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The Cartoon Blog
The not- quite- daily internet column of Dave Walker. Dave writes and draws for the Church Times and is to be the 'Cartoonist in Residence' for the 2008 Lambeth Conference. (more)
An announcement in Winchester Diocesan circular for April 08 (’Ministry’ - Resource Pack for Clergy & Readers) reads:
Winchester Christian Bookshop - I am pleased to advise that the former SPCK bookshop in Winchester has now become an independent concern operating under the name of ‘Winchester Christian Bookshop’. The owner and manager is Mr Christoph Jacob, who worked in SPCK for some fourteen years, including a period in Winchester as Assistant Manager to William Cole. Mr Jacob is keen to operate his shop along the SPCK practices, but also to make some changes to improve on customer service and to reconnect with the community. He would be delighted to welcome clergy and lay people from the Diocese and discuss any specific requirements you may have. His telephone number is 01962 866617
+Michael Winton
Thanks to James for the tip.
Whether the shop is really independent or whether there is some sort of franchise deal going on remains to be seen. If anyone has info let us know.
I also remain confused about the status of certain other ‘independent’ shops - Leicester for instance. Are they essentially franchises?
In other news - the OrthodoxNet.com Blog has posted the SSG video (the one where they are rescuing Britain’s Christian heritage).
Posted by Dave at 12:25 pm on March 29, 2008 and filed under Save the SPCK, Religion.
SPCK Bristol has closed for good. I walked past the shop this lunch time, went up to the door to read the sign and saw Mr Phil Brewer peering out at me. He waved heartily, I waved heartily and then I moved on. Rapidly. No point in having a conversation. Nothing really to say. Well, not that would be constructive. The shop was being packed up and that’s an end to it all in Bristol.
The keys were left with Wesley Owen over the weekend and when Mr Brewer went to pick them up I gather he mentioned that there was no intention to open up in Bristol again. That may or may not be true.
What a sad end to nearly 200 years of Christian bookselling by SPCK in Bristol.
I am told that the Cardiff shop is to close on Monday. Cardiff was the only SSG shop in Wales.
Update (Thursday 27th 9.30am): The forthcoming closure of the Carlisle shop on Monday the 31st March has also been confirmed.
…this year, we’ll be holding our Festival Communion service at 3pm on Sunday afternoon
To half of the readership of this website this will be utterly irrelevant.
To the other half this will be utterly life changing. Well… OK, it will be of passing interest.
What do they all have in common? Let me tell you. Sultanas. Or some sort of currant / raisin-type thing.
It seems to me that people who don’t like these sorts of dried fruits are often excluded in our modern-day society, just as they have been for generations. And it happens most of all around the time of major Christian festivals.
Take my wife as an example. She doesn’t like dried fruits, so a packet of hot cross buns takes six days to get through in this household as it is only I who eat them. I only eat one a day you see. I put them in the toaster and then complain that it is difficult to get them out.
Anyway, that’s as far as my argument goes. Feel free to discuss.
PS. Yes, it is the worst blog-post title ever in the history of the Cartoon Blog. It is a cry for help. Most people won’t understand it, but I don’t care. Someone somewhere will enjoy it, and if it makes them happy for three or four seconds it will have been worth it. Anyone who can think of a better raisin / currant / sultana pun can have five points.
Posted by Dave at 8:01 pm on March 25, 2008 and filed under Utter nonsense.
In more ways than one, it looks like a very good thing that the St Stephen the Great Charitable Trust (SSG) have taken over the bookstores of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.
Stand Firm is one of the most read conservative Anglican blogs. I don’t know whether Sarah Hey, the writer, has made this pronouncement having only read the Ruth Gledhill feature. I have asked her to clarify her remark.
Visitors from Stand Firm - you can read the whole of the SPCK bookshop saga in the ‘Save the SPCK‘ category of this site.
As an aside I was quite pleased with one comment left on the site about me and my leaning:
Mr Walker clearly leans to the left. Why should we trust anything he has to say about anything?
A balanced approach if ever there was one.
Posted by Dave at 5:05 pm on March 21, 2008 and filed under Save the SPCK, Religion.
The BBC has issued a set of guidelines for its employees on blogging. The general message seems to be ‘talk to your line manager’. This guidance is part of a wider set of guidelines covering social networking and the internet and things like that.
A date has been set for the case of one of the former SPCK / SSG bookshop employees to be heard before an employment tribunal. The case, Alison Speddings vs Mark Brewer, will be heard at the Sheffield Employment Tribunal on Monday 9th, Tuesday 10th and Wednesday 11th June 2008. Alison will be represented by USDAW, the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers.
I can’t say a lot more except to say that Alison is entirely happy for this information to be made public. The tribunal is, as I understand it, open to the public.
This drawing was lying around so I thought I’d post it.
Disclaimers: (a) I know it is supposed to be ‘while’, not ‘when’. (b) The person is a generic person, not me. (3) He hasn’t got two thumbs - that’s just the way the light is shining on your screen.
Life here in the ’studio’ continues to be a bit frantic, hence the lack of new pictures of this sort on the blog. I’m doing lots of cartoons, but they are for use elsewhere. The next month will unfortunately continue to be this way, but from the middle of April there should start to be a bit more variety here on the blog. Thanks for your patience.
*At least, I assume it is. I was told a few days ago that it should be, but it doesn’t appear in the list of articles posted on the website. We’ll find out in the morning.
Update (Saturday PM): The article is in the actual paper version of the paper - page 83 in the ‘Register’ section.
Posted by Dave at 12:14 am on March 15, 2008 and filed under Save the SPCK, Religion.
A lot seems to have changed since my post yesterday when I reported that SSG were advertising for staff for their Lincoln shop. The advert was for “a temporary position for 6 months” which “could become permanent”.
Today’s news is that the shop is to close on Friday.
This photo (and the one below) were taken in Lincoln this afternoon.
Posted by Dave at 11:38 pm on March 12, 2008 and filed under Save the SPCK, Religion.
Warning: video contains country music that some viewers may find cheesy.
The song is ‘Mississippi Squirrel Revival’ by Ray Stevens. All credit to the Evangelism UK website who are using it (one assumes) in evangelism training.
I would like to say ‘no comment’ to the rumours that I have two vinyl Ray Stevens records within my shelving.
The not- quite- daily internet column of Dave Walker. Dave writes and draws for the Church Times and is to be the 'Cartoonist in Residence' for the 2008 Lambeth Conference. (
Posted by Dave at 12:25 pm on March 29, 2008 and filed under Save the SPCK, Religion. 
