Support 110 years of independent journalism.

  1. Culture
  2. Life
20 September 2023

This England: Buried treasure

This column – which, though named after a line in Shakespeare’s “Richard II”, refers to the whole of Britain – has run in the NS since 1934.

By New Statesman

A man who lost a hard drive said to be worth £160m ten years ago has threatened his council with legal action if it refuses to let him dig for it.

James Howells’ ex-girlfriend accidentally threw out the drive containing 8,000 Bitcoins in 2013. The Newport local has been battling for a decade for permission to dig up the Newport City Council landfill site. The council has repeatedly refused Mr Howells’ requests to access the site, saying there is a lack of realistic prospect of recovering the iPhone-sized drive.
Daily Mirror (Steve Morley)

Here comes the bride

A bride who met her future husband on a building site drove 40 miles to their wedding in a JCB digger. Jessica Clair Bull, whose initials match the plant machinery firm, travelled from the Diggerland amusement park in Strood, Kent, to tie the knot with carpenter Christopher Elkins in Essex.

Jessica asked JCB for help with her big day and it in turn called on Diggerland. A park spokesman said: “We celebrate creativity and uniqueness,” adding they were “honoured” to help.
Metro (Daragh Brady)

A step too far

An Orkney driver has revealed that a Devon RAC mechanic was given the “ridiculous” task of travelling to the islands to fix her car.

Select and enter your email address Your weekly guide to the best writing on ideas, politics, books and culture every Saturday - from the New Statesman. Sign up directly at saturdayread.substack.com The New Statesman's quick and essential guide to the news and politics of the day. Sign up directly at morningcall.substack.com Stay up to date with NS events, subscription offers & updates. Weekly analysis of the shift to a new economy from the New Statesman's Spotlight on Policy team.
  • Administration / Office
  • Arts and Culture
  • Board Member
  • Business / Corporate Services
  • Client / Customer Services
  • Communications
  • Construction, Works, Engineering
  • Education, Curriculum and Teaching
  • Environment, Conservation and NRM
  • Facility / Grounds Management and Maintenance
  • Finance Management
  • Health - Medical and Nursing Management
  • HR, Training and Organisational Development
  • Information and Communications Technology
  • Information Services, Statistics, Records, Archives
  • Infrastructure Management - Transport, Utilities
  • Legal Officers and Practitioners
  • Librarians and Library Management
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • OH&S, Risk Management
  • Operations Management
  • Planning, Policy, Strategy
  • Printing, Design, Publishing, Web
  • Projects, Programs and Advisors
  • Property, Assets and Fleet Management
  • Public Relations and Media
  • Purchasing and Procurement
  • Quality Management
  • Science and Technical Research and Development
  • Security and Law Enforcement
  • Service Delivery
  • Sport and Recreation
  • Travel, Accommodation, Tourism
  • Wellbeing, Community / Social Services
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
THANK YOU

Hayley Green’s car broke down near the ferry terminal in Stromness. When she called, an RAC mechanic warned it might take longer than an hour for him to get from Devon to Orkney. “He said he had looked it up and it was 750 miles, which I agreed was fairly far to come,” Green said.
Aberdeen Press and Journal (Ron Grant)

Each printed entry receives a £5 book token. Entries to comp@newstatesman.co.uk or on a postcard to This England.

Content from our partners
Why we urgently need a social care workforce plan
Resolving the crisis in children’s dentistry
Planetary perspectives: how data can transform disaster response and preparation

[See also: This England: Not-so namaste]

Topics in this article :

This article appears in the 20 Sep 2023 issue of the New Statesman, The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers