May 26, 2021

What Is An IFISA And Why Might You Want One?

Nick Saving Money, Investing reviews, property 5 Comments

If you’re reading this post you will almost certainly know what an ISA is.

The term stands for Individual Savings Account. ISAs effectively serve as tax-free wrappers for various types of savings account. The two best-known types are the Cash ISA and the Stocks and Shares ISA.

You get an annual allowance for your ISA investments which currently stands at a generous £20,000 a year. Money saved in an ISA is permanently exempt from taxes such as income tax, dividends tax, capital gains tax, and so on.

So What Is An IFISA?

IFISAs are a lesser-known type of ISA that can be used for peer-to-peer (P2P) lending. They were launched in April 2016. After a slow start, the range available has grown steadily.

You can put any amount into an IFISA up to your annual ISA allowance. In the current 2021/22 tax year, as mentioned, this is £20,000. This can be divided however you choose between a cash ISA, a stocks and shares ISA, a Lifetime ISA (if eligible – you have to be under 40) and an IFISA. So, for example, you could invest £6,000 in a cash ISA, £10,000 in a stocks and shares ISA and £4,000 in an IFISA.

Note that under current rules you are only allowed to invest new money in one of each type of ISA in a tax year. It is though generally possible to transfer money from one type of ISA to another without it affecting your annual entitlement (although there may be platform fees to pay).

IFISAs vary considerably in the returns they offer. Annual rates range from from around 4% to 15%. Obviously, the higher rates reflect the higher levels of risk involved.

Although all IFISAs involve P2P lending, a number of different types are available. They may include lending for all the following purposes:

property development
business loans
personal loans
green energy projects
bonds and debentures
entertainment industry loans
infrastructure projects

What Are The Risks?

All UK IFISA providers have to be authorized by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and HMRC. This doesn’t in itself protect lenders (or investors if you prefer) against the failure of a platform, however. While savers with UK banks and building societies are covered by the government’s Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), which guarantees to reimburse up to £85,000 of losses, this does not generally apply to IFISA platforms.

All IFISA providers do offer various safeguards, though. These vary, but include provision funds to cover potential losses, insurance policies, and so forth. In many cases loans are made against the security of property or other assets, which in the worst case could be sold to pay off any debts.

Even so, IFISA investors don’t enjoy the same level of protection in the UK as bank savers. This is, of course, a major reason why the returns on offer are significantly higher. It’s therefore important to be aware of the risks and ensure you are comfortable with them before investing this way. It’s also important to lend across a range of platforms and loans, and not make the mistake of putting all your savings eggs into one P2P lending basket.

What Are The Attractions?

So why might you want an IFISA? There are several reasons.

One is that they offer the potential of much higher rates of return that ordinary (bank) savings accounts. Even the best of these are currently paying interest rates of under 1 percent. IFISAs typically pay several times more than that (though obviously at somewhat greater risk).

Another big attraction of an IFISA is that it provides a way of gaining extra diversification for your portfolio. As mentioned earlier, the law currently only allows you to invest in one type of stocks and shares ISA per year. This rather perverse rule actually makes it harder to diversify your investments. But you can have an IFISA as well as a stocks and shares ISA, so long as you don’t exceed your total £20,000 allowance. So having an IFISA gives you a way of diversifying your investments while keeping them all protected within a tax-free ISA wrapper.

And finally, IFISA investments are typically not tied to the performance of stock markets in the way a stocks and shares ISA would be. This is a different type of investment, with different risks and rewards. While an IFISA won’t provide a way of hedging your equity investments directly, it is likely to be less directly affected by short-term fluctuations in the markets.

Two IFISA Examples

Two IFISAs of which I have direct experience are offered by Kuflink and Assetz Exchange. Both of these platforms offer tax-free IFISA options. They are both based around property investing.

Kuflink – which I reviewed in this post – offers an automatically diversified IFISA comprising loans on property. They quote interest rates from 5% to 7%, depending how long you invest for. Your money is automatically diversified across a range of secured loans. The screen capture below from the Kuflink website sets out the main features of their IFISA.

One point to be aware of is that there is no ‘self-select’ option with the Kuflink IFISA. So you have no choice about which projects your money is invested in. But, of course, it does make investing in a Kuflink IFISA very quick and simple.

Kuflink are currently offering up to £4,000 in cashback for new investors via my link. Please see my full review for more information.

Assetz Exchange – which I reviewed in this post – has some similarities with Kuflink. But they concentrate on low-risk investments, typically with corporate clients (e.g. charities) on long leases. Here’s an example of the sort of investment I mean…

Assetz Exchange aims to offer net yields to investors of between 5.2 and 7.2% per year. One thing I especially like about them is that you can choose your own IFISA investments (indeed, they don’t currently offer an auto-select option). In addition, you can invest as little as 80 pence per project, making it easy to build a well-diversified portfolio even if you are only investing small amounts.

I am using Assetz Exchange for my 2021/22 IFISA, so here is a screen capture of my current portfolio for your interest. Note that while I have only invested £500 so far, I already have a well-diversified portfolio with 17 different investments!

Summing Up

If you are looking for a home for some of your savings that can offer better interest rates than banks and building societies and won’t incur any tax charges, an IFISA is certainly worth considering.

As well as the higher interest rates, they can add diversity to your investments, helping you ride out peaks and troughs in the financial markets.

Just be aware of the risks involved in P2P lending, diversify as widely as possible, and ensure you invest only as part of a well-balanced portfolio.

As always, if you have any comments or questions about this blog post, please do leave them below.

Disclaimer: I am not a registered financial adviser and nothing in this post should be construed as personal financial advice. You should always do your own ‘due diligence’ before investing, and speak to a professional financial adviser/planner if in any doubt before proceeding. All investments carry a risk of loss.

This post (and others on Pounds and Sense) includes my referral links. If you click through and make a qualifying transaction, I may receive a commission for introducing you. This will not affect the products or services you receive or any fees you may be charged.

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May 19, 2021

Simply Tax: A Low-Cost Online Service for Anyone Having to Complete a Self-Assessment Tax Return

Nick Everything Else reviews, sponsored post, Tax 6 Comments

Regular readers of Pounds and Sense will know that I am not a fan of the DIY approach in matters related to tax.

In my blog post Two Places You Should Never Turn for Tax Advice Advice (and One You Definitely Should) I caution against relying on advice about tax from social media or even HMRC. And I strongly recommend getting help from a professional accountant if you are self-employed (even part-time) or run a business. As I said in that post:

Accountants are trained and experienced in all aspects of the tax system. They have both theoretical and practical knowledge of how the system works and how the (complex) rules are typically interpreted by HMRC. And they have to keep themselves up to date with the endless legal and procedural changes.

Also, unlike HMRC, an accountant is four-square on your side. They will advise you on the best way to organize your affairs to minimize your tax liability. They will answer any questions you may have, e.g. what records you need to keep. When the time comes, they will (if you want them to) compile your accounts and submit the relevant figures to HMRC in your tax return. And if any queries or problems arise, they will act on your behalf to try to resolve them.

A further benefit of having your accounts prepared by an accountant is that HMRC will know that a finance professional – someone who speaks their language – has compiled them. Other things being equal, this is likely to mean they will be more inclined to accept the figures and not dispute them.

Even if you aren’t self-employed or running a business, there may still be a strong case for getting an accountant to help with your taxes. Many older people, for example, have multiple streams of income, from stocks and shares to ISA accounts, property rentals to pensions. Some of this income may be taxable and some not, and varying tax rates and tax-free allowances may apply. Most accountants are more than happy to provide a service to people in this situation as well.

There is, of course, one drawback to engaging an accountant, and that is the cost. This will probably amount to a few hundred pounds a year (maybe more in some cases). Not to pay this, however, is in my view a false economy. A good accountant is likely to save you at least as much in unnecessary tax as they cost you. And the reassurance (and relief) of having a finance professional on your side when any queries with taxation arise is impossible to put a price on (but extremely valuable).

Of course, finding a good accountant who offers a service suitable for your needs isn’t always straightforward. And the amount they charge varies considerably. If you are looking for a keenly priced and easily accessible service, you might therefore like to check out what my friends at Simply Tax have to offer.

The Simply Tax Option

Simply Tax is a service run by professional accountants that provides a simple and inexpensive method for preparing and submitting tax returns to HMRC. They operate mainly online and are therefore able to keep charges to a bare minimum (starting from as little as £90). They say their service is for:

First time tax filers
Sole traders
CIS subcontractors
High earners (£100K+)
Landlords
Investors
Company directors
People living abroad
Anybody who needs a tax return

As the name indicates, Simply Tax aim to make the process of drawing up and submitting a tax return as simple as possible. In a nutshell, they say their procedure is as follows:

Create your free online account (just need your full name and email address)
Once verified, go into your user area and complete your personal information
Select the button to start your tax return (you’ll be taken to a screen to answer a few questions)
Once you’ve paid and been checked for your identification, simply drag and drop the information requested
We will do all the leg work and prepare the tax return for you
We’ll upload a draft tax return for you to review and approve electronically
Once you’ve approved, leave it to us to submit to HMRC

Although all of this is done online, you will be allocated a personal tax adviser whom you can contact at any time with any questions.

Simply Tax say their service will save you lots of time (they estimate between 70-80%) compared with filing your return yourself. They also estimate that their service is up to 50% cheaper than using a traditional high street accountant or tax advisor.

Finally, Simply Tax are fully regulated by the ICAEW (Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales), providing added reassurance.

If you are looking for a straightforward, cost-effective way of preparing and submitting your annual tax return, in my view Simply Tax is well worth checking out. Okay, if you run a multi-million pound business empire it may not be for you. But if you are like most of us and just need a friendly, professional accountancy service who won’t charge an arm and a leg, they could certainly fit the bill.

As always, if you have any comments or questions about this post, please do leave them below.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post on behalf of Simply Tax. If you click through any of the links and make a purchase, I will receive a commission for introducing you. This will not affect the fee you pay or the service you receive.

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May 14, 2021

How Much Difference Does Risk Level Make With Nutmeg Investments?

Nick Investing 10 Comments

Regular readers will know I’m a big fan of the Nutmeg robo-advisor investment platform.

You can read my full review of Nutmeg here. You can also see how my own Nutmeg stocks and shares portfolio has been performing over the last year or so in my monthly Coronavirus Crisis updates (here’s my latest May 2021 update).

Nutmeg Risk Levels

One of the many things I like about Nutmeg is that you can choose the risk level for your portfolio and any pot within it. In the case of a fully managed Stocks and Shares ISA such as mine, you can choose between risk levels of 1 (ultra low risk) and 10 (highest risk).

With other investment products and styles on Nutmeg, the scale may be different. For example, with a Smart Alpha portfolio, the risk range you can choose is between 1 and 5.

In the case of my main portfolio, I set the risk level near the top of the scale at 9/10 and have kept it there since I opened my account in April 2016. I felt I could afford to be bullish, as I don’t have any living descendants (my partner Jayne passed away a few years ago and we didn’t have children). And I didn’t have any particular purpose in mind for this portfolio, so was willing to take a few more chances with it.

As regular PAS readers will know, my Nutmeg ISA has performed very well for me. At the time of writing it is showing an overall profit of 57.71 percent, even after a tumultuous year due to Covid.

Recently, however, a reader named Kevin asked if I knew whether the high risk level I chose had any impact on my return, or whether I would have had a similar return with a lower risk level. It was a good question and one I hadn’t really looked into before, so I decided to check. I have to admit the results surprised me.

Researching Performance

For a fully managed Nutmeg stocks and shares portfolio like mine, the good news is you can can research performance yourself on this page of the Nutmeg website: Use the slider to set the risk level from 1 to 10 and you will be able to see the net returns for the risk level in question over a range of periods. Here are the figures for a 9/10 portfolio such as mine.

As you can see, for the five-year period to 30 April 2021, overall performance is quoted as +63.1%. That is slightly above the +57.71% currently showing for my portfolio over a similar (but not identical) period. There are various reasons why the figures may differ, notably that I added to my investment at various times over the last five years rather than investing one lump sum at the start. But the numbers are close enough to appear reasonable to me.

As you will see, even though this is a level 9 portfolio, in every year bar one (2018) it has produced a positive return. Anyone investing in a level 9 portfolio from Nutmeg’s launch in September 2012 will have seen the value of their portfolio more than double.

So What About Lower Risk Portfolios?

Obviously I am not going to reproduce the table above for every other risk level. Here though is a table showing the five-year performance of every fully managed Nutmeg stocks and shares portfolio from risk level 1 to 10.

Risk Level	5-Year Performance %
1	+1.7
2	+11.1
3	+17.2
4	+23.5
5	+31.2
6	+37.0
7	+47.4
8	+55.9
9	+63.1
10	+67.0

I hope you will agree this makes interesting reading. Over a five-year period, as you can see, risk level has made a huge difference to performance achieved. Anyone choosing risk level 1 will have seen a return of just 1.7% over that period. That looks poor to me – you would almost certainly have done better putting your money in an ordinary bank savings account. And there were actually two years – 2017 and 2018 – when the value of a level 1 portfolio went down. Okay, it was only by small amounts, but even so it is hard to see any good argument for opting for the lowest risk level .

By contrast, the higher up the risk scale you go, the bigger the returns have been. Yes, there has been more volatility, but even so over most time periods – and certainly when investing for at least five years – higher risk portfolios have significantly out-performed lower-risk ones.

Of course – as I always have to say – past performance is no guarantee of what happens in future. Even so, looking at these figures makes me glad I opted for a high risk level initially, and having done this analysis I intend to continue doing so. I may even raise my risk level to the maximum 10!

One other thing I should mention is that if you are thinking of withdrawing money from your Nutmeg account soon (in the next few months, say) there is then a strong case for reducing risk level. This should help protect your capital in the event of a downturn.

Nutmeg’s Flexible Options

As I said to Kevin – who has a level 6 portfolio – if you are happy with the returns you are getting from Nutmeg and increasing the risk might cause you sleepless nights, there is of course a case for not rocking the boat.

But if you want to test the water without risking too much, Nutmeg does offer a few options. For example, you could create a new ‘pot’ with a higher risk level to see how it compares going forward. You could use new money for this and/or transfer some of your existing pot over. You don’t have to switch your entire portfolio to a higher risk level if this would worry you.

You can also have pots with different investment styles. In my case, as well as my fully managed main portfolio, I have a small Smart Alpha portfolio (mentioned earlier). As discussed in this blog post, Smart Alpha portfolios are managed by J.P. Morgan’s Asset Management team. As well as allowing Nutmeg investors to tap into the expertise of this leading investment house, these portfolios are ESG integrated, meaning that environmental, social and corporate governance considerations are factored into every investment decision. These portfolios are therefore suitable for investors for whom ethical considerations are especially important.

You can have multiple pots with different risk levels and/or investment styles. You can also change risk levels or investment styles any time you like. Nutmeg does just caution about chopping and changing too often, as this can incur additional charges. But there is no reason you shouldn’t take advantage of the flexibility Nutmeg offers if your needs or circumstances change or you just want to try something different.

It’s also worth mentioning that you are only allowed to invest in one tax-free ISA of each type per year (stocks and shares ISA, IFISA, cash ISA, etc.). However, if you have a Nutmeg account, you can invest in as many different pots within that ISA as you wish (as long as you don’t exceed your total annual ISA allowance of £20,000). This can provide valuable diversification compared with putting all your money into one single investment product.

Conclusion

As I said above, I was genuinely surprised to see how big a difference risk level made to overall performance with a Nutmeg Fully Managed Stocks and Shares ISA. And obviously I’m glad I opted for a high risk level initially, as doing so has clearly paid off for me.

Of course, nobody knows what will happen in the months and years ahead. It is still possible that opting for a lower-risk portfolio could prove a good decision as we move into a post-pandemic world with all its uncertainties. But personally I hope to see a strong economic recovery and am willing to accept a reasonable degree of risk in order to capitalize on this. You might see this differently, of course. But I hope that at least comparing the historical performance of portfolios at different risk levels will help you decide how best to proceed, whether you’re new to Nutmeg or an existing investor.

Bonus Offer

I am obviously a fan of Nutmeg and have a significant amount (by my standards!) invested with them. You can read my full review of Nutmeg here if you like..

Of course, I am not a qualified financial adviser and everyone should do their own ‘due diligence’ (and/or take professional advice) before deciding to invest. In addition, you shouldn’t consider investing with Nutmeg (or anyone else) unless you have paid off any interest-charging debts and have at least three months of easily-accessible savings in case of emergencies.

Based on my personal experiences with Nutmeg, though, I am happy to recommend them. They provide a simple, easy-to-understand investment platform, the customer service is excellent, and certainly in my case the results to date have exceeded my expectations.

In addition, if you are considering investing with Nutmeg, you might like to know that if you click through this link you can get six months’ free portfolio management when you invest. I will also receive a bonus for introducing you. Just enter your email address on the page that opens for further details, without any obligation.

If you have any comments or questions about this post or Nutmeg in general, please do leave them below.

Disclosure: This post includes referral links. if you click through and open an account with Nutmeg, I will receive a commission for introducing you. This will not affect in any way the product or service you receive. Indeed, as mentioned above, it will entitle you to six months’ portfolio management entirely free of charge. All investments carry a risk of loss.

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May 6, 2021

How To Get Free Stuff!

Nick Saving Money, Everything Else sponsored post 2 Comments

Almost everyone loves getting something for free, and in this digital age it is easier than ever to get freebies. So why do so few people take advantage of the great opportunities on offer?

In some cases, people simply aren’t aware that such opportunities exist. However, the main reason for people not actively pursuing freebies is that they are suspicious of getting something for nothing – they believe that there is some sort of catch involved. Alternatively, they might assume that the freebies available are cheap, low quality or not worth the effort. Neither is necessarily true.

Whilst some freebies are undeniably low cost or in sample-size proportions, there are a lot of really great products and services available too. The trick is to identify what product niches you are specifically interested in, then target the offers accordingly. This can yield better results than scanning offer websites with no real intent, and is less labour-intensive if hunting for offers is not something you actively enjoy.

Where you should look for freebies will depend on what type of niche you are targeting. For example, if you are a parent looking for baby- or child-related items, simply signing up to a manufacturer’s website will sometimes result in freebies. Occasionally they may provide the items in exchange for consumer feedback or a product review. But often they will give away items for no other reason than to encourage brand loyalty.

Literature is another good niche to target if you love a free gift. Publishing companies are always looking for people, both adults and children, to review newly published books. You have complete control over which books are sent to you, and are only required to review those which truly interest you.

If your interests are broad and you are more motivated by the thrill of receiving something for nothing, there are many websites and forums where people will list opportunities for obtaining free goods and services. The most impressive freebies are normally offered in limited quantities or for a restricted time period, so you will need to check the listings regularly to get the best deals. Signing up for emails or downloading an app which will generate alerts can make the process easier.

Some of the best free products and experiences are available to those people who are willing to put in a little effort. In particular, mystery shopping can produce great results because the company is required to reimburse you for your time. Your assignment may involve a free experience, such as eating at a restaurant or visiting a local attraction, or visiting a specific store and getting financial recompense for shopping there.

However much free time you have, and whatever your interests, you will be able to find freebies which suit you. Companies frequently send out free samples in order to generate interest in their products, and often all you need to do is fill out your name and address. If you are willing to provide something in return such as a review or completing a short survey, the freebies you receive can be even more enticing.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post on behalf of Free Stuff websites.

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May 4, 2021

My Coronavirus Crisis Experience: May 2021 Update

Nick Investing, Everything Else events, reviews, property, crowdfunding 5 Comments

Another month has passed, so it’s time for another of my Coronavirus Crisis Updates. Regular readers will know I’ve been posting these updates since the first lockdown started in March 2020 (you can read my April 2021 update here if you like).

As ever, I will begin by discussing financial matters and then life more generally over the last few weeks.

Financial

I’ll begin as usual with my Nutmeg stocks and shares ISA, as I know many of you like to hear what is happening with this.

As the screenshot below shows, the value of my main portfolio rose fairly steadily in the first half of April, after which it remained around the same level (apart from a brief dip around the 20th). It is currently valued at £20,430. Last month it stood at £20,078, so overall it has gone up by £352. I am happy enough with that.

Apart from my main portfolio, five months ago I put £1,000 into a second pot to try out Nutmeg’s new Smart Alpha option. This has done pretty well, so in April I added another £1,000 from some money returned to me by RateSetter (as discussed in last month’s update). This pot is now worth £2,067. Here is a screen capture showing performance in April.

I updated my full Nutmeg review in April and you can read the new version here (including a special offer at the end for PAS readers). If you are looking for a home for your new 2021/22 ISA allowance, based on my experience they are certainly worth a look.

I also added £400 (from RateSetter again) to my initial test investment of £100 with Assetz Exchange. As you may recall, Assetz Exchange is a P2P property investment platform that focuses on lower-risk properties (e.g. sheltered housing on long leases). I put £100 into this in mid-February and (as mentioned) another £400 in April. Since then my portfolio has generated £3.05 in revenue received from rental (equivalent to an annual interest rate of about 10% on my original £100 investment). Here’s my current statement in case you’re interested:

As you can see, even though I have only invested £500, I already have a well-diversified portfolio. This is a particular attraction of Assetz Exchange in my view. You can actually invest from as little as 80p per property if you really want to proceed cautiously!

You may also notice that some of the properties in my portfolio have gone up in value and some have gone down. This makes it a bit harder to judge overall performance compared with an equity-based investment like Nutmeg. The property values quoted by Assetz Exchange represent the best price you can sell at currently on the exchange, which is where all investments on AE are bought and sold. But they are only really relevant if you want to buy or sell that day. By contrast, Property Partner (a somewhat similar P2P property investment platform) quote a value for each property based on an independent surveyor’s valuation every 6-12 months. That means the values displayed on Property Partner are more stable, but of course they are only theoretical as there is no guarantee that this valuation would be achieved if the property was put on the market.

As I noted before, my investment on Assetz Exchange is in the form of an IFISA (Innovative Finance ISA), so there won’t be any tax to pay on profits, dividends or capital gains. I’ve been impressed by my experiences with Assetz Exchange and the returns generated so far, and therefore intend to continue investing with them. You can read my full review of Assetz Exchange here if you like. You can also sign up for an account on Assetz Exchange directly via this link [affiliate].

In case you’re not aware, everyone has a generous £20,000 tax-free ISA allowance in the current tax year (2021/22). However, for some reason the government only allows you to invest in one of each type of ISA in any particular.tax year. So you can only put new money into one stocks and shares ISA per year, but you can invest in a cash ISA and/or IFISA as well if you wish – just as long as you don’t exceed the £20,000 total limit. In the 2021/22 tax year I am therefore investing in a Nutmeg stocks and shares ISA and an Assetz Exchange IFISA. This gives me additional diversification compared with investing in just one type of ISA.

Moving on, I heard last month that I will not be eligible for any more SEISS income support payments for the self-employed. Along with many other self-employed people, my income took a hit when the pandemic struck and this money from the government came in very useful (though I do thankfully have a personal pension and other investments as well). However, I have become a victim of the rule that says to receive SEISS your average self-employed income must represent at least half of your total income.

For the first three rounds of SEISS that was indeed the case. However, the latest round of payments incorporates another set of tax returns (2019/20) when calculating average income. Because my income was lower in these accounts (partly due to the pandemic) my four-year average is now less than what I draw from my personal pension. So at a stroke I am no longer eligible for any more support. It’s not the end of the world, but I do find it bizarre that a scheme intended to support self-employed people whose livelihoods have been affected by the pandemic can cut off completely when your average income drops. Commiserations to any PAS readers who may have found themselves in a similar situation 🙁

Personal

In April, as I’m sure you know, some of the government’s lockdown restrictions finally began to be lifted.

I was glad to be able to go for a swim for the first time since Christmas, and have been doing so twice a week since it became possible again. I am a member of the David Lloyd Club in Lichfield which has two pools, one inside and one out. Although I’ve heard that you have to book slots at some swimming pools, that has never been the case at DL Lichfield, and in fact in many ways it feels reassuringly normal. Of course, you have to wear a mask as you enter the building, but thankfully not in the changing rooms or the pool 😀

I have just been told that if the pools get very busy, DL staff ask people to wait in the changing rooms until others have left. I haven’t witnessed this myself and don’t think it happens very often, but am happy to place this info on record.

What I do find bizarre is the rules about buying and consuming refreshments. The club room (aka coffee shop) at DL Lichfield is open for the purchase of drinks and light meals, but you can’t consume them within the building. You are, however, allowed to sit at a table in the club room (no need for a mask) to read and relax or just stare at the four walls. But heaven help you if you try to eat or drink anything.

I was told by a staff member that it was okay to take a drink to the outdoor pool as long as I was going for a swim, but not if I simply wanted to lie on a sunbed. Even though I am fast becoming a connoisseur of strange lockdown rules, this one seems barmy to me and I’d love to know how DL Lichfield plan to enforce it (“Unless you get in that pool in the next five minutes, I’m taking your coffee away.”). I’d like to support the DL club room/coffee shop, but the incomprehensible rules have defeated me. So I’m now taking a flask of tea and a biscuit with me and having that on the poolside or in the changing room after my swim. So far no Covid police have come for me.

I have also been pleased (and relieved) to have my hair cut again, six months after this was last done. Thankfully I didn’t have to queue up, as my hairdresser comes to me and cuts my hair in my conservatory. We have both had Covid jabs and agreed to dispense with masks and just kept the door and window open (thankfully it was quite a warm day). Again, it all felt reassuringly normal.

I haven’t so far taken advantage of the reopening of pub gardens, largely because it has been so cold (and wet) most days. It’s good to see at least some of my local pubs open again, but a shame they still aren’t allowed to open inside as well as out. Last year we had Eat Out to Help Out at a time when there were more Covid cases and deaths then there are now (just one death yesterday, I read). I am looking forward to May 17th when pubs and restaurants can reopen inside as well, but believe this has been delayed too long personally.

I am probably one of the few people who didn’t watch the Line of Duty finale. Indeed, I haven’t watched any of the series, as it didn’t really appeal to me. For one thing it sounded downbeat and depressing, and life has been grim enough recently. But also, it appeared a bit too complicated for my liking. Especially as i grow older, I find following series with large casts and labyrinthine plots increasingly challenging. I can remember laughing (affectionately) at my dad when he expressed confusion at the plot of some TV detective show, but I am obviously going down the same route myself now 😮

I have watched a couple of shows I enjoyed this month, though, so thought I’d share details in case anyone fancies giving them a try.

The first is an Amazon Prime Video series called Upload. This is a dystopian science fiction tale, set in a not-too-distant future when a method has been found for transferring people’s minds at the point of death (or before) to a virtual afterlife. This service is provided by a number of large corporations. They employ minimum-wage ‘angels’ in large warehouse-like offices to monitor these worlds and support the clients who live in them (at least, until their money runs out). It is quite a dark concept, but full of laugh-out-loud moments and some great characters. There is also a mystery in it, and a romance between a female ‘angel’ and one of her (deceased) male clients. It’s well worth a watch if you like something a bit different (and have Amazon Prime Video, of course).

I am also enjoying a US fantasy series called The Librarians (see below). I originally caught a couple of episodes on an obscure Freeview channel and decided I’d like to watch the whole (four) series from the beginning. Doing that proved a bit more challenging than I anticipated, but eventually I managed to track down a DVD box set on eBay.

The Librarians is a tongue-in-cheek fantasy series with a certain retro feel to it. It reminds me a bit of the old Avengers TV show in its heyday (with Diana Rigg as Emma Peel).

The Librarians are a group of misfits who are recruited to work at the mysterious Library, a place where magical artefacts of all kinds are stored. Early in the first series magic is released into the world again, having been suppressed for many centuries. In each episode the Librarians investigate some mysterious incident and try to stop evil individuals deploying magic for nefarious ends, generally using their intelligence rather than violence.

Again, it’s hard to explain in a few words, but you soon get the hang of things. And the characters, while perhaps excessively goofy at times, are all endearing in different ways. The Librarians is really old-fashioned family entertainment (with little if any swearing) and none the worse for that. If you can get hold of it – I’m not sure whether it’s on any streaming services – it offers an enjoyable (and at times hilarious) drop of escapism, something I guess many of us need at the moment.

As always, I hope you are staying safe and sane during these challenging times. If you have any comments or questions, please do post them below.

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