Rev Stan's other stuff

Someone,somewhere should be embarrassed

I mean, money-making aside, could it not be any more obvious that Kate Nash is copying Lily Allen. I'm not even that massive a fan of Allen but even I'm embarrassed for Nash. And it's not like Nash can really be considered to be the 'next' Lily Allen, its like Allen has just popped out for a piss and Nash has jumped at the opportunity to seize the mike.
The TV and film industry is going down the road of flogging good ideas until they are so past their sell by dates they could be repackaged as penicillin but please don't tell me the music industry, while heavily derivative in places, is so blatantly heading the same way?

Kate Nash "Foundations" video

LILY ALLEN LDN exclusive video

Vox Hunt: Admirable

Show us a picture of someone you admire.
Submitted by Rev Stan.

Getting a bit of habit having my QoTD/vox hunts...

Thought long and hard about this one and there is no-one famous, either dead or living, that I could genuinely say I admire. It always comes back to my friends. I've always said you can't choose your family but you can choose your friends and mine inspire me in all sorts of ways, not least of which is to be a better person and that, I believe, is something to be truly admired.
I don't have pics of all of them so I'm not going to post any which is sort of a cop out but it's MY vox hunt so I'll break the rules if I want to.

Van humour

Van humour

Vox Hunt: Happy B-Day!

Show us a birthday cake. 
Submitted by kite.  

Nadia made this absolutely scrummy chocolatey, hazelnutty (but gluten and dairy free) cake for me for my Birthday this year. She brought it into the office and it was a lovely surprise and a great way to start the week after a weekend of celebrations.

Birthday cake by Nadia

 

More theatre: In Celebration

Orlando Bloom has chosen a David Storey play, In Celebration to make not only his West End debut but also his theatre debut.

Orlando

David Storey is a northern playwright who concentrates on themes surrounding northern society and the working classes and In Celebration, first performed in 1969, is typical of this.
I must admit that I bought the ticket because I was curious about Bloom. Stage acting takes no prisoners and I've never thought him to be particularly strong in front of the camera.
The play revolves around a family get together with three sons returning home to celebrate their parents 40th wedding anniversary. The father is close to retirement age having spent his entire working life as a coal miner but has strived to get his sons the sort of education that would ensure they didn't suffer the same fate.
Each son, having fulfilled their father's dream and entered white collar work, suffers angst about their current status in society and achievements versus their roots.
Despite some nice acting from the likes of TV and stage stalwarts Tim Healy and Lynda Barron, I did not find the story engaging or believe the emotions expressed had strong foundation.
Bloom's character is fairly passive, saying little but supposedly emoting a lot, except that he didn't really. But then he didn't have a lot to work with and frankly I'm surprised he chose this role for his first stage performance.
In Celebration has had very mixed reviews. The DailyTelegraph concluded it's own review by saying:
"But frankly you'd only recommend this play to your worst enemy."
I bought a programme but accidentally left it in a shopping trolley at my local supermarket on my way home. When I realised what I'd done, I wasn't that bothered.

 

Smoking ban humour

Yorkshire 2007

Courtesy of a pub in Pickering, North Yorkshire.

Seaside fun and oh brother where art thow?

It was time, once again, for our annual staff day out to Brighton (which also heralds just over a year since I started my vox blog). Another fab day and not just for the usual festivities of montezuma's, fish and chips and rides on pier.

This shot is partly because you gotta but mainly for Mosh because he always says Nadia and I are like an old married couple...

Nads & Stan having fun on the pier

These sum up the Brighton extremes: sophisticated cafe society and good old fashioned fish and chips with mushy peas on the pier:

And a bottle of fizz for the journey home

But what sets this year's visit apart is:

Derren

This is my brother Derren who lives in Brighton and whom I haven't seen for about eight years. We had a falling out and, as we both have very stubborn personalities, haven't had any contact since. We spoke briefly on the phone for the first time last year, sort of by accident, when he was visiting Dad in hospital.
For a while I've been thinking that plenty of water had gone under the bridge and, basically, I've missed him. Even though we don't share blood, we grew up together from the age of seven and a mere three weeks and five days separates us in age. We were at school together, sometimes in the same class.
I decided it was a too good a chance to pass up, got his mobile number from my Mum and texted him. Luckily he is currently working in Brighton and we arranged to meet up during his (v. late) lunch hour.
It felt great to give him a big hug and it was just like old times with us both rabbiting away and him making me laugh.
I love him to bits, its just taken a long time to remember that oh and how bloomin' tall he is (6' 5"!).
We've swapped email and skype details, I'm sure it will just be the start.

Pulling faces: nothing has changed

 

Musical discovery (second time lucky)

Didn't realise that songs bought via iTunes are generally copyright protected which means they won't play when posted. If you are reading this then my little plan to get around that has worked.
Anyway, ever since I heard the gypsy punk-influenced music of Gogol Bordello, I've been on the look out for more ethnically influenced sounds and I discovered Beirut recently.
Their sound has a melancholic edge with underlying tones of fiesta and a bygone era - the singer at times sounds like he should have a pencil moustache and be in a 1930's black and white movie.
This is one of my favourite tracks which is called Brandenburg and is from the album Gulag Orkestar

03 Brandenburg

Beirut

 

Acting master hits the London stage

The money I spent joining the supporters of the Royal Shakespeare Company has already proved its worth.
Ian McKellan is playing the lead in King Lear at Stratford but not surprisingly it sold out very quickly. So when it was announced that the play was transferring to London as part of the company's London season I was ready to pounce on the tickets.
As a member, I can buy tickets before they go on general sale in September and have managed to get good seats for an evening performance, the week before Christmas.
McKellan is an actor of such talent and stature that it is bound to be an incredible experience seeing him perform live.

Pic: Royal Shakespeare Company

Ben Whishaw is stalking me

Not content with flinging heavy accessories at me under the guise of being in character, Ben Whishaw has now

Ben Whishaw: stalker

started stalking me.

I was innocently strolling up Charing Cross Road looking for the Duke of York's theatre and there he was walking towards me, pretending to look casual, with huge headphones on. I made eye contact just so that he knows I know what he is up to.

Where do these actors get off eh?

(Pic is from here)

Finished reading...but not commenting,

because I know people who haven't. Hurry up!

QotD: My First Friend

Who is the very first friend you ever had?  Are you still in touch?

Bergen. Whenever I'd done something I shouldn't have I used to blame him. I'd have got away with it too if he hadn't been imaginary.
Haven't a clue where he is now.

Yorkshire

Have had a really lovely break in Yorkshire or the North Yorkshire Moors to be precise, despite the weathers best efforts to throw a spanner in the works.
Highlights included Castle Howard

Castle Howard

which was flung firmly into the tourism spotlight when it was used for the original TV series adaptation of Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisted in the 1980's. Up until two weeks before our visit it was being used for a film version of the same novel in which one of my fav actors Ben Whishaw is playing Sebastian Flyte. I've just finished reading the book, which is excellent, more of which another time.

The amazing Bridestones:

Bridestones, North Yorkshire Moors

Despite everything I say about tourists, I am one at heart and made a reluctant Mosh pose for this shot:

Mosh 'the vandal'

                                                                                                                                       

Anne Bronte's grave in Scarborough

I was also very moved to visit Anne Bronte's grave in Scarborough (a former Victorian spa resort that has become a tawdry British seaside destination and has possible the most expensive public loo's in the country at 40p a 'go'). Her novel The Tenant of Wildfell Hall is a personal favourite and was one of my set texts at O-level, so it felt a little strange imagining her there.   

There is so much that is quintessentially English about Yorkshire that I could write a dozen observations from sitting on the beach, building sand castle's when it's drizzling to knicker vending machine's outside tourist tat shops and the chocolate box thatched cottages in twee villages to medieval castles. I will cogitate and condense perhaps but in the meantime I've uploaded all my piccies to my flickr page.

End of hols/Deathly Hallows Eve

It is the last night of our holiday and we've had a wonderful time, despite the weather. We are spending the evening in the pub, for a change.
Yesterday we went to Goathland on the North Yorkshire Moors where Heartbeat fans congregate as it is used for filming. As I haven't watched Heartbeat since Nick Berry was in it, it all meant nothing to me.
But the reason for the visit, for me anyway, was because of this:

IMGP3119

Ardent fans of all thing HP will recognise it  as Hogsmead station as it was used for the first film. We were lucky enough to witness no less than two steam trains passing through during our visit which you can't help but find just a little bit charming.
There was one moment today when I thought a local book shop had broken the Deathly Hallows embargo and I hurried hopefully to check out the queue only to find that a local author was doing a book signing.
So tonight is my last 'how will it all end' night. I'm buying the book from a small independent bookseller and will be happy to pay full cover price. Sod Tesco and there like with their discounts, I'm supporting the small business people.
I plan to have finished reading it by Monday. I'm slightly concerned that it's not going to be a satisfactory ending. I haven't seen an interview yet with JK Rowling that shows evidence of anyone ever asking her how she would feel if there was a massive backlash of discontented fans.
I'm hopeful I'm not going to be disappointed.

Pub post

I'm sat in a pub, in a village, on the edge of the North Yorkshire moors with a glass of wine and dinner of roast lamb on order. Sad maybe? But hey what's worse being sat in my front room?
We are running the gauntlet of the weather on this holiday. Beautiful sunny spells betwixt torrential downpours. Thursday is shaping up to be our only day of proper walking if the weathermen are to be believed.
Today we went here:

Castle Howard

It is the beautiful and breathtaking Castle Howard. We spent five hours exploring the grounds and the parts of the house that are open to the public and it was worth every minute. More pics to come when I get home and upload to flickr.

This will be me

Caught the tail end of an old episode of the Catherine Tate Show while channel hopping tonight. It was my favourite character 'the nan' whom Mosh reckons I'm going to become when I'm older. I do hope so.

The Catherine Tate Show - Nan (Doctor's Surgery)

Hurray for holidays

It's been a long time coming but I am finally faced with a whole week off work. It been a tough slog, seven months with only three days off work but tomorrow White Cottage will become mine

White Cottage

and Mosh's home for a whole seven days. White Cottage is in a small village on the edge of the Yorkshire moors. There is a pub 100 yards from the front door (with free wi-fi)  what more could you want.
I have a pile of books, my walking boots and fingers cross for fine weather.

Order of the Phoenix - The Verdict

As anticipated the atmosphere was electric. There were character lookie-likees mingling with the crowds waiting to go into the cinema:

Once inside the buzz just grew, there were one or two people in home made costumes and I saw a middle aged woman with a wand. She looked quite normal.
As soon as the lights dimmed everyone cheered and applauded and then again when the curtains in front of the screen opened, then again when the certificate came up and then again when the music started, hastily followed but everyone hushing everyone else to be quiet, so as not to miss anything.

The Odeon Leicester Square

We all broke into spontaneous applause and cheers at various points during the film. I remember going to see Return of the King a week after seeing it at Leicester Square only to be disappointed that the audience weren't getting into it as much. I'm sure subsequent screenings of OOTP will be the same.
And the film, well it was fabulous as expected, when I wasn't making mental notes of things they'd left out or changed from the book.
The acting has definitely stepped up a notch, and is particularly noticeable in Daniel Radcliffe's performance (the possession scene is excellently done).
There was some wonderful interpretation of some of the creatures, places and magic. I particularly liked the Thestrals and the Ministry of Magic looked even better than I imagined. I was concerned about how Imelda Staunton would play Umbridge and she carried it off superbly if not in looks, certainly in characterisation.
They have very deftly condensed a very long book.
The series is definitely shaking off the mantel of being kiddies books and stepping well and truly into teen territory. It was reflected well in the film and particularly so with a number of flashbacks showing just how much the trio have changed from earlier films.
Only two minor grumbles: Harry is supposed to wear Dudley's hand-me-downs, I mean who thought a tweed jacket was a good idea? And Grawp, well he just looked like a dirtier version of Shrek and the CGI wasn't much better than the animation either.
Before the film I was talking to someone who was a big fan of the films but had never read the books and yes the films are fantastic but I couldn't help thinking of all delicious bits of the book that they would have missed out on.

Countdown

I feel like a kid stood outside the toy shop with a £20 note, waiting for it to open.Tonight is Order of the Phoenix night and I can hardly contain my excitement.

 

HarryPotterOrderofthePhoenix[1]

The ticket was booked a month ago for the Odeon in Leicester Square which is where the premiere was held. It's bloody expensive at £17.50 a pop but it is the biggest screen in Europe and it is Harry Potter.

Tickets were selling fast when I bought mine so I imagine it has sold out by now. If the opening night of Return of the King, which I also saw in Leicester Square, is anything to go by, then the atmosphere is going to be electric.

*big, big grin*

Just seven hours to wait.

QotD: Best Practical Joke

What's the best practical joke you've pulled or had pulled on you? 
Submitted by Mike Schwartz.

At university we went through a phase when we first moved into halls of constantly playing practical jokes most of which involved inventive ways of messing up people's rooms. One I'm not too proud of but secretly I think was quite genius in its simplicity was to 'magically' talcum powder someone's room while they were out. All you need is a sheet of paper, talc and a hairdryer:

• Add talc liberally to the paper
• Slide under chosen room door but keep hold of a corner
  
• Blast air under the door with the hairdryer
  
• Retrieve the paper

Then more recently at my current place of work this one was only a little bit mean but was taken the right way and it still makes me chuckle when I think about it.
My boss decided grow a goatee beard (which looked ridiculous), so I popped out to a joke shop and bought a selection of really cheap fancy-dress style, fake moustaches. Each one was a different shape or colour. The five of us in the department each put one on and carried on working as if nothing was different.
I sat at the desk next to his and nearly blew the whole thing trying not to laugh, eventually he asked me something so I had to turn to face him. He did a double take then looked around at the rest of the team and fell about laughing with the rest of us.
The goatee was gone the next day. A couple of the moustaches live on.

New arrival

After many years of loyal service my iPod is on its last legs. It is one of the original versions - £350 it cost then.

Mine is the one on the right

It never fitted properly into the fab docking station Mosh bought me last year to replace my kitchen stereo and it's memory is full so whenever I want something new on there I have to take something off which is bloomin' annoying.
A thousand songs seemed like an endless amount of music back then.
So it was time to log onto the Apple Store, via the NUJ website of course so I can claim the 10% discount members are entitled to.
I decided on the black version and the 80 gajillion, 20,000 songs memory, that way I can get my entire record collection on it and still have a mammoth amount of memory left to fill with podcasts, videos and more music.
After a nail-biting week of waiting it has arrived.
Angels sang when it came out of the box and small children wept at it's formidable presence. It is a beautiful thing and I feel every smudgy fingerprint I leave on it. But that won't last.
Its speed of transferring songs is phenomenal. My entire iTunes library in about three mins. That'll probably be equivalent to dial up in five years time.
And the battery charged in about 45 mins but I'm following the start up instructions, which is so unlike me, and leaving it charging for four hours.
Now just need to update my iTunes library with all those CD's I never quite got around to importing and then work out how to play the thing through my stereo.

PS Any ideas what to do with an old iPod with a screen that fades on a whim and wobbly battery life?

La Vie en Rose

Went to see this charming little film on Sunday. It tells the story of French singer Edith Piaf in a series of

Marion Cotillard as Edith Piaf

reminiscences and flash backs as she lays dying in Grasse. Although they gloss over the war years and there are a couple of episodes that assume knowledge and are thus confusing if you know nothing of the singer, overall it is a engaging tale of a woman shaped by her poor but colourful up-bringing in a knocking shop then later in a circus and finally discovered singing on street corners to earn enough money to eat.
She is a diva, naturally, but ultimately lives to perform and in latter years when her health is failing she stubbornly refuses to accept that she isn't well enough to take the stage, literally begging to be allowed back on after collapsing.
Played superbly by Marion Cotillard, I came out of the cinema feeling all gallic wanting to head immediately to a little street cafe somewhere, order a glass of red and spark up a Gaulloise.

Dr Who does Hamlet?

There are rumours that Dr Who (and Barty Crouch Jnr) actor, David Tennant, is negotiating with the RSC to play

Dr Who (www.starstore.com)

Hamlet. I can't but help get an image in my head of him loafing around the stage with his hands in his pockets, like in this picture, spouting out 'to be or not to be?' in that slightly nonchalant way.
Actually, I think he'd bring a different kind of energy to the role, a certain manic madness I suppose. Will definitely be rushing out and buying tickets if it proves a true story.

Vox Hunt: This Is A Mosaic

Show us a mosaic.

I do dabble in mosaic's but couldn't post any pictures of my work when I have a photo of this:

Madonna and child mosaic, Aya Sofya, Istanbul

The Madonna and Child mosaic is way up high on the ceiling of the Aya Sofya in Istanbul, Turkey and the story of it's survival is what makes it all the more breathtaking.
Istanbul's Aya Sofya or Sancta Sofia in Latin, dates from AD 527. Originally all of the cathedral's domes were decorated with biblical scenes made from mosaics and gold tiles were used in abundance.
When the Turks took Constantinople they turned the Aya Sofya into a mosque but the Qu'ran states that Islamic art isn't supposed to depict people, animals, fish or birds. The mosaics were plastered over, an act which seems deplorable now but in fact saved at least some. After all they could have scraped from the walls and out of existence forever.
In the 1840's the Sultan of the time had them uncovered and restored by a couple of Swiss architects and although they had to be covered up once again, this time only paint was used.
It wasn't until the mosque was deconsecrated and turned into a museum that they could be once again restored and displayed.
The Aya Sofya, as you'd expect in a building so old, has few windows and so relies on artificial sources of light. The mosaic, now spotlighted, illuminates a dark corner and allows a glimpse of what it would have been like inside the cathedral 1,500 years ago with torch and candlelight bouncing off 1,000's of tiny gold mosaic tiles.
I'm not a religious person but this mosaic is just so beautifully luminous you can't take your eyes off it.

More Harry Potter blah

Despite my posts, I don't spend hours in Harry Potter chat rooms discussing theories about the final book - I've never been in a chat room - but I have just happened upon this interview with Daniel Radcliffe which is both interesting and also validates the fact that I'm not completely alone in some of my theories....

Focus does Friends

It is not unusual for a group of us from work to have to stay overnight while away on business. We have always chosen hotels but for the first time, and on the recommendation of Lisa, we opted for a serviced apartment for our Birmingham visit.
Lisa used a contact to get us a good deal and with two, two-bedroomed apartment booked a Friends-like experience lay ahead.
The apartments were wonderful. There were two bathrooms so you still get the privacy of your own hotel room but with the bonus of a large living room/dining room/kitchen space and balcony.

And having that living space made so much difference. Rather than being cooped up in a hotel room and forced to socialise elsewhere, we hung out in the living room listening to music and drinking wine with some other colleagues before going out to dinner and then returned for a nightcap and some early birthday celebration cake for Nadia (and yes Nadia is in her jimmy jams in the shot below - you can't do that in a hotel bar).

Nadia, relaxing in her jimmy jams with Lisa dn Dan

We decided to cook breakfast in one of the apartments which was an enlightening experience. I think it helps that we all get on but at times we were scarily like a family, arguing over how best to do things and who should do what. I almost expected the Geordie big brother commentator to spark up: "10 am and the Focus team are in the kitchen. Nadia, Lisa and Dan have been cooking breakfast for 10 minutes and are arguing over whether you should make scrambled eggs with milk..."

It was a different work-related experience and great fun. Full marks to Dan for surviving just under 24 hours as the only boy. I think we terrified him in the preceding days talking about our plans to spend the evening watching Dirty Dancing and painting our toenails.
Will definitely try and stay in serviced apartments again.

For Soup

Because no one should be spared by not knowing who Cliff Richard is, if I have to.
He's been going for years and was a 'heart-throb' in his day (my Mum had posters of him on her wall when she was teenager). He used to sing with a band called The Shadows but is now most famous for being a Christian and 'entertaining' the crowds when rain stops play at Wimbledon. He mysteriously never seems to age or have 'girl friend'.
It was a toss up between a clip with him wearing a short-sleeved leather shirt or this one...

Cliff Richard - Daddy's Home

Paris je t'aime

Paris je t'aime is a curious piece of cinema. With 18 different directors it certainly isn't conventional. It is best

Paris je t'aime

described as the cinematic equivalent to a series of short stories based around the theme of love and all set, as the title suggests, in Paris.
The directors range from Gus Van Sant, Tom Twyker to the Coen Brothers and Alfonso Cuaron.
The cast is obviously huge with many notable names: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gerard Depadieu, Nick Nolte, Elijah Wood, Bob Hoskins, Natalie Portman, Juliette Binoche, Miranda Richardson... the list goes on.
It is both an interesting exercise in interpretation of the theme and a fascinating mix of directing and cinematography styles.
Not all the stories work as well as others and it does sag a bit in the middle like an over indulged waistline but overall it is an enjoyable feast. An inspiring and uplifting piece of film-making, I certainly walked out feeling entertained and smiling inside.

Paris, Je t'aime trailer

Vox Hunt: Fireworks

Show us some fireworks.

Taken at the Santa spectacular wonderland thingy at the Falkirk Wheel last year...

Falkirk fireworks

How very, er, European

This video clip just featured on BBC News 24. It is from the official YouTube site of the European Union and was put together to promote European film and the fact that the European Union assists with funding.
In some ways I love it because it is so typically European and in that I mean a core of mainland European countries rather than British.
But in others, it is just that, a stereotype. It assumes that sex sells, when in reality some of the best and most successful European films of recent years haven't actually featured any sex.

Film lovers will love this!

 

Vox Hunt: Slow Dance Soundtrack

Audio: What was the first song you ever slow-danced to with a girl or boy?
Submitted by Rev Stan.

Ha! I got a Vox Hunt to add to my collection that is 2-2 AKA Vasquez...
Sorry did I just gloat?
Well, the inspiration for this Vox Hunt came from this post a week or so ago and as it took Vox sooo long to publish my first QOTD I really wasn't expecting it to come up quite so quickly. Consequently, I've already commented in said post about this particular song which is Sign Your Name by Terence Trent D'Arby.
But to retrace those steps: It was at a Sixth Form social, at our local yacht club which served booze even though we were under age (it wasn't as classy as it sounds). I was 16 or 17. I can't remember his name. I must have fancied him whoever he was but I can't remember who asked who or how we ended up shuffling around the dance floor together. I just remember the song and that I was drunk on vodka and coke but he was in a worse state, in fact he could barely stand up.
There's romance for you.
I remember being embarrassed the next day and trying to avoid him as much as possible and nothing ever came of it.
The sad thing is, if I have slow danced with anyone else since, I can't remember it. Perhaps my next Vox Hunt should be what song would you like to slow dance to.

Terence trent d'arby-Sign your name

Harry Potter readathon - conclusion

I've done it, three weeks earlier than anticipated.

The last two Harry Potters in new design adult covers

Particularly enjoyed Half Blood Prince because its the one I've read the least and I hadn't read it for two years. It is amazing how much you forget or didn't notice.
The final two also stand out because they are the newly designed adult covers. Still don't understand why they changed them. I do like these adult covers but not as much as the original designs which had the feel of a 1920's thriller about them.
Anyway, having had time to digest the books back to back I have some thoughts and theories about the Deathly Hallows, none of which add up to anything concrete but if I prove correct on just one I'll be pleased.

Things I think will be significant:
1. The fact that Voldemort used Harry's blood to gain his full strength which I believe will work in Harry's favour
2. Dumbledore tells Harry that his purity of heart, the fact that despite everything he hasn't been corrupted, is his strongest weapon and Harry has already used his power to love to reject Voldemort's possession on him once
3. Malfoy's inability to kill Voldemort - will he be persuaded to change sides which would make for an interesting relationship between him and Harry
4. Wormtail owes Harry a life debt for choosing to let him live, which he will have to repay
5. Dumbledore's portrait in the headmaster's office will in some way be able to help Harry (I didn't realise until this latest re-read that it had already appeared in his office)
6. The chink in Voldemort's armour is that he essentially works alone and is loveless. He also has a soft spot for Hogwarts and has a magpie like desire to collect trinkets.

And this is my best, I reckon I've worked out where one of the horcruxes is:

RAB who got to the horcrux in the cave before Dumbledore and Harry is Regulus, Sirius's brother who defected from the dark side shortly before being killed. I believe he took the locket back to Grimmauld Place and the evidence for this is that when the kids are helping clear out the house in OOTP they find a heavy locket which can't be opened. To add a twist it will either be among the Black heirlooms Mundungus stole during HBP or it will be among Kreacher's collection that he keeps under the boiler in the kitchen.
If I'm right then that means Harry has only to find the Hufflepuff cup and the Gryffindor/Ravenclaw object (my money is on the former as his first port of call in DH is going to be Godric's Hollow.
Which leaves Nagini and Voldy himself to destroy.

I still don't think Snape is a baddy and if Harry doesn't die, and I really don't want him to, either Hagrid, Ron, Hermione or Ginny will be one of the victims as a pay off to Harry's survival.

The count down begins...

Manchester does Edinburgh, sort of

The train I caught up to Manchester last week was all decked out to promote the Manchester International Festival and in particular Monkey: Journey to the West which I'd read about on AKA Vasquez's other blog:

Manchester International Festival liveried train

Manchester International Festival liveried train

I asked the Manchester-dwelling, half-scouser what the Manchester International Festival actually was and his reply was that it was to wind up rival city Liverpool - which celebrates being European Capital of Culture next year - by proving that you can throw together some sort of cultural celebration in about six weeks and also to do something like the Edinburgh Festival.
Naturally, I am looking forward to his review but in the meantime this is what one reviewer thought of Monkey: Journey to the West which I believe premiered last night.