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".
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.
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.
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.
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.
December gardening tips 1837. "Crops of early peas may be sown on a warm border facing the south." "Attend to Carnations and Picotees, as well as half-hardy plants in frames and pits, taking off all decaying and damping leaves, otherwise they will suffer much, particularly during such a wet season."
December 1, 2024 at 10:24 AM
December gardening tips 1837. "Crops of early peas may be sown on a warm border facing the south." "Attend to Carnations and Picotees, as well as half-hardy plants in frames and pits, taking off all decaying and damping leaves, otherwise they will suffer much, particularly during such a wet season."
For Advent Sunday, a hand coloured plate of a Poinsettia from The Floral Cabinet of 1837. As they were first described by Europeans in 1834, this must be one of the oldest images of one in the UK. Native to the Americas they are known in Mexico as Flores de Noche Buena or Flowers of the Holy Night.
November 29, 2024 at 9:30 AM
For Advent Sunday, a hand coloured plate of a Poinsettia from The Floral Cabinet of 1837. As they were first described by Europeans in 1834, this must be one of the oldest images of one in the UK. Native to the Americas they are known in Mexico as Flores de Noche Buena or Flowers of the Holy Night.
Just before bed, I notice this van parked on the street outside. Will the chocolate mousse I ate earlier see me metamorphised into a cockroach before breakfast?
November 28, 2024 at 10:45 PM
Just before bed, I notice this van parked on the street outside. Will the chocolate mousse I ate earlier see me metamorphised into a cockroach before breakfast?
Also from The Floral Cabinet, a hand-painted image of a Twisted Tricophilia, an Epiphyte from Mexico first brought to the UK in 1835 by Birmingham solicitor and amateur botanist George Barker. Like all good epiphytes, it grows on you.
November 23, 2024 at 12:10 PM
Also from The Floral Cabinet, a hand-painted image of a Twisted Tricophilia, an Epiphyte from Mexico first brought to the UK in 1835 by Birmingham solicitor and amateur botanist George Barker. Like all good epiphytes, it grows on you.
Some advice, from 1840, on November tasks for gardeners found in The Floral Cabinet and Magazine of Exotic Botany.
November 23, 2024 at 11:19 AM
Some advice, from 1840, on November tasks for gardeners found in The Floral Cabinet and Magazine of Exotic Botany.