Forum Topics

TV signal problems

Anyone else found their TV reception has degraded in recent months? This is due to building work near you, if so. Mine has dropped off to the point that analogue signals are no longer watchable (sound only, the picture is so badly 'ghosted') and digital varies from fine to jumping badly like a scratched DVD depending on the channel and weather conditions.The cause is mostly the Waitrose residential tower development – I live near West Ealing station with it and other tall new developments directly between me and the Crystal Palace transmitter in Bromley. This fact came to light through a helpful email conversation with the BBC's technical department. Well, I say helpful – in fact it seems there's nothing I can do with the knowledge. Apparently, as the tower block is a very shiny, featureless, flat-surfaced building (it's hideous), the reflections off it are the worst possible, especially when it's wet. Clearly I shall have to get cable.At least the path to the Croydon transmitter is clear, so I get perfect TV (even analogue) on the one station that it carries: channel Five...

Stuart Maddison ● 6771d7 Comments ● 6758d

GLA elections

According to the Evening Standard website, the Lib Dem candidate  Nigel Bakhai has had to withdraw from the GLA elections. Does anyone know if this is true?

Raymond Bradbury ● 6759d2 Comments ● 6758d

The Speakers Residence

I bet that those who are struggling to keep up their mortgage repayments, not to mention the 30,000 who have had their homes repossessed, hearing that the speaker in the Commons Mr Michael Martin, has had £700,000 of taxpayers money spent on his grace and favour residence since 2001! this included art and furniture.Meanwhile out in Iraq and Afghanistan, our soldiers are being killed through lack of, or inferior equipment, in one instance a captain died and could have been saved, had he been issued with a radio costing £50, in another case a sergeant was killed because they took away his bullet proof vest. Just as bad the homes that they come home to are not fit for habitation. A bloody disgrace I say! But they have no shame, or even care about what we think do they

Andrew Michael John Atkinson ● 6760d15 Comments ● 6758d

Motorway time and distance signs - licence to speed

Noticed recently a tendency to see signs on motorways - example by Heathrow 11 miles to j8/9  11 minutes.  That suggests to me an average of 60 mph even though there is a section of 1.5 miles at 50 restricted roadworks. Later it gets better and the calculation means you have to average 70mph.. To average means speed to make up for slowdowns.  Is it appropriate to encourage to try and match these quotes - surely they want people to drive safely at sensible speeds

Colin Izzard ● 6760d1 Comments ● 6759d

Time tinkering

I’m getting cheesed-off with having to change our clocks twice a year.  It’s natural for dawns to bring light and dusks to bring darkness, all in their own time; why can’t we let nature take it’s own course, instead of tinkering with time. It’s been OK for millennia so why try to fix it. Bah, it’s a blinking waste of time and natural reason!   I blame the government – and just in case someone chides me for being a ranting right wing plonker – I blame all parties! Don’t mess around with our time – let it be natural and unchanging.There, i feel better for getting that off my chest!  :-(

Gerry Tan ● 6759d2 Comments ● 6759d

Chaise lounge

Chaise loungeMeaningA form of sofa with a backrest at one end only. Origin'Chaise lounge' appears to be a very early example of an eggcorn, dating from long before eggcorns were given a name. [Note: eggcorns are words or phrases which have been coined mistakenly, often due to an incorrect guess as to how a word is spelled, but one which makes some kind of sense. For example, Old-Timer's Disease for Alzheimer's Disease and daring-do for derring-do.] 'Chaise lounge', also sometimes spelled 'chase lounge', began life as such a linguistic mistake and has survived because it does make intuitive sense. The piece of furniture in question is properly called a 'chaise longue'. The name is of French origin, of course, and has been known there since the 18th century, translating into English simply as 'long chair' - which is just what it is. The understandability of the misspelling of 'longue' as 'lounge' is that lounging is what one does on these sofas and the supposed translation of 'lounging chair' makes perfect sense. The spelling and pronunciation as 'chaise lounge' is largely limited to America. It is so well-established there that it is far too late to turn back the clock - only the most foolhardy of visitors to the USA would attempt to flag it as a mistake. The confusion for those outside America is added to by the fact that those items of garden or poolside furniture which are known in most other English-speaking countries as a 'sun-loungers', are also often called 'chaise lounges' in the USA. Those English-speakers from the Mother Country who look down on this as a typical mangling of the language by those uncultured Yanks might be dismayed to find that the earliest known citation of the 'chaise lounge' spelling comes from no less a bastion of 'proper' English than The Times newspaper. The January 16th 1807 edition included an advert for An Assemblage of truly elegant furniture, fitted up in the most modern style, and this includes the offer of "sofas, chaise lounge, loo tables" etc. The earliest citation that I can find from America, and which appears to refer to a 'sun-lounger', is in the 4th January 1875 edition of The Newport Daily News: "A real rattan chaise lounge, such as is made at Singapore."Copyright © Gary Martin

Peter Wright ● 6759d0 Comments ● 6759d

Patisserie

Where's the bestest patisserie in Ealing?

Gerry Tan ● 6761d2 Comments ● 6760d

Printers in Ealing?

Hello there,can someone please recommend a printers in Ealing. I'd like to have some personalised birth announcement cards printed up (with photos, etc)Many thanksSimon

Simon Moore ● 6760d0 Comments ● 6760d

Christening venue

I am hoping to get my baby Christened at St Thomas's Church in Hanwell this summer. Can anyone recommend a good local venue to have the christening party?Thanks

Victoria Williams ● 6763d5 Comments ● 6760d

Waterman's Funding

Waterman's are having to find ways of making up the shortfall due to Arts Council cuts.You can change from printed newsletter to email one.You can become a Friend of Waterman's.The Thursday morning parent and baby cinema screening is an unusual one!Find out more about what they are doing:  www.watermans.org.uk

Philippa Bond ● 6761d4 Comments ● 6760d

'Spam' the bindweed of the Internet

I have just recieved the annual report from a Transport Museum of which I am a member. The report itself had much in it that showed that it was thriving, (It runs Trams, Trolleybuses, Vintage Buses and Taxis, and also has a Narrow Gauge Railway)However there was one item that displeased me.Due being inundated with 'Spam' they have been forced to shut down the Email address. The reason is that although they have a 'Spam'box, non spam is not always detected, this means a trawl through the dross to find genuine messages. As the people responsible only can work part time on this, 'Spam' builds up very quickly. I know myself that only a week-end away can produce 100/200 messages. Neither is the filtering device 100% accurate. Ealing Today still gets in there every now and then, plus occasionally other genuine messages.Spam also has the effect of slowing the Internet down. In my exchange alone, at a count that I obtained via a BT collegue showed that 51% of the incoming emails were spam.Its a problem that in my opinion is getting worse, and is a downside to something that has much good in making communication and information more accessable to all. Will this strangulation mean that the Internet as a tool becomes useless???

Colin Vaughan ● 6760d1 Comments ● 6760d

Two spare tickets to Chelsea v 'Boro on Sunday

I have two spare tickets for Chelsea v Middlesbrough at Stamford Bridge tomorrow.  Kick off 1.30pm.The seats are in the lower tier of the West Stand.£45 each.These are my season tickets so I'll need the cards back afterwards.James.07788 970951.

James Goodden ● 6761d1 Comments ● 6760d

T5

Anyone experienced the dreaded new BA's Terminal 5 yet?

Gerry Tan ● 6761d4 Comments ● 6760d

Lord of the Rings - The Musical - Closing this July!!

Having a rare evening off from work, we headed off to the West End this evening to see Lord of the Rings - The Musical at Drury Lane.Well, we were blown away by the staging. You probably wont come out humming the songs but you can see where the £25m went. A real treat and if it's on your list of things to see this year - dont delay - it closes in July. (and no, unfortunately, I'm not involved in the show)

David Archer ● 6770d3 Comments ● 6761d

Hobbayne School - Centenary 2011

Are there any plans to celebrate Hobbayne school's centenary year in 2011?   It would be great to have a grand reunion and have an "open-house" at the school.   from Margaret Dyson (nee Horwood)

Margaret Dyson ● 6761d0 Comments ● 6761d

Ealing Comedy the movie and subtitles

When is the new local movie likely to move to another cinema that will show the film with subtitles. The Empire is one of many not willing to invest in equipment to assist deaf people or others who struggle with spoken english but can get a lot from subtitlesis the movie any good as some must have seen itdoes it even have a subtitle option

Colin Izzard ● 6761d0 Comments ● 6761d

Questionmarks over Livingstone's campaign finances

A £20,000 donation to Ken Livingstone's 2004 re-election campaign from train drivers' union Aslef was never publicly declared, it was claimed today" according to tonight's Evening Standard. "The gift does not appear anywhere on the Electoral Commission's register, even though its rules suggest any donation that "specifies that it is for the benefit of a particular candidate" must be recorded. ""Aslef accounts reveal that in 2003 the union made a £20,000 donation to "Mayor of London Electoral Campaign", yet nothing appears under Mr Livingstone's name on the commission website. ""The revelation has prompted further questions about how Mr Livingstone is able to raise money without having to make donors public, by asserting the money goes to the central party coffers. ""The Conservatives say that Aslef has made commuters' lives a misery through industrial action. ""There was further confusion last night because the £20,000 Aslef donation does not appear to have been put on the party's national register either, although the union gave 13 separate donations totalling £53,914. The Labour Party denies that any donations have not been declared properly. ""Greg Hands, Conservative MP for Hammersmith and Fulham, has attacked the Mayor's arrangements for donations and demanded he make his campaign finances public. ""He said: "It is outrageous that London voters do not know who is funding Ken Livingstone's expensive campaign for reelection. The whole point of these rules is to allow transparency yet Livingstone hasn't declared a single donation given to him since 2000. "" "The £20,000 Aslef donation wasn't even declared by the Labour Party, which shows that their arrangements for reporting donations made to Ken Livingstone are utterly flawed. In the public interest, he should release details of his donations right now." "I wonder has Livingstone received funding from his friend Hugo Chavez, the authoritarian leader who has ruined Venezuela, or from people associated with the organisations given taxpayers' money by the London Development Agency ? Or from the suicide-bombing condoning mullahs he invited to share platforms with him in London ?

David Giles ● 6761d0 Comments ● 6761d

Gordon Brown deserts Livingstone

According to a report in The Times today by Francis Elliott and Sam Coates :"Gordon Brown has all but written off Ken Livingstone’s chances of winning the London mayoral election, according to close allies."Senior figures in Downing Street believe that if Mr Livingstone wins it will be by the narrowest of margins."Mr Brown revealed yesterday that he plans a trip to the US as the fight for London reaches a climax next month. David Cameron has chosen to appear alongside Boris Johnson when the Conservative candidate officially begins his campaign next week."Boris Johnson is ahead of Livingstone both in the opinion polls and with the bookmakers !

David Giles ● 6762d3 Comments ● 6761d

local restaurant serving lobster?

It's the other half's birthday tomorrow. He fancies eating out somewhere local-ish that does lobster. Apart from Fish Works in Chis. has anyone any ideas/recommendations?

Viv Ellis ● 6761d3 Comments ● 6761d

Brentford Football Club - our local team

I'll put my cards on the table from the off - I am a Brentford Football Club Season Ticket holder and have been for over a decade.However, if you are a lapsed Brentford fan who left because of our performances under Terry Butcher, then I recommend that you get your self back down to Griffin Park as soon as possible.  Under Andy Scott's management, we are witnessing the greatest comeback since Lazarus and the football is a joy to watch.  Oh, yes, and we keep winning.If you have never visited Brentford, I can assure you it is a friendly, welcoming place and you will have an enjoyable day out.  Our crowds hover around the 4500-5000 mark so there won't be any danger of your being crushed in a crowd of 60,000+.  Griffin Park, the stadium, is a bit shabby and you'll have to avoid some puddles if it's been raining and probably queue for the loos at half-time.  But believe me, you will be more than compensated for those minor problems with the amosphere and the sheer accessibilty of the place.If you would like more details about the Club, then visit the official site here http://www.brentfordfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/Welcome and don't forget to visit the best fans forum on the internet, The Griffin Park Grapevine here http://www.griffinpark.org/.If you have always wanted to go to a football match but have been put off by extortionate ticket prices, the hassle of getting there or the crush of people, head to Griffin Park.  My Dad and I would be happy to meet you there and we won't boo if you want to leave at half-time.

Allison Franklin ● 6836d38 Comments ● 6762d