There’s some very strange medical research on the go at the moment, not least this one which suggests that if you ball up your right hand and squeeze it tightly it can help you to memorise lists! This may be one for students to try out before they get into their exams!!

ROPES is an annual literary journal published by the students of the MA in Literature and Publishing at NUIG. All proceeds of ROPES 2013 are going to Jigsaw in Galway; a charity that provides free and confidential support service for 15-25 year olds living in Galway city and county.

Back in 2009 I published a true Victorian tale surrounding the murder of a 4 year old boy in Wiltshire. The local police weren’t able to solve the crime so the magistrates called for the assistance of Scotland Yard and to that end Jonathan Whicher took on the case although it ultimately resulted in his loss of credibility. I have now republished this, as a new TV drama is about to hit our screens on ITV here in the UK surrounding another Whicher tale and I thought some of my readers might be interested!