Everyday life is pretty hectic at the moment – and that has impacted on how much I’ve been able to write recently. But even then, a lot has been achieved in blog terms. My last post leapt to the defence of pregnancy and parenthood company Bounty after it received a bit of a battering in…
Category: Headlines
BBC’s Press: a drama to make us journalists cringe
The titles of new BBC journalism drama Press roll and it’s already irritating most of the journalists watching. There’s some fancy shots of notepads with lots of longhand. Where’s their shorthand? Did the reporter flunk their entry exams? Why are they being burned? Their owners must be pretty confident they won’t need to defend any…
Spotlight, Press and the inside story into a major investigative journalism team
Oscar-winning biopic Spotlight aired on BBC Two last night, giving viewers a thrilling insight into the United States’oldest journalistic investigations unit. It was a timely showing, with new show Press airing for the first time last week to some mixed reviews from journalists, who questioned the accuracy of the British journalism drama. While I’ve yet…
Can we as parents help reduce worrying trends of youth knife crime?
Journalists encounter the very best – and worst – of our communities. Among the worst issues I have had to deal with in my career is knife crime, a persistent problem which is sadly getting worse rather than better, according to national statistics. As a trainee in 2014, I reported on the most horrific court…
From Majorca to Morocco: how life as a journalist is the best job in the world
Juggling life as a journalist and a parent is a really tough one, with both demanding not only bags of time but being pretty intense. Both are among the best jobs in the world and I wouldn’t change anything. But it’s fair to say that the nature of my blog will sometimes highlight how tricky…
Word is spreading about Headline Spews!
Headline Spews and our story has been featured in a special interview on a parenting website! One of the great things about becoming a dad blogger has been connecting with others doing the same – and one of them is Jamesy Mulhern, based in Ireland, who featured us in his ‘Fantastic Fathers’ section. Read the…
Covering GCSE results day made me wonder what madness Albie would face in 16 years’ time…
GCSE and A-level results days are a hugely stressful time for students, teachers and lecturers alike – but they’re no fun for journalists, either. This year was my first set of results days in an editor role, providing a peek at the logistical nightmare which comes with the territory. How do we cover a dozen…
Behind the scenes on newspaper deadline day – as the baby threatens the dreaded pox
I was just a day into riding solo without my boss at work on Monday when Hanna announced Albie had suspected chicken pox. “He’s running a fever over 38 degrees Celsius’, she helpfully exclaimed, asking what was wrong with him, as if running the office practically single-handed wasn’t challenging enough and I had also mastered…
How changing jobs has improved family life – and going it alone at work
It’s a Tuesday at 9pm and the local Liberal Democrat councillor has arisen from his seat for the 13th time of the night, to groans from the Tory benches. All but one or two members of the public have dragged themselves away from Corrie to watch democracy in action – and until recently one of…
Big plans like IKEA highlight how little we know about the system stacked against us
When I told colleagues I’d voluntarily spent Wednesday evening at one of the biggest council meetings our area had ever seen, I’d not seen as many bemused faces since the week before when I walked home from work, forgetting I’d driven in. The vast majority of the hundreds of meetings I’ve covered have been spent…
