• Home
  • Latest posts
  • About
Menu

Charlie Gilbert

  • Home
  • Latest posts
  • About

Credit: Mike Baker

WWII’s forgotten army: The East and West African soldiers who fought in Burma

April 29, 2022

The Fourteenth is Britain’s forgotten army – its epic WWII campaigns in Burma long overshadowed by events in Europe. Its three African Divisions – which did so much to win back Burma from the Japanese – are the forgotten army’s forgotten formations. This is their story.

Read More
In Life experiences Tags Burma, Africa, Second World War
11 Comments
A puma, much like the one I saw in Cheltenham

In 2001, I had a close encounter with a puma on my morning paper round

May 14, 2021

I’m telling this story reluctantly because I’ve endured two decades of ridicule from the people I’m closest to. But it’s true: when I was 15, I saw a big cat darting around a disused railway line in Cheltenham in the wee small hours. Here’s what happened.

Read More
In Life experiences Tags big cat, Cheltenham, Pilley Bridge Nature Reserve, puma
Comment
kitten-eye-contact.jpg

That time a stray cat had a litter of kittens down the side of my bed

July 30, 2012

It’s not the ideal discovery to make when your boss sends you home from work for being too hungover after not winning the work ten-pin bowling tournament. My god, that was a long sentence. Anyway, here’s the story of how I became a father to felines.

Read More
In Life experiences Tags cat, kittens, stray cat, RSPCA, SE17
Comment
lee-scratch-perry-london.jpg

Cosmic travelling with reggae legend Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry

July 19, 2012

What is cosmic traveller Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry’s preferred departure point? The disappointingly terrestrial London City Airport. And one time the legendary Jamaican producer was there, I was there too. So obviously I had to go over and ask him to make me a dubplate.

Read More
In Life experiences Tags Lee 'Scratch' Perry, London City Airport, reggae, music
Comment
Enis's cafe in Waterloo

Credit: cheesemonster

Enis’s Cafe, Waterloo: You’ll never leave

August 18, 2009

It’s fair to say that Enis’s had a bit of a reputation. It was a local cafe for local people, and no one else was welcome. I just really wish someone had told me this before I ventured in, because the only way I could get out was by calling the police.

Read More
In Life experiences, London secrets Tags Enis's, cafe, review, London, Waterloo
Comment

Latest posts

Featured
Mar 1, 2023
Why it makes perfect sense to extend the DLR from Stratford to Leyton and Leytonstone
Mar 1, 2023
Mar 1, 2023
Aug 23, 2022
Maidencombe is the best beach in Devon you’ve never been to
Aug 23, 2022
Aug 23, 2022
Jun 5, 2022
Leyton FC: The story of an extinct club that strangely still exists… for now
Jun 5, 2022
Jun 5, 2022
Apr 29, 2022
WWII’s forgotten army: The East and West African soldiers who fought in Burma
Apr 29, 2022
Apr 29, 2022
Jul 19, 2021
Trying to find the closest sandy beach to London at the glow-in-the-dark Bradwell-on-Sea
Jul 19, 2021
Jul 19, 2021
Jun 25, 2021
Leytonstone FC at Granleigh Road: Triumphs, tragedies and international friendlies
Jun 25, 2021
Jun 25, 2021
May 14, 2021
In 2001, I had a close encounter with a puma on my morning paper round
May 14, 2021
May 14, 2021
Apr 19, 2021
Falling in love with Real Betis Balompié in Barcelona
Apr 19, 2021
Apr 19, 2021
Mar 30, 2021
I added a pond to my garden and now I want to tell you all about it
Mar 30, 2021
Mar 30, 2021
Feb 28, 2021
In my small London courtyard garden, the party’s already started
Feb 28, 2021
Feb 28, 2021

© 2023 Charlie Gilbert. All rights reserved.