Hello, Share Breakers. With the markets closed today, I’ll keep to my role as a bullish optimist and suggest a few reasons to hope for beleaguered share shifters like. First of all, if you listen to television news you may be more depressed by the situation than you ought to be.

As I explain, whatever - arguably defamatory and certainly innacurate - comments the ShareSoc BSD makes about Carson Block and others, in future he must always be referred to as a "living legend in the world of investment". Then it is back to the debate about partnerships like the ones at Pinsent Masons and Mazaars taking Goverment handouts to pay low paid staff in order to keep the multimillionaires rich and why this stinks. Then I discuss why the post Covid 19 recovery will not be V shaped and what this means for shares. Happy Easter to one and all and especially to  the living legend in the world of investment that is Roger Lawson.

My views on Block Energy (BLOE) haven’t exactly been popular over the past year as it was a favourite with private investors, but unfortunately so far everything has played out as I feared that it would do.

Here are five long reads that have nothing to do with shares. Put the kettle on, find a comfy chair. You have the time, don't you?

Early this year we showed the top shorted London-listed shares at the start of 2020. How's the performance as at Easter? (those in bold remain from 2019)...

This has nothing to do with shares or investing or anything. It's the end of the weekend and we've organised a quick pub quiz. Grab your own beer, there are no prizes, and for Pete's sake, no Googling! Only I get to do that. If you are so inclined, please enter your score in the comments. The highest score still won't get a prize.

The oil price bounced hard in the last week in expectation of an OPEC+ and G20 deal to take many barrels off the market. As I write the deal is still not finalised and agreed to by the key players, as Mexico has been playing hardball, so I do not take as read the OPEC+ deal will be approved. In the circumstances I would suggest approval of this deal is the best that bulls can hope for. The G20 provided little tangible support to oil price. I see these outcomes very much meeting my criteria of “too little far too late” as I expected.

We're inviting you to send pictures in of what you see out of your window and/or of your new workspace. Just email them to editorial@shareprophets.com . Today, we're looking at the view of Paul in Brisbane.

Early this year we showed the Shorted AIM shares at the start of 2020. How's the performance as at Easter? (those in bold remain from 2019)...

Excluding ShareProphets Radio 27, the most read non-Tom article this week is Gold: Dislocation, dislocation, dislocation! It is all going only one way by Nigel Somerville, at number four or number 12 including Bearcasts.

I start wth a look at Carnival (CCL). then it is onto old pals, Cineworld (CINE), West Ham, Pinsent Masons and others and how this bailout is in fact allowing and will make the rich to get richer, reward them for past greed and will see the wealth gap widen in a wholly unacceptable way. What is happening at morally bankrupt law form Pinsent Masons is a particular disgrace.  

Well, to be accurate it will not be the virus but Government response which causes the bankruptcies.

It is so simple, I cannot think of why we have not gone down this route before. I hope this video explains why the Government's response to Coronavirus is going to make us all rich.

As per my earlier piece, developments in the gold market have left me feeling very enthusiastic so I thought I would offer my thoughts on my various gold holdings, including AIM-listed Ariana (AAU) and Bluebird Merchant Ventures (BMV), fully-listed Centamin (CEY) and the BlackRock Gold & General and Junior Gold unit trusts – and a couple of other corners.

I don’t need to spell out to any reader of my recent articles on the oil price and specific oil companies, that I’m finding it difficult to see any good investments in the small cap oily space currently. Having written my Vomit list of crap oil shares at Christmas, I thought Easter would be a good time to undertake an interim review.

We're inviting you to send pictures in of what you see out of your window and/or of your new workspace. Just email them to editorial@shareprophets.com . Today, we're looking at the view of Richard in Geneva.

The technical analyst community is frothing a little over this chart as it offers a pretty strong bull signal for gold enthusiasts. The thing causing the excitement is an inverted head and shoulders, suggestig upside ahead, on the chart of Gold Futures. Note the break of that line at $1680 this past week: I gather the upside target is around $1880 per ounce.....IF ths follows the textbook. That's a big "if", though.

Hello, Share Fliers. Though I didn’t think I’d miss going to church in these dark days, I do. Our three-hour Good Friday service was cancelled. As well as every other service or church function for goodness knows how long. But all those denied an Easter church service - more than attend Saturday football matches - are still able to take part in online services.

Self-styled “growth and turnaround investment company” Volvere (VLE) has updated including it is “still achieving an encouraging level of output” and “is in a strong financial position, with significant cash resources”…