On Wednesday August 22nd,
2018 the second procedure to remove cataracts was completed at the Sunderland
Eye infirmary and although the inserted lens appears less strong than the
first, the overall impact is that I can now see without external glasses more clearly
since childhood when an emotional being memory is of vivid colours and which was
lost until approaching my eightieth year. This I believe has improved my vision and
perspective and with these my understanding and strengthening the ability to
interpret the received information.
On Friday morning I had a
haircut at my favourite barber(ess) who in the four years since serving the
local community has become something of an institution because of her personal
attention and skilled work. I mention this because I could clearly see my face
in the mirror and her work, having waited for one other client to finish and
two others to be attended. I could also read the text on the wall mounted TV
and view the comings and goings in the adjacent car park which used to house a
multi-purpose centre for those with a range of disabilities and which included
a chapel with an adjacent bar with large screen TV. The Bishop of Durham who
once held service commented on the advantage of being able to then move into
the next room where a pint was pulled
for him.
I also mention the haircut
because on the bus from the present Interchange station in South Shields to
that in Sunderland I noted a significant number of barbers and hairdressers in
the town which I do not recall from seeing before and this was confirmed when I
commented on my observation to the present partner of the barber(ess). Across
from the Sunderland Interchange is the very impressive Sunderland College which offers students courses in hairdressing and barbering and
other personal services including full body massage. There are published price
lists for the public to use the services and where haircutting is also
available at the Hylton Campus. Among the surprises when I checked is the
information of the College’s involvement with the Blue Square training centre
at Bolden, in South Tyneside. I was also interested in the published information
on the City Bistro within the new centre which offers a fine fining experience
at £10.95 lunchtimes 2 courses and £12.95 for three with an early bird theatre
option from 5.30 to 6.30. A sample menu is published.
Before the procedure enjoyed a
standard English breakfast, which included a round of toast with a spread and
two cup of coffee for just over £4 at the Wouldhave, Wetherspoons, close to
Morrisons supermarket and the present Metro Station. I emphasis the present
Metro Station because we are likely to lose the present end of platform
opposite the Wouldhave entrance when the new town Metro centre entrance with
both lift and escalators is opened
adjoining the new bus station and for which a vast area has been cleared
of redundant buildings. The end of line buildings and for the former coal line
down to the former docks is being developed and extended both to accommodate parked
overnight trains which provide for early and later trains than now. I am unsure if this is where the new
Nexus Training Centre is to be built which promises an additional 80 jobs to
the town centre. There was also good news this week when a flyer posted in the
letter box announced another low cost store is opening, billed as a department
store and will use the former Marks and Spencer’s Building which confirms that
along with Woolworths and more recently British Home Stores the town has lost
three most well-known of its High Street stores and which were the mark of a
town being a town, although in fact the addition of British Home Stores was
only a more recent development when a small group of stores was added to one side of the Asda development
which in town moved from the building which became Morrisons close to where I
live on a site part way down the hill, close to one end of the Metro station
and the Wouldhave.
There is a published plan to
cope with the retail market as it has developed and the changing balance of the
community which over decades has improved from one of the most socially
deprived areas in the Queendom with some 80% of housing rented, predominantly
social and provided by the local authority to where every opportunity is being
taken to attract new individually owned domestic properties which together with
the universality of car ownership, good main roads and the public transport
system throughout Tyne and Wearside means opportunities to gain employment
across the region and where the traditional heavy industries of coal mining,
steel making and ship building have been replaced by car manufacturing with
Nissan at Washington now within the Sunderland local authority area, and
dramatic developments in service provision particularly further Education and
Health, and with service centres such at the BT centre on the riverside here in South
Shields, close to the National Centre of the Word, the former Customs House
cultural and art centre, and the passenger ferry across the Tyne where the
biggest of the ocean travelling holiday cruise ships now regularly docks for a
few day’s stay to enable passengers to visit the shopping, entertainment and
historical attractions of the region. On my way into Sunderland by bus for the
procedure I noted that what had been one of the two large departmental stores
in Sunderland and remained vacant for several years is being converted into
premium student accommodation as Sunderland University and the City College
expand. The other which occupied buildings on two sides of one end of the High
Street became the public Library and Wilkinson’s, now Wilko.
In order to cope with the closure
of the traditional department stores, there is also Binns, and some chain
stores selling shoes to chocolates also abandoning our high street, the local
authority has encouraged the supermarket and the low cost store with some
success as local residents can chose between Morrisons,
Asda and Tesco, together with two Sainsbury local conveniences stores and one
Local Tesco. There is a Morrisons at Jarrow within the local government Borough
and a Tesco Walmart at Bolden and in addition to Asda at Hebburn a new Aldi is
being built. The Aldi in South Shields has been extended as has one of the two Lidl’s.
There is also Iceland close by the Aldi and Farm Foods at the Nook. Home Bargains which offers brands at
discount is on my route in and out of the town to Newcastle or Durham, or when
making visits to the recycle centre at Middlefield’s , or more frequently when taking one of the two
routes to the Cineworld Cinema at Bolden. I recently bought from Home Bargains a
broom for £2.50 for clearing the fake grass at the back which I had purchased
from the B and M store which moved from close to an off High street car park to the vacant two
floor building occupied previously by British Homes stores part of a new
development with Debenhams and Next.
I am a regular user of
Morrisons which is within walking distance
but involves a walk back up the steepest part of the hill on the last
bend of the River Tyne before it joins into the North Sea.
I use the Morrisons as my day
to day store but home deliver from the
north Sunderland Sainsbury’s because of their regular £6 and £8 discount
vouchers for spending only £40 a delivery which can cost as little a £1 midweek
or late at night. On Bank Holiday Monday evening some £45 of produce cost £32 because in addition to a
general discount voucher there was one for failure to deliver the previous
Sunday night and delayed to Monday, and another for a price comparison
difference. It is not clear if the increase in the value to the general voucher offering a 20% reduction for three weeks is to do with
the tie up with Asda Walmart. I
sometimes use the Tesco in South Shields
or North Sunderland close to the Stadium
of Light and that at Gateshead by the Metro interchange on the site of the former iconic car park used in the Get Carter film, as I can park the car in the
lower level car park before taking an escalator to the Vue Cinema, or the Metro
to Newcastle City Centre. The Tesco general voucher is usually 10%. The Lidl
chain also stocks Iberian Foods including large jars of Queen Olives, at
Christmas hard and soft Turron and on my last visit I failed to resist some
almond biscuits although the packet, remains unopened. The two local branches also stock Norwegian smoked
salmon with a mustard and dill sauce.
The local Wetherspoons is used
as a meeting place socially in the mornings for men who like an early drink,
and by women for a chat. Some including couples come for the Breakfast and the unlimited
coffee. On my recent visit I noted a
change in the Chicken club menu which is available from midday through to 11pm on
Wednesdays with six main chicken options and seven of drinks for the one price
of £6.49 The significance of the menu is the detail available for the calorie
conscious so the main chicken dishes ranges from 1169 calories for ten spicy
chicken wings to a plain grilled chicken breast at 304 Cals but all served with
coleslaw. There is a choice of three sauces 51 to 106 Cals and sides with 82 for salad or chips 597. In addition to the six alcohol to soft drinks
there is also the option of unlimited hot drinks. Until about a year ago unlimited filter coffee of
varying quality and warmth was available here and in other pub restaurants of
the chain until 2pm but the Wouldhave
was one of the earliest to be converted to the latest six drink option self
service machines which I first discovered in the branch across from Victoria
Station in London prior to taking the bus to watch the final of 50 over innings
cricket competition at Lords in 2016.
The unlimited hot drinks option is now available throughout the day. Another feature of the chicken
club menu is the options to go for combo
additions such spicy coated prawns 2.60 or half a rack of ribs at £3.60 or
adding sides such as onion rings or corn
on the cob. I occasionally call in for one of the Curry Club options although on a weekend visit recently I noted
a manager’s curry special deal at £3.60
to which a drink is extra.
I entered the Wouldhave around
11.25 having called in a Morrison’s for a copy of the Daily i and an early
edition of the Gazette, the oldest local newspaper which is now printed with
the Sunderland Echo although it retains a small editorial office opposite the
Town Hall. I also got extra cash to cover a taxi if required on the way home. The
front page headline in the ‘I’ was the welcome news that new improved prostate
treatment has been approved for use in the National Health Service
The paper, as did others,
announced that a documentary feature by Peter Jackson the Director of Lords of
the Rings and the Hobbit will be shown in cinemas direct from a special showing
from the London Film festival in October. The film will use existing but
restored footage enabling soldiers who participated in the Great War talking of
their experiences. The film print has been coloured and shot in 3D as well as
2D a copy will be broadcast by the BBC
and also given to every secondary school. The world relay will include a
session with Peter Jackson chaired by Mark Kermode.
Two Saturday’s ago, I attended
the Custom’s House on the Tyne Riverbank, a performance of a new play which
closely follows the first series of When the Boat Comes In by the South Shields
born writer James Mitchell who also created the important Callan series which
brought Edward Woodward to international attention. James Bolam plays the
pivotal character Jack Ford who survives the Great War as a Sergeant with
distinction and becomes a friend of the Seaton Family in the fictious town of
Gallowshields. The series which commenced in 1976 became so popular that 51
episodes were created over a five year period and for under £30 I bought the
four series on 3 DVD’s. James Bolam went
on to perform in the Likely lads and two
of my other favourite series, the Beiderbeck Tapes as a school teacher with a passion for
traditional jazz and blues who becomes caught up in a mystery adventure and which I have added to my wish list, and more recently as one of the original
members of New Tricks which lasted for over a decade. I was sceptical how about
51 episode condensed into a two hour work, but this has been achieved
brilliantly in a faithful way to the original production together with impressive
stage craft including sound to recreate trench warfare and the pit cage, by
concentrating on the first third. The work was received by nearly sell out
audiences at this small Theatre and merits a West End Theatre and a nationwide
tour.
I tend to book up will in advance for my visits to local theatres so as
to ensure an end of aisle seat as I attend on my own. Presently scheduled is Our Finest Hour at
Newcastle City Hall in September, followed by an Evening with Simon Reeve at
the Sage and then in October Miss Saigon
at Sunderland’s Empire. I have made fewer
visits this year to live performances and disappointingly missed a musical
about the life of Cilla Black at Theatre Royal Newcastle because of Beast from
the East. Next month I discover the Nature of the Beast, the Beast in question
is the left wing politician Denis Skinner who comes to the Customs House for a
showing of a film on his life and some questioning.
After what has become an
annual event in the New Year, in January I enjoyed Ray McVey’s tribute Glenn
Miller Orchestra accompanied by the Polka Dot Singers and the Swing Time Jivers
at the Sage, and the annual must attend visit of the Ellen Kent Opera company
performing La Traviata and Madam Butterfly on successive January nights at Sunderland’s
Empire Theatre. In February there was the Tribute group Money for Nothing with
Aled Williams as Dire Straits Mark Knoffler from Whitley Bay at the Sunderland Empire Theatre
and a disappointing highly talented Bill Bailey at the Civic Hall.
The show which had everyone
rocking in the Aisles was the return of Washington, Co Durham born Bryan Ferry
at City Hall in April. Eric Burden, born Newcastle, and his present group of
Animals, returned to City Hall for the second year in succession but this time
without an opening band and performed well but I felt his voice is in decline. Also,
that month Sheridan Smith at the Sage lived up to expectations whereas the
poorly attended Adele tribute singer show Someone Like You at the City Hall in
June was a revelation and it is not surprising that Katie Markham is endorsed
by one of our greatest singer songwriters of all time. Later today or tomorrow
I must review what shows are planned over the next six months including on my
next visit to London in October. My only show in the capital this year was on
the special day trip to see Absolute Hell at thr National Theatre on the south
bank of the Thames as part of research about the reality of Soho in the three decades immediately after the
war.
Similarly, the number of live shows
relayed to local cinemas attended has been less than previous years, in part
because of my deteriorating sight, but mainly becoming more selective in my
choice. There has been one Opera, Louisa Miller with Placido Domingo relayed from
the Metropolitan Opera House in New York. I went to this previously unknown to me opera because one
of great opera singers of all time was performing and despite his years his voice shows no indications of
decline. The opera by Verdi was also a revelation.
The most unexpected relay was
the interview with Bruce Dickinson of Iron maiden where I will comment further.
I also enjoyed the interview with Michael Caine after a showing of his film
about the 1960’s- My Generation. Both he,
Bruce Dickenson and John Cornwall, better known as Le Carre, the previous year,
had some important things to say about the world and Britain today. It is
disappointing the extended interviews with individual personalities intended
for TV which Michael Caine mentioned have not appeared and I will check if they
are included on the DVD. There was one live talk show attended locally at the
Word when South Shields born, and Mirror assistant Editor and journalist
Kevin Maguire was interviewed by a local radio personality. In 2014 I advised
Kevin, the Mirror and former policeman Clive Driscoll who brought to justice
two of the Stephen Lawrence killers of an issue
which led to the Mirror dropping from online record an article and Clive
also amending his planned autobiography. I remain unclear where Kevin stands in
relation to the position and politics of Jeremy Corbyn.
Nor have I been to the Stadium
of Light for a football game to watch Sunderland, or St James Park to watch
Newcastle and plans to go again before Winter cold sets in were put on hold
with Newcastle appearances and two of Sunderland on Sky. I did visit St
James on a very weekend for the Dacia Rugby
League Magi weekend when seven games are played, four on Saturday and three
Sunday for the price of one inexpensive ticket and where a reserved seat only
cost £39. Ominous Newcastle’s castle cup game at Notts Forest is also on Sky
Wednesday where I assume they will lose to concentrate on Premiership survival.
Nor was there a trip or London
to watch Durham at Lords, or the Oval, or to Nottingham, or to watch England in a Test or any Women’s cricket game although there has been much
watching on TV with the Indian Premier League, and recently the English version
of the 20 over each side game in addition to the Test matches and the Ladies Final’s
day at Hove on August Bank Holiday Monday. Although Middlesex joined Durham in
the second division of the County four day game we will only play at Lords if
both sides remain in the division in
2019 which at present looks the likely position and Surrey are romping away at
the top of the first division with Notts looking good for a top three place.
With Sussex strong for promotion there is the extraordinary possibility that
Lancashire and Yorkshire are relegation possibilities. I made one visit to the
capital for the final of the 50 over
each side at Lords where Hampshire one of hate teams because of what happened when I visit for 20 20
finals Day and which is also why I do not support Warwickshire. The only other
team which I do not wish well is Lancashire for the way their pitch in South
Liverpool behaved in the year when all county games were play there while the cricket square at Old Trafford was
reversed. I did attend the 50 over game between England and Australia ay
Durham’s Riverside ground at Chester le Street in June but had to miss England’s Innings as the car
ceased to function on arrival and a tow back to South Shields was required
during the interval. This proved an expensive breakdown where I was without the
vehicle for two weeks while a new central electrical control unit was found and
fitted by the appropriate car deal which also required a second car tow between
repair garages.
I have been disappointed with
recent choice available at the Cineworld multiplex chain and paid more attention
to what was available on Sky, and in particular the Talking Pictures channel
where two recent showing of films first screened in 1943 reinforced the use of government sponsored or national
interest cinema for propaganda purposes. The first film was biographic of the
prolific writer of fiction, non-fiction, poetry and few plays, the former
adventurer and journalist, Jack London. The film alleges that when he became
the only journalist to make his way from Japan to Korea where the Japanese were
conducting a brutal war against Russia he came across a commander who was open
about his country’s ambition not just to conquer Asia to ensure its population
could be fed but this would also involve removing the threat which the USA
posed, allegedly declaring in 1904 it might take fifty to a hundred years
before they were ready to achieve their
objective. The attack on Pearl Harbour occurred two years before the film was
screened.
The Demi-Paradise is a British
contribution to Anglo Russian relations after Hitler launched their attack
which resulted in the death of 20 million
people and the subsequent Russian retaliation in which the men were shot,
and the women raped. The Demi Paradise
is a quaint film in which Olivier stars as an amazing accent English speaking Russian engineer to ask a specialist marine company
to make a propeller for a new generation vessel. The head of the company is
played by Felix Aylmer and who dines and wines and, tries to get the Russian to
play golf with other members of the board in order to assess the character of
the foreigner who uses the visit to
paint a picture of England and of Lords and Ladies, of middle class pageants
and musical halls, of Speaker’s corner at Hyde Park and of a unique sense of
humour. The working class are excluded and the whole purpose of the film is to
persuade the British public that helping Russia was essential to the survival
of Britian and its Empire, which it was. Jack London, an Atheist was also a
very early socialist trade unionist and there is a Lake named after him in
Russia as well as monument in the USA.
Both films are soft propaganda
vehicles compared to the present ruthless and unrelenting campaign to smear Jeremey Corbyn
as anti-Semitic because if his misuse of Zionism in a seven minute participation
in a conference on the subjugation of Palestinians against rthe expressed terms
of the 1917 Balfour declaration and that of 1926 which promised the creation of
a state for the Jewish people in Palestine but also the protection of the
rights and position of the Arab population who comprised 95% of the
population. It was not after WW2 that
the present Jewish state of Israel was founded, and it is necessary to
understand what happened in Nazi Europe to appreciate the insecurity felt be
the older generation of Jewish people
because of the atrocities committed against them and that of the Israel
as a state because of the open threat of some Arab controlled states opposed to
the continuation of Israel as a separate. Reaching a permanent settlement
particularly over the future of Jerusalem appears to have become impossible.
Just before Parliament’s
summer recess the government of Mrs May nearly fell because of divisions within
her own Cabinet and Party over Brexit, the political and economic future of
Britain’s relations with the rest of Europe and for once unit within the
Parliamentary Labour Party with the exception of four hard line Brexiteers. The
public admission by members of a hard Brexit group of Tories led by the
aristocratic right wing Mogg that they
will replace May by former foreign secretary Boris Johnson if she pursues the
present plan and makes any further concessions appears to have generated an
alliance between the Tory Party together and the Corbyn hostile members of the
PLP and some trade union leaders of a Corbyn led government coinciding with the
likely extension of support for him in
the next month with the election of
supporters to the increased membership and power of constituency parties
on the new Executive Committee coupled with the likely decision of the Party
conference to introduce the re-selection
of Labour candidates by constituency
parties prior to every General Election.
Those members of the PLP who
have continued to be openly hostile to the policies espoused by Jeremy Corbyn and his supporters have understandably become concerned about their
political futures and these various elements having come together to
create the perfect political storm which
will engulf the nation over the next two months and where it would be foolish
to predict the outcome, given the political and public divisions on a number of issues which exist although to a
major extent manufactured through the use by vested interests of mainstream and social media.
Unfortunately, the coming to
power of Donald Trump in the USA is exacerbating the situation as political
discourse degenerates into the sewer of smear and lie. The reality of being a backbench politician
and the “price” required to become a Minister is was portrayed in the
resurrected 1961 film No Love for Johnnie which I did see in theatre at the
time but have since forgotten how good it remains with an extraordinary cast
led by Peter Finch and Johnnie Byrne with Stanley Holloway, Mary Peach, Donald
Pleasance, Billie Whitelaw. Hugh Burden. Rosalie Crutchley, Mervyn Johns,
Geoffrey Keen as the Prime Minister, Paul Rogers, Dennis Price, Peter
Barkworth, Fenella Fielding, Derek Francis, Conrad Phillips and Peter Sallis as
an MP. I bought the book an edition from
1959 and the DVD.
Another important film in the
German language is The Resistance shown on Sky a week ago which covers rhe comparatively
few Jewish individuals who managed to survive in Germany with help throughout WW2 and often with help
of individual Germans who risked the immediate extinction of themselves and
their families in doing so. Suite Francais shown on BBC two in March was about
the relationship between French woman and an educated German composer turned
officer in wartime France. The novel was written during the occupation but remained
in family suitcase for more than half a century.
The documentary special
screening of Scream for Sarajevo in April on the Iron Maiden Concert in the
city and the return of Bruce Dickinson and band members to the country
reflecting on the impact on them and who managed to attend and survive the
siege is an important reminder of the continuing struggle of oppressed ordinary
people to survive horror. In July I experienced the film Renegades on Sky, set in Sarajevo in 1995
where a team of Navy Seals disguised as journalists capture the Serbian General
Milic wanted for war crimes and given three days leave. They use the time to
find 25 tons of gold ingots on their way from Paris to a safe location during WW2 in 1944 and
are now at the bottom of a damned lake. The unit succeeds and with the
help of their commanding officer half the £300 million recovered is returned to
the French government and the rest goes to a local partisan for the rebuilding
of her country. The unit also contribute theirs in a feel good ending. I
found An Ordinary Man a nasty film
released in 2017 with Ben Kingsley as a wanted war criminal (Sarajevo era)
protected by supporters who has a relationship with young woman employed to
clean the flat where he is moved and who
is not what she seems to be. I still do not understand the point of the film.
In Harm’s Way screened on Sky
in May was one of the last WW2 epics in Black and White with John Wayne,
Kirk Douglas, Dana Andrews and Henry Fonda among a host of major stars and the
genuine differences over tactics and
personal rivalries and ambitions that occur in war as they do in peace. In May the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel
Pie Society. Also, in May Defence of the Realm on Talking Pictures is political
thriller on the cover up of a crashed nuclear
carrying bomber at an American airbase in the English countryside. In the mid 1980’s I did a Drug Advisory
Service visit when a USA Bomber had
buzzed the market town flying upside down with the crew high on drugs, so since
then I have to accept that what is fiction may mirror reality.
A resurrected film from
wartime 1943 is Since You went away
shown on Talking Pictures with Claudette Colbert, Jennifer Jones, Joseph
Cotton and Shirley Temple centres on
what happens to families and loved ones when the men are called into wartime national
service. The film has several overdone sentimental moments but given the
circumstances when it was created it stands the test of time. Even more
sentimental is the 1941 wartime drama about marriage break up and musicians
down on their luck called Danny Boy when David Farrer as the musician falls on
hard times with his school age son.
The most interesting,
surprising and challenging film was shown in June, The Day After which I cannot
recall having previously heard of. The film
made for USA Television and aired in 1983, shows what happens when the
two super powers of the day decided to launch waves of intercontinental nuclear
missiles at each other and follows the impact of this on local citizens, including
those with responsibility for security
at a rocket base which goes into lockdown without them. The film reminded of my
week at the National Civil Defence college
The Monument Men, a Sky film
in June, previously seen in theatre also had a host of stars with George
Clooney directing, Matt Damon, Bill Murray John Goodman, High Bonneville and
Kate Blanchette on the search for and protection of art stolen by the Nazis I
based on a 2008 published novel which looks back on events on channel Island
during the WW2 occupation when some residents turned informers to further self
interest than just to survive.
A different kind of film to be mentioned in this context
of the impact of economically advanced nations on the poorest was another Sky
Screened film The Pirates of Somali which led to be buying the book of former
would be investigative Journalist who helped the USA administration to
understand what was really happening and change government policy .
In July I saw again the Sand
Pebbles viewed in Theatre when first screened in the early 1960’s and at least once on TV since. The film set in
the civil war of the 1920’s which was lead to the
emergence of China as a single state and
stars Steve McQueen who falls for missionary played by Candice Bergen with
Richard Attenborough as shipmate who falls for young female hostess which
echoes of the transformation of Madam
Butterfly into Miss Saigon.
For the record since March I
thought Red Sparrow very interesting and the Greatest Showman brought back
memories of taking family members to see Michael Crawford in Barnum at the
London Palladium. The Greatest Showman
film is an improvement on the stage show because of some great music and its
important message on diversity.
Mary Magdalene is a serious
film which disappointed. Ladybird on the relationship between a rebellious
teenager and her daughter received Oscar
nominations and merited the Golden Globe best picture award. Tomb Raider was
fun. Other films experienced in March were City Lights (Sky)
about which nothing is recalled and Baby
Driver on Sky.
April remains memorable
because of the Cineworld D Box experience in Newcastle for Ready Player One a
film about Virtual Reality experienced through Virtual Reality. The Avengers
Infinity Wars was 3D fun with a great ending which heralds a part II. The
Leisure Seeker with Donald Sinden and Helen Mirren remains memorable because of
advocacy of the independence and rights of elders. Happy Birthday Tony Simpson on Sky is a
charming film about a young man in the wrong job and relationship who finds
himself and the right girl at a west country music and lifestyle festival.
Girls Trip with Queen Latifath was not funny as a supposed comedy. I have no
memory of Going in Style on Sky
In May the latest episode of
Star Wars was much enjoyed in Imax 3D. I paid attention to the latest Planet of
Apes series on Sky having watched a cinema screening forgetting to bring 3D
glasses and also affected by the cataract deterioration. I also paid close
attention to Deadpool 2 as I had to the first in series but failed to get most
of the humour and the references to other films in genre. I enjoyed Atomic Blonde the USA made spy
thriller with Charlie Theron which
begins in the days before the fall of the Berlin Wall which divided East and
West Germany.
The ability of someone
disturbed or with deliberate intent to ruin someone in a public position was
the subject of the 1959 drama Serious Charge in which Anthony Quale played the
accused, an unmarried vicar. Sarah Churchill is the accuser in a film shown on
Talking Pictures. The Criminal with Stanley Baker remains an important film
which provides insight to prison life in the 1960’s. There is a music score by
Johnny Dankworth and his band and the cast incudes Sam Wanamaker, Jill Bennett,
Rupert Davies, who became Maigret, Patrick McGee and Patrick Wymark, both who
died when at the peak of their careers.
Few films about sport last the
test of time. Night of the Grand National is more a detective drama from back
in 1953 with Nigel Patrick, Moira Lister, Beatrice Campbell, Betty Ann Davies,
Michael Horden and Leslie Mitchell. I also enjoyed a young Gordon Jackson in
Floodtide 1959, the story of small family father who is determined to follow
his ambition to work in ship building design and marries the boss’s daughter
and revolutionises shipbuilding. John Laurie and Jimmy Logan are among the
cast.
Rise of the Foot Soldier on
Sky proved a dreadful film with gratuitous violence and sexual exploitation which I watched because
the subject was based on a true story and involved a notorious member of the
Inter City football associated violent gangsters which I directly encountered and wrote to clubs
and politicians about in the 1970’s and 1980’s.
In June the epic adventure was
Jurassic World which was the least successful of the genre this season. The all-female
Oceans 8 cast was a clever fun film with
big office characters such as Helen Bonham Carter, Cate Blanchette and
Sandra Bullock. The singer Rihanna also participated in a traditional caper stealing
valuables from a highly protected security system and in plain sight. I have no
recollection of seeing the 2014 film The November Man in theatre until shown on Sky and which has Pierce
Brosnan int he main role, based on a novel series of the same name and with a
contemporary international spy plot.
July was a mixed month for memorable
cinema visits and films watched on TV apart from one of the films of year,
Mamma Mia! Here we go again. I think this is even better than the original film
based on the stage show for two reasons. The
story and the way presented is deeper and requires attention as it
switches constantly between present and past and secondly, because of the
dramatic intent the film becomes emotionally engaging and satisfying and this
all before the Abba songbook. The film includes all the main characters from
the first feature and a new group of actors who play the cast as their younger
selves; in this respect Lily James as the young Donna is brilliant. Cher also
excels as Donna’s mother and Andy Garcia as the Hotel manager Fernando and
Cher’s long lost lover. The hit song of the film is My love, My Life brought tears to my eyes. For the
first time I went to see a film for a second time the following day.
A two hour documentary on the
challenged life of Witney Huston was experience in one of studio theatres at
the Cineworld in Newcastle which is undergoing significant refurbishment with
half the main theatres closed. This film, as those at the Tyneside film theatre,
were experienced during the very hot weather. Sicario 2 Soldado provides
insight into the power of Mexican drug interests and their capacity to corrupt
and control the institutions of the state, particular the police and internal
security services.
I was disappointed by Hotel
Artemis other than a stela performance by Jodie Foster in a mature role.
Mission Impossible Fallout lived up to expectations because of the antic of forever
young Tom Cruise but the series should have been titled Missions Incredible or
Missions unbelievable. It was experienced in 3D. I was also disappointed with
All Night Long packed with modern Jazz musicians but with a poor story and poor
acting. (Talking Pictures)
I enjoyed Christopher Robin
which features the characters created in the Winnie the Pooh bear books and
begins in a sad and dark period for Christopher Robin and for Pooh bear which I
wondered about the impact on some of the younger children in the theatre. There
was a similar reaction last year to Goodbye Christopher Robbin when seen in
theatre and recently shown on Sky films. I have seen Hobson’s Choice at least
once before on TV and may well have seen in theatre just before leaving school
although I was preoccupied with revising for G.C.E’s at that time. I saw the
film again on Talking Pictures during the first full week of August. Charles Laughton
plays the dominating and conventional father of the time and a very young John
Mills the unassuming employee who is taken up as a husband by the eldest of
three daughters played by Brenda de Banzie. A young Prunella scales plays a
sister. Richard Wattis courts one of the sisters and Raymond Huntly and John
Laurie have minor roles.
A fun film was the computer generated
Incredibles 2 which features the lead character
becoming a stay at home dad while his wife and mother saves the world. A good
film with lots of ludicrous moments is the Spy Who Dumped Me as August drew to
an end which one suspects is the first of another couple of episodes as two long-time friends
who tell each other everything become caught up with spy treachery from both
sides of the Atlantic.
Because of the dearth of films,
I wanted to see using Cineworld unlimited, I ventured to the Tyneside film
theatre three times, although the first visit was to watch the World Cup
semi-final game against Belgium. I went to see First Reformed because of the
role of Amanda Seyfried which contrasted with that enjoyed in Mama Mia, Here we
go again. The film has an end which I did not see coming although then thinking
over the film the clues are there. Ethan Hawke as Minister in a Tourist church
puts in another outstanding performance. I also enjoyed the slow paced, The
Bookshop at the Tyneside Film Theatre which is narrated by Julie Christie who I
saw twice at the Birmingham Rep 1963-1964 when I attend a child care social work course at the
University. The film has one of my favourite actors in a supporting role Bill
Nighy. The film is sad and depressing.
The Equalizer 2 with Denzil
Washington conjures mixed emotions
because vigilante justice can never be justified. Th return of a child
to mother in the USA from Turkey, the reunion of a Jewish brother sister in their old age
softened the inevitable prolonged killing sequence at the end as Washington
achieves vengeance on his former associates who have turned to private
enterprise and killed his friend and former government agent played Melissa Lo because she proved a loose end as
she investigated one of their assignments in Paris. A poor choice in August was
Kill Order on Sky, but the ancient biopic the Dorsey brothers reminded of the
era of the swing bands and had a cameo role for the Pianist. The two brothers played themselves and convincingly
portrayed the reasons which led to both managing separate orchestras and not
speaking for a time. They started out together in 1934 with Glenn Miller among the band members.
Among those who also performed with them was Mildred Bailey, Bing Crosby with vocals Jack Teagarden who I saw at rteh Grand Theatre Croydon in
the 1950’s, Bunny Berigan on Trumpet and Ray McKinley on drums. Jo Venuti
played the violin. Paul Whiteman also played himself in the film as did Helen O’Connell
the vocalist. I did not know before that
Elvis Presley first performed on US TV on their show in 1956.
The final film experienced in August
at the Cineworld Newcastle is memorable for the events before and after as well
for the film itself. The film is Alpha.
I was already on the Metro
train from South Shields to Newcastle when I realised I had misread the time
and could find penalty fine notice as I
was consequently short by five minutes of the payment required as a consequence.
I had well planned the day but
then found I needed a pair of new black shoes. The plan was to put in an order
for more eye drops at the same time as arranging a dental appointment to
replace a filling before doing some shopping at Morrisons. I decided to switch
from a brown shoes outfit to the black shoes which needed a good clean and then
I noticed that the leather at the top had split, another indication of the
improved vision. We have only one shoe store left, when there were three, a
branch of Clarks, who do a broad fit, so
I went there and bought two pairs, one for best with laces, and the other more
expensive even with a 20% discount which has a cross over Velcro strap and even
with this the bill came to £100. I then called in for some fruit at the greengrocers under the Metro station
entrance as what they sell is not only cheaper but as recently discovered of
better quality than from Morrisons. As I
drove back from Morrisons the short distance to home the warning light for petrol came on and I remembered I had
forgotten to fill up on my way back from the cricket on Friday and looked at
the time, misjudged by the hour and rushed
in to put the food away, go to the loo and get to the station hoping the petrol
did not run out. I took the car slowly
to the nearest garage when I got back so there was a double sigh of relief!
The rate at rthe Metro station car park is 1 a
minute for the first hour and then 80p an hour. Although as I arrived a car
parking warden was on her travels I decided not to tempt the fates an
put in £1.40 although I was just 5 minutes short of only needing an hour. This
is car where I had got a penalty notice on return from my day trip to London to
see Absolute Hell at the National because the parking fee receipt had blown
over but rescinded on appeal. If a warden did return to check just before six when parking becomes free,
then having paid 1.40 and not 60p as I had nearly done may have made the
difference. I would have paid any fine
even though and all I needed to have done was to wait in car for five minutes
to pass before paying the fee, but I had rushed because the train was in and I
assumed I had only an hour to get to the theatre, get my ticket and find my set
before the performance commenced.
I could have experienced Alpha in 3D at Bolden, but I would have had to have sat among the 4D
seats recently imported from the Cineworld at the Borough. It is just the sets
without the other effects now available at the specially constructed theatre in
Newcastle.
I saw the film in one of the screens at the Newcastle
Cineworld which has been refurbished with
leather reclining seats but the
thing which I found best is that they have put in short steps, two per row
instead of one, and the row letter is on the step as a little light so can be
read if the screen is dark. I wanted to
see the film Alpha in 3D where there is
one showing a day in Newcstle otherwise I would have attended later in the
evening when parking in South Shields is free. For six weeks after the Great
North run in September the station at South Shileds will be closed for some line straightening as the
construction work for the new Metro station entrance, Nexus Training centre
Metro train and bus depots gets even more underway. This may explain why the platform exit
opposite the Wouldhave was open but use of the combined bus and Metro ass did
not work and therefore came up void at the Newcastle exit and required human assistance to open the exit
gate,
Alpha is a fictional account
of how the wolf evolved into man’s best friend, set 20000 years ago when a
young hunter survives a bad fall after being given up for dead and befriends an
injured wolf. The film uses subtitles as the language of the tribe is said to
be unidentified prehistoric ! There was
also a row over the statement no animals were harmed because it has been revealed that 5 Bison were killed. The photography and
acting are brilliant. The film is currenty15th in British Box office charts
with Mama Mia and Incredibles 2 leading the way at over £50 million in today to
date.
On TV the important George Gently,
series came to end as did the Detective on a North East beach reminding of the
cult film Get Carter when Michael Caine is also assassinated. The final two
part episode was recently repeated. There was also an all too short new
Inspector Montalbano Saturday Night Foreign production series of two episodes
on BBC TV Four. The episodes are more
serious and darker than previously and with less attention to his love of food.
The Young Morse series Endeavour of six episodes ended in March but with the
promise of a sixth series next year. The fifth series saw the amalgamation of
Oxford City and County to form the Thames Valley in 1968 which also covered the
counties of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire and a strengthening of storylines
against the Oxford City and County black cloth. I make time to see the original Morse and Lewis series. In the same level of excellence was a new
series of the Bridge was broadcast and which had rthe autism spectrum detective
Saga Nostram released from prison because of new evidence suggesting reasonable
doubt that she had murdered her mother. It is her unique way of looking at
information which brings results.
A series which surprised and
emotionally engaged me more than anticipated was Unforgotten where the third series of episodes 13 to 18 sees
another female detective breakdown from
the horror and clinical detachment of the serial murderer of adolescent girls
following sexual assault. The programme communicated the terror they would have
felt and the lifelong impact on their families. There is also a clever switching between possible
murderers from a group of four men who shared a new year holiday home with
their families at the time of the murder of a victim found during motorway
repairs in London. It emergences that
one of the men was falsely accused watching child porn on his computer which destroyed
his job and family and nearly wrecks the
second opportunity to find love in a new
relationship. A second of the group is murdered following false social media
accusations and the third secretly
believed his son was responsible blighting their relationship discovered this
could not be so and begins to rebuild the fractured relationship. Nicola Walter
the senior detective is joined by
Sanjeev Bhaskar for the third series and both face domestic challenges in
addition the stressful daywork. Her
father is showing the early signs of dementia which he is resisting, and she
also faces pressure from her siblings and the character played by Sanjeev is
approached by his former wife who is
seeking reconciliation. He consults his daughters who are satisfied with the
status quo. DCI Cassandra Stuart and her father become reconciled.
Moving from Police detective
work to those with a political and security interest. The successor to West
Wing, Madam Secretary provided another must see series which came to an end in June with all the indications of
move to become Madam President. I watched over one day the new 8 episode series
of Deep State with Mark Strong as a former MI6 assassin who in effect blackmailed to return to active
service and all today with a British USA plot for respective governments to take a hard line
over Iran and achieve regime change. The
problem is that for over a decade mark has ked a new life in France with a French wife and their two children and
during the course of the series she learns not only of his former role and the
nature of his actual work, torturing for
information in addition to killing declared targets but she finds out about his
get wife and son who has followed him
into the service Behind the
regime change machinations is an international company using its cash and power
to place people in the security services and in government . At the end of the
series Mark does a deal with the ambitious
would be female head of the CIA ,in which h appears to gain peace for
himself, wives and children as she moves to thr CIA chief’s desk. However, she
tells her global corporation employers that Mark has become a useful asset.
Hence a second series next year.
The first two episodes of an
impressive new series on BBC 1 the Bodyguard
stars a young man with issues following assignments in Afghanistan who
has joined the Mets special protection squad and, on a train, journey taking his two children back to his estranged wife… not
clear why the train journey he stops the
wife of a terrorist detonating. This brings him promotion to protect the hard
line divorced Home Secretary who is listening more to MI5 that the Mets Anti-Terrorist Our Friends in the North Gina McKee. The
domestic situation intensified when he learns that his wife has commenced an affairs with the individual
staying overnight although we are yet to be introduced.
Then the situation becomes
complicated after the Bodyguards witnesses the hard line approach of the Home
Secretary who is accused by the Chief Whip of plotting to replace the Prime
Minister and he attends a meeting of Veterans for Peace when he meets someone from the Unit in
Afghanistan who does not understand his willingness to protect Home Secretary who is among those enthusiastic about British
involvement in Afghanistan and who are
also seeking an extension of powers to keep under surveillance and monitor
communications and social media. Attempts to assassinate the Home Secretary and
blow up the school which our hero’s children attend are foiled. I became less
enthusiastic when the Police commissioner want our hero to spy on rthe Home Sec
and he contacts for them and eh embarks on a sexual relationship with the
politician. More significant was today’ suggestion on social media that Jeremy Corbyn and Sadiq Kahn had
been the targets behind van attack outside a Mosque. This does not come as a
surprise and it was good to see the additional security measure that the Durham
Mines Gala this year after I warned appropriate interest about the situation
last year.
There are echoes between our hero in the Bodyguard who suffers Post
Traumatic Stress from his Afghan experienced and the Terrorist Hostage taking Danish
thriller Beneath the Surface shown in episodes in March. The head of the
counter terror operation also suffers from PTS from being a hostage in Syria
for a year. The interaction between politics and big business was the subject
of the second Belgium 10 episode series Salamander also on BBC TV four in April
and May. Earlier shown in February and March was the second eight episode Swedish series Modus,
billed a psychological thriller features a criminal psychologist and profiler
with an autistic daughter who in the first series witnesses a contract killing.
In the second the female president of the United States goes missing on an
official visit to Sweden where she previously lived and has links. I was less
impressed with the third series of Our Girl, the British drama about a female
medic attached to an active unit working in crisis zones around the earth world
although it had some important and emotional engaging storylines and individual
moments. I was more impressed with the first part of the third series shown as
four episodes focussed on Nepal after the earthquake than I was with the eight
episodes featuring two new tours in June
and July.
Much of my TV watching from
March to July focussed on Politics real with the divisions in the Tory Party
over Brexit leading to resignation of David Davies and Boris Johnson from the
Cabinet over the personal approach of the Prime Minister and her number 10 team
while Dominic Greve, Anna Soubry, Sarah Wollaston and other attempted to push
May and the party closer to accept a Customs Union and possibly a second
referendum. They also used the significant support in the House of Lords and
pro continuing membership supporters in rthe Labour and other Parties. This was matched by the increasing open
hostility and bias in the mainstream
media towards Corbyn’s leadership, especially when it became evident he
was likely to strengthen his position on the Executive Committee and through
Parliament back up by roadshows on democracy and policy making and targeted
social media activity. I spent many hour monitoring debates in the House of
Commons live, usually recording PMQ’s, similarly BBC, Sky, ITN and Channel four
news at 7pm, reading the Guardian and Daily Mail only which are free, reviewing
social media information and comments
and checking on What the Papers say on BBC and Sky misnomers as they are in
fact what individual journalist need to say to reflect their biased interests.
I also watched Newsnight selective and the dread Politics shows when Andrew
Heil has control.
There has been a continuing
sense horror over the antics of Donald Trump and his overseas lack of diplomacy
and integrity especially re North Korea, Iran and Russia and his tendency to
falsehood, then deny and blame his
enemies shows no abatement. His visit here had amusing aspects as clearly H.M was clearly not amused. I
watched rthe Wedding of Prince Harry and Megan
with great joy over the calculated
establishment attacking Wedding service, immediately noting that the tabloid
press commenced to sharpen their knives
towards Megan. I was in London and in the Mall just before the impressed
anniversary of the formation of the RAF
and was impressed by the fly past.
The two events which more than
any others mark out the nature of British politics and rthe end for fundamental
changes have been the horror of Grenfell and the failure of the system to
prevent and then cope and the Windrush Scandal where the Home Secretary appears
to have been required to take rthe Gall to protect the fragile position of the
Prime Minister. The new Home Secretary sounds good and put on a brave show at first of being his own man before Party
and Civil Service pressure appear to be clipping his wings. Whereas Javid
appears thriving his rival Chuka (Umunna) is denying plotting to lead a new
centre breakaway Labour party.
The Latest series of Long Lost
Family continues to offer great emotional nourishment in relation to my own
search and struggle recognition who my
father was and the failure of the Bishops of Gibraltar and Malta to acknowledge
my submission and follow up letter is open to a wide spectrum of
interpretations. Overall, Who do you
Think you are, appears to be running out of personalities with great heritage
stories but rhe biggest surprise was the episode on Culture Clubs’ Boy George
and his connections to a leading
executed Irish rebel.
Sky continue not to be able to
justify holding over the remaining episodes of the brilliant series Game of
Thrones from this year to next. Mt radio listen is becoming non-existent other
than dail doses of Classics FM or Smooth radio, sometimes both. Only now and
again do a devote a Friday afternoon to the Film Review with Mayo or Kermode and even to the always entertaining Saturday morning Five
Live do you have red or brown sauce on your sausage sandwich show. I did manage
to listen back to back to the serial the Corrupted which touches on the interaction
between London’s crime gangs, corrupt police and politicians and has Margaret
Thatcher buddy with a major financially supporting criminal. In complete
contrast I am presently listening to book at bedtime Jaws which I think is
better than the film and takin nothing from the film of Peter Benchley’s book.
In between there was an Icelandic saga featuring a feminist who destiny has only commenced to
unfold.
In terms of other events I was
able to make a family visit in March after the Beast from the East prevented
the original first and London visit in
between. The weather since has been glorious and after a recent dive to
normal it has got better today but I write on abandoning a cricket visit as soon as
Durham commenced to collapse all out for 125 and their opponents have
made a good start so far.
The most important event for
me even more important than being given the opportunity to see world anew is
private and therefore not for public reference. In relation to the new vision I
decided that I needed to do better with
the required drops and general
eye care so on my last visit to the Cineworld at Bolden, I called in at Asda
bought the latest in cotton wool, small round pads and some baby skin wipes (not
seeing any other antiseptic wipes for body use). I almost rubbed the recently
done eye at one point but stopped myself doing it in time. Used an eye patch provided
again over the two night and noticed that it takes a few seconds for the eyes
to work when I wake and need the stronger of the reading glasses I bought
for very small print.
I will discuss if I should have
an optician test and prescription lens arranged for September operation evaluation. I will
get some good sun glasses for driving.
The mentioned threat of
another parking fine was only the latest in my forgetting my age and tendency
to have memory freezes when faced with an emotional or unplanned or unexpected
situation. I had been having problems using my Sky remote control and put off doing
something about it until Fridays semi-final game with Sussex when having set to
record the game for viewing our hoped for success. Just before setting it was
the remote which froze so I quickly Cheech that one was in stock at the nearest
Argos and paid on line for quick visit and collect. I had also failed to get to
essential items on my visit to Morrisons made after the haircut and been too
lazy to immediately return,
So , I decided to return to Morrisons
before going on to the riverside, collect the remote from Argos and buy the two
missed item on the way back. It was noticeably colder with the hint of a
forecast rain shower so I put on a light pakamac with hood but did not fasten as I walked through the store towards the downward escalator and
holding the printed information sheet with the
collect item number in one hand and the walking stick in other when my attention was drawn by a couple to the fact
that the down escalator had been closed,
again, for repair. What I should done is then button up the pakamac
before leaving the store and going down the outside slop into Ocean Road and
onward to the Argos r of the rod parallel to the High Street immediately opposite the relocation
of the B an M store. Instead the cold wind and spits of rain meant that I only
attempted with great difficulty to fasten the pakamac, outside the Fitzpatrick public
House and having done so could not find or immediately remember what I had done
with the sheet with the collect number. I knew it had not been left at home and
wondered if it had been left in the car, but did not feel this was so, and the
only other possibility, or so it seemed is that I had let the paper slip when
in the Morrisons store. It was only when I started on the upward escalator that
I remembered and checked the pocket that I located the information sheet, but
it was too late to get down and as stated the reason why this had happened was
that the downward escalator was not working
so I had to go back to the car park entrance to the store an then back
down the slop to the side and pass the
Kirkpatrick pub without stopping and then
having collected the remote take the escalator back into the store to do the shopping before
setting straight off for Chester le Street River. This is not however the end of this story!
l managed to get to the car park closest to the main
entrance to the ground before the gates
opened but found there was a fair queue at the main gate. I noted one of the
regulars always there to ensure an end seat in members balcony was at the
ticket desk for as he told me later he had left the ticket at home in rushed retain his place in what was expected to be a
good crowd, an where his ticket purchased
was checked but he had failed to get his
end of aisle seat. Someone aged of me in
queue reserved his place. I managed to get a different end of row seat, the
last available as had been the position the previous Friday when because of
weather here was no play.
To begin there was a great
atmosphere and the best crowd for an evening 20 20 even though the Membership
had to pay £10 in advance for their
ticket. A Family of two adults and children had to pay £40, children were admitted
free irrespective of the number accompanying asnd there were many more children
of all ages than before. Although it was early and knowing the rush there would
be during short interval between innings I bought a fair sized cheeseburger with
bacon for £5 (£2 with chips at McD’s) a good chat with immediate neighbours in
the front row and those behind. Those behind were regulars and said they would be
there to day which I planned before seeing who batted first, Durham when Durham
were put into bat again and were all out for 125. So, I stay home on a nice day
and write this.
Last Friday the weather
cleared and although it got cold later, it became a very pleasant evening. The
club and the ECB made the occasion a special one so in addition to the hot sequential gas flame boxes on the pitch side before the balcony which go
off in rotation for every four or six hit
there were also firework attachments which went off as the game
commenced. The game also got off to a great cricket start with Durham and
Stokes hitting the bowlers all round scoring
over 60 in the first five overs
and then Stokes was given out LBW and people who were watching at home on Sky
started to phone to say he should not have been given out. In fairness the two usual opening batsmen and Collingwood were
then quickly out. The young spin bowler who
replaced Rashid for Sussex was as
good as was their other spinner and the
runs stopped down to four an over and
they were quickly out if they tried any
big hits. The atmosphere dropped, and everyone knew we had not got enough runs
by a margin. Hopes rose with a wicket in first over of the Susses innings and
then soon after but after that it quickly became evident the game was lost. I was not alone in making an early
retreat and when I arrived back I needed
some hot soup. It was then having
unpacked I knew I had left the new Sky hand set in the car. I also remembered I
had not stopped for petrol.
I decided to try out the
little microwave saucepan with lid and guessed three minutes which proved hot
enough and put the lid back on to take
back to living work room. The soup was good. I put on shoes again and
wrapped up in a coat and made by way back to car. I found the new Remote but was
not inclined to go for petrol, forgetting the issue until making my way to the
Metro station carpark yesterday. Fortunately, the new one worked first time, so
I stayed up till very late catching up TV but did
not watch the Durham game and
playing free patience games while I
waited for the hosue to warm up a little. And switched the heating system on
for the first time is a couple of months. I thought I had got a cough before cold again so had one of three little matured Scottish
whiskies, a family present, kept for such a situation. I sipped slowly without
adding water or ice. It did the trick as on waking if there had been making of
a cold, it had been kept at bay, for now.
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