Hogan plus Vowles

Chapter 5 1949 - 1954. St.Brendan’s, Bristol, Rugby, Violent Education, But above all the Sad Death of my Mum. The picture above is the School Badge for St.Brendan’s College, Clifton, that was worn on black school blazers and caps by boys attending that grammar school in Bristol. It was a school founded and operated by the Irish Christian Brothers. The Brothers in Bristol were a branch of a lay teaching order set up by Blessed Edmund Ignatius Rice in Waterford in 1806. The work by him was counter to the Penal Laws that existed until the 1820’s that denied an education and franchise to Irish Catholics. Many people were inspired by his dedication, piety, and his success in providing education where only “hedge schools” had previously existed. The lay order of Brothers gained approval and support from the hierarchy and expanded then with the passage of time the order extended to England, the Dominions, and the USA. For the next hundred years the Christian Brothers' S...

This morning a flyer hit the shag pile from one Mr Mike Bell who is, to quote himself :  Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate for Weston-super-Mare. Leader of Lib Dems on North Somerset Council. Views my own - who else would they belong to?  Now if like me you live in North Somerset you will be somewhat dismayed at how everything that you loved about living in Weston-super Mare and Somerset has declined, died, or become sullied. In our view, that is my Wife and I, you will undoubtedly be completely frustrated with those people to whom we given the stewardship and husbandry of this fair land. A plague upon the Conservatives, Labour, and indeed the most arrogant : the Liberal Democrats. They have not listened to the populace, none of them paid any attention, we are plebs. Here is a measure of how the population can be treated. My son returned home last year from away needing solace and help. He did not want any handouts from the Council but a place to live until everything s...