Brack — A Lovely Tea Loaf

Brack - My Favourite Cake

Ingredients

450g sultanas 220g raisins 220g currants 350g demerara sugar 300ml hot tea 2 eggs 450g Be-Ro Self-Raising Flour

Method

In a large, heat-resistant bowl, mix together the sultanas, raisins, and currants. Dissolve the demerara sugar in the hot tea (see tip below) and pour over the dried fruit.

Cover the bowl and leave the mixture to soak overnight.

The next day, preheat the oven to 150°C (fan oven) or 170°C (conventional oven).

Grease and line the bases of two 2lb loaf tins — this is a double-quantity recipe, so you’ll need both tins. I make a double quantity because the loaves keep well and with the cost of energy I think I might as well bake two as one as I’m heating the oven anyway.

Add the eggs to the soaked fruit mixture and beat well. Then, slowly stir in the self-raising flour until fully combined.

Divide the mixture evenly between the two prepared tins.

Bake for 1 hour 30 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes, or until the loaves are firm and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Allow to cool in the tins for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Tip

Always use hot tea to help the sugar dissolve and allow the dried fruit to swell more easily. A useful method is to dissolve the demerara sugar in the hot tea first by stirring it in a saucepan, then pouring the mixture over the dried fruit before soaking.

Writing & Artificial Aids

Analogue Only

I’ve been thinking about the way education is delivered these days and how employers complain that so many school-leavers and graduates do not seem to be well equipped for the world of work in terms of literacy and numeracy, where are things going wrong I ask myself.

As I sit here at my typewriter without really thinking about the words, the spelling, or very much else, I was reminded of a couple of video clips I watched recently. The clips were of some younger people being exposed to typewriters in various situations and how they got on actually using them to write was interesting.

What struck me was just how incredibly slowly these people generated the text and how many simple and basic errors were made as they typed. It dawned on me that the problem was that these people were not having all their errors corrected for them in terms of grammar, capitalisation, spelling, spacing etc. - in essence they were unable to generate words accurately without the constant assistance of technology, it was frightening.

My observations made me wonder whether technology is in fact “covering up” yawning gaps in what people coming through the education system are actually learning, that real gaps in skills and knowledge are being hidden from view.

As I pondered on this I thought how interesting it would be to truly test the writing accuracy of a group of people by completely removing technological assistance. What would happen if we took 100 people and sat each of them down in front of a typewriter and asked them to produce 1000 words on say “My Life So Far”?

This would remove all technological assistance but the subject matter would allow total freedom of expression. The “piece” could be handwritten if preferred, or even typed using a simple text editor which incorporated NO spelling or grammatical assistance and which did not allow backspacing, errors would remain.

The scripts could then be marked for spelling and grammatical accuracy as well as artistic and literary merit. This study would provide a clear measure of the literary performance of the subjects, from brain to paper, without any external assistance whatsoever, the results would I think be, at the very least, interesting.

But, in the end, does it matter?

Ozzy Bids Farewell and Trump Wants Gaza

In the News

The world of music and global politics rarely intersect, but this week has brought two major stories that demand attention for very different reasons. On one hand, heavy metal icon Ozzy Osbourne is preparing for his final performance with Black Sabbath in a historic reunion that promises to be the greatest metal show ever. On the other, US President Donald Trump has put forth a radical and highly controversial plan for Gaza that is shaking the foundations of international diplomacy.

Ozzy Osbourne’s Final Bow: A Historic Farewell to Heavy Metal

Birmingham, the birthplace of Black Sabbath and widely regarded as the true home of heavy metal, will host a monumental reunion on 5 July. Ozzy Osbourne, alongside his legendary bandmates Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward, will take to the stage for the first time in 20 years in what is being billed as the greatest heavy metal show ever. The event, aptly named Back To The Beginning, will not only mark the final performance of the Prince of Darkness but also feature a star-studded lineup including Metallica, Slayer, Alice In Chains, and a supergroup of rock and metal greats.

Osbourne, now 76 and battling significant health issues, including Parkinson’s disease, will perform a short set before joining his bandmates for one last hurrah. Profits from the event will go to charities such as Cure Parkinson’s, Birmingham Children’s Hospital, and Acorn’s Children’s Hospice. “It’s my time to go back to the beginning, time for me to give back to the place where I was born,” Osbourne said. “How blessed am I to do it with the help of people whom I love.”

For Black Sabbath fans, this farewell concert will be a moment of both celebration and nostalgia. A band that revolutionised heavy metal, selling over 75 million albums worldwide, is coming full circle to its roots, giving fans one last chance to witness history in the making.

Trump’s Controversial Gaza Proposal: A Diplomatic Earthquake

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic, another major event is unfolding—one that is far less celebratory. Donald Trump’s recent statements regarding Gaza have sparked outrage across the globe. Speaking ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit, Trump proposed the permanent resettlement of Palestinians out of Gaza, a move widely condemned as a violation of international law and an act of ethnic cleansing.

Labeling Gaza a “demolition site,” Trump argued that Palestinians should be relocated to neighbouring countries such as Egypt and Jordan, an idea that Arab leaders have outright rejected. In a joint statement, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, the Palestinian Authority, and the Arab League warned that such a policy could destabilise the region, expand the conflict, and undermine any prospects for peace.

Trump’s rhetoric, which includes the suggestion that the US should take over and rebuild Gaza as the “Riviera of the Middle East,” has only added fuel to an already volatile situation. With right-wing elements in Israel pushing for the expulsion of Palestinians and the re-establishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza, Trump’s proposal aligns with the most extreme factions within Netanyahu’s coalition. As ceasefire negotiations and hostage release efforts hang in the balance, this unexpected intervention from Trump could have profound and lasting consequences.

Two Stories, One Moment in Time

While these two events couldn’t be more different—one marking the end of a musical era, the other potentially shaping the future of a war-torn region—they both highlight defining moments in their respective worlds. Ozzy Osbourne’s farewell is a reminder of music’s power to unite, inspire, and leave a lasting legacy. Trump’s proposal, on the other hand, underscores how politics can divide, disrupt, and reshape the global order.

One is a moment to celebrate. The other is a moment of deep concern. And both, in their own ways, demand our attention.