Rodney Hobson is a very experienced financial journalist who has written for and edited some very grown-up titles indeed.

He has been writing about shares since since, ooo, long before iBall was even an inclination.

He is also the author of Shares Made Simple: a Beginner’s Guide to the Stock Market and that’s what he came to tell us about.

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In the 21st century, leisure is so far the key to our success. IBall loves this, because in our case it means idleness.

But rather that Type II in waiting couch spud sports fans there’s one company doing rather well out getting inner city lads on to the sports field.

Goals Soccer Centres is spreading its five-a-side gospel across the world, and even over the water to the waiting Yanks. We just love the stock.

Research: GOAL.L

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Why must we always say a share is a bit ‘James Bond’? It’s a really lazy, poor metaphor and someone should be fired. Through a hole in the floor or something.

Anyway, Chemring is such a company that old Q himself would be beyond the boundaries of excitement with all the moody kit they’ve got.

It might well be expert in countermeasures and pyrotechnics, but that doesn’t mean to say we can’t sit up here and take the mickey…

Research: CHG.L

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It may not be actually made of girders but the Scots swear by it. All right then, the Scots just swear.

There’s more to Irn Bru than just a soft drink. It’s not only the stuff that puts the fizz into drinking and then helping with the hangover.

It’s a good-looking company and if the English catch on then it could see the shares flying off the shelves too.

Research: BAG.L

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Ethical, green or Socially Responsible Investing. You can use whatever nomenclature you like and you can view it how you like - sceptically or warm and fuzzy.

But almost nobody has cracked the concept of really making money out of companies who genuinely put something back into the society from which they draw life. Until now.

Rod Schwartz, of Catalyst, once the number one equity analyst in the US, really knows what social businesses are about, and how we make money out of them…

Research: Catalyst

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Every time there’s a gold rush, in whatever it might be, some Smart Alec always says buy the company that makes the shovels.

Expro International doesn’t make shovels exactly but it does make stuff that helps the oil industry make more money.

As if they needed to. But anyway, if you really want to get on a company that’s riding the crest of the oil wave, we give you Expro…

Research: EXR.L

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Tough to make a living in the pub business these days, even if you own thousands of them.

So at least you can make it interesting with a good takeover squabble with your rivals. And as ugly as possible.

On the other hand we could all just whip out our portfolios, join an investment club and go down the pub.

Research: PUB.L

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Bet you, if you were asked what the best performing asset class over the last few years had been you would not say stamps.

Well you should, because it is. Some stellar prices have been achieved for certain examples of very rare and very old bits of paper.

But before you go scuttling off to the attic to turn out granny’s long-forgotten trunk, have a care to look at Stanley Gibbons first.

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The world’s favourite airline, they used to call it. That’s not the sentiment at the moment, which is more like the world’s most laughed at.

But we say back off. British Airways is everything about Britain. It spreads British culture all over the world, it gets you there in the end too.

Well, your luggage might be somewhere else but that would be an old joke. Seriously, we say BA is a buy and today’s episode outlines why.

100th Episode Competition

The competition is now closed.

Anyone who is interested in business and investing is fully familiar with the work of the once Government-owned 3i.

As the mastodon of the British venture capital industry it is something of a bellwether for the investing market itself.

So when it comes to make a pronouncement about what it is going to do in the future it could have a huge effect on all of us. Or not, as the case maybe.

Research: iii.L

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