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Rick Wakeman – still an outstanding musician and good bloke

Keyboard player Rick Wakeman occupies an enviable niche in the pantheon of British rock music. I’d hate to saddle him with ‘national treasure’ status but – despite his well-documented professional and personal excesses – he attracts a grudging respect even in those like me who [...]

January 9, 2014 // 0 Comments

Aladdin

I am a big admirer and enjoyer of pantomine. As I sit, or sometimes sleep, through the third act of King Lear or an Ibsen play, I sometimes think of the exuberance and audience enjoyment of pantomime which, although many of the stories come from the Grimm brothers, is a peculiarly British [...]

January 8, 2014 // 0 Comments

Keeping it all to yourself is not necessarily best

Just over a decade ago, I worked for a media company that had been built from nothing by a single-minded, not to say singular, lady. I was hired specifically to improve its profitability – indeed revive it from just having lost a significant amount in its most recent set of accounts – and [...]

January 6, 2014 // 0 Comments

Another log on the WW1 fire

In my personal view the Blackadder project, which began to be funny with the Elizabethan series 2, really hit its stride with series 3 – set in the Regency period, with Hugh Laurie outstanding as the Prince Regent himself. Before that I had watched it more for the aristocracy of its [...]

January 6, 2014 // 0 Comments

Sherlock (2) – gotcha!

Last night (Sunday 5th January) after dinner I sat down with the family to watch the second episode of the new Sherlock series, The Sign of Three, at 8.30pm. On this occasion my intention was not to review it, but simply enjoy it for whatever it was. Whether that had a bearing on my reaction,  I [...]

January 6, 2014 // 0 Comments

Nordic noir

It’s extraordinary how much Scandinavia has contributed to the crime canon, whether the written book or televised drama. No one has really given a proper explanation and perhaps there is not one. I am just working through the first series of The Bridge, a new one starts tonight. One of the [...]

January 4, 2014 // 0 Comments

The Departure Solution – episode 2

The automatic door to the department slid apart and, from across the open plan office, Eleanor heard the sound of male footsteps in the reception area, the thud of a briefcase or back-pack hitting the floor and then a windcheater being placed upon a clothes-stand. Unusually, Mike, her [...]

January 2, 2014 // 0 Comments

Sherlock – the return

Last night (Wednesday 1st January 2014), one of the biggest television ‘events’ of the entire festive season occurred when the first episode of the new series of Sherlock, the ‘brought up to date’ version of the Conan Doyle detective created by Stephen Moffat and Mark Gatiss – starring [...]

January 2, 2014 // 0 Comments

John Fortune – a talented and amusing satirist

Sad news this week that satirist John Fortune – frequent collaborator with John Bird – died over the festive period at the age of 74. For me, obituaries are a bitter-sweet opportunity to review the life and influence of a person even though – in far too many cases – by the [...]

January 2, 2014 // 0 Comments

Happy New Year from Neil Rosen

Jewish people tend to acknowledge rather than celebrate the New Year, having one of our own.  We are proud of our integration into British life. We have a prayer for the Royal Family and do not make waves. Gail and I invited our best friends round for dinner. My ruse to watch The Godfather on Film [...]

January 1, 2014 // 0 Comments

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