25th April 2014 Washington DC, USA
One of the hardest things I have to do is explain my job. I work on Asia at the British Embassy in Washington DC, and “why?” is the most common question. And, particularly from Americans, “But the UK isn’t a Pacific nation, you haven’t got any skin in the game.” But the simple answer is […]
14th March 2014 Washington DC, USA
Saturday will mark the third anniversary of the start of the conflict in Syria. For me, Syria has been a big part of my working and personal life this week and for the last few years. In my day job we’ve been working with the US and others on ways to secure better access into Syria for […]
28th August 2013 USA
Today I will have the honour of representing the UK government on the fiftieth anniversary of Dr Martin Luther King Jr’s historic “I have a dream” speech at the Lincoln Memorial. I’ve represented my country at many big events in my 20-year diplomatic career, from G8 and UN Summits to the State of the Union […]
27th March 2013 Seattle, USA
When I was growing up in Canterbury, Kent, a house in our street had the name plate “Dunroamin” hung up on the outside wall. I was only about 8 years old, and hadn’t come across the term before. I thought it was a place in Ireland. But of course it means a state of mind […]
19th December 2012 USA
I should confess that while I am not Scottish I would quite fancy being Scottish for a while. The Scots, like the Irish, are renowned for being people who love to live life to the fullest. They produce God’s finest water (Scottish whiskys are seeing their exports to the US and most others markets rocket […]
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12th December 2012 Washington DC, USA
As the American daughter of a Northern Irishwoman working at the British Embassy, I didn’t find it easy to decide whom to cheer for during the London Olympics and Paralympics. But I had no difficulty in cheering on the Games themselves. I started working at the Embassy in July, weeks before the exciting London 2012 […]
9th November 2012 Washington DC, USA
For me, election campaigning has been a constant element of life in the US. The entire year I have been lived here has involved the most prolonged, sustained, energetic excitement about choosing a country’s leader that I could have imagined. From the first day we arrived, the question of who was to be the next […]
7th November 2012 Washington DC, USA
So I am standing on the start line in at 01:50 in the morning wearing a very bright red star-patterned nightshirt, donated by the partner of my colleague in the German Embassy. It’s 38f and pretty chilly. To my left is Captain America and to my right is someone in pajamas and a dressing gown. […]
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1st October 2012 Washington DC, USA
The following is a guest post by Lieutenant General Nicholas Carter, who was given responsibility for leading the UK’s Army 2020 Team to design the future Army. From October 2012 he will be Deputy Commander HQ ISAF and the UK’s National Contingent Commander in Afghanistan. Lieutenant General Nicholas Carter was visiting Washington last week and in this guest […]
21st September 2012 Washington DC, USA
‘We are the goon squad and we’re coming to town-beep beep’ So sang David Bowie in a thinly veiled 1980’s attack on charlatans and copycats, ‘Fashion’. Bowie is not only a British musical living legend but also one of our most stylish icons (second only to Bryan Ferry in my opinion). Which brings us to […]