Ramblings of a Leicester Lad

Captain's log, Star date 080925.2 It's Star Trek day, on September 8th 1966 viewers in the USA got to sit down and watch the first episode with Captain Kirk as he battled a salt vampire. No one knew it at the time, but a legend was about to be born. I have been a Star Trek fan since I was a little kid in the 1980s and Star Trek III began on the TV and the Enterprise swept across the screen after the opening credits. I was hooked. Growing up I would watch it whenever I could, usually on BBC2. Star Trek on a Friday night, Voyager on a Sunday night, The Next Generation on Tuesday and Deep Space Nine on Thursday. I'd scurry up stairs and watch it on a small TV in my bedroom and for 45 minutes I'd escape into the future of the United Federation of Planets. Was every episode a classic? Pfft god no, a lot of it was dross... but I'd still tune in every week. When we got Sky One I'd stay up on a Friday night and watch a repeat of Star Trek at 11pm. It was my hour, my TV ...

 Hi everyone, it's been a minute hasn't it. It's August Bank Holiday here in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Scotland as usual doing their own thing. As is common in England at least, in the run up to a Bank Holiday weekend the media goes into overdrive about millions of people having an Extra day off from work. Families having BBQs, Going for a weekend away, having a grand old time. Fuck off!! For millions more, including myself and ironically those in the media, it's just a normal Monday. We get up, go to work, come home and go bed. We don't get the luxury of having an extra day off, we get to Encounter people who love to rub our noses in having a three day weekend, the urge to spit in their coffee being strong. By the way please don't spit in my coffee.  So, for the millions of us working, for those of us for whom it's a normal Monday, I feel ya. Chin up, tits out, carry on. Be awesome.

So back in part 1, I travelled down to London. It was a pleasant trip and a fun afternoon.  Now I was at London Euston, waiting for my overnight train to Edinburgh with Caledonian Sleeper. I had a couple of hours to kill so I'd wonder around, do some people watching, plot how I'd take over the world using just a toothpick and a Lemon. Eventually my train was ready to board at 10.30pm. would I have a comfy bed? Not for £250 fucking quid I wouldn't, I paid £50 for a seat which in fairness isn't a bad price. Just a shame everything else let it down. The train was due to depart at 23.45 and so I boarded just after 22.30 and found my seat and sat down and waited...and waited...and waited...and in oh, after half an hour my right arse cheeky was starting to hurt. Not a good sign, no matter how I sat I just couldn't get comfortable. There was a row of two seats opposite so if no one sat there I'd borrow it and lay down. We departed five minutes late because someone was ...

 On 5th February 2025 I made my first big trip of the year, Leicester to Edinburgh via London on overnight travel. I made my way to Leicester Railway station but not before I did my good deed for the day and helped an old lady get on her bus (See, I've already more good for Humanity than Donald Trump ever has.) After arrival at the station I sat waiting for my train and watched people break the law by smoking on the platform...those monsters.  My train eventually turned up at 13.10 and having a first class ticket made my way to sit with the toffs and upper class, They welcomed me with open arms by saying I was in the wrong section. Morons. I decided to have two cups of tea and even had a complimentary Chicken Ceaser salad for my lunch which went down a treat. On the train I also met the actor that plays Tom King in Emmerdale, we went to use the toilet at the same time but he let me use It first, he's such a gentleman....he's also frigging tall. I'm 6ft6 and he's a s...

 In May 2024 I decided to see which Bus was better value when travelling from Leicester to Coventry and return. Here is how it went. Marc got sent to Coventry. So, back in the day there used to be a direct train service connecting Leicester and Coventry, via Nuneaton and avoiding Birmingham. Journeys took about 45 minutes and it was very convenient. So of course it was scrapped and the rail link removed, now passengers have to change at Nuneaton or Birmingham and it's a right Royal pain in the arse. However there are two bus services between Leicester and Coventry now, the express X6 operated by Arriva that goes via Fosse Park and Hinckley, and the 148 operates by Stagecoach that goes via everysoddingwhere it seems. So May 12th 2024 I was a bit bored and decided to do them both and see which was the better service to get to/from Coventry.  There are only three interesting things about Coventry  1, About 700 years ago a woman rode a horse naked through the centre...she was...

  So, my last Blog was about my dad, I had a fair few people approach me, thanking me for what I said and also to say how sorry they were. So I've decided to do a follow up of sorts to my first blog about Nostalgia, Now come with me as we go back to my childhood but for happier memories. As some of you may know, I'm bit of a Star Trek, Doctor Who, general Sci-fi fan. Well saying bit of a fan is like saying Elon Musk is a bit rich (He's also a grade A cunt), and that stems from my childhood, I've many happy memories of weekday evenings in the 1990s when BBC2 would show Star Trek, TNG, DS9 and Voyager across the week, usually about 6pm, from memory it was Voyager on a Sunday, The original series on a Friday with TNG on a Wednesday and DS9 on a Thursday.  Occasionally we'd also have other shows like Space 1999, Battlestar Galactica (The original series), Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet and Stingray, with Doctor Who also repeated, so I'd go upstairs with my dinner, an...

  One of my earliest memories is crying in my cot, I don't know how old I was, possibly 2 or 3. I don't remember why I was crying, Maybe I'd shit myself, maybe I'd just wanted a hug. Either way I was crying. I then recall my dad coming into my bedroom, Finally I'll get what I want. Except he came in with an angry face, Next thing I know he was yelling and then hit me and left.  That pretty much sums up the relationship with my dad. The two photos show me smiling at the camera when I was a young kid, but they don't show that I was afraid of my dad, my confidence and self esteem was non existent and I wanted to die. My father...the hero. My Mum and Dad married on Christmas Eve 1981, I was born in September 1982. My dad never hid the fact that I was unwanted, that I was an embarrassment to him. He hated me, whenever he could he'd humiliate me, hit me, punish me for stuff I'd never even done. Oh there's no doubting he worked hard to put food on the table...

 So, where was I dear reader? Oooh yeah, wondering if I'd go native in my overnight stay in Manchester, don't worry I didn't.  I woke up the next morning to find the sky grey and miserable to match my mood upon waking with a bit of stomach ache from eating my weight in Burger King the night before. Still, an epic poo sorted that out 😁. Quick shower, cup of coffee and I was out of my hotel ready to face the day, Instead what I got was a druggie being wrestled to the floor by several Police officers and my enthusiasm quickly waned, Breakfast was needed. Roll on McDonald's.  So after a hearty lukewarm breakfast I had about five hours before my Coach back to Leicester via Leeds. Time for one last bash on a Tram and get another route under my belt. At least that was the plan, turns out a Tram had broken down at a junction and everything had gone to shit. It's like the Pagan Gods were against me this day. So instead I just meandered around Manchester, got to see some sig...

 So something I thought I'd try out, a post about my trips. Manchester day one part one. My alarm woke me at 1.30am on Wednesday 10th April, after only a couple of hours sleep my body was hating me choosing to get up at this time. Emma was still fast asleep and the temptation to just stay in bed was there. However I dragged myself out and got into a shower, after the shower I drank an Americano to try wake me up. After making sure I'd got everything in my bag I left at half two for the long ponderous journey to the Bus station, I truly know how Scott of the Antarctic felt when he began his epic quest...two minutes later I arrived. There was a small crowd of people who like me were questioning their life choices as they waited for their transport and a homeless person was walking around arguing with himself. Just after 3am my coach arrived, myself and three other people boarded for the journey north. After about an hour's disturbed kip at most I saw we were coming into Notti...