The Extreme Staycation

  Location: London, UK  COVID-19 / Coronavirus Outbreak Lockdown The advert below came out this week and sent the internet into meltdown. At a time when us artistic folk are feeling a bit taken advantage of and undervalued, this was the cherry on top. The advert was ostensibly to encourage young people to think about applying for jobs in cyber but all it did was to underline the idea that jobs in the arts are frivolous and not "proper" jobs.  This came the week after we were advised by the government to consider re-training. Without the arts, we would all be poorer - culturally, emotionally and as a country, financially.  The arts are what has kept us all going during this unending pandemic and anyone who claims otherwise is a liar.  If you have watched TV, a film, listened to music, read a book, looked at any art - you've enjoyed the fruits of someone's labour, often many years of study and hard work. The arts should never be seen as "not a viable job". I w...

Location: London, UK  COVID-19 / Coronavirus Outbreak September - how is it already September? September was the month when everyone really tried to "go back to normal" Started off the month with a cast screening of Love & Information which we decided to really go for big style - everyone dusted off their black ties and ballgowns and we had a fabulous evening! It was my birthday - celebrated with a family walk and  Papa John's vegan pizza  which was great!  Lockdown birthdays kinda suck but also I feel like people make more of an effort to reach out as the circumstances are so strange. I went back to weekly ballet classes, first since March.  It has been lovely to stretch my muscles and my dance brain. Went to the cinema for the first time - my cinema of choice is the BFI, partly because I'm a member and partly because I like the way they do things.  Saw two excellent films (in a socially distanced cinema where masks were required through...

Location: London, UK  COVID-19 / Coronavirus Outbreak Lockdown A staple sleepover film when I was growing up was Clueless . It was and still is a brilliant film.   I re-watched it today - it's a bit like having a catch up with an old friend, I know it so well. Clueless was one of my generation's defining films - everyone coveted Cher's tartan mini-skirt suit and had fluffy topped pens sticking out of their pencil cases.  Clueless was responsible for key phrases such as: "What-ever!" "Ugh, as if!" And these gems: “Do you prefer fashion victim or ensembly challenged?” “She’s my friend because we both know what it’s like to have people be jealous of us.” “She’s a full-on Monet. It’s like a painting, see? From far away, it’s okay. But up close, it’s a big old mess.” And to us over here in the UK, I think we imagined all American secondary schools to be just like the one in this film. If you haven't seen it for a while or (gasp!) have never seen it, find ...

Location: London, UK COVID-19 / Coronavirus Outbreak Lockdown I've always liked and rated James McAvoy as an actor - he's very versatile.  And having just watched Split directed by M Night Shyamalan, I'm convinced. Without giving too much away, McAvoy plays a man with  Dissociative identity Disorder  who kidnaps three teenage girls.  His fluidity of movement between the personalities is extraordinary.  So much so, that you know by the way he arranges his face, who of the personalities is "in the light" at the time. If you haven't seen it, I would recommend a watch.  It's part of trilogy with Unbreakable (2000) and Glass (2019) Dissociative identity Disorder https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissociative_identity_disorder#:~:text=Dissociative%20identity%20disorder%20(DID)%2C,be%20explained%20by%20ordinary%20forgetfulness.

Location: London, UK COVID-19 / Coronavirus Outbreak Lockdown I love a crappy film.  You know the kind, usually on Channel 5 in the afternoon, staring people you've never heard of, set somewhere in America that you haven't visited, with a storyline encapsulated in the title.  Here are some I've watched recently: Girlfriend Killer Who Stole My Daughter? The Other Mother Cheat Sleeping with my Student Can you guess the plot outline from the title?  Of course you can. The thing is, these films aren't that bad.  The acting is usually pretty decent, the stories often have a good twist you didn't see coming and the production values are high.  So why do they have a bad rap?  I've seen plenty of over-hyped, big studio backed crap, with big stars that I'd happily swap for one of these little gems. On a technical note, a title that tells you what the film is about is actually quite a skill.  "Four Christmases" - yep I have...

Location: London, UK COVID-19 / Coronavirus Outbreak Lockdown Theatre is probably going to be one of the last type of venue to open and is going to struggle.  The Nuffield in Southampton has already gone into administration. 50 members of the House of Lords have signed a letter urging the government to provide financial support to the performing arts industry.  The letter is below. What I find incredibly sad about this, is that there was virtually no reporting of this.  At all.  Google it, you won’t find much. I know that at a time of economic uncertainty it will be low down the list of priorities of things and people who need money.  So, let me just ask you a question.  During lockdown, have you watched tv?  A film?  Read a book?  Listened to music?  The artists which brought you that work need to be paid and need support now and for the future so that the very entertainment that has helped keep us all sane and t...

Location: London, UK COVID-19 / Coronavirus Outbreak Lockdown May the 4th be with you - AKA Star Wars Day OK, I am going to admit something pretty huge - I've never seen Star Wars. Yes.  I know.  I'm sorry. Why?  Honestly, I don't know.  I think I saw some of one of the original three when I was young as I remember liking R2-D2 and C-3PO.  Then I went to see Episode 1 at the cinema with a friend in 1999 who was a big Star Wars fan and I thought it was... a bit pants. I know that it has been resolutely derided by the majority of Star Wars fans and critics as being the worst one but it really put me off. However, as a self-confessed film fan/nerd I know that I need to see them, certainly the original three, as they are such hugely important film and cultural reference points.  So, I am going to watch them before the lockdown ends, I have decided!