Morgan's Boy

Morgan's Boy was a BBC Drama from 1984 set in rural Wales. A superb drama that has never been repeated since even though some fans of the series rigurously petitioned them to do so.

Letters were sent and polite replies received but still it sits in the BBC archives collecting dust.

Since it's screening the actors have obviously not been doing the same:

Gareth Thomas: (Morgan) ; has starred in many TV series including Torchwood, Heartbeat, Distant Shores, Randall and Hopkirk deceased and is currently filming "Made in Romania" with Liz Hurley.

Martyn Hesford: (Lee) {as in comb my hair Lee} ; has not done a lot but featured in a few TV series Juliet Bravo and Taggert.

Ioan Meredith: (Williams) ; also similar with Pie in the Sky, District Nurse and Coronation Street.

Marjorie Yates : (Valerie) ; probably best known as Carol the hard faced mum from Shameless, also starred in Heartbeat, Casualty, The Bill (who hasn't), Dalziel and Pascoe.

Maxine Audley : (Eileen) ; seems to have stopped working in the 'biz' since 1992 after a few roles in Casualty, Prime suspect and Bergerac.

Alan Rowe : (Harry) ; Also seems to have stopped after Lovejoy, Inspector Morse and Forever Green.

Jack Walters: (Pugh) ; starred in The District Nurse and The Englishman who went up a hill and came down a mountain.

Michael Troughton: (the vicar) ; The New Statesman, Boom, Get well soon, Cold feet.

Gary Oldman: (Colin) ; The Firm, JFK, The Fifth Element, Dead Fish, Batman Begins, Harry Potter.

Michelle Collins: (Carol) ; Eastenders, Two thousand acres of sky.

Tracey Chils: (Louise) ; Howard's Way, Born and Bred, Hollyoaks.

Charles Dale: (Gareth) ; Rocket Man, Coronation Street, Steel River Blues.

Robert Demeger: (Mr Ellis) ; Forever Green, Doctor Who, Secret Passage.

Pippa Hinchley: (Sarah) ; The Dressmakaer, Coronation Street, The Bill.

David Quilter: (Tom) ; All creatures great and small, Charles and Diana, The Bill, Eastenders.

James Warrior: (Tom Griffiths) ; Doctors, The Bill, All Creatues, Hotel Babylon.

Stephen Yardley: (Alan) ; Dr Who, Howard's Way, The Bill Heartbeat.

Hugh meanz Business

Hugh Grant has been kicking Paparazzi butt again. This time his weapon of choice a tin of baked beans.

Dresden

I hired 'Dresden' tonight, which before we watched I wanted to see what IMBD said about it and it seems no bugger has ever seen this movie outside Germany. Not surprising. The only comments on IMDB seem to say they don't want to see it or it is copying an American movie. Quite suprising in these days . Anyway I will tell you tomorrow what we thought of it.(I hope). As it is in German and only with Dutch Subtitles.

Is that it!?

Is that it?. You may be saying after the end of this movie

Along with the along-waited release of Atonement which has already had a pre-release test screening another redcar based movie will be released this year. "Is that it?". A story of losing one's cherry in 'Redcah'. It features Redcar sea-front, Whitby, Roseberry Topping, ICI and Corus, the Regent cinema, Redcar 'Musies' and I'm sure a Lemon-Top will be in there somewhere.

I've been to the Regent once in 1983 to watch E.T. The projector broke down during the emotional send-off scene when ET boards the UFO. The lights came on for 10 minutes while they quickly glued back the film together or whatever was wrong was fixed, and a lot of back seat snogging was rudely interrupted. The movie is set around that time.

"Atonement" spent a fortune on extras and set-building as they needed to create an authentic World War II feel to the movie, whereas 'Is that it?' didn't need to spend much to give Redcar an 80's feel. It was just a question of finding an Escort XR2 and a bottle of Blue Nun.

Here's a clip.

Lancaster Bomber

Two different satellite photos of the same location, the corner of Lake Way and Hayeswater in Huntingdon, taken around the same time but 1 striking difference.

View from Virtual Earth:

View from Google Earth:

Spot the difference.

The second one features the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Avro Lancaster, the City of Lincoln pictured below. It was discovered by a resident of one of the houses in the photo while he was trying to locate his place of residence.


'the City of Lincoln'

The plane was used in the film Guns of Navarone


Guns of Navaron featuring David Niven, Gregory Peck and Anthony Quinn.

The 'Guns' featured Greek actreess Irene Papas who also starred in Captain Corelli's Mandolin and was was once dubbed by Catherine Hepburn as "one of the best actresses in the history of cinema"


Irene Papas

Potter to join forces with Malfoy?

Yesterday the results of the general election were announced here in Holland. The Prime Ministers' party the 'CDA' (Christian Democrats) won but without a significant majority for government so they will have to negotiate with more than one of the other parties to form a coalition with 76 seats of the 150 needed to control the 'Tweede Kamer', (House of Representatives - UK House of Parliament).

I presume the CDA will be getting into bed again with the VVD but that will only make 63 seats leaving 13 more to lok for. Whatever happens the Dutch are going to end up with such a fragmented government that I can't see any voter being that impressed. "That's not what it said on the packet!"

My Suggestion: (seeing how I'm not allowed to vote after living here for 12 years) The CDA stick with the VVD , join up with the 'Christian Union' and the 'Party for animals' taking them to 71 seats. Then the master stroke. We all know Prime Minster, Jan Peter Balkenende, is know as 'Harry Potter', well the 'Party for Freedom' leader, Geert Wilders, will soon be known as 'Draco Malfoy'. So keep your enemies close to you Harry and get the Slythrin on board.

Harry Potter - Dracos Malfoy



Jan Peter Balkenende - Geert Wilders

Broadsword calling Danny Boy

'Do you actually have a broad 'sword' Dicky?'......"Oh yes!, just ask Liz"

For almost a year now we've had digital TV, offering a wide range of channels for your viewing pleasure. The main reason I signed up for it was BBC3 and BBC Prime. BBC3 at the time was showing comedies 6 months prior to them being released on terrestrial TV in order to seduce the UK public on to digital. But as it seemed to succeed they are not doing this anymore so BBC3 is now a "oh bugger I missed that and we don't have a HDD in our DVD player so we can catch the repeat on BBC3" channel.

BBC Prime on the other hand is a godsend. Gone are the days of watching crappy daytime TV. With Prime you can catch My Family, 2.4 Children, Only Fools and Horses, Casualty repeats every afternoon. My afternoons are no longer fuelled by improving my knowledge of property vaules or how collectable a Two-handled Jubilee Mug is.

Along with Hustler tv another channel I Never watch is TCM (Turner Classic Movies) . A movie channel that serves up American crappy movies mostly. But this afternoon they treated us to Where Eagles Dare. Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood defeating the Germans on their todd.

Tomorrow TCM will be treating us to a small independent movie from India titled 'The Crazy Street'. X-Box are rumoured to be making a new game inspired by this short film.

Here's a clip

Don't go in the House

in honour of the recently re-united Captain Cakeshop

When I was at University me and 2 other renegades (the Ape and Captain Cakeshop) chipped in 20 quid each to buy an outdated VHS player to fill our dull evenings at Larch Court with video entertainment from our local (very pants) video rental store.

We quickly realised that it was possible to use a microphone to record music or voices on to tapes and soon we being the 'pranksters' that we were decided to abuse crap horror movies from the afore-mentioned store.

One in particular was the movie 'Don't go in the house' . Apart from the Cinematographer 'Oliver Wood' this seems to be the only or last film of almost the whole cast's career. So I don't feel at all guilty that we spoiled the film for future rentals by whispering 'Don't go in the house' at various points of the film.

After random sabotage, I decided to use this facility to make short videos to music by using clips from music vidoes and reportages of the music scene we were into at the time.

If youtube was around at the time I'm sure i would have been on uploading these videos.
Alas it wasn't so now it is I decided to have a bash at vidoe editing again this afternoon. It took me an hour so don't expect anything 'Oliver Wood' quality as I only had 4 video clips on my camera.

I present for your delectation 'Please Please Please', created and inspired by my recent refutation by my employee for another position.

Hunter's Moon

Tonight the moon is full and is known as 'the Hunter's moon' or sometimes 'the blood moon'. It is the first full moon following the 'Harvest Moon' and was named as it was a good night to go hunting by the light of the moon.

Moon Rises @ 17:57hrs it appears in the South
Max Altitude is 48° @ 00:19hrs
Diameter 33.33'
Distance from Earth 358,507 km

There is a movie called Hunter's Moon in 'post-production at the moment -
'The story of four young couples drawn to the remote dunes for off-roading
in their extreme machines. But the outing turns into a night of terror when
they are attacked by the Catcher, a skilled and brutal hunter of human specimens
for alien science. Sounds like one to miss!


Hunter's moon taken by my new telescope with a digital camera through the lens viewer @ 21:15 07/10/2006 over Maastricht The Netherlands

Where's Redcar beach gone?

When i was back in the UK 2 months ago I went for my usual walk along Redcar beach which is the closest coast to my house. It was a pretty miserable day as you can see. I've been going down there all my life and even went for a swim on Boxing Day one year to raise funds for the brain-washing of Papua New Guinean canibals.

Anyway if you went down to the beach today you wouldn't recognise it.



The set of 'Atonement' a World War II movie set in Dunkirk. Redcar has been chosen to be converted into the set as they knew there would be loads of extras gagging for 50 quid for a day on the beach.

They are using over 1,000 extras and 300 crew are booked into more than 200 hotel rooms across Teesside. The set will contain 45 military vehicles and even a 30m, 75-ton Thames barge boat, lifted onto the beach by crane.

some facts:

1: Keira Knightley and Vanessa Redgrave will surely get to experience a lemon-top from Pacittos.
2: There has been 4 films named "Atonement" previously filmed . All pants.
3: Previous films to feature Redcar beach are God on the Rocks starring Minnie Driver
4: Redcar Beach was also used in 'A Man called Adam's' video "Barefoot in the Head"




A Lemon Top from Pacittos

Requesting permission for flyby.

That's a negative ghostrider, the pattern is full.

http://www.atc-network.com/site/uk2006068.avi

The Adventures of Antoine Doinel

Long before movie sequels became mandatory, Francois Truffaut made a series of films following the life of Antoine Doinel, a semi-autobiographical character.
Part 1 is Les Quatre Cents Coups (The 400 blows). The literal translation is 'Hellraiser'.
Doinel is a young boy living in Paris. He nicks of school, shoplifts, tells his teacher his mum has died to get out of school. In general a 'hellraiser'.

One day whilst playing truant he finds out his mother has a lover, which makes life at home even worse.

We next meet Antoine in "L'Amour à vingt ans " or better known as 'Antoine et Collette'. (the section of the movie that follows Antoine's life). Doinel is now just reaching early adulthood, and is not the most confident with the fairer sex. He falls in love with an older student who doesn not return his adoration. Collette re-appears in the next part, movie number 3, in a short scene. She passes Antoine in the street with her new husband. A Truffaut subtlety 'par excellence'. It was this movie that made me so interested in Truffaut's work when I was also going through my 'awkward' teenage years.

6 years later he made the third film 'Baiser Volés' (Stolen Kisses). Doinel has been in the army and recently left to pursue his love 'Christine Darbon'. He goes through various dead end jobs, before landing a position as a private investigator. Here he meets a shoe-shop owner Madame Tabard, a very elegant sexy lady who he is fascinated with and who eventaully seduces him.
I have read this is one of the least acclaimed of the Doinel series but for me it is the best.

Part 4: A silimar feel to Baiser Volés, "Domicile Conjugal" (Bed and Board) . Doinel is now 26. Married to Christine and working in a safe looking corporate job. His wife falls pregnant and Antoine falls for a japanese colleague, who is a little wierd to say the least. Nothing much happens in this movie, but there again nothing much happens in most Truffaut movies. But it is still gripping as its predecesor. I was gagging for the next installment after seeing it. What will become of our lying, cheating, inadeqaute hero Antoine.

The final installment came in 1979 "L'Amour en fuite" (Love on the run). Now in his thirties and divorced from Christine. The movie uses flashbacks from the previous 4 parts. He is in love now with Sabine a record seller. Antoine is a proofreader.

You can now buy a DVD collection of the 5 movies. Not cheap but my credit card is itching to see them again.

Diner

I was loking on Amazon to see if one of my favourite movies is available on DVD. "No" is the answer unless you have a region 1 (USA/Canada compatible player). Shame as my video is now buggered and I can't watch it anymore. Diner was a 'flick' made in 1982, directed by Barry Levinson, which starred a lot of unknown actors but they all went on to become big Hollywood names. The likes of ....Steve Guttenberg, Daniel Stern, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Bacon, Timothy Daly and Ellen Barkin. Kind of unique that a movie has been made that so many went from nobodys to big names eventually. Must show some talent of the casting director or the director himself. Its a move much about nothing , but still gripping in that you feel by the end that you know each of the characters mainly due to the excellent acting. I can't help but think that Quentin Tarantino was inspired by the dialogue of this film. Such classic lines. Shrevie: Ok, now ask me what's on the flip side. Beth: Why? Shrevie: Just, just ask me what's on the flip side, OK? Beth: What is on the flip side? Shrevie: Hey, Hey, Hey, 1958. Specialty Records. [Beth nods blankly] Shrevie: See? You don't ask me things like that, do you? No! You never ask me what's on the flip side. Beth: No! Because I don't give a shit. Shrevie, who cares about what's on the flip side about the record? Shrevie: I do! Every one of my records means something! The label, the producer, the year it was made. Who was copying whose style... who's expanding on that, don't you understand? When I listen to my records they take me back to certain points in my life, OK? Just don't touch my records, ever! You! The first time I met you? Modell's sister's high school graduation party, right? 1955. And Ain't That A Shame was playing when I walked into the door!

Modell: You know what word I'm not comfortable with? Nuance. It's not a real word. Like gesture. Gesture's a real word. With gesture you know where you stand. But nuance? I don't know. Maybe I'm wrong.