Tuesday, 29 June 2010
Tuesday, 22 June 2010
Cry God for Brian Blessed
By the way to record it on audacity I had to turn the recording levels down to 40% to stop BB distorting!!!
* health warning BLTP & BBC suggest you remove small children and pet fish from the room before playing this clip.
Cry God for Brian Blessed
Monday, 21 June 2010
Chris Sievey (Frank Sidebottom ) 1956-2010
Not sure what to say here but perhaps just to say that Chris in the form of Frank Sidebottom brought a great deal innocent daft fun into my life.
His versions of famous songs (often preferable to the original) were wonderfully funny and like all great parodies came from a love of the original allowing him to make telling fun of it. Also like all great comic creations after a while it was the built up in jokes and reality of Frank's Timperley that was the source of the humour the morrissey or Buzz Aldrin were just a hook to hang his story on.
Also for an outsider he was in one mainstreams of British comedy that of the character trapped in his world. In Frank's case trapped in his shed wedded oddly to his own puppet and the never seen presence of his Mum. That a whole world was spun from this seemingly confined space is part of his genius.
Lastly you have to admire Chris Sievey in persevering with his creation even to extent that the strange man-boy is more famous than he ever was.
But anyway it's "the summer time and I've got space and science fiction on me mind"
I thank you
His versions of famous songs (often preferable to the original) were wonderfully funny and like all great parodies came from a love of the original allowing him to make telling fun of it. Also like all great comic creations after a while it was the built up in jokes and reality of Frank's Timperley that was the source of the humour the morrissey or Buzz Aldrin were just a hook to hang his story on.
Also for an outsider he was in one mainstreams of British comedy that of the character trapped in his world. In Frank's case trapped in his shed wedded oddly to his own puppet and the never seen presence of his Mum. That a whole world was spun from this seemingly confined space is part of his genius.
Lastly you have to admire Chris Sievey in persevering with his creation even to extent that the strange man-boy is more famous than he ever was.
But anyway it's "the summer time and I've got space and science fiction on me mind"
I thank you
Saturday, 19 June 2010
Somers Town (no escape from the footy)
I was looking for something to watch on I-player as I needed a rest from the football. In the film section they had two Shane Meadows films "a home for Romeo brass" and his recent short "somers town". I'd missed the latter when it came out and this brief coincidental footy reminder aside it's a little gem. Starring the amazing Thomas Turgoose it's a simple tale of two odd ball foreign teenagers (polish & midlander!) wandering around London's Kings Cross.
It's only an hour long so too much explanation could be pointless but it's nicely shot, the acting is good especially Turgoose and as usual Meadows shames film makers with 100 times his budgets. So give it a go.
It's only an hour long so too much explanation could be pointless but it's nicely shot, the acting is good especially Turgoose and as usual Meadows shames film makers with 100 times his budgets. So give it a go.
Sunday, 13 June 2010
Don't redecorate, just shoot the lights out: Ikea record collection
The Serbia Ghana game was so dull I got round to working on this mash-up. Think I need to make two copies one for Linda and one for old Richard as I don't think this all ended well. Anyone spotted any other sleeves with "meatball peddler flat pack" potential?
Friday, 11 June 2010
3 of the best?
I do love me street cards found this trio on the way to film club in Gypsy hill t'other night!
Seeing Teddy took me back to that glorious night in our tiny kitchen in (twice the size of mine now!) in Streatham Common when England ran Holland ragged. Hopeful a good omen for the next few weeks!!
Seeing Teddy took me back to that glorious night in our tiny kitchen in (twice the size of mine now!) in Streatham Common when England ran Holland ragged. Hopeful a good omen for the next few weeks!!
Tuesday, 8 June 2010
Stokey Lit Fest :the aftermath
Well that was fun, the litfest is finally over and bar the odd moany never really pleased type was a roaring success. Hundreds of happy punters eager to hear writers etc and ask mostly sensible questions loads of lovely helpful resourceful volunteers who never stopped smiling and getting getting stook in. Special praise to LIz V for her sheer energy and will to get the whole thing moving .
I enjoyed all the writers etc I saw but Grace & Edwyns reading and concert on friday was the simply wonderful. Their friend Craig Maclean chose selection from Grace's book and chatted with them about their life since Edwyn's stroke. The EC and his excellent band played some choons (if memory serves : falling and laughing, blue boy, time to sleep, rip it up!,girl like you sorry I was bit caught up in it all) anyway they got 2 standing ovations and I got my copy of Felicty signed.
Oh and Ed and Grace are lovely friendly people which I'm sure you already knew..
The Festival will back next years so book early and book often.
stoke newington literary festival
I enjoyed all the writers etc I saw but Grace & Edwyns reading and concert on friday was the simply wonderful. Their friend Craig Maclean chose selection from Grace's book and chatted with them about their life since Edwyn's stroke. The EC and his excellent band played some choons (if memory serves : falling and laughing, blue boy, time to sleep, rip it up!,girl like you sorry I was bit caught up in it all) anyway they got 2 standing ovations and I got my copy of Felicty signed.
Oh and Ed and Grace are lovely friendly people which I'm sure you already knew..
The Festival will back next years so book early and book often.
stoke newington literary festival
Wednesday, 2 June 2010
Stokey Litfest hurry while stocks last!
Hopefuly you've all got the message by now but just in case don't miss out on the fun up at stoke newington literary festival this weekend. See Edwyn Collins & Grace Maxwell reading and playing tunes, or Iain Sinclair, or John Hegley and loads of good events including Britain's leading beer writer! Anyway hope to see you there.
details and tickets here
details and tickets here
Thinking aloud: Grey is the new black and white.
Please forgive this post it's not fully formed I'm thinking aloud and not targeting anyone in particular sometimes you don't know what you think until you say it to someone else.
It's just that I'm just getting bored with the "black and white" world we live in (especially on the web) . Everyday people espouse extreme views with certainty and vehemence on everything from the middle east, government sleaze, daily mail columnists to Britain's got talent contestants. I've seen Israeli soldiers described as "stormtroopers", BP the worst firm in the world and Bono an international plague worse than small pox. I'm not saying there aren't any moral absolutes in the world but we live in a complex world where few things are perfectly clear and many of the problems we face are very very complex. It would be an easy life if Israel was really totally beyond the pale, that oil companies venal scum with no role in the modern world etc.
For example sorting out the mess of economy looks like it will take a whole series of complex and tricky decisions over the next years; which will involve loss of services AND jobs, more taxes etc none of which will be pleasant and many of us will get the sh*tty end of the stick. But making broad brush generalisations won't help. This isn't to let anyone off the hook and to fall for any soft soap from David Cameron etc but some honesty from everyone would help us all.
Also I'm all for enthusiasm and the dramatic statement but maybe if they are used more sparingly they will have more impact ... so may be just maybe we can avoid in the space of a few moments saying Simon Cowell , Willie Walsh and Israeli foreign minister are all the worst people in the world!
It's just that I'm just getting bored with the "black and white" world we live in (especially on the web) . Everyday people espouse extreme views with certainty and vehemence on everything from the middle east, government sleaze, daily mail columnists to Britain's got talent contestants. I've seen Israeli soldiers described as "stormtroopers", BP the worst firm in the world and Bono an international plague worse than small pox. I'm not saying there aren't any moral absolutes in the world but we live in a complex world where few things are perfectly clear and many of the problems we face are very very complex. It would be an easy life if Israel was really totally beyond the pale, that oil companies venal scum with no role in the modern world etc.
For example sorting out the mess of economy looks like it will take a whole series of complex and tricky decisions over the next years; which will involve loss of services AND jobs, more taxes etc none of which will be pleasant and many of us will get the sh*tty end of the stick. But making broad brush generalisations won't help. This isn't to let anyone off the hook and to fall for any soft soap from David Cameron etc but some honesty from everyone would help us all.
Also I'm all for enthusiasm and the dramatic statement but maybe if they are used more sparingly they will have more impact ... so may be just maybe we can avoid in the space of a few moments saying Simon Cowell , Willie Walsh and Israeli foreign minister are all the worst people in the world!
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