Things that made me smile: Part Five

  • An elderly couple sat next to me in Starbucks – she had her head resting on his shoulder as they scrolled through something on his phone. Very sweet 
  • I’m in William Hill in Uttoxeter for a cheeky gamble before I meet someone for a drink.. the woman behind the counter just said to me “where have you left your Mother today”. Not ideal when the bookies know you and your Mum
  • Some young lad telling his friends to grow up as he came out of the toilets because they were playing on one of those mini rides for kids and giggling to themselves 
  • An old bloke buying 12 cans of own brand Stella in Lidl at ten past 8 in the morning. Respect
  • Five tradies in the pub after work in their high viz ripping the absolute shit out of each other 
  • I’m sat in a cafe in York and a really cute dog just came in (with its owner of course) and the cafe owner knew the dog by name and that is just adorable 
  • I can hear Tom Brooks singing in the shower 
  • A sausage dog dressed as the blue one from Monsters Inc
  • London – everything about it just makes me smile. What a city 
  • A woman at a bus stop waving to man in a window seven stories up
  • A bloke opposite us in the Airport Lounge eating tater tots, drinking a cup of tea and a can of John Smith’s, at 11am. Peak Britishness  
  • Guy on the end of my row on the plane using ChatGPT to write some code before we take off???
  • Friends meeting for a coffee and being really excited to see each other
  • A woman with cigarette earrings 
  • Elia falling asleep next to me on the train 
  • English people arguing with Viennese airport staff that their bag is definitely small enough to fit under the seat in front of them 
  • The endless green of the English countryside through the window of the plane as we come in to land at Manchester 
  • An old chap walks into the pub and asks everyone if they’ve missed him – “like a boil on the arse” comes the response
  • Opening the back door to let the dogs out on a Sunday morning – the sun shining and the birds are chirping 
  • Rearranging work meetings so I can go and get my haircut. I am a big swinging dick
  • “I honestly don’t think I’m better than anyone else, but those two coming out of the pub there look like absolute tramps” – Hayley Tomlinson, March 2025