Ah, now that's better. Our world leaders would do well to follow the example of their Foreign Ministers.
Monday, 24 June 2013
Good Things: 27.
Ties!
Smartness and elegance combined - though clearly not a fashion among the G8 leaders! Would one of have them have dared upset the balance of power by dressing a little smarter?
Wednesday, 22 May 2013
The King is gone, long live the king...
This little story seems apposite, after Beckham Snr's retirement from soccer.http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/world-of-sport/brooklyn-beckham-joins-qpr-academy-095056258.html
Friday, 10 May 2013
Angel's Advocate: Stuart Hall
So now Stuart Hall is the latest culprit in the witch hunt for 70s TV stars being hunted down for their indiscretions. A character, both off camera - alas - as well as on it.
And of course, he was the frequently red-faced laughing host of It's a Knockout.
His duplicitousness speaks for itself, but so do his sports commentaries. Immediately after his Radio Times column was cancelled, with the BBC still squirming from the embarrassment of Jimmy Savile, they rolled out a much duller, by-the-numbers sports columnist in his place with a much duller, by-the-numbers tone. Hall's radio reports for BBC Sports were far and away more entertaining and informative about the game than anyone else.
I shall miss him.
And of course, he was the frequently red-faced laughing host of It's a Knockout.
His duplicitousness speaks for itself, but so do his sports commentaries. Immediately after his Radio Times column was cancelled, with the BBC still squirming from the embarrassment of Jimmy Savile, they rolled out a much duller, by-the-numbers sports columnist in his place with a much duller, by-the-numbers tone. Hall's radio reports for BBC Sports were far and away more entertaining and informative about the game than anyone else.
I shall miss him.
Wednesday, 20 February 2013
Blade runner with an edge
For those of us who remember Oscar Pistorius's outraged reaction in an interview given immediately after this shock defeat to Brazilian Alan Oliveira in the Paralympics last year, there was always that hint of slyness and egomania brimming away underneath. He is not the first South African sporting hero to come under such a cloud either - there was cricket captain Hansie Cronje who infamously accepted bribes to alter the course of a Test match, as well as fast bowler Makhaya Ntini who spent some time in prison for rape.
If O.J. Simpson's example is anything to go by, Oscar Pistorius is in for some painful few months (or years) ahead.
Wednesday, 13 February 2013
Oh God
My initial shock and disappointment of Pope Benedict's resignation is tempered on reflection. It's actually quite a noble and conscientious decision (and perfectly legal in Canon law) to step down, and Benedict himself well knows the effects of old age and deteriorating health, as witnessed by the declining years of his predecessor John Paul II.
First the UK tows the line with gay marriage. Now the Pope himself has resigned.
And then that very evening, St. Peter's basilica was struck by lightning. Is it not just me that's upset about this, but someone else too?!
First the UK tows the line with gay marriage. Now the Pope himself has resigned.
And then that very evening, St. Peter's basilica was struck by lightning. Is it not just me that's upset about this, but someone else too?!
Friday, 21 December 2012
Pulp is no Fiction
Of all the discreet, respectful observance in Hollywood of the horror of the Sandy Hook school massacre, the figure who has been the least unreserved has once again been Quentin Tarantino. It's no coincidence that for generations the rise of American cinema has been synchronous with that of its increasing obsession with guns. (The very first Hollywood films were Westerns because of the proliferation of cowboys and gunfighters from the Wild West.)
Up till now, the most infamous case of film violence inspiring real life violence was that of John Hinckley, who actually went out of his way to build a personal arsenal and attempted to assassinate an influential politician (President Ronald Reagan) just like Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver, out of their mutual obsession for Jodie Foster.
The argument that movies are movies and real life is real life is starting to wear a little thin, particularly in the case also of the horrific massacre earlier this year at a Colorado cinema (before the opening screening of The Dark Knight Rises - see below). This was not just someone influenced by the romance of violence in films, but by a particular film.
Filmmakers have a responsibility, not only to the past (where history is often rewritten to suit American tastes), but also to the present, to show this society in, if not a whitewashingly positive light, then certainly not such a dark, negative one.
Up till now, the most infamous case of film violence inspiring real life violence was that of John Hinckley, who actually went out of his way to build a personal arsenal and attempted to assassinate an influential politician (President Ronald Reagan) just like Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver, out of their mutual obsession for Jodie Foster.
The argument that movies are movies and real life is real life is starting to wear a little thin, particularly in the case also of the horrific massacre earlier this year at a Colorado cinema (before the opening screening of The Dark Knight Rises - see below). This was not just someone influenced by the romance of violence in films, but by a particular film.
Filmmakers have a responsibility, not only to the past (where history is often rewritten to suit American tastes), but also to the present, to show this society in, if not a whitewashingly positive light, then certainly not such a dark, negative one.
Is publicity like this supposed to entertain, or to give bad people bad ideas?
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