Wet and Cold

 Tuesday. 3.25 p.m. I wasn't going to keep this blog going over the Christmas period, but I now think I will write something. It has been raining continuously since early this morning. It hasn't been heavy rain, but thin and miserable nonetheless. I have taken Alfie out several times, but whenever he discovers it's raining, he turns tail and returns indoors. I can't blame him.

Wednesday. 3.35 p.m. Not a particularly exciting day today. It has been a good deal milder than of late. The sun even shone, which always lifts my mood. The last couple of days have been overcast and gloomy, which is definitely par for the course in late December.  I will be glad when Christmas is over, basically because when Carol was around things were busy, with us going out to visit such places as Waddesdon Manor, where they always put on some sort of extra effort with decorations in the manor and a Christmas market within the grounds. 

I have now watched the final episode of 'The Crown.' I have seen all six seasons of the Netflix series. I have to say, the final season wasn't up to the high standard of the earlier seasons. It seemed to run out of steam and I think they should have ended it with the fifth season. For all that, it had extremely high production values, such as sets, costumes, photography and so on. You could definitely see where the budget was spent. 

Thursday. 8.50 a.m. I am about to go to Sainsbury's to do a bit of shopping. I'm rather concerned that it might be extremely busy, considering we are only days away from Christmas. 

The weather has done another flip. From bright and sunny yesterday morning, to wet and windy this morning.

1.55 p.m. I went to Sainsbury's. I picked up everything I wanted, which was on a list. I would have preferred to have used a manned till to complete my shop, but, as usual, there was one of these tills open, but it had a long queue of customers waiting. I was left with no alternative, and so regrettably went to use a self-service till. All went well to start off, scanning each item and placing them in my shopping bags. But on three occasions the confounded thing stopped working, for the slightest fault, and I had to get assistance. This is why I don't like using self-service tills; they keep on breaking down, and you have to wait for assistance from a member of staff.

3.50 p.m. We've had a tea party here at Dexter House. As we sat and stuffed our faces with mince-pies and drank tea, a raffle was drawn, with the proceeds going to Willen Hospice. I have won a battery-operated fan, which will be useful in the summer when we get warm weather.

Friday. 10.30 a.m. It's my turn with the washing machine. I had my laundry ready and in the machine at around 7.40. I am supposed to start it at 8, but I'm not very good when it comes to waiting. I went back an hour later, to discover the machine stopped and nothing to indicate it was working, whether it had finished the wash cycle, with the clothes rinsed. The door wouldn't open as it should. As you can imagine, I wasn't a happy bunny, because I wanted my clothes out and in the drier. My only answer to the problem was to ring Mears, who are responsible for maintenance at Dexter House. I went back to my flat and rang their number. I'm sorry to say, I wasn't polite to the woman I spoke to, although I did apologize. She was going to email Vashti, the S.H.O., to see if she would be able to get the washing machine opened. I was concerned that, if the clothes were left inside the washing machine, wet. If they were left long enough, they would get mouldy and I would be without anything clean to wear. Well, that isn't exactly correct, I do have SOME clean clothes. It was because everything will close down over the Christmas and New Year period and nothing would be done about the washing machine. The woman I spoke to told me it 'wasn't an emergency.' Well, it wasn't a life-and-death matter I suppose, but to me, it was an emergency.

I returned to the washing machine, and it was working! Apparently, there had been a power cut, but then I discovered that there were workmen in Dexter House, and they'd turned off the power! But nobody told me, hence the situation with the washing machine. I managed to get the clothes spun and when the cycle was over, I put the clothes in the tumble drier and the situation was resolved.

Well, Did You Ever?

Thursday. 5.45 a.m. Well, I'm awake (let's say, almost!) dressed and already taken Alfie out. The pain in my lower back (I think, to be far more precise, my hip.) is still causing problems. I imagined it would be fading away by now, but it doesn't appear to be doing anything of the sort.

9.00 a.m. Goodness, gracious! The sun is out. It's almost (I do stress the word almost here!) the right sort of weather for August. Just don't hold your breath. I haven't recorded the room temperature from my digital thermometer for quite a while, but as I write this, it's currently 26ºC.

I have decided (now, there's a thing) that I will give this blog a break once I get to the end of this particular post. I will start it up again at the beginning of September.

Friday. 6.05 a.m. Spits and spots of 'sort of' rain when I took Alfie out. Apart from that, nothing very much to report.

Saturday. 11.05 a.m. Another bright and sunny morning. It is hot in the flat. My digital thermometer currently reads 27ºC.

I have reactivated my Netflix account. I'm glad I did because there are a couple of films I want to see, particularly the film version of Matilda, The Musical, and a stop-motion animation version of Pinocchio created by Guillermo Del Toro, and coming in December, a sequel to Chicken Run. I'm a bit of a fan of Aardman animation, who made those brilliant Wallace and Gromit films, which I really love and have watched countless times. Also, the spin-off series, Shaun The Sheep, which are so brilliant and funny. I have to say, their work outshines any of the modern Disney animations, doesn't have to resort to sentimentality and is so beautifully crafted and executed, the detail in the sets, props and puppets is remarkable.

I am currently watching the 5th season of 'The Crown.' I have seen all the earlier episodes. This season seems a good deal more intimate and doesn't seem to concentrate so much on the politics of the time covered. As usual, the detail is exceptional, and the costumes, production design and acting is really excellent. My only reservation would be that it's a bit boring. Some of it doesn't exactly grab your attention.

3.25 p.m. I have just been watching Guillermo Del Toro's film Pinocchio and I have to say, it's quite brilliant. It doesn't shy away from some difficult subjects, such as death, and is certainly not a sentimentalised version. The stop-motion animation is faultless, along with the voice acting of such actors as Ewan McGregor and David Bradley, while the set and production design give the whole thing a real depth. I think Disney might learn a thing or two from this film, If only they would just stop remaking their classic animation films, but messing them up by tampering with them and altering parts of the stories and characters which don't fit the modern politically correct agenda. It certainly deserved its Oscar win as Best Animated Film.

A Change In The Weather

(Saturday) The weather has become a good deal more wintry. It's to be expect I suppose. Generally, just as we begin a new year, the weather has a habit of becoming colder and there is the likelihood of snow and ice, making travelling, but whatever form of transport, difficult. Never mind, we can curl up with a good book, film or television series. I've finished watching 'The Crown' and have started on another Netflix show called 'Lupin,' a French series which has started streaming on the British Netflix site. It's good and seems to avoid a lot of the clichés of similar heist stories. 

It's reasonably sunny as I write this (1.30p.m.), but I have a feeling, if we go out, it will be cold. Alfie will definitely not like it, and neither will I. I must find my gloves as I don't want my hands to get cold. They can go numb and really hurt. A side effect of my heart medication.

(Sunday) Its a sunny morning. Actually a good deal milder than yesterday. The time, as I write this, at 9.53a.m. Church is on line again, at 10.30 on Facebook. Fortunately I can watch via my Fire Stick plugged into my television. The one problem with anything on line similar to that, including Zoom, is having to peer at a small screen. For a few minutes perhaps, but not around an hour plus. And with having on television I have the advantage of having a sound bar, so the sound is considerably improved.

(Later) We had a Freedom In Christ session via Zoom this afternoon. All was going well when Alfie, who was being somewhat demanding, wanting to sit on my knee and then jumping onto the sofa and then going off behind the sofa where I couldn't see him and then was immediately sick. I don't know what caused it but he has eaten his dinner and now seems fine. Everything cleared up and back to normal.

(Monday) The door which I got out through with Alfie this morning was locked. There appears to have been a problem, with the mechanism which locks it has fallen to pieces. I asked Barbara about this, because it meant I had to walk all the way round to the front door to get out and then take Alfie along the path which is beside Strudwick Drive. There is supposed to be someone coming to mend the door today. As it's a fire door it shouldn't, by rights, be locked. Just hope there isn't a fire as that would't be an exit when it should be open.

(Later) I have been out once more with Alfie and there was a workman repairing the door so we can go in and out of that door tomorrow. So pleased, as it's quite a long walk all the way to the front door and then along Dexter Avenue and eventually into Strudwick Drive.

I'm shocked that people cast off their face masking all around Oldbrook Green. I saw one flung into the hedge as we walked along the path towards the Green. Some people (it's probably a tiny minority) just have no thought for the environment and the fact that someone has to pick them up. There have been more Council workmen picking up litter. Some of the litter bins have been running over with rubbish and there's no end of litter flung on the ground. It makes me wonder how people live in their homes. Do they just throw litter on the floor when they've finished with it, usually crisp packets and the wrappings fo other food, sandwich cartons, sweet wrappings and so on.

(Later still) Yet another confounded coronavirus press briefing on BBC1 this evening. I just can't take any more boring waffle about numbers and miserable scientists (Chris Whitty can't be more boring if he tried and Matt Hancock is just behind him in the boring stakes.) Just needs jazzing up a bit, say, a couple of dancing girls, a band and a stand up comic. So I turned over to watch The Chase, but I didn't stay watching for long because when the ads came on there was one for constipation! Not what I want on when I eating my meal, thanks all the same. Switched over to Pointless, no awful adverts and I stayed on, even though it was on BBC2 this evening.

Bored Silly

The days seem to blur one into the other. It's difficult to know which day is which. The weekends are more or less the same as the rest of the week. As a result, life at the moment is just plain BORING! I have managed to make a recording of the Lewis Carroll nonsense poem 'The Walrus and The Carpenter,' which features in his book 'Through The Looking Glass, and What Alice Found There,' which is a sequel to his earlier fantasy novel, 'Alice In Wonderland.' I have managed to upload it to Soundcloud as a test to see if it world work, and it does! It's not an entirely perfect recording (there is a slight glitch, made by myself, part-way through the 'take.' ) But I am pleased that I have something new to work on, sitting in this flat.

(Saturday) Really surprised by fairly thick fog this morning when I took Alfie out for his walk. You could barely see across Oldbrook Green.

I have watched the final episode of season four of 'The Crown' on Netflix. Beautifully done, photography, music, general productions design and the acting is strong. I think a few BAFTAs and other awards should go to many of the cast, but I don't think it's as strong as the last couple of seasons. Still worth watching and in particular the background stories (ie, Margaret Thatcher's rise and fall etc.)  I'm wondering how they are going to film season five in line with government pandemic regulations. It's going to be very difficult to make television or film productions when you have to have social distancing. But no doubt they will manage somehow or other.

(Sunday) A good deal milder today.

I've been thinking about how the  Downing Street news conferences are presented since the pandemic started. They are saying that the age group from around 18-35ish are the the group most likely not to follow any of the regulations, from self isolating to social distancing. They are the group who don't always watch traditional broadcast television (ITV, BBC1, BBC2, Channel 4, Channel 5 etc.) If they watch anything at all it's most likely to be on catch-up services or On Demand, such as Netflix. They probably don't watch news or get involved in politics. They are therefore the most difficult to reach with anything regarding the pandemic. They would be bored silly watching any of the news conferences from Downing Street when there is something to be discussed or any announcements to be made. Well, they are so boring, I don't think many youngsters would watch. Grey suited talking heads, standing in front of brown wooden panelled walls. The whole thing needs a make-over. Chris Whitty is about as exciting as watching the proverbial paint drying. Admittedly Boris Johnson has a certain sort of charisma, but generally the rest of them are yawn-inducing. Someone needs to give the whole thing a design rethink and have someone a bit more lively leading, someone the younger generation can identify with. Dress them in jeans and a T shirt, someone who has medical training or at least a background in medicine, who can put the information over in a more dynamic way. Think Brian Cox or Harry Hill who was trained as a doctor but then decided that comedy was to be his career. On the female front, how about Jo Brand, who was a psychiatric nurse before she changed careers, or some of the presenters of the BBC programme 'Bang Goes The Theory.' Liz Bonnin springs to mind or Dallas Campbell. These are only suggestions, but there must be a good deal more. I'm not just thinking the dreary press conferences (enough to put you off bothering to watch.) Too full of facts and figures. Whoever was to take over could also lead the advertising and make those awfully po-faced ads become a bit more lively. Get a half decent advertising agency involved. You don't have to go far to find one, with decent imagination and flair. Britain does, after all, lead the world in this area. With a good director and creative director I'm sure they could reach the generation who are not taking notice of the government's advice. Just kick out old gloomy Witty. The government must be spending vast amounts on advertising and they want this pandemic to come to and end as quickly as possible so it's surely worth a shot. May even get the virus under control so we can get back to normal, when ever that's likely to happen, but hopefully a lot quicker.

A Very Happy Lockdown New Year To You!

 So, that's 2020 done and dusted. Let's just hope that 2021 is better. Well, it certainly can't be any worse than in 2020. Around nine months of being isolated, not being able to meet those we love and cherish. No theatre, going to Camphill and working on various things with the guys there. Can't say I'm sorry that 2020 is over and done with.

(Sunday) Another mild morning. I thought it was going to be frosty, but it wasn't. 

I've been watching too much television. From 'The Crown' on Netflix, to 'His Dark Materials' on BBC1 and on Talking Pictures' TV. I had never heard of this channel until they did an item about it on BBC Breakfast one morning. Their ratings had gone through the roof during the pandemic, so I found it on Freeview and had a look at their schedule. They show almost all programmes from the 1950s through to the 1980s, including things such as Catweazel, Upstairs and Downstairs, Rumpole of The Bailey, and much more. 'Rumpole' was one of my favourite drama series from the 1970s. It was written by John Mortimer. I have a connection to it. I worked as an A.S.M. at Greenwich Theatre in the early 1970s and we did a play written by John Mortimer called 'A Voyage Round My Father. It had started life I believe on Radio Four and then it was adapted for BBC Television and eventually as a stage play, which was directed by Claude Watham, who had directed the BBC television version. It was later remade by Thames Television with Laurence Oliver in the part of the Father. There are some similarities with 'Rumpole' in that it began as a Play For Today on BBC1 and later developed as a series by Thames Television.

A further connection I have, if somewhat vaguely, is when I was again working at Century Theatre in Keswick in, I think it would have been 1973, as D.S.M. There was a film crew working around the area, most notably the lake, Derwentwater. They were making a film of the Arthur Ransome book 'Swallows and Amazons.' When we were scouring the town for props (beg, steal or borrow) for the plays we were producing, we often got asked if we were connected with the unit, which of course we weren't. The director of that film was Claude Watham and the screenplay was written by David Wood who was the Son in 'A Voyage Round My Father.'

(Monday) It sounds as though we might be going back into a national lockdown. It would appear that the virus is spreading and with the new variant, a mutant version of the coronavirus, is more dangerous and likely to be a risk to younger people. All I can say is that I hope we don't go into another lockdown because being isolated as I have been since March, it's effecting my mental health and I imagine I won't be the only person to be so effected.

BBC Breakfast this morning reporting from the Churchill Hospital in Oxford, where the roll-out of the Astra-Zeneca vaccine has begun. I'm wondering when I will be given the vaccine. As I'm over 65, presumably I fall into the 'vulnerable' category.

I have ordered a professional-standard microphone from Amazon so I can do some recording, possibly voice-over work, record a podcast or whatever. It should work with my MacBook air and then I should be able to upload to Soundcloud and other sites. It was ordered on Saturday and should be delivered today before 8p.m.

Sunny, But Windy and Chilly

 So, lockdown version 2 is still continuing. It's meant to end on 2nd December. Let's hope that Christmas can go ahead as normal (well, as 'normal' as can be expected, due to the pandemic.)

It's a sunny but chilly morning. Alfie insisted on me taking him out at around 9 o'clock. I can't believe what I'm seeing. Most of the leaves are off the trees (well, we are almost into December, and barely a month until Christmas.) and the trees are putting on buds. I imagine, because it's so mild, they think it's spring. A sharp frost will either kill them off or slow down their growth. Definitely an odd sort of season.

I've re-subscribed to Netflix. Season four of The Crown has now landed. I watched episode 1 yesterday evening. A glaring error has been made. Princess Anne shown as a show jumper, but she was a three-day eventer and not a show jumper. Considering this show has a budget of some £100 million, I think they could have got their facts right. It's not too difficult to do a search on Google.

Yesterday (Sunday) Alfie and I were walking around Oldbrook Green when we saw Toto and his lady walking torwards us. Toto saw Alfie and ran to meet him. It's great that Alfie has doggie friends, at least one who doesn't bark at him or be otherwise really nasty towards him as some other dogs have a habit of doing.

A mist hanging over Oldbrook Green the other morning, giving a mysterious feel to the view.

(Thursday) I have the car booked in at Bleak Hall Motors for a service. I'm determined to keep the car in good order. I won't be able to a afford another and it's a decent car. I love it and it drives so well. I had messages coming up on the dashboard 'Car requires service in 30 days,' and going down gradually, so I had no choice but to have it done. I don't think it needs much, probably oil changing. It hasn't been on a long journey in ages, It's booked in for Thursday 1st December at 8a.m. The car has been there before, having had it's Mot done back in August, and they're a trustworthy garage.

(Friday) Foggy and overcast for most of the day. I was somewhat surprised when I took Alfie out just after 7 this morning. I was expecting the fog to be gone by midmorning, but it barely shifted.

My FitBit's strap has broken. It came with it when I bought it in John Lewis. It was made of a rubbery substance and it was the buckle which gave up. I bought a far better one from Amazon which is metal and it has a magnet which replaces a buckle and looks much better than the original one and is doing a good job. I trust it lasts longer than the original strap.

(Wednesday) More than a week has passed since my last post. The car went to have it's service yesterday act Bleak Hall Motors. £120 well spent and the oil changed and that confounded light has gone off which told me it needed servicing! Thank goodness. 

I saw a fox this morning when I went out at 7.15 with Alfie. It ran into the garden of Dexter House. This would explain why Alfie is always sniffing around in the hedge which borders the path along Strudwick Drive. I have a feeling I saw a fox (probably the same on.) the other morning, vaguely seen in the half-light of the early morning, crossing Oldbrook Boulevard and going into the playground of the primary school.

(Thursday) A bit of a surprise to find it was raining, although only slightly, when I took out Alfie earlier this morning. Alfie turned tail and decided to go home as he just doesn't appreciate getting wet and even when I took him out with his coat on a bit later (around 9.15.) I got the same reaction. He looks really bedraggled when he gets wet and ran around attempting to dry himself on various bits of furniture when we got back to the flat.

This And That

I've been doing The Bible Course at church and fortunately it's being run during the day, which is better for me, because if it was run in the evening, as most of these courses are, by about 8 o'clock I'm beginning to flag somewhat and my concentration goes out of the window. There is one more session next week and the 8 weeks is over. I think I'll give it a rest on the course front for a while. I went from the Oaktree Centre to Sainsbury's, because I had been texted by Lloyd's pharmacy that my repeat prescription was ready to collect. I can't believe they had it ready so quickly, because I did the order on line only a couple of days ago. From there, I went home, and had lunch, a sandwich bought in Sainsbury's, sitting and watching Bargain Hunt, something of a habit, I know, but nevertheless, I have learnt quite a bit about antiques from this show. It was being done in aid of Children In Need, with Debbie MaGee and Joe Pasquale and Richard Cadell and the infamous Sooty (in a box. WHY? We all know it's a man with his hand up the backside of a bit of fur fabric, so why the pretence? And why does Sooty never speak??? I've always wondered that, as a child, and even more so as an adult. Well, the wretched Sweep squeaks, so why doesn't the bear talk?) what has happened to Sooty? He looks different. His face is fatter. Has he been stuffing his face on cakes and buns? It's not the same Sooty I remember as a child. Mind you, when I was an A.S.M. at Liverpool Playhouse in the early 1970's I remember Harry Corbett bringing Sooty to the Playhouse for a week of shows, and being disappointed that there was actually more than ONE Sooty! I saw the many and various versions of Sooty as a puppet and it somewhat spoilt the illusion that they used more than one puppet. How soon the innocence of youth can be spoilt by such things.  But, it was for a good cause. Then, with his pleading eyes, Alfie insisted on going for a walk around Oldbrook Green. (Well, he'd been left all alone since I went out at about 9.15, so he did deserve it, poor little mite.)

A lot of really good television drama coming up. 'His Dark Materials' has already got to the second episode, of, how many? Is it eight or ten? Well, at least they're giving it space to breathe and do justice to the really complex storyline. Season two already in the works, so I believe. They're got the feel of the 'alternative Oxford,' Sort of steampunk feel, with airships as a form of transport. The Daemons are C.G.I., photo-realistic and seem to work very well, fitting in to the action very well and don't look as if they've been pasted on as some C.G.I. characters do, such as has happened in the revived 'Doctor Who.' Then, following that series, 'The War of The Worlds.' I'm intrigued to see how they manage to do this, set in the late 19th century, at the time it was written. I read all of H.G.Wells science fiction books when I was a teenager, 'The invisible Man,' 'First Men In The Moon,'The Time Machine' and 'The War of The Worlds.' Wells was amazing in that he was writing far in advance of his time and probably best described as The Father of Science Fiction. His short stories are also worth looking at and some are really creepy. Then 'The Crown' returns on Netflix, with Season 3, which, as far as I can understand, takes up the story in the 1970's and I think covers the Miners' Strike and other matters. Meanwhile, not to be outdone, Amazon concludes 'The Man In The High Castle,' which I've been following and have found to be really intriguing and I'm looking forward to how it all ties up. Can't wait to see what all these channels and other television services come up with. I know Apple TV + has just started and then there's Britbox, which is a joint venture between BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5.

Foggy Morning

(Saturday)Another foggy start to the day, but I expect the sun will come out during the day. I had intended going out a good deal later than usual, say, just after 8 o'clock, but Alfie wouldn't have it. So we did our usual walk across the park. Spring is definitely making its mark, with no end of daffodils and crocuses showing themselves as well a wide range of blossom, most notably may, or is it called hawthorn? Anyway, the white blossom.

Later. Having been to do some shopping in Sainsbury's, after I'd done a load of washing, I come home and unload the groceries and put it all away, and then watch some television. I've been watching 'The Crown' on Netflix and decide to watch the first part of a documentary series which chronicles the story of the House of Windsor from it's birth a century ago. It's called, very imaginatively 'The Royal House of Windsor.' It draws heavily on documents and other papers kept in the royal archives at Windsor Castle. Very interesting to me because I love history and gives more background to what eventually becomes the framework for the storyline for 'The Crown.' Particularly interesting is the build-up to the Abdication of EdwardVII in 1936. I later watched the second episode as I got really hooked into the first episode. This is the factor which seems to make Netflix so good. You get all the episodes of a show to watch when you feel like it. I don't think I very often watch television 'live,' at the time it is broadcast, or if I do, it's very rare to watch 'live' broadcast television.

I was correct in what I said at the beginning of this post. It has turned out particularly warm and sunny. It certainly seems as if spring as arrived.

Sunday morning. Alfie was being as insistent as usual. He makes sure I know he wants to go out for his routine walk. More like a run, but never mind. He went off on his explorations along the path round the park. Then I heard a sort of knocking sound. I couldn't be sure what it was. It happened several times and now I'm sure it's a woodpecker! It was far too distinctive a sound. If so, its the first time I've ever heard such a sound and I can't believe I heard it in the middle of Milton Keynes and at such an early hour.

It's getting lighter earlier, so we go out earlier, much to Alfie's relief. He becomes like a coiled spring, with the build-up to getting out. It was deceptive, looking a good deal warmer than it was. I usually wear my fleece under my Regatta jacket, which I did as usual, but I didn't wear my gloves. There was a certain amount of ice of the car windscreen which is generally a sign of how cold be has been over night. I don't think it will take too much effort to scrape it off before I drive off to church at 8.40.

Later still. Really quite warm and sunny as I write this at 12.00 midday. I've been to church and then went into Morrison's. Trying to find something to get rid of fleas as Alfie has been scratching a great deal lately. I haven't seen anything (fleas, I mean) but if I put this stuff on him it will at least put paid to anything that might be lurking in his coat. It is quite long and I'm not sure I can see anything. Anyway, I'll give it a go. You can buy something to put in your dog's food, but I think this is a better solution.

1300th Blog Post- More Television Viewing

So, I've reached another landmark in my blogging. This is the 1300th blog post! I admit that not every post is a brilliant literary masterpiece, but at least I've kept it going. So, read on and be  either intrigued or bored silly!

I've signed up to Netflix. After I was lent the first series of 'The Crown' on DVD I couldn't wait to get into season 2, so it was a simple matter of signing up to this streaming service, and there's so much to see on there that it's worth the £7.99 a month. What I like, compared with Sky, is that there's no commercials! Sky and ITV are funded by the sale of advertising, but an hour's drama (or any other type of show, come to that.) has at least 15 minutes of advertising. That's about every 15-20 minutes. It annoys me that you have to endure a bout of yawn-inducing commercials about stair lifts, car insurance advertising and sofa adverts when there is only barely 10 minutes of a show left before it finishes. Not so on Netflix. I've got only two more episodes of season 2 to go and I can't wait to get to the next season. I'm intrigued to see how Olivia Colman portrays H.M. Queen. Clare Foy has been quite brilliant, particularly getting the accent right as well as the tiny expressions, the fold of the arms, those little looks with the eyes. It's not always what a character says that counts, but often the little non-verbal things that make a bit of acting work so well. So it is with her performance. I didn't think I'd enjoy it so much as I have. How on earth did they manage to film so much at Buckingham Palace? The exteriors of course. I don't think for one moment any of it could possibly be filmed inside, but how could you duplicate the iconic front elevation, the gates and the Victoria Monument? I imagine there must be a certain amount of trickery with C.G.I., but then the rest must have been in those famous locations. Alright, I admit that the show is really a glorified soap, but it's soap done with real conviction and truth. I'm wondering what permission they had to have in order to portray not just Her Majesty, but other still-living characters. It's so much better than a lot of what more traditional television has to offer, such as Downton Abbey. Such boring characters, I mean the aristos. Robert, Earl of Grantham, as portrayed by Hugh Bonneville, is such a stuffed shirt that there's nothing to like about him. It's the 'downstairs' staff where all the action is. They're far more interesting and believable. I can see why the Americans love it and it was apparently more popular there an over here in Britain. Perhaps because they seem to enjoy anything that smacks of class divisions, deference and so on.

I love anything to do with history. We're spoilt for choice. at the moment. Lucy Worsley, doing a series on American history, called, 'American History's Biggest Fibs,' and revealing that some incidents aren't all they seem and that history is written by the winning side or for propaganda reasons. I really love her to bits. She makes history fun and not boring, which is what probably put me off when I was at collage in the 1960's and attempting to do A Level History. She really throws herself into everything she does and loves dressing up! Why couldn't I have a teacher of history like Lucy? I've signed up to something called 'History Hit,' which is run by Dan Snow. It's a sort of Netflix of history, streaming documentaries and podcasts with a history connection. I have it for £1 a month for three months and then it's about £5 a month, but well worth it. Nothing on there that talks down to you, treats you as if you've got half a brain, thank goodness. If you go on BBC iPlayer there's lots of archive stuff. A lot of back-catalogue material, not just documentaries, but drama. One such I'm rewatching is the BBC adaptation of 'Bleak House,' which was done more like a soap-opera, in 30-minute episodes and definitely not done in the usual 'classic serial' style. Rapid cutting, no lingering shots, just gets to the guts of the plot and the characters and no hanging around. Adapted by Andrew Davies who seems to have made a career out of adapting costume drama. 

Winter Weather, Viewing and Reading

Sunday started off with quite a shock to the system when I took Alfie our for his early-morning walk around Eaglestone Park this morning, because there was a more than usually very sharp frost. I had to make sure I was layered up, with a T shirt on and then one of my long-sleeved Rugby shirts and then my red Regatta fleece, topped off with my Regatta jacket. Last of all, gloves. It's not a good idea to get too cold when you have had a heart attack. Likewise, if it's too hot, as it was for a long period during the summer. Can infact be quite dangerous. I have already sprayed the car's windows with de-icer, although, by the time I took Alfie out, it was freezing up once more. So, running the engine of the car and having the heated windows on and the interior heater on should do the trick. I don't relish the through of driving with the windows either frozen up or misted over.

As the day wore on, the sun came out, but it was deceptive because it was still fairly chilly.

The BBC1 weather forecast at just before 6 o'clock this evening says that we can expect 'a short frost.' So, it's likely to be extremely cold over-night and even colder when I eventually take Alfie out tomorrow morning. Never mind, I'll just have to wrap up warm.

I'm currently reading a book called 'A Classless Society: Britain in the 1990s,' by Alwyn W.Turner. I think I mentioned in an earlier post that I'm endeavouring to read about this country from around the end of the Second World War right up to the present day (if at all possible.) This latest book covers not just the politics of the era, from the downfall of Margaret Thatcher and her successor, John Major, but the popular culture, such as pop music, television and cinema.

I've also been reading 'Nutshell' by Ian McEwan. It's loosely based on a section of Shakespeare's play 'Hamlet.' It's told through the voice of an unborn child. A very clever concept for a murder. I won't say any more, but it's a well crafted piece of writing which draws you in cleverly. Well worth a read and written by one of our finest novelists.

Television drama. We're really spoilt for choice at the moment. There isn't anything better than getting caught up in a really good drama series. In some ways television has the advantage over cinema, because you've got an almost endless playing length. A film can only be a certain length, say 90 minutes to 2 hours 30 minutes. Television drama is usually served up in one hour segments, which is a far more comfortable length for the average viewer to endure. I've been lent the DVDs of the first season of 'The Crown.' I don't have a Netflix subscription, the company behind this show. I'm really enjoying this series. It has really held my attention.

I'm watching the BBC1 adaptation of 'Les Misérables.' I've seen the musical, the original West End production, which I loved, as well as the movie which came out in 2012. I have also read the novel by Victor Hugo, upon which it is based. A good 1,500 pages. The new Andrew Davies-scripted adaptation opens up the narrative and gives far more context to the story. It's extremely gritty and realistic which makes it far more hard-hitting. It is being adapted in 6 hour-long episodes, which means there is plenty of time to do real justice to the story and the characters.

Plenty of history documentaries to keep me occupied. I've subscribed to a streaming service called 'History Hit,' which I have through my Amazon Fire Stick. Really spoilt for choice. Original documentaries and material first shown on BBC channels. The popular television historian Dan Snow is involved with this project. He fronts several documentaries on the platform, some under the title 'Snow On The Road.'

I was looking forward to Sky's adaptation of Sue Townsend's novel, 'The Queen and I.' I have read the book and enjoyed it, but the actual film adaptation was, for me at least, a real let-down. The acting was generally rather weak, the whole thing more like a weak cartoon caricature that anything else. I gave up watching after about half way. Heavy-handed direction and a somewhat limp script didn't help. The same could be said of 'The Discovery of Witches,' based on the novel by Deborah Harkness. Just not the sum of its parts. The concept of the show had real potential but it didn't warrant the investment in time and effort to watch so I didn't see it through to the end of the series. Just a bit limp and uninspiring, unfortunately.