Kmflett's Blog

204th anniversary of Engels birth. His cat Tidlums was the ‘terror’ of Regents Park Rd

Friedrich Engels was born on 28th November 1820 and died in North London (where else)on 5th August 1895.

After taking early retirement from the family firm in Manchester he moved to London and lived in Regents Park Rd until his death, although he made frequent trips to the English seaside and also to Ireland, Scotland, Wales and parts of Europe, often in search of the ideal glass of pilsner beer.

Engels cat was however a foremost participant in the North London cat struggle

Writing to Karl Kautsky on 27th December 1891 Engels reported on the activities of his cat Tidlums:

Tidlums has grown into a large, majestic tomcat, the sultan of all the female cats in Regent’s Park Road and the terror of all competitors and rivals.

Unfortunately there is no other mention of Tidlums and Tristram Hunt’s biography of Engels, The Frock Coated Communist, unaccountably doesn’t mention cats.

Tidlums sounds like a rather worrying cat though not quite as bad as Rosa Luxemburg’s cat Mimi who she reported had ‘whacked Lenin with her paw’ on one occasion:

The Chaotic Boris Johnson

When Johnson finds Dominic Raab coming to the defence of his speech to the CBI earlier this week even he may get a vague sense that last orders are being called on his Premiership.

The much criticised speech, which included an accurate reference to Lenin and discussion of Peppa the Pig, has been seen as a sign that Johnson is ‘unwell’ or has ‘lost the plot’. Perhaps so but it is also all very much in the Johnsonian character. One wonders how Tory MPs who voted for him to be leader managed to miss his long history of chaos.

One need look no further than Sonia Purnell’s biography Just Boris to find examples. Johnson likes to portray himself as a libertarian (think John Wilkes) free wheeling sort while of course actually being dedicated to making money for himself- and fathering children.

George Jones a former colleague on the Telegraph is reported as stopping by Johnson’s (then) Islington house to give him a lift. He noted ‘Boris was late, his life is chaotic’. When he was Editor at the Spectator (before being sacked) his first floor office was described as ‘spacious, but chaotic’. When Johnson first stood for London Mayor he bumped into Nick Robinson and leaked the news in ‘characteristically chaotic’ style.

So when Johnson told the CBI on Monday, ‘brm, brm..’ should anyone really have been surprised?

Stuart Macintyre 1947-2021: Historian of Little Moscows

I was sorry to read of the death of Australian academic and labour historian Stuart Macintyre. He wrote mainly about issues related to Australian history but 40 years ago he came to research in Britain.

He produced two classic studies of the early period of the British Communist Party (CPGB) A Proletarian Science, Marxism in Britain 1917-1933 and Little Moscows, Communism and Working-Class Militancy in inter-war Britain. Both were published in 1980 and are long since out of print and I suspect not as known to younger generations of socialist historians as they might be.

The influence of the CPGB in the 1920s and 1930s was one of a minority but often a significant minority.

Little Moscows were areas of the UK where Communists in effect ran the local area and shaped a good deal of daily life. MacIntyre’s book touches on three of them Maerdy in South Wales and Lumphinans and the Vale of Leven in Scotland. Little Moscows were not absent in England either- at Chopwell in Durham for example.

The centre of these militant communities was around Communist and socialist support and control of what went on in their main industries- coal and textiles. Macintyre’s book looks not just at the political struggles involved but the working-class culture they existed. That of self-taught autodidacts teaching themselves the principles of Marxism or learning them in Labour Colleges. It was a reading culture but one dominated largely by a male working-class.

It’s a world we have lost but even in the 2020s one can find examples of communities where the ideas and politics of the left form a major part of daily life.

One great way of remembering the important research Macintyre did 40 years ago would surely be to re-publish in an accessible form Little Moscows

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuart_Macintyre

Political Dinners: the case of Michael Gove

At the 2021 Tory fund raising ball held in London on 22^nd November someone paid £25,000 for dinner with Michael Gove. Many will think this is rather a lot unless of course it comes with a free Government contract attached. Gove has been in the news around cash for access which seemed to involve dinners, although whether they actually took place is another matter.

Gove is a regular speaker at political dinners, mainly organised by local Tory associations. Tickets cost rather less than £25K however. What Gove actually eats is not so easy to discover although we do know that during pub restrictions in 2020 he opined that two Scotch eggs would make a decent starter.

More broadly there is a considerable tradition of political dinners.

The Cato St conspiracy in February 1820 was about taking revenge for Peterloo by murdering the Cabinet at a dinner they were holding in Grosvenor Square. The dinner never took place but the conspirators were arrested.

Radicals and the left also had a considerable tradition of political dinners, often to mark specific anniversaries of demonstrations or events or radical birthdays. That tradition has continued to some extent, although the varied cuisines of recent times means that bread, cheese and porter probably no longer works as well as did in the 1820s and 1830s.

Beard Liberation Front

Media release 23^rd November

Contact  BLF Organiser Keith Flett 07803 167266

Benjamin Zephaniah wins first Beard of the Year Close Shave vote

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has said the first Close Shave round for the Beard of the Year 2021 has seen poet and author Benjamin Zephaniah shave opponents to reach December’s Beard Off rounds. Cricket broadcaster Daniel Norcross came second and will also go to the Beard Off rounds.

Railway broadcaster Tim Dunn faced off against Test Match Special’s Dan Norcross, poet Benjamin Zephaniah and musician Brian Eno. The Top Two are through to the final Beard Off rounds in December.

Author and broadcaster Michael Rosen and England football manager Gareth Southgate are among four beard wearers guaranteed a place in the final Beard Off rounds from 15th December. They have won hirsute accolades during the year.

Eight others feature in two preliminary rounds to determine a further four follicle fashionistas who will also feature in the December Beard Off rounds.

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, Beard of the Year is the hairiest and most hotly anticipated event of the beard wearers year. It was perhaps a surprise that well known beard about town Tim Dunn didn’t make it to the Beard Off rounds this year but ultimately its all down to hirsute democracy and the voters.

Beard of Year 2021 long list

Michael Rosen Beard of Spring/Autumn 2021

Jimmy Wales Beard of Winter2021

Richard Osman Beard of Summer 2021

Gareth Southgate Hirsute Personality 2021

_______________________________________________________________

Moeen Ali, England cricketer

Tim Dunn, railway enthusiast & broadcaster

Steve Bell, cartoonist

Benjamin Zephaniah, poet. Winner Close Shave Round One 45.5%

Billy Bragg, musician

Daniel Norcross, Test Match Special broadcaster Runner Up Close Shave Round One 32.1%

John Whaite, Bake Off to Strictly

Brian Eno, musician

Preliminary rounds: longlist to final shortlist

Thur 18 November to Mon 22 November. Top 2 go through

Thur 25 November to Mon 29 November. Top 2 go through

Final Beard Off rounds from Dec 15

London Socialist Historians Group

Media Release

22^nd November

Contact LSHG Convenor Dr Keith Flett 07803 167266

Socialist Historians send solidarity to Goldsmith’s UCU strike on job cuts

The London Socialist Historians Group, which organises the socialist history seminar at the Institute of Historical Research, University of London, has sent solidarity to the UCU at Goldsmiths College. Three weeks of strike action over 52 job cuts start on 23^rd November. Details are here:

Goldsmiths local UCU strike, Nov 23rd – Dec 13th 2021

The job cuts will impact professional services, English and creative writing and history.

The historians say that socialists are always opposed to job cuts of the kind proposed at Goldsmiths. In an academic context they attempt to remove key support workers and academics and worsen the provision of education for future students.

LSHG Convenor Dr Keith Flett, socialist historians are familiar with the idea of inheriting the past and building the future. The job cuts Goldsmiths are trying to force through attempt to trash part of the inheritance of academic professionalism and excellence at the College and undermine the possibility of building on this in the future. They are a short sighted move by an out of touch management.

Norman Stone, Michael Gove, Dominic Cummings, Boris Johnson: the Tory fascination with Lenin

During a speech to the CBI on Monday Boris Johnson quoted Lenin to the effect that Soviet Power equals Communism plus electrification. Johnson does not want to introduce Communism but rather suggested that an (undefined,  forthcoming) industrial revolution would involve Green Power plus electrification.

Lenin did indeed say the words in a report on the work of the Council of People’s Commissars on December 22nd 1920.

While its possible that Johnson got the quote from a Glyndebourne opera in fact the modern Tory Party has a strange fascination with Lenin.

The late Professor Norman Stone (Age) who specialised in modern history and in particular Eastern Europe, wrote a good deal about Lenin, far from all of it critical. An inveterate smoker Stone did however complain that the Sealed Train was the first ever non-smoking one.

Stone taught Dominic Cummings at Oxford and Cummings is known to be a fan of Lenin. Not of course of his politics but of his leadership and organisational skills. Cummings was an advisor to Michael Gove, who has or had a bust of Lenin in his office and then to Boris Johnson. He quit that role in late 2020 but one might think that Johnson paid enough attention to him to pick up the occasional piece of Leninism.

Boris Johnson quotes Lenin in CBI speech

Boris Johnson has been quoting Lenin (and Peppa Pig) in a speech to a CBI conference this morning.

The Guardian described the speech as ‘unusually rambling’ which gives some idea of what it was like. Some might see this as reflecting the chaotic nature of Johnson. Others might spot a clever device to avoid being pinned down on specifics..

During the speech Johnson quoted Lenin to the effect that Soviet Power equals Communism plus electrification. Johnson does not want to introduce Communism but rather suggested that an (undefined,  forthcoming) industrial revolution would involve Green Power plus electrification.

It seems unlikely that Johnson is familiar with the voluminous works of Lenin (Keir Starmer may have glanced at a few in his 1970s Trotskyist period but would undoubtedly now claim he hadn’t) so we may assume that the quote comes from a speech writer. Johnson has after all attracted some ex-leftists (or people who claimed to be ex-leftists) as advisors.

Lenin did indeed say the words btw in a report on the work of the Council of People’s Commissars on December 22^nd 1920.

Beard Liberation Front

22nd November

Paul McCartney bagel ‘sandwich’ declared NOT beard friendly

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has said that a Paul McCartney recipe for a bagel ‘sandwich’ is not beard friendly.

Speaking at the launch of a new Linda McCartney cookbook, McCartney revealed his recipe.

The Bagel is split into three.

On the bottom goes a layer of marmite, and then a layer of lettuce.

On top of this goes hummus and then tomato, cheese and pickles

A further lettuce leaf is added topped with a honey and mustard dressing.

The campaigners say that while the flavour combination is intriguing, the reality is that despite the lettuce, the hummus will find a way out of the bagel and into the beard.

BLF Organiser Keith Flett, we’d suggest substituting marmite peanut butter for the hummus which would enhance the beard friendliness of the bagel ‘sandwich’ considerably.

The temperature of beer, beyond John Major

There has been some discussion on social media about the appropriate temperature for beer to be served at (beer should generally be stored cool to keep its condition)

It is important to recall that the defining perspective on the matter from John Major:

“Fifty years on from now, Britain will still be the country of long shadows on cricket grounds, warm beer, invincible green suburbs”.

This was from a speech made in 1993 and my research suggests possibly not written by Major.

In case you can’t recall Major was a Tory Prime Minister responsible for privatising the railways. He was depicted by the cartoonist Steve Bell has someone who wore his underpants outside of his trousers and enjoyed eating green peas.

Major’s words were designed of course to appeal to an idyllic English tradition.

The beer in question, invariably cask, was meant to be at 12C, that is tepid. More or less the same temperature as a well stewed cup of tea.

Major is still to be seen at cricket grounds but has not as far as I know updated his thoughts on the temperature of beer.

There is an industry standard for the serving of cask beer which is monitored by Cask Marque

https://cask-marque.co.uk/beer-temperature/

They look for a serving range of 10-14C. I suspect most might find even 12C a little warm nowadays. The temperature of cask beer relates partly to what is optimum to it being served in a good condition (no easy matter) but its also partly culturally and socially determined.

Craft beer (an almost undefinable term) might well be served from the cask but if it’s from a keg or a keykeg (the latter being akin to cask) it would usually be rather lower than 12C, sometimes a good deal lower as it will invariably be chilled. The point being that the beer can always warm up once served.

However drinkers that appreciate both cask and keg craft will now be used to the lower temperatures of the latter and may expect cask likewise to be a bit cooler.

There are of course exceptions and stouts and imperial stouts would or should generally be served a little warmer. Mass produced lager tends to be sold very cold, partly because it either has little or no taste to start with or because the actual taste is not great. That doesn’t apply to the many and varied not so mass produced lagers now sold.