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Writers

Susan Grimsdell

After retiring from audiology some years ago, Susan’s finding life’s pretty good with lots of time to do what she likes. That includes walking, reading, having coffee with friends, and a bit of activism thrown in. Also, day by day doing her best not to worry too much over the many threats to our gorgeous planet.
Read Susan’s Blog

Trevor Plumbly

Meet Trevor. He’s had quite a colourful career, from his early days as a pub manager in Tunbridge Wells he went on to become Dunedin’s leading auctioneer. Trevor is a published author and was something of a TV personality in the 1980s as a regular panellist on a show about antiques.
Read Trevor’s Blog

Emily Smart

Emily is very loud, and has really bad taste in cheesy pop music. When not at work flogging goods to the public via advertising and marketing campaigns, she can be found hiding from her partner and children at the local pub. If you’re easily offended or don’t appreciate the constant use of profanities, then you probably shouldn’t read Emily’s posts. You have been warned!
Read Emily’s Blog

Angela Caldin

Angela has had many roles in her life including: schoolgirl, student, daughter, friend, civil servant, wife, lover, mother, manager, magistrate, landlady, teacher, grandmother, blogger, editor and proofreader.
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The latest

Posted on March 9, 2022 by talkaholics

Lording it by Trevor Plumbly

Golden days According to the romantic poets, knights of old were an honourable bunch. Life was simpler then: apart from the odd local skirmish, there wasn’t much to distract them from high minded ideals. Achieving aristocratic status was relatively simple: once you fought for the prevailing cause, the king tapped you on the shoulder, said ‘arise Sir Knight’, gave you a chunk of land and you and yours were set forever. It was the medieval equivalent of a window of opportunity if you could scrap a bit and had a few bob…. Read More

Posted on March 3, 2022 by talkaholics

Threats to our world by Angela Caldin

There is extreme flooding on the east coast of Australia after a ‘once-in-a-thousand-years’ weather bomb, resulting in buildings, vehicles, roads and bridges being submerged. People climb onto their rooftops and huddle there in groups waiting to be rescued. It is terrible to see such devastation, but I say to myself that I am safe. Not long ago, there were violent storms in England with quaint names like Franklin, Eunice and Dudley which damaged buildings, ripped off rooves, uprooted trees and left homes without power. It is frightening to see this wreckage, but… Read More

Posted on February 23, 2022 by talkaholics

Taxing the super rich by Susan Grimsdell

NZ’s richest man, Graeme Hart, got headlines not long ago for donating fishing boats, tractors and a container of breakfast food to Tonga.  Well, good on him, but where was the accompanying headline reporting that he is one of the super rich people who, thanks to a rigged economic system, grew his fortune by $3.4 billion during the Covid pandemic which has caused the worst recession since the 1930s.  Avoidance of tax Recently, Hart lost a tax fight in Chile, a battle he had been fighting in the courts for 6 years. … Read More

Posted on February 16, 2022 by talkaholics

Jugglers and clowns by Trevor Plumbly

When the circus came to town I remember they used to parade down the street with elephants, clowns on funny bikes and sexily dressed female acrobats prancing around. But these days it’s a different circus: the latest parade is as far from entertaining as it gets. Though they’re a lot less exotic, this crew still march to the beat of the drum. They don’t dress up and the razzle-dazzle’s been replaced by a mindless chanting, which I presume carries a message for the uninitiated. Protest is very much a part of democracy;… Read More

Posted on February 9, 2022 by talkaholics

Standing and sitting by Angela Caldin

‘We stand for standing and sitting and we will not stand for stood and sat.’ So says the Guardian style guide and I am writing this post in solidarity and support. I think I may be in an ever-decreasing minority of those who wince when someone says: I was stood outside the night club waiting for it to open. This would be all very well if someone had picked the person up and placed them upright outside the night club, but it is not all very well if what they mean is… Read More

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The Writers
We’re four Brits who made the big move from the UK to the other side of the world. We love New Zealand, the English language having a good laugh and the occasional moan. Ah, just read our posts and you’ll get the gist.
Latest from Twitter
  • The dream Wrong time of the year I know, but at my age I'll take memories whenever I can get them. Contrary to the… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 3 years ago
  • Here you go Trevor, here are my musings on the topic of puberty. I don’t like the word puberty; I mean that I don’t… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 3 years ago
  • The irony of talking about puberty at the ripe old age of 48 has not been lost on me. Thank you Trevor for remindin… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 3 years ago
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