Mark Westcott FRGS
@markwestcott.bsky.social
Devise and produce TV shows, often about people building shelters and lighting fires in the rain. I've also made award winning history docs. Split infinitives and write books for kids of all ages - agents and publishers welcome.
The Andrew formerly known as Prince has lost all his titles but remains eighth in line to the throne. For him now, there's only one way back. If I was one of the seven ahead of him, I'd be checking his Netflix account to see how many times he's viewed this Ealing comedy classic:
November 1, 2025 at 5:07 PM
The Andrew formerly known as Prince has lost all his titles but remains eighth in line to the throne. For him now, there's only one way back. If I was one of the seven ahead of him, I'd be checking his Netflix account to see how many times he's viewed this Ealing comedy classic:
There is a Chaos Defrost button on our microwave that Mrs W and I have vowed never to press. We fear the consequences for mankind will be far worse than when Pandora lifted the lid on her damned box - at least then hope remained.
August 3, 2025 at 4:04 PM
There is a Chaos Defrost button on our microwave that Mrs W and I have vowed never to press. We fear the consequences for mankind will be far worse than when Pandora lifted the lid on her damned box - at least then hope remained.
A cup of tea and a slice of bara brith slathered in butter - delicious. It's a reminder of my Welsh gran so a big 'diolch' to our neighbour Shar, who always grabs us a loaf from Jenkins' on her visits back to Wales. The tea is Yorkshire, however, when it should really be Glengettie.
July 29, 2025 at 3:42 PM
A cup of tea and a slice of bara brith slathered in butter - delicious. It's a reminder of my Welsh gran so a big 'diolch' to our neighbour Shar, who always grabs us a loaf from Jenkins' on her visits back to Wales. The tea is Yorkshire, however, when it should really be Glengettie.
Fans of The Stranglers will remember that on the inner sleeve of 1979's The Raven, was this Nostradamus quatrane:
"Rain, famine and war will not cease in Persia; too great a faith will betray the monarch. Those (actions) started in France will end there, a secret sign for one to be sparing"
"Rain, famine and war will not cease in Persia; too great a faith will betray the monarch. Those (actions) started in France will end there, a secret sign for one to be sparing"
June 23, 2025 at 5:20 PM
Fans of The Stranglers will remember that on the inner sleeve of 1979's The Raven, was this Nostradamus quatrane:
"Rain, famine and war will not cease in Persia; too great a faith will betray the monarch. Those (actions) started in France will end there, a secret sign for one to be sparing"
"Rain, famine and war will not cease in Persia; too great a faith will betray the monarch. Those (actions) started in France will end there, a secret sign for one to be sparing"
Today is Whit Sunday, or Pentecost. It marks 50 days after Easter. In my childhood in Northwest England it was celebrated by Whit Sunday Walks. Kids from the local Sunday Schools would march through the town. It was a festival of knees and faith, for Catholics, Anglicans and Non-Conformists alike.
June 8, 2025 at 9:23 AM
Today is Whit Sunday, or Pentecost. It marks 50 days after Easter. In my childhood in Northwest England it was celebrated by Whit Sunday Walks. Kids from the local Sunday Schools would march through the town. It was a festival of knees and faith, for Catholics, Anglicans and Non-Conformists alike.
On a recent visit to Stoke Newington's Abney Park, I bumped into hymnist Dr Isaac Watts. A notorious scrounger, he arrived for two weeks as a guest of a local family and stayed for 36 years. The rogue tried to fleece me 8 guineas for this photo. Statue or not, he isn't even buried here.
May 27, 2025 at 7:34 PM
On a recent visit to Stoke Newington's Abney Park, I bumped into hymnist Dr Isaac Watts. A notorious scrounger, he arrived for two weeks as a guest of a local family and stayed for 36 years. The rogue tried to fleece me 8 guineas for this photo. Statue or not, he isn't even buried here.
From The Ship's Captain's Medical Guide 1952, the evacuation of a casualty by trouser.
May 22, 2025 at 11:38 AM
From The Ship's Captain's Medical Guide 1952, the evacuation of a casualty by trouser.
A random cat enjoying my garden furniture. Legally, there's little I can do. Cats are deemed free-spirits' in UK law and can roam wherever they please, more or less. Cats “cannot be held guilty of trespass under civil law and, therefore, their owners or keepers cannot be liable for any damage done".
May 22, 2025 at 8:05 AM
A random cat enjoying my garden furniture. Legally, there's little I can do. Cats are deemed free-spirits' in UK law and can roam wherever they please, more or less. Cats “cannot be held guilty of trespass under civil law and, therefore, their owners or keepers cannot be liable for any damage done".
There's a meme going round of Bear Grylls squeezing water out of elephant dung. I was there with Bear and we shot this on the spur of the moment having found fresh poop. It caused a storm with Discovery Channel. They relented and it went to the show. Happy Easter. www.youtube.com/watch?v=R25E...
Bear Drinks Elephant Dung Juice
YouTube video by bartman316
www.youtube.com
April 20, 2025 at 12:24 PM
There's a meme going round of Bear Grylls squeezing water out of elephant dung. I was there with Bear and we shot this on the spur of the moment having found fresh poop. It caused a storm with Discovery Channel. They relented and it went to the show. Happy Easter. www.youtube.com/watch?v=R25E...
A Good Friday tradition in the part of Lancashire I hail from is a 'pilgrimage' up Rivington Pike, sketched here in 1968 by L.S. Lowry. He called this 'Easter Monday - Rivington Pike' - but why he got the wrong day I don't know; he possibly misremembered it from his own childhood.
April 18, 2025 at 1:23 PM
A Good Friday tradition in the part of Lancashire I hail from is a 'pilgrimage' up Rivington Pike, sketched here in 1968 by L.S. Lowry. He called this 'Easter Monday - Rivington Pike' - but why he got the wrong day I don't know; he possibly misremembered it from his own childhood.
My wife just summarised Easter thus: "First, you get the sad. Then, you get the glad."
April 15, 2025 at 6:59 PM
My wife just summarised Easter thus: "First, you get the sad. Then, you get the glad."
Two more attacks on our street trees here in Stoke Newington last night. Please help the police catch this / these offender/s.
April 15, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Two more attacks on our street trees here in Stoke Newington last night. Please help the police catch this / these offender/s.
Reposted by Mark Westcott FRGS
From Goethe's Faust for #BookWormSat 📖
“Alas! You have shattered the beautiful world with a brazen fist; It falls, it is scattered - By a demigod destroyed. We are trailing the ruins into the void..."
#PostalStamp printed in Germany Circa 1979 of Faust & Homunculus: Mephistopheles 👹 #silicasun 📗❤️
“Alas! You have shattered the beautiful world with a brazen fist; It falls, it is scattered - By a demigod destroyed. We are trailing the ruins into the void..."
#PostalStamp printed in Germany Circa 1979 of Faust & Homunculus: Mephistopheles 👹 #silicasun 📗❤️
April 5, 2025 at 3:55 PM
From Goethe's Faust for #BookWormSat 📖
“Alas! You have shattered the beautiful world with a brazen fist; It falls, it is scattered - By a demigod destroyed. We are trailing the ruins into the void..."
#PostalStamp printed in Germany Circa 1979 of Faust & Homunculus: Mephistopheles 👹 #silicasun 📗❤️
“Alas! You have shattered the beautiful world with a brazen fist; It falls, it is scattered - By a demigod destroyed. We are trailing the ruins into the void..."
#PostalStamp printed in Germany Circa 1979 of Faust & Homunculus: Mephistopheles 👹 #silicasun 📗❤️
The penguins of Heard Island and Mcdonald Island (human population 0) have been 'looting and pillaging' the US for too long and have been hit by a reciprocal 10% tariff. Expect retaliation.
April 3, 2025 at 7:41 AM
The penguins of Heard Island and Mcdonald Island (human population 0) have been 'looting and pillaging' the US for too long and have been hit by a reciprocal 10% tariff. Expect retaliation.
Shadow show through our rear window last night.
March 29, 2025 at 7:48 AM
Shadow show through our rear window last night.
With Europe applying retaliatory tariffs to Harley Davidsons, Bourbon whiskey and Levis, Trump's trade wars are going to hit the male menopause hard.
March 12, 2025 at 10:26 PM
With Europe applying retaliatory tariffs to Harley Davidsons, Bourbon whiskey and Levis, Trump's trade wars are going to hit the male menopause hard.
Saints and sinners, let us consider today Ecclesiastes 9:17-18: 'The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouting of a ruler among fools. Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one bungler destroys much good'.
March 1, 2025 at 8:41 AM
Saints and sinners, let us consider today Ecclesiastes 9:17-18: 'The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouting of a ruler among fools. Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one bungler destroys much good'.
Mrs W and I have been out, but now we're in in. The wind is building, the rains are coming and, out there, in the foggy London streets, there's an escaped convict on the loose. OK, I made the last bit up. Happy New Year everyone.
December 31, 2024 at 10:17 PM
Mrs W and I have been out, but now we're in in. The wind is building, the rains are coming and, out there, in the foggy London streets, there's an escaped convict on the loose. OK, I made the last bit up. Happy New Year everyone.
I was up in Lancashire last week and one of the shire's infamous boggarts seems to have followed me back to London. It's hiding everything I need to get ready for Christmas in plain sight; a mischief for which they are notorious.
December 24, 2024 at 12:38 PM
I was up in Lancashire last week and one of the shire's infamous boggarts seems to have followed me back to London. It's hiding everything I need to get ready for Christmas in plain sight; a mischief for which they are notorious.
A few last minute holiday luxuries, all from small independent shops. Shop local!
December 21, 2024 at 11:16 AM
A few last minute holiday luxuries, all from small independent shops. Shop local!
Christmas starts here.
December 20, 2024 at 6:36 PM
Christmas starts here.
Some winter solstice magic: The Kissing Bough. Banned by Cromwell, it enjoyed a resurgence in the 18th C. A frame of willow wands (or metal coat hangers), fronds of evergreen, seven red apples, seven red ribbons, seven red candles and a sprig of mistletoe. The bough must be spherical, no exceptions.
December 19, 2024 at 2:30 PM
Some winter solstice magic: The Kissing Bough. Banned by Cromwell, it enjoyed a resurgence in the 18th C. A frame of willow wands (or metal coat hangers), fronds of evergreen, seven red apples, seven red ribbons, seven red candles and a sprig of mistletoe. The bough must be spherical, no exceptions.
This is the grave of track and endurance cyclist Tommy Hall, a pioneer of cycling as a sport. Look for the drop handled racing bike carved on the headstone. He’s buried here in Stoke Newington. William Thomas Hall, 1876 - 1949.
December 18, 2024 at 10:22 AM
This is the grave of track and endurance cyclist Tommy Hall, a pioneer of cycling as a sport. Look for the drop handled racing bike carved on the headstone. He’s buried here in Stoke Newington. William Thomas Hall, 1876 - 1949.
Obligatory Christmas Tree picture. The solstice votive tree, if you prefer.
December 5, 2024 at 8:24 AM
Obligatory Christmas Tree picture. The solstice votive tree, if you prefer.
This is the memorial to the hymnist Isaac Watts, 1674–1748. It's in Abney Park Cemetery, Stoke Newington. Watts, who wrote the Christmas banger 'Joy to the World', first came here in 1690 and never really left – except to be buried. He’s in Bunhill Fields, with fellow Stokey resident Daniel Defoe.
December 4, 2024 at 12:08 PM
This is the memorial to the hymnist Isaac Watts, 1674–1748. It's in Abney Park Cemetery, Stoke Newington. Watts, who wrote the Christmas banger 'Joy to the World', first came here in 1690 and never really left – except to be buried. He’s in Bunhill Fields, with fellow Stokey resident Daniel Defoe.