The vandalism at Ruddington’s Great Central Railway, Nottingham, eight days ago seems to me particularly cruel and mean-spirited. The heritage centre, run entirely by volunteers, had 112 windows of its old rolling stock smashed, with the damage estimated at £80,000. I...

I am standing on my doorstep, spatula in hand, two metres away from someone I have never met before, shouting tips on how to stay safe when delivering leaflets. This was just one of a bizarre series of meetings which came about after a remarkable response to a plea on...

From the throbbing heart of my burgeoning one-woman business empire – an office chair in front of the iMac every morning – I’m definitely beginning to detect a mood of brisk, get-things-done optimism in the air. It might be the new year, or new decade, or even...

‘Christmastime’, they used to call it – but Christmas has always felt more like a place than a time, to me. It’s like an island, somewhere off the shore of the ordinary year, which we’re summoned to by some mysterious signal. Its landscape is piled up with memories,...

Cities are full of stories – and growing up in Nottingham means my own small adventures are filled with memories of my home city. It’s a place that’s made a great contribution to literature, of course, so I’m excited to be playing a tiny part in a curious celebration...

I love autumn deeply and after some of the hot days we have endured in recent weeks, I’ve never looked forward to it more. The shorter, sharper, cooler days let me think more clearly, and appreciate again the distinct joys of being indoors, and...

I have spent time recently walking the streets of my village delivering leaflets to persuade householders to object to new homes going on our precious green belt land. Thankfully my nimby tendencies do not extend to all new builds. Around 18 months ago, it was...

Job? Cat, social media star, fund-raiser; some call me king of Ruddington. How did you get to your current position? I walked, slowly, tail up, with amazing grace and poise. As I always do. Who or what is important to you? The quality of the food offered to me. And a...

Someone said something in a shop the other day that reminded me instantly of my mother. It was rather shocking. I knew Mum was ensconced in her living room watching tennis on TV. More disconcertingly, the voice I heard – doing a pitch-perfect impression – was my own....