Author name: David Parkin

I’VE always wanted to be a fount of all knowledge. A message arrived from a reader following last week’s blog. “Surprised you had nothing to say about YCCC. As a member I need to decide how to cast my vote and your guidance would have helped.” How flattering. Particularly given the individual in question is […]

HE’S back! Just when you thought it was safe to go out for an Italian meal, Gino D’Acampo is opening another restaurant in Yorkshire. I thought the TV “chef” might have learned from his previous experiences in the county. His partnership with Individual Restaurants – the group behind Piccolino and Restaurant Bar & Grill –

I told the gathered guests that Tony was something of a hero to all of the family in Britain and not without reason. An accomplished sportsman, he was a talented swimmer and rugby player who came close to being selected for Great Britain’s Olympic water polo team. He was the first person in the family

DID I ever tell you what I had in common with Pelé? Silky footballing skills, a powerful shot and an idol to fans across the world. No, none of them. But I do have one thing I share with the late, great Brazilian football genius who died last week at the age of 82. We’ve

WHO’S that jolly red nosed character in the photograph above? Swap the sheep for reindeer and the overalls for a red and white suit and maybe I could just about pass for a cut price Father Christmas. OK, please yourselves. This was me yesterday morning helping feed the sheep on my friend Sir Gary Verity’s

A FRUSTRATED and confused visitor to Leeds, who had found themselves stuck on the ‘Loop’ road around the city centre, once told me they now didn’t fear going to hell after death. No, he solemnly told me, purgatory would be circling the city of Leeds in his car in an endless doom loop, never finding

I ALWAYS thought the way to encourage people not to take their cars into city centres was to focus on improving public transport. Leeds City Council appears to have decided on a more cost effective approach. Dig up the city’s main square, make diversion instructions unintelligible and put roadworks and temporary traffic lights on most

WHEN eminent sports lawyer Richard Cramer phoned me and asked if I thought three weeks was too short notice to invite people to listen to a question and answer session with a leading sports coach I told him I was confident he would get a good audience. Richard, who runs Leeds-based Front Row Legal, said

DID somebody say there was a World Cup happening soon? For every previous FIFA men’s football tournament I can remember, that question, coming on the eve of a tournament, would have been sarcastic and, frankly, plain daft. Anticipation about a World Cup would have been bubbling towards fever pitch. In recent years St George’s flags

IT was a central part of the grand plan that would help “level up” Britain and add extra cement to rebuilding the so-called “red wall” which had crumbled to give victory to the Conservatives in the last general election. But in today’s Britain big ideas from politicians don’t seem to last very long. Never mind