Kmflett's Blog

Beard Liberation Front

14th December

Contact BLF Organiser Keith Flett 07803 167266

Jeremy Corbyn wins Parliamentary Beard of the Year vote

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has said that the final Beard Off vote for the Parliamentary Beard of the Year 2022 has seen Islington North MP Jeremy Corbyn retain his title.

He received 63% of the votes in the final Beard Off on-line poll. His nearest challenger, Chesterfield MP Toby Perkins received 23% of the votes

Eight candidates attempted to shave each other for the coveted annual accolade with two preliminary rounds of  voting leading to a final four candidates

Former Cabinet Minister Sajid Javid failed to make the final cut with Colum Eastwood and Andy McDonald winning the first close shave round. Jeremy Corbyn and Toby Perkins won the vote in the second round

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, Jeremy Corbyn is to be congratulated on retaining the coveted Parliamentary Beard of the Year title. Keir Starmer may not like his politics but his beard is clearly still a vote winner.

Parliamentary Beard of the Year 2022

Jeremy Corbyn, (Independent Labour, Islington North)

Andy McDonald (Labour, Middlesbrough)

Jon Trickett (Labour, Hemsworth)

Andrew Stephenson (Tory, Pendle)

Colum Eastwood (SDLP, Foyle)

James Duddridge (Tory, Southend)

Sajid Javid (Tory, Bromsgrove)

Toby Perkins (Labour, Chesterfield)

Winter nights: the history of the poor & night shelters. A permanent feature of a market economy

London has seen the first snow for a while and night temperatures are below zero

The situation is replicated around the UK.

In recent times in London the Mayor has made efforts to provide overnight shelter for those on the streets as winter weather sets in. The situation is certainly worse because of the pandemic. Nor is it a new thing

In his essay Comers and Goers (in Dyos, the Victorian City), the late historian Raph Samuel surveyed the seasonal migration of labour into and out of cities in the late Victorian period.

He noted that many came to winter in London, where, depending on the weather, night shelters, straw yards as they were called by those who used them, funded by private charity, opened up each November. The shelters were free and without obligation. People could stay for up to a month and they were heated with a huge open fire. The largest was at Playhouse Yard Cripplegate. The alternative was the Poor Law funded Casual Ward where a stay was limited to two nights and had to be paid for by a day’s forced labour.

Samuel lists many other places where people slept rough in London including railway arches and around the main hotels where heat was to be found, but the picture remains disturbingly similar 150 years on. Progress….

We may at least be thankful that Suella Braverman is currently occupied elsewhere and is not organising vigilante night sleeper patrols

Beard of the World Cup 2022

Beard Liberation Front

13^th December

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has opened a poll on the Beard of the World Cup.

As ever with BLF poll it is NOT about how long, short, styled or whatever the players beard is.

It is about the impact that the beard has had on the overall performance of the team during World Cup games up to the semi-finals.

The 2022 World Cup has been one of the most hirsute ever and BLF observers have watched each match and assessed the beard power on the pitch.

A shortlist of four is now open for the Beard of the World Cup 2022 vote:

Messi (Argentina)

Giroud (France)

Kane (England)

Amrabat (Morocco)

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, this poll is specifically about beards and the impact players who wear them have had. When it comes to the Qatar World Cup the rest is politics

Tony Benn & Christmas postage stamps. A world of which Simon Thompson has no conception

I’ll write a handful of Christmas cards this year which I’ll mostly hand deliver in person.

Before the rise of social media I, and I’m sure others, received quite large numbers of cards.

Christmas has been and no doubt to some extent still is, the busiest time for the Royal Mail dating back to the 1840s.

What is less well known is Tony Benn’s role in making sure that the then Post Office produced special Christmas stamps.

Benn was Postmaster General for a period in the 1964-70 Labour Governments and had to overcome considerable resistance to get the stamps introduced.

He records in his diary for 1st February 1966,

I talked to Downes about the Post Office Christmas card. He had put in an absolute negative in the best Postal Services Department fashion. He came in grim faced and I talked him out of it. We will have a card with a Christmas stamp and simple greetings selling at 6d.

The focus however was on the stamps. On Friday May 13th 1966 Benn wrote

I have decided to go ahead with the children’s competition for the Christmas stamp, even though the local authorities are opposed to it. It will give us an idea of the sort of quality you might expect from children.

Benn, through the Post Office, organised a competition among schoolchildren aged under 15.  The competition was launched on Blue Peter, which at the time received viewing figures of around 8 million twice a week. Response to the competition was huge.  Over 5,000 designs were submitted which were assessed by a team of eight professional stamp designers.  These first British Christmas stamps featured a design by Tasveer Shemza (of King Wenceslas) and James Berry (Snowman).

https://blog.westminstercollection.com/tag/tony-benn/

Beards: officially protecting against cold weather since the Crimean War

Beard Liberation Front

12^th December

contact Keith Flett 07803 167266

Highland Regiment soldiers in the Crimea

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has said that with much of Britain facing freezing cold weather conditions this week, one of the best protections, where appropriate, is a full organic beard.

The beard has been officially recognised as offering protection against extreme cold since the Crimean War of 1854-6 when the authorities allowed soldiers to grow a full set of facial hair.

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, of course not everyone can avail themselves of a full organic beard but fortunately in 2022 false beards made from organic fibres are easily available as an alternative.

BBC Website statement

In Britain the return of the beard (the full beard had last been in vogue in Tudor times) was thanks to the Crimean War of 1854-56. Beards had been banned in the British army until this time, but the freezing temperatures of Crimean winters, and the impossibility of getting shaving soap, led to a necessary change.

By the time the last troops returned home, beards were the mark of a hero. Men who had never seen any military action began to grow beards. Within a few years, it was almost impossible to see a beard-free male face in Victorian Britain – except in Buckingham Palace, as Prince Albert refused to conform to the fashion.

Three Years On: Measuring Labour’s Vote on 12th December 2019

Labour suffered a significant Electoral defeat on 12th December 2019 while the Tories achieved a large majority, their first for three decades.

The media, which at best, is not great when it comes to history noted that the 203 seats won was the lowest total since 1935. Of course there are always other figures. One is that Labour now has the largest number of female MPs in Parliamentary history.

One interesting measure is the total number of votes  cast for Labour. This (fairly obviously) is not a guarantee of Electoral success but it does in a very broad way reflect a class vote and the depth of a Party’s support.

Here Labour’s 10.3 million is well down on what Corbyn achieved in 2017 but beyond that the second highest Labour total since 2001, Tony Blair’s 2nd Election victory.

One thought might be that this support needs to further engaged with and organised to help secure a future Labour win. Its surely not about Westminster but about the grassroots in workplaces and communities across the country.

Labour votes

2019 10.3m

2017 12.88m

2015 9.35m

2010 8.61m

2005 9.55m

2001 10.72m

1997 13.52m

1992 11.56m

1987 10.03m

1983 8.46m

Beard Liberation Front

12th December

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has said that with snow falling in many parts of the UK, it is expected that traditional snowmen will start to appear.

The campaigners say however that part of that tradition is that the snowman has a beard, something that dates back to at least Victorian times. The beard is usually constructed from twigs or leaves.

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, of course people are free to invent their own snow themed traditions but its part of the BLF’s job to protect the hirsute heritage of the snowman

Beard Liberation Front

11^th December

contact Keith Flett      07803 167266

Snow & Ice Guidelines for beard wearers. Act to prevent freezing follicles

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has issued updated guidelines to beard wearers after many areas of the UK have forecasts for snow and ice for the next few days.

The BLF says that while beards have been protecting against cold weather since 1854 it is also important to protect the beard itself against snow and ice penetration.

One way to do this may simply be to remain indoors and away from all possible contact with snow and ice.

However this is not possible for all including many workers and those who venture out for essential reasons.

When venturing out in the ice and snow, the following guidelines for beard wearers are advised-

Snow and Ice Guidelines for Beard Wearers

1] Protect the entire beard with a scarf or roll neck jumper. If snow is a heavy a snood is advised.

2] Sweep any drifting snow from the beard on a regular basis. Do not allow snow to accumulate in the beard under any circumstances.

3] Comb the beard through regularly to remove any residual snow

4] If the beard becomes chilled or frozen due to snowy or icy weather it is essential to thaw it out slowly.

5] When temperatures drop below zero freezing follicles can be a significant issue

6] If follicles do freeze or develop icicles these should be thawed slowly as quickly as possible

5] Brief immersion in a glass of imperial stout may help the thawing process but this is optional

6] Dry the beard slowly in a warm room and check for any damaged hairs and follicles

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said snow or ice in the beard can cause serious damage to hairs and follicles and the hirsute are urged to make sure they are protected before venturing out in snowy weather. If snow does accumulate in the beard or follicles become frozen it is essential to follow the BLF guidelines to prevent serious damage. In particular if the beard suffers from icing, gradual thawing following the guidelines is equally important to avoid damage.

E P Thompson’s Writing by Candlelight (1980) revisited. Times letter writers on strikes (Dec 10^th)

The late socialist historian E P Thompson (1924-1993) was an enthusiast for letter writing. He wrote many himself although most unfortunately are locked away in the Bodleian for the time being.

He researched the history of aspects of letter writing, along with his researcher E E Dodds, and one result was his essay The Crime of Anonymity which has considerable relevance in 2022 although it was about the first decades of the nineteenth century.

He also wrote letters to the papers and was entertained particularly by the reactionary nature of some letter writers to The Times.

He would certainly have found those in The Times (10^th December) to be of interest.

The Murdoch owned Times papers have slightly different positions on the current strikes. On Saturday the paper argued that public sympathy for strikers would soon wain and Keir Starmer must decide whether he backs business or the unions (many might think he has already decided). On Sunday the Editorial argued that the economy isn’t doing that badly and why unions and strikes are bad Sunak would do well to copy Mrs Thatcher when she came to Office in 1979 and settle the disputes.

On Saturday Times letter writers had their say. Reactionary of course but the general drift rather backs the Murdoch line of Sunday rather than Saturday. E P Thompson I sense would have been interested…

Mark Littlewood, key advisor to Truss on her Premiership & the pizza question

Mark Littlewood formerly an advisor to Dave Cameron and now of the Institute of Economic Affairs was a key advisor to Liz Truss during her 44 day Premiership.

His views on her and his policies are carried in a Financial Times analysis of the Truss weeks (10^th December)

You might have the recipe for making the most perfect and delicious pizza, but if the chef is hubristic or crazy or incompetent you are not going to end up with a particularly tasty pizza. Does that mean you shouldn’t eat pizza again? No, it just means you shouldn’t eat pizza cooked by that chef’