John Smith
CommentThe shadow of death
This is the story of how a case of ordinary back pain turned into a long, slow wait to learn the awful truth about a chest X-ray …
CommentThe unspeakable truth
One reason that specifications are so immensely long is because they are elaborate preparations for a fight. And the ironic thing is, they don’t even do that very well
CommentTraining for the Olympics
If winning the Olympics was a triumph, building them will be a miracle. The reason is that we don’t have enough skilled workers – but who’s to blame for that?
CommentThe little princes
Our columnist recalls two weeks in the 1990s when he was privileged to have the honour of working with a group of highly skilled young management trainees
CommentMeeting Mr Kurtz
The chilling tale of a man’s journey in the dark heart of the construction industry … which, if you ever need to find it, is located in Hounslow
CommentGenerals and mercenaries
If construction and warfare have anything in common, it’s that the top brass position themselves a safe distance from the people on the front line
CommentThe battle of Twickenham
The funny, bitter, heartwarming tale of six men who came together to work on a London pub and found themselves transformed into a band of brothers …
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I name the guilty men
If you want to know why your fitted kitchen doesn't fit, then read this column and discover that you are the victim of a decade of systematic incompetence …
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Ah, bitter chill it was!
The owl, for all his feathers, was a-cold. The hare limp'd trembling through the frozen grass, and silent were the joiners in their uncompleted toilet …
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Riddles and fiddles
You may not be able to find a T5 worker who made £55,000, or explain where Dennis Lenard's 300,000 workers are hiding, but you can get a dodgy CSCS card tomorrow
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One mean industry
They talk a lot about sabotage on site, but maybe they ought to look for the guys who wrecked the industry's labour relations … with apologies to Raymond Chandler
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Cut to the bone
If anybody on a site ever heard the great and good discussing Egan reforms, it would sound like a sermon on brotherly love delivered in the middle of a firefight
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Ask a silly question
Skilled labourers work in abysmal conditions, are paid peanuts and have to compete against cheap imported labour. Take a guess why nobody wants to work in construction
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A word in your ear
The middle classes have been getting excited about site workers earning £55,000 – some have even talked about a career change. Truth is, they wouldn't survive the day …
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Goodbye to all that
After 20 years teaching craft skills, this lecturer has had enough. Here he explains how a debased system and useless students turned a fine job into his definition of hell