Busy, busy, busy...

Well it’s been a funny old couple of weeks. And busy to boot. I had a week’s leave from work but far from spending it curled up on the sofa under a blanket, reading and watching Star Trek as I had planned, I ended up out and about almost every day…

· We went to Blackpool, for photographs and Illuminations. Sadly the Illuminations had ended at the end of October so were no longer up, but we were treated to a glorious sunset so I got some pretty photo’s. Despite the bitter sea breeze there was still more than enough naked flesh on show (or should I say naked gooseflesh… ) but I rather like wintertime Blackpool.
· We had two days worth of fog, so I managed to get a whole batch of foggy photo’s, which should keep the photoblog in business for a while!
· Robyn visited! She may have been in Manchester for a conference but we still managed to find the time for a pint, a cuppa and a visit to meet my cats. It was something like 13 years since we last saw each other in a non-virtual sense – I am not leaving it so long again. Or else we’ll be 43… !
· I went to see Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. And I enjoyed it. I didn’t think much of the last two films at all but in my opinion Mike Newell has made a much better job of this one – although there wasn’t nearly enough Alan Rickman for my liking.
· I managed to get out of Rusholme for a ramble through Stenner Woods, where I saw a heron – which makes a nice change from rats.
· We went to The Lowry to see the stage production of Rebecca, with the impossibly suave Nigel Havers playing Maxim. The audience was mostly made up of, er, more mature ladies, who were clearly quite taken with Nigel…
· The exceptional Carnivale ended. For good. I am… gutted.

And now? Well now I’m in my second week back at work, points of which have been torrid. Happily I finish for Christmas on December 16th and don’t return until January 3rd, so at least that’s getting me through. There are also two more theatre trips to come, and last night a friend and I were treated to Mark Thomas and Robert Newman, doing a joint tour. My fondness for Mr Newman has been well documented in the past and he was as on form as ever, but this was the first time I’ve seen Mark Thomas on stage, despite being a big fan. I will definitely do so again; the man is a comedy genius as well as being able to play a mean tune on the harmonica.

I know I’m a bit late with this too, but I am far more upset by the news of Pat Morita’s death than that of George Best. Wax on, wax off…

The Price

Back to the theatre last week, this time to see Arthur Miller's The Price at The Library.

Note to self re being The Fonz - Mark, you are not The Fonz...

Very welcome back Peep Show!

I'm a jew, I'm short, I'm a homosexual and I live in Sheffield... I'm fucked!

So says Posner in Alan Bennett's The History Boys, which has just finished a sold out run at The Lowry. Set in a Sheffield grammar school in the 1980's, the play follows a group of Oxbridge candidates preparing to sit their entrance exam. Coming-of-age drama, commentary on Thatcherite values and a celebration of the English language and intellectual discovery, the play is both desperately funny and painfully poignant, ending with a typical Bennett-esque twist. All the performances were exceptional and it was a thoroughly enjoyable evening - if you get chance to go then I thoroughly recommend it. A film version, with much of the original London stage cast, is also currently in production and will undoubtedly be a must-see.

Here Come The Boosh!

And I have my tickets! I am inordinately and almost inappropriately excited already - and it's not even until next March!

Tickets for the Manchester Lowry shows are selling out fast so if you want to go you’d best get in there quick…

Foot In Mouth Disease

There was a moment of absolute cringeworthyness on GMTV this morning. Fiona Phillips was interviewing a young lad from Manchester who has recently been the victim of bullies and has had his jaw broken in two places. Ms Phillips asked him to show his injury to the camera, which he did (and it looked horrible, poor lad) before she tactfully said:

“That must have been some thumping they gave you… “

Oh dear.

Goodness Me!

I've been published!

U&I Magazine is a spangly new photographic magazine whose inaugural issue has just been released and which also just happens to feature some photo's and an article by me! It's mail order only but packed full of really cool stuff so well worth a look if you get chance.

Dead Again Redux

Following on from yesterday's post about The Corpse Bride, any fellow Mancunians might be interested to know that there is a small exhibition of some of the puppets and sketches from the film currently on at The Cornerhouse. There is a selection of exhibits in the three foyer's and, of course, it's free, so while it's not a massive show if you happen to be passing by it's definitely worth popping in for a quick look. I think it is on until November 6th.

Dead Again

Boyfriend and I went to see Tim Burton’s The Corpse Bride on Wednesday evening, which was as thoroughly magical as expected and even left me with a lump in my throat at the end. We are both big Tim Burton fans so had very high hopes and while it had some minor flaws (for example the music wasn’t overly fantastic and my other half thought that the end should have been more tear-jerking and a little darker) they were very minor and probably the result of two slightly-crotchety thirty-something’s needing something to pick at rather than them actually being proper flaws! Of course the animation was sublime so the film was a joy to just sit and watch, and there was a plethora of famous British actors lending their voices to the project – including one of my all time hero’s, Christopher Lee – which immediately made me feel comfortable. Burton fans will love it but I defy anyone not to find something in it to please them.

Normally when we leave the cinema the first thing that we start talking about isn’t the film we have just watched but the trailers! I find the sheer amount and repetition of adverts as irritating as hell so by the time the forthcoming attractions arrive on-screen I am ready to give them my full attention and we had a relatively decent batch this week. The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and Peter Jackson’s King Kong both had full previews and both looked stunning, Narnia especially (and if anyone remembers the BBC version from some years ago with that awful girl playing Lucy who always had her mouth hanging open, you will be pleased to know that all four children in this version seem suitably tight-lipped). Until Wednesday I had completely forgotten that a new version of The Producers was even being made and the trailer we saw looked good but I am unsure why this needs to be done when we have the 1968 Gene Wilder one – presumably it’s to tie in with and help publicise the stage version rather than because it’s a better film. I’ll no doubt watch it, but I will also no doubt compare it unfavourably with the original. Dodgy CGI aside (the swimming…) Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire looks suitably dark and visually lush, but I got caught out with the last Potter film as the previews for that looked grand yet I found the film itself pretty rotten. That said, Mike Newell seems like a fairly capable pair of directing hands so maybe he will do a good job with this one and play up the darker aspects - dodgy CGI aside of course! Finally there was Elizabethtown. I’ve seen this advertised endlessly on the TV and it does absolutely nothing for me. If it’s trying to be hip and indie then it fails dismally and, frankly, just looks annoying. One for me to miss I think…

Last Tuesday, we went to see The League Of Gentlemen Are Behind You at The Apollo in Manchester. Done Panto-style, the first half focussed on Legz Akimbo holding auditions for the "Communitivity" while the second half was the pantomime itself, a glorious riot of glittery costumes, audience participation and arse jokes. Perfection! All of the main characters were involved (how they managed those costume changes is a mystery...) and we had a truly fantastic time. If you are a fan of the League then it's well worth the ticket price.

On Wednesday, I had a change of pace when I went to see Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake at The Lowry. I had heard many good things about this production and I was in no way disapointed as it was delightful; full of black humour and with a devastating ending that leaves you with more than a lump in your throat. It's only the second time I have visited the ballet and on both occasions I have been worried that it might not hold my attention - but both have and this was enthralling from beginning to end.