to have curtailed the frequency that these little morsels are made available, leaving me with a slightly empty feeling.  There are a number of great markets in London. By far my favourite is Borough Market adjacent to London Bridge and the Shard. This is a food lovers haven. Gorgeous products including meats, fruits and veget...

For many years the early adopters of online shopping have ruled supreme. The likes of Amazon and Ocado have had the market sewn up. It is easy to look for things in the shops and then find the same item cheaper from the comfort of your own home and have it delivered without having to move from the sofa.  Many companies over the years looked longingly at these pioneering and successful enterprises and wanted to get some of the same action. As the years have gone by every retailer has had to consider their online presence. Whether this is through an in house bespoke solution or piggybacking onto another.  The result is that you can now buy nearly every item you could desire online and have it delivered to your residence or place at work or even have it gift wrapped and delivered to your buddy.  During lockdown with the shops closed this online retail became even more important. At first the supermarkets could not cope with the demand. They prioritised the elderly, vulnerabl...

It is predicted to be possibly the hottest day of the year so the Vogue family made a decision to head out of town to the coast to visit some friends by the sea. This is preferable to me than blowing up and filling the paddling pool in the garden.  The car was packed with all the items you need for the beach. We navigated our way through the post lockdown Friday traffic of North London and joined the M25.  The music was banging out of the speakers and as I drove I dreamt of my seafood platter lunch and delicious fish and chips for dinner staring out at the big blue.  The temperature on the dashboard revealed a steaming 40 degrees outside but the air conditioning was doing a great job of keeping us all cool.  As we neared the M3 the traffic slowed for an incident ahead and as we slowed down to stop the engine stalled and then failed to restart. We had broken down on the M25 just before Junction 12 - in the middle lane! Mrs Vogue immediately made a 999 call to report o...

Eggs, bacon, mushrooms, beans, black pudding, fried bread, grilled tomatoes alongside others all important components of the traditional Great British breakfast. This is a meal that can be piled high on a plate served with white toast, marmalade and a pint of tea at a roadside cafe or presented neatly on the finest porcelain alongside starched white napkins in a fancy London restaurant.  I love making breakfast. Often nothing beats a simple poached egg on toast with a side of smoked bacon grilled until the edges are crispy. Since coronavirus however we have been experimenting with some delicious recipes. With lockdown we have had more time to spend on this well deserved meal. I would like to share three of my favourites.  The first recipe is a Tom Kerridge recipe from his book and TV series of the same name Get Fit and Lose Weight. This recipe is called Green Eggs and Ham. The green is kale, spinach and peas, these ingredients alongside garlic and spring onions are scrambled t...

Today’s blog is a recipe inspired by the bounty of damson fruit ripening on the tree in our garden. So what to make when the damsons are in season?  Usually I would make some chutney. Today was not a chutney day. Too early in the year. Interestingly the damsons are early this year perhaps the warm lockdown March and April is responsible for this.   The recipe needed today needed to reflect the summer... 1.8 kilograms of damsons allows for two different recipes, a damson jam and a damson fool. Excitingly the jam recipe requires our special book. This has been well thumbed and the pages are stained with various fruit juices and vinegars.  There are some lovely recipes in this book. I very much recommend it if you want to make jams or preserves.  The damson fool recipe required a google search and luckily my favourite food writer of the moment Felicity Cloke of the Guardian has written an article on the Perfect Damson Fool. She has to take credit for this recipe. See li...

This question is one that has been posed many a time.  It can be asked in a frivolous Facebook type of question or asked in a serious job interview. I guess the validity of the second example depends upon the position applied for.  If you were interviewing for a position as a financial director of an investment bank then it would be, to say the least, a bit odd. However, if you were interviewing for a position at the local Pets R Us, then then in this case it might be a reasonable line of enquiry.  Are YOU a dog or cat person?  It is a deeply personal question.  It is a question that perhaps divides the nation. It can be a dangerous question to ask on a first date, but I would bet good money that more than likely a discussion about pets comes up during this occasion. It is a make or break question. The answer could result in the date ending in a ‘would you like to come back to mine for coffee and to see my...cat’ (even I have to keep these blogs decent) or ‘let’...

Yesterday marked the last day of the English Premiership Season so its time to hang up the boots and reflect on my Fantasy Football experience.. To tell the truth I have never really been into football.  As a youngster the nearest big club was Brighton and Hove Albion and my friends and I never made the trip to the terraces and as a result I never felt the club spirit that so many people talk about. I wasn’t sporty as a kid, never played myself and my lack of interest meant that when the big national events came around I wasn’t that bothered as to who won or lost.  I do remember the FA Cup being a big thing though. It would nominate the live kids TV on a Saturday morning the in early summer and always seemed to be a red team playing against a blue team.  As a student in Leeds, before the premiership, I did go once to Elland Road in the 91/92 season. This was when they won the first division ahead of Man Utd. These were in the days of Gary Speed, Gary McAllister, Lee Chapm...

When people ask me where I live and I tell them London they think mostly of busy, traffic filled streets with crime on every corner. What people don’t consider are the small village areas punctuated by parks, wild spaces and woods, the varied and diverse culture that is on offer bringing with it interesting food shops, restaurants and people, convenient and cheap transport options and the buzz of living in arguably the greatest city in the world.  Ok, I admit it can be busy but it depends on where you are going. Since the lockdown the roads have been much quieter and even as easing as occurred the traffic has not been at the levels that it was before. Areas of central London can be touristy and this equals busy. You may have to queue for a tube and stand shoulder to shoulder taking in the aromas of your fellow passengers once on it but this is the price to pay for having so many lovely things right on your doorstep.  Just like any city though if you arrive at the right time yo...

Whilst ruminating on the subject of today’s post I was reflecting on the names that I have been called in the past and occasionally still do although that  I am well into my middle age.  The first that has followed me around through the years is of a cartoon character; the sidekick of one of the 80’s British cartoon superheroes. The superhero in question is Dangermouse, a cool, sophisticated cowardly crime fighter who was supported in his exciting escapades by his nerdy sidekick Penfold. Penfold was a spectacle and suit wearing hamster. He is particularly known for his catchphrase of ‘crumbs’ whenever trouble reared its head.  I must have looked like Penfold when I was younger because when I met people for the first time and the conversation started flowing they often were reminded of Penfold!! I knew it was coming when they would say, ‘who do you remind me of?’. I would then wait for the penny to drop.  I am pleased to say that this has not happened in recent years,...

It is widely known that superheroes wear masks to protect their identities.  But not all.  Superman wears no mask, all he has to do is take his glasses off, put his pants on the outside of his lycra leggings, run some brylcreem through his hair and he is somehow unrecognisable to his nearest and dearest.  On the other hand Spider-Man and indeed Ironman wear a full face covering that hide their identities. Those who know the Marvel films will understand that in the case of Ironman this is not actually to protect his identity. Tony Stark goes out of his way to ensure everyone knows that ‘he is Ironman’.  His helmet is all about the heads up display to help him catch the bad guys, but for Spider-Man anonymity is all important.  Somewhere in between these extremes lies the half mask that Batman wears. His mask covers the top half of the head leaving nostrils and mouth bare but this seems enough, with the added aid of a gravelly voice, to confuse everyone about his r...

Way back in the last week of March lockdown started in England. The government told us to stay home and schools were closed. As a family we decided to try out an advertised HIIT workout programme which would be streaming live on YouTube,  Body Coach TV . We tuned in on that first day and were introduced to PE with Joe and the HIIT workout.  As a family we whole heartedly jumped in. The guy, Joe, was engaging and enthusiastic. It was hard.  Three days later we could hardly walk up and down the stairs. Joe told the nation that was normal. He told us this was because the muscles were being worked and that it was temporary and we would get stronger. He was right.  By the end of the week we could walk again and we were getting used to the exercises.  A month in and Joe Wicks had become a national phenomenon. He was being talked about on the radio and TV. People used his name as a synonym for exercising.  He had also introduced us to his family with his wife and ...