Category Archives: The Guardian

BLASTED BISHOP/ SILLY MUSLIMS

Posted on July 19, 2007 by simon

So the Bishop gets of for actually hurting somebody’s life and the three foul mouthed, aggressive Muslims go to gaol despite the fact that they just shouted nasty things and offended everyone. Shouldn’t the bishop go to prison and the … Continue reading →

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Public service dilemma of conscience versus bigotry

Posted on February 21, 2007 by simon

Public service dilemma of conscience versus bigotry Simon Fanshawe Wednesday February 21, 2007 Guardian My friend Brendan is a doctor, and a Catholic. I have another friend, also a Catholic, called Seamus, who is an adoption social worker in a … Continue reading →

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The social landlord with a secret weapon: his tenants

Posted on January 15, 2007 by simon

Ian Fife is 62 and always wears a small sailing cap. It started, he says, because his girlfriend likes to sunbathe and, since he’s pretty thin on top, he was getting burned. He is a property journalist for South Africa’s … Continue reading →

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Playing the race card belittles success stories

Posted on January 9, 2007 by simon

Simon Fanshawe on Leroy, 19. Tall, good looking, Leroy has ‘mus-cols’. He tried dealing drugs but decided it was not ‘worth dying for’. Now he is doing a part-time training course for young volunteers in peer mediation and conflict resolution … Continue reading →

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Bring back the polite state

Posted on January 5, 2007 by simon

Good manners have become unfashionable. It’s thought authoritarian to point out that someone’s behaviour is bad, that there is a right and a wrong way to do things. Being called judgmental is an accusation. There were good reasons for this. … Continue reading →

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Round and round the houses

Posted on December 15, 2006 by simon

He’s a Home Counties boy who flays the middle-classes from his base in Yorkshire, a shy man whose inner turmoil comes out in his plays, a comic writer of world renown – yet the critics are divided about his reputation. … Continue reading →

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An iconoclast on Broadway

Posted on October 1, 2006 by simon

Acclaimed for transforming the face of the American musical, he has also been condemned for pessimistic lyrics and unhummable tunes. Simon Fanshawe on a champion of commercial theatre, back in London to revive one of his shows that was panned … Continue reading →

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A chorus of disapproval for gay hearts worn on sleeves

Posted on August 16, 2006 by simon

This column is usually about other people. But this time, as the tag line for the worst of the Jaws sequels said, “it’s personal”. In this season of Gay Prides, I have been trying to work out how gay I … Continue reading →

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Why ideal homes project has its knockers

Posted on July 19, 2006 by simon

Normally, this column is about an individual. This week, it’s about a doorbell. And a gym and a bus. To tell the story, we have to go back to 1975, when the IRA bombed the Caterham Arms on the southern … Continue reading →

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The wild and wonderful voice of community pride

Posted on May 17, 2006 by simon

This piece is full of prejudices and preconceptions – mostly mine. I first saw Charly in a photo, standing next to a policeman and an 80-year-old woman on an estate in Brighton. Nothing unusual in that, except that Charly’s hair … Continue reading →

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