Chris A

The glow of embers in the fireplace, warm and comforting
Shadows chased by the sudden flare of a match
A candle flickering in a steamed-up window
The bob of a rescuer’s headlamp on a snowy mountain
A lighthouse in a stormy sea, guiding, reassuring
Sunlight slicing through dark curtains
A beam of torchlight on an unlit path
In the darkness, i…[Read more]

Gosh, thanks Raine. I think there were some really excellent entries this month. I put my win down to luck – and sneaking “Madrigal” into my story.

Byrd

‘Somewhat overshadowed by Tallis.’

‘Sorry?’

Janet looked up from the score at Penrose who was holding his copy at arm’s length. His other hand grasped his lapel as though he was striking the pose of some learned patrician. Probably just what he was doing, she thought. She felt a twinge of guilt, but also resignation. If only he hadn’t in…[Read more]

Well done all, especially Raine. I thought it was a bit special.

I had a first line (oddly enough, my adversary was Time) and discovered Time had beaten me. Not to worry, there’s always next month.

Congratulations, Raine. Your entry was frightening (in an inspirational kind of way ☺️)
And thanks, Knicky, even though I was too slow 😂

Doug

I could be expelled, or even stuck in a young-offenders institution, but, honestly, I can’t see how they’ll ever pin it on me.

Doug isn’t a nice kid. At ten, he’s the spitting image of his dad; spitting being the operative word. He’s well on his way to being as big as him, too. Which is big.

Doug hates all the other kids at school.…[Read more]

I should spend less time on the test site and more here. Cracking story, Knicks. Well done. Thanks for the competition, Sandra. I found it tough but fun.

Also “An IOPC spokesperson told PA Media: “We can confirm that on 17 December we received a referral from the Metropolitan police service [MPS] of a complaint about an alleged party at Downing Street in December 2020.

“Having fully assessed the referral we have decided it is invalid and we have returned it to the MPS to handle as it det…[Read more]

Absolutely!

I do not like wearing a mask when I go shopping, but it is a tiny hardship compared with, say, passing on the virus if I unknowingly had it, to somebody else. I’m so tired of hearing people, my neighbour for instance, declaring that he will “never” wear one in a shop because he’ll “never catch it that way”. He’s a tree surgeon and…[Read more]

…Oh, and a very happy 21st to you!

Up the hill

Popular Oldwell couple Jack and Jill Bouquet are recovering in hospital from what police described as a “vicious and unprovoked attack” on Saturday night. Regulars at the Old Well pub on Old Well Hill were alerted by calls for help around 11:00 in the evening. Landlord John Spratt described how he and his wife found Jill Bouquet col…[Read more]

Well, two entries this month. Both of them top notch.

Sandra’s story tells me so clearly about that moment when, inexplicably, there is no avoiding the surprise of what you expect to happen actually happening. It’s so familiar and so infuriating.

Knicks plunges us into the very innermost world of a relationship. Twisting and turning thoughts: I…[Read more]