Darren Johnson
@darrenjohnson66.bsky.social
Music writer. Social Democrat. Environmentalist.
"Glam rock aficionado" - The Spectator
Out 29 August: 'Steeleye Span On Track' via Sonicbond Publishing
"Glam rock aficionado" - The Spectator
Out 29 August: 'Steeleye Span On Track' via Sonicbond Publishing
Yesterday was publication day! I'm really hoping people enjoy reading it. Steeleye Span On Track 1970-89 is part of Sonicbond Publishing's 'On Track' series and it's on sale through numerous online retailers (Amazon, Waterstones, Burning Shed etc.)
August 30, 2025 at 7:54 PM
Yesterday was publication day! I'm really hoping people enjoy reading it. Steeleye Span On Track 1970-89 is part of Sonicbond Publishing's 'On Track' series and it's on sale through numerous online retailers (Amazon, Waterstones, Burning Shed etc.)
Explosive interview in the Times with Ros Hemmings, the widow of the former employer that the author 'Raynor Winn'/Sally Walker is alleged to have stolen £64,000 from. She blows apart Winn's ludicrous "it was just resting in my account" non-apology,
archive.ph/g3sOO
archive.ph/g3sOO
July 11, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Explosive interview in the Times with Ros Hemmings, the widow of the former employer that the author 'Raynor Winn'/Sally Walker is alleged to have stolen £64,000 from. She blows apart Winn's ludicrous "it was just resting in my account" non-apology,
archive.ph/g3sOO
archive.ph/g3sOO
I've just ordered a copy as I'm now grimly fascinated to see if she comes across as awful in her book as she does in real life. This is even more exciting than Canoe Man and Captain Tom's daughter's spa pool put together.
July 8, 2025 at 10:06 AM
I've just ordered a copy as I'm now grimly fascinated to see if she comes across as awful in her book as she does in real life. This is even more exciting than Canoe Man and Captain Tom's daughter's spa pool put together.
Very sad day for Bad Company / Mott the Hoople fans with the passing of Mick Ralphs. Another guitar legend gone.
June 23, 2025 at 8:28 PM
Very sad day for Bad Company / Mott the Hoople fans with the passing of Mick Ralphs. Another guitar legend gone.
Another day. Another Green Party member using some utterly deranged hyperbole about a relatively humdrum aspect of daily life.
www.thetimes.com/article/7b90...
www.thetimes.com/article/7b90...
April 4, 2025 at 10:20 AM
Another day. Another Green Party member using some utterly deranged hyperbole about a relatively humdrum aspect of daily life.
www.thetimes.com/article/7b90...
www.thetimes.com/article/7b90...
Just sent completed manuscript for my latest book off to the publishers. Ordered myself a massive Indian takeaway and cracked open a beer.
January 3, 2025 at 7:28 PM
Just sent completed manuscript for my latest book off to the publishers. Ordered myself a massive Indian takeaway and cracked open a beer.
I wanted something light, succinct and fun to read on Christmas Day while simultaneously eating Quality Street and drinking alcohol. This hits the spot.
December 25, 2024 at 11:16 AM
I wanted something light, succinct and fun to read on Christmas Day while simultaneously eating Quality Street and drinking alcohol. This hits the spot.
A large Bailey's and the Snowman on Channel 4. Christmas has officially started.
December 24, 2024 at 4:20 PM
A large Bailey's and the Snowman on Channel 4. Christmas has officially started.
Lovely Christmas Eve visit from Tracy Dighton and Matt Follett - mince pies and putting the world to rights.
December 24, 2024 at 2:16 PM
Lovely Christmas Eve visit from Tracy Dighton and Matt Follett - mince pies and putting the world to rights.
Some more editing on my next book completed this morning, tax return submitted, train tickets booked for Minehead in January and some holly brought in from the garden. It's been quite a productive day today before I switch my brain off for the festive period.
December 23, 2024 at 4:34 PM
Some more editing on my next book completed this morning, tax return submitted, train tickets booked for Minehead in January and some holly brought in from the garden. It's been quite a productive day today before I switch my brain off for the festive period.
Imagine being responsible for something that magical.
December 21, 2024 at 4:09 PM
Imagine being responsible for something that magical.
When your train home is so bloody expensive that you get excited about it being delayed by more than 30 minutes so you can claim compensation. Yay!
December 9, 2024 at 2:35 PM
When your train home is so bloody expensive that you get excited about it being delayed by more than 30 minutes so you can claim compensation. Yay!
On its way to extinction. The fate of pretty much anyone with a hip and trendy name by the time they hit their late 50s.
December 5, 2024 at 1:36 PM
On its way to extinction. The fate of pretty much anyone with a hip and trendy name by the time they hit their late 50s.
This week's trip: Preston to see family.
December 5, 2024 at 10:49 AM
This week's trip: Preston to see family.
Heading up to Preston on Thursday and my nightlife for the weekend is now all sorted. Live music in the Red Lion with my stepmum on the Friday night and pub meal in the Brown Hare with my mum on the Saturday night.
December 3, 2024 at 8:30 PM
Heading up to Preston on Thursday and my nightlife for the weekend is now all sorted. Live music in the Red Lion with my stepmum on the Friday night and pub meal in the Brown Hare with my mum on the Saturday night.
Sometimes after a fun-packed but tiring weekend it's nice to have a chilled, relaxing, laid-back Sunday - even if it's Monday.
(The joys of early retirement...)
(The joys of early retirement...)
December 2, 2024 at 10:55 AM
Sometimes after a fun-packed but tiring weekend it's nice to have a chilled, relaxing, laid-back Sunday - even if it's Monday.
(The joys of early retirement...)
(The joys of early retirement...)
Quick cup of tea before heading back home. Lovely day out in Dungeness with friends.
December 1, 2024 at 5:50 PM
Quick cup of tea before heading back home. Lovely day out in Dungeness with friends.
Day trip to Dungeness and guided tour of Prospect Cottage.
December 1, 2024 at 4:18 PM
Day trip to Dungeness and guided tour of Prospect Cottage.
There's a bloke outside Camden tube shouting into a megaphone telling people to stay away from sexy ladies.
November 30, 2024 at 6:39 PM
There's a bloke outside Camden tube shouting into a megaphone telling people to stay away from sexy ladies.
Life hack: if you're as clumsy as me, never be on a moving train with a hot drink without bringing your own dishcloth from home.
November 30, 2024 at 10:17 AM
Life hack: if you're as clumsy as me, never be on a moving train with a hot drink without bringing your own dishcloth from home.
Another trip to London, this time to see Mott The Hoople's Morgan Fisher perform The Hoople album in full this afternoon. Then Dungeness tomorrow for a pub lunch with friends and guided tour of Derek Jarman's cottage. This is pretty much exactly as I'd envisaged life to be like in early retirement.
November 30, 2024 at 10:07 AM
Another trip to London, this time to see Mott The Hoople's Morgan Fisher perform The Hoople album in full this afternoon. Then Dungeness tomorrow for a pub lunch with friends and guided tour of Derek Jarman's cottage. This is pretty much exactly as I'd envisaged life to be like in early retirement.
Just completed the penultimate chapter for my latest book. Final chapter to be finished off next week then the whole of December for editing and fine-tuning.
November 29, 2024 at 2:58 PM
Just completed the penultimate chapter for my latest book. Final chapter to be finished off next week then the whole of December for editing and fine-tuning.
I still have a cheese toasty for lunch sometimes. Made on the Breville toaster that my mum bought me as a going-away present when I left home when I was 18, back in 1984.
November 28, 2024 at 2:21 PM
I still have a cheese toasty for lunch sometimes. Made on the Breville toaster that my mum bought me as a going-away present when I left home when I was 18, back in 1984.
A nice bright autumn afternoon following all this wind and heavy rain. On days I'm writing I tend to knock off around 3pm but if I don't remind myself to get out and get some fresh air, before I know it it's 4pm and starting to get dark.
November 25, 2024 at 3:21 PM
A nice bright autumn afternoon following all this wind and heavy rain. On days I'm writing I tend to knock off around 3pm but if I don't remind myself to get out and get some fresh air, before I know it it's 4pm and starting to get dark.