Two Poems
Two poems - one silly one written in the last few weeks and one nature-inspired one written in late November 2020 after watching an...
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James Gillam
Nov 21, 20233 min
Culture : The Widening of the Mind and the Spirit
What are your favourite pastimes? they said. Theatre, I said. Music, I said. History, I said. Books, art, opera, I said. Move to Exmoor,...
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James Gillam
Aug 12, 20232 min
"These are a few of my favourite things"
We have three favourite things about living here in Exmoor. The red deer, the night sky and the running water around us. Having been here...
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James Gillam
May 21, 20232 min
Words are all we have
During James’ long and distinguished teaching career (that’s how he describes it, anyway), he once ran a competition for his pupils. The...
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James Gillam
Mar 18, 20233 min
Ain’t Nothing like the Real Thing
I am no film expert, that should be said. Certainly not films of the last 25 years. I’d have a good stab at Films of the 1990s as my...
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James Gillam
Feb 26, 20232 min
The days are getting longer
It’s funny that the more animals you have, the more routine you get in your life. This is great for me as I love routine! Note to Amanda,...
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James Gillam
Feb 2, 20233 min
The results are in
1st February I know it’s what you have been waiting for and I apologise for any lack of sleep you have experienced in anticipation of...
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James Gillam
Jan 17, 20232 min
There hasn’t been a murder!
17th January In your imaginary dream house, what do you see out of your bathroom window? Perhaps a herd of wildebeest hurtling across the...
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James Gillam
Jan 3, 20232 min
First the worst, second the best
3rd January It’s not the only reason I get out of bed first in the morning but observing which is the first bird to the bird feeder each...
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James Gillam
Dec 7, 20222 min
Water, water, everywhere
7th December Water, water, everywhere, And all the boards did shrink; Water, water, everywhere, Nor any drop to drink. November was a wet...
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James Gillam
Nov 22, 20222 min
Parle-moi d’une journee typique pour toi
20th November A GCSE French Speaking exam student practises stock answers to certain questions in the hope that the examiner will ask...
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James Gillam
Nov 17, 20221 min
What ho, Wimbleball!
17th November What ho, old blood relation! This is the affectionate way that Bertie Wooster greets his Aunt Dahlia in the PG Wodehouse...
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James Gillam
Nov 12, 20222 min
Banishing stereotypes
11th November Just near the bridge in Dulverton, there is a statue of Lorna Doone. For anyone who is unaware, Lorna Doone is a fictional...
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James Gillam
Nov 7, 20223 min
Do we live in a rainforest?
3rd November It was soon after arriving at Nutsford House that Amanda started to use language like cloud forest and rainforest to...
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James Gillam
Nov 1, 20222 min
Starry, starry night
It’s dark here. At night, that is - not all the time! You really notice the light and the dark, living away from civilisation - and the...
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James Gillam
Oct 27, 20221 min
The Nutsford House Oak
26th October The Oak by Alfred, Lord Tennyson Live thy Life, Young and old, Like yon oak, Bright in spring; Living gold; Summer-rich...
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James Gillam
Oct 27, 20223 min
Firsts and not quite Firsts
22nd October The English language has many words, as any GCSE English student will tell you! But, sometimes, something happens that means...
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James Gillam
Oct 27, 20222 min
Deer, Owls and Leaves
October 12th When the only noise you can hear is the bellow of a red stag deer, you know you’re somewhere different. We didn’t know what...
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