Long Form

Get a bunch of men in the same room and, sooner or later, the conversation will turn to the all-important matter of sport. Whether they’re football, rugby or cricket fans, they will quickly divide themselves along tribal lines, each vouching for their own sport or their own team. If those men happen to work in…Read moreRead more

It’s weird, isn’t it? For decades – centuries even – the demolition and construction industry has shaped the built environment. But now, in 2025, the tables have turned. The demolition and construction industry is being shaped by the environment. The need to safeguard and protect the planet is the single, most powerful force driving the…Read moreRead more

Do you know what today is? Yes, it is a Wednesday. It is also the day before the 24th anniversary of 911. It is the birthday of golfer Arnold Palmer, actor Colin Firth, and of Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry. But, beyond that, today is World Suicide Prevention Day. In truth, the name of the day…Read moreRead more

Regular viewers will know that I have no fear of addressing controversial subjects on this show. But today, we are entering exceptionally dangerous territory; we are going to be wading into treacherous waters filled not with sharks and crocodiles but by talk of immigration and flags. But before you lash a Union flag to your…Read moreRead more

It’s weird how inspiration strikes. There I was, minding my own business, music playing in the background, when a song came on that instantly transported me back to the mid-1980s while simultaneously providing me with a useful and timely metaphor. That song, “If I was” by former Ultravox frontman Midge Ure, was released almost 40…Read moreRead more

The night before last, I was sent a link to a newspaper article about a demolition gone awry. The headline read: “Norton demolition temporarily halted after digger toppled onto side among rubble”. As if that headline was not self-explanatory enough, they showed several photos of a New Holland excavator lying on its side. For all…Read moreRead more

In 1947, a group of scientists – including Albert Einstein and Robert Oppenheimer and others who had worked on the Manhattan Project – founded the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. Haunted by the destructive force they had unleashed on the world, they sought a way to warn humanity. They needed a symbol that could communicate…Read moreRead more

I’ve got to tell you something that seems to be landing with very little fanfare, but that could quietly blow a hole in budgets up and down the demolition and construction supply chain. It currently costs £4.05 per tonne to dump inert waste – rock and concrete – at a UK landfill. In the grand…Read moreRead more

It is Zero Waste Week. It’s OK if you didn’t know that. I didn’t either, until someone told me. Perhaps those behind the campaign decided not to waste their money promoting it. When demolition and construction people hear the words “Zero Waste Week”, I am sure most of them will picture overflowing skips, mountains of…Read moreRead more

About this time last year, I wrote an article entitled “the law of unintended consequences” in which I spoke about how one seemingly positive action can result in a negative outcome. I revisited that subject in May this year with an article called “construction’s lack of consequences”. The same notion was also the inspiration for…Read moreRead more