7th October 2018
Canberra, Australia
As a child, watching Dr Who once a week was a family ritual. I still get a shiver down my spine whenever I hear that iconic music (‘Dun-dun-dun, dun-dun-dun, dun-dun-dun, dun-dun-dun, Waooooooooooo, Waoooooooooo….’) and remember the nights spent watching the latest episode from behind the sofa. The Daleks and Davros scared the heebie-jeebies out of […]
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17th April 2018
Canberra, Australia
This month is all about the Commonwealth. We are on the cusp between the end of the (fantastic) Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, and the start of the Commonwealth Summit (also known as CHOGM – Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting) on 16-20 April, when the baton will be handed, metaphorically, to the UK as […]
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15th December 2017
Canberra, Australia
In the days before social media, 24/7 news and Freedom of Information requests, British Heads of Mission around the world used to pen an “Annual Review” at the tail end of each year. This was an opportunity for reflection on host countries and bilateral relations; and – inevitably – for competitive Ambassadors and High Commissioners […]
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19th November 2017
Canberra, Australia
My first love was Geoff Boycott. It all started when I was just six years old, and was sat with my Dad watching England play the West indies on our black-and-white TV. The year was 1973. The test match was being held in Port-of-Spain. I was transfixed by Geoffrey’s batting; and was waiting desperately for […]
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21st June 2017
Canberra, Australia
It’s been a difficult three months. The UK has been through a series of terrorist attacks, which have punched through the daily news cycle with repeated horror and intensity. We will remember them all – Westminster (22 March), Manchester (22 May), London Bridge (3 June), Finsbury Park (19 June) – and hope there are […]
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26th March 2017
Canberra, Australia
I have two, what I jokingly call, spiritual homes in the UK. One is Wales, land of my fathers (actually my mother) and home now to all of my immediate family. The other is London. I was born in Hillingdon to the north-west of the capital, and raised in Ruislip, near the end of the […]
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15th March 2017
Canberra, Australia
I watched you perform at the ANZ stadium in Sydney on Saturday night, with my 16 year old daughter and 94,998 other people. This was just one night in your multi-city Australia tour – your first time in this beautiful country, you said. Altogether, I reckon around 600,000 people will have seen you perform in Australia – […]
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29th December 2016
Canberra, Australia
2016 was lots of things. Forgettable wasn’t one of them. It will give students of politics plenty of stuff to write about decades from now. And it will live on in our own memories for years to come. So how to describe the year that was… what? And what does that mean for us in […]
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16th September 2016
Canberra, Australia
One of the great joys of being High Commissioner to Australia is the sheer variety of what I do. I’ve learned to expect the unexpected, to travel widely and frequently, and to deal with a diverse range of issues. It’s why I love the job. The last three weeks have been a slightly extreme example […]
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1st August 2016
Canberra, Australia
Last week, we hosted David Lammy MP on a visit to Australia. He came here as part of his review into possible racial bias against BAME (Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic) people in the British criminal justice system. This work was commissioned by former PM David Cameron, and has the full endorsement of our new PM […]
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