Here's this week's devilishly fiendish Round Blogworld Quiz question (see the previous ones and their solutions here). As usual, find the link between these cryptic clues. A point for each item you get, and an imaginary cream bun of regal proportions if you get them all. If you get the ... Read More...

There’s no dish in the British cook’s repertoire more thrilling than pancakes. Even a flaming Christmas pudding pales into dull insignificance beside the spectacle of pancake-flipping. It’s not something that can be done privately. The cook emerging triumphant into the dining room with a plate of warm pancakes and a coy ... Read More...

Whilst up a scaffold erected around the South Porch of Cirencester Parish Church (it's being repaired, admirably), I managed to catch a glimpse of this creature. Despite having something of a demonic character, I believe it's a cat. It brought to mind a feline description provided by Bartholomaeus Anglicus, writing about two hundred and fifty ... Read More...

Don't forget to take advantage of The Dabbler's exclusive Bath Ales giveaway! Bath Ales produce the best beer in the known universe – as Brit explained here - and we’ve been in touch with the lovely people there to wangle one of you a free case. To enter, just click on the ... Read More...

Following his look at violence on and off  the Edwardian football pitch, James Hamilton now looks back to at two remarkable figures of the Victorian era of soccer... It’s impossible to scan any list of Victorian and Edwardian footballer’s deaths – like this one... - James Dunlop, St Mirren -- 1892 (tetanus from ... Read More...

I don't like the word 'classical'. It's a roadblock or, at best, a contraflow. It is music by the dead, for the undead. It breeds and perpetuates a cultural elitism that, instead of drawing people into its orbit, more often pushes them away, giving them an excuse for saying 'no ... Read More...

These days everyone thinks they're a photographer. It's a rare treat to see professional photography that's more of an art form than a random selection of snaps. This is one of a number of reasons why British photographer Emily Allchurch’s forthcoming exhibition, at Diemar Noble Photograpy from 17th March until ... Read More...

Continuing our series looking at great paintings housed in London's National Gallery... The National Gallery has thirteen Raphaels (if you include the dubious Madonna of the Pinks, recently 'saved for the nation'). The one that always draws me towards it is the Mond Crucifixion (in Room 8). There's something about the sheer ... Read More...

Dabbler co-editor Brit has been profiled at the legendary Normblog here. Brit is the second Dabbler to be granted the mighty interweb honour. You can read Gaw's Normblog profile here. ... Read More...

The Dabbler is pleased to bring you your Dabblescope for the month of March. The Dabblescope is broadly akin to a standard horoscope, with the telling difference that we use the so-called Blodgett System of half a dozen “astral nodes” rather than the twelve signs of that boring old zodiac. ... Read More...