Nick Jordan

Lyrics ‘stretch reading skills’.

Millions of adults in England have reading skills too poor to enable them to belt out many favourites from a karaoke autocue, research suggests.

The lyrics of the 10 most popular karaoke songs have been assessed and rated by government literacy experts.

Those tackling Robbie Williams’ Angels needed the reading skills required to pass five good GCSEs (Level 2).

Experts from the Get On literacy campaign said 17.8 million adults would not be able to follow the song.

Is it just me or is the figure of 17.8 million quoted above really scary? Reading is and always has been a huge part of my life, and I find it genuinely disturbing to think that so many people in this country lack such a basic skill. Apart from the practical considerations, reading has brought me more pleasure and fulfilment than just about anything else and I hate the thought of others missing out.

Six hurt as tornado hits street.

Bloody hell! I thought the weather was a bit rough this morning but I didn’t anticipate anything like this.

Last night we had the company Christmas party at Jongleurs in Camden. I have to say that I had a really good time, despite the acts not being great. And I had my first roast turkey with all the trimmings of the season, which is always a good thing. I love a good roast, although turkey’s not usually my first choice.

I left the bike at home this morning, alcohol still being in my system, and walked up to the tube station. Why is it that I have to pay a quid in order to get onto the platform, hear the announcement about severe delays, decide to use an alternative route and leave? Can’t the Oyster card system be programmed not to take your money if you leave the station within, say, five minutes of entering it?