early for the meeting in darlington

I had to go to Darlington this week for a work meeting, but I decided to come in early and have a wander round while listening to my ipod. Arrival time was about 8am and my meeting was at 10am, so it gave me plenty of time to doss about. Good job the weather was OK, or I wouldn't have been so keen.

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william arthur (ludgate hill) 1894 - 1940

"When lions were being led by donkeys, I led the donkey"

William Arthur (sometimes known as Ludgate Hill), was a Manchester born poet who died in the blitz. He was a stretcher bearer during the First World War and ended up in Rampton Mental Institution in the 1930's. He was also part of a firing squad (see 'The Coward).

When everyone goes on about 'Help the Heroes' nowadays, I think it's the ordinary people like William Arthur that were conscripted in the past who are the real embodiment of heroes. At least the soldiers today are going off to fight through choice, as nobody forces them to join up now (although I do realise it's often the poorer and less well educated members of society that choose to do so).

Here's some of William Arthur's work.

We Gassed Fritz Today (The Somme 1916)

We dropped mustard gas on Fritz today

The wind blew it back in our faces

Mother of God we murdered our own

Lined up dead in old munition cases

And the Padre he blessed all of the bodies

The General he addressed all of the men

Tomorrow the wind would be turning

And we’ll be gassing the Hun again

Mud There Was (The Somme 1916)

Mud there was and more mud to see

Mud there was for the 22’s and me

Mud there was on July the bloody first

And it’s the mud I remember the worst

Mud there was when the whistle blew

Mud there was when cannon shell flew

Mud there was when little Nobby died

Mud there was when he fell by my side

Mud there was and more mud to see

Mud from the front to the infirmary

Mud there was on July the bloody first

And it’s the mud I remember the worst

The Coward (Etaples base camp 1916)

We Shot Harry for cowardice

But I never met a braver man

But I was on the hill that morning

And I saw that Harry ran

They picked a shooting party

They chose at random by lot

And I was chosen to shoot Harry

For something that he was not

And he refused his last cigarette

And he refused his blindfold too

And we shivered behind our rifles

But we aimed them straight and true

And one of the six had a blank

And a target fixed to Harry’s chest

And each man discharged his rifle

And each man earned one day’s rest

We Shot Harry for cowardice

But I never met a braver man

And I sent home all his possessions

And a letter to his Mam

This article would not have been possible without the research of Mike Duff (and United We Stand)

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johnny walker ad with robert carlyle

I bet that script took some remembering. Apparently this was take 40 when they finally nailed it.

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national geographic images

Some more great animal pictures. Respect Daddy O.

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antichrist, the idiots, and lars von trier

Sky have just had this on 'Anytime TV'. Its a 2009 film by Lars Von Trier that had a lot of controversy when it was first shown. It stars Willem Defoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg, who have their baby fall to it's death while they were having sex. They (but especially Charlotte Gainbourg) are consumed by guilt, and things start going downhill rapidly from there. The film contains some pretty graphic scenes and some great photography, but l felt it was trying too hard to be arty or shocking. That's not to say l didn't like it, because l did, but l would have preferred a better story and less of the shock tactics. As usual, there is plenty of nudity and graphic sex scenes (albeit with body doubles and fake genital parts). No change there then. Charlotte Gainsbourg, however, was excellent, especially when she was being strangled, that just looked so believable. It's about time Lars Von trier got over his depression and concentrated on making a really good film. l do think he seems capable of doing a lot better (l sound like a schoolteacher). His films are so close to being unique and excellent, but also so far away (if that makes any kind of sense). Another one of his films, 'The Idiots' (one of the Dogma '95 films, from 1998) had a crap storyline, and was mainly just shocking for the sake of being shocking (and filming in a different way), but l still liked it, and would rather watch Lars' stuff than a Hollywood blockbuster. Still haven't seen 'Dancing In The Dark' or 'Breaking The Waves' yet, but l'll be waiting to check out his next one as soon as possible (without actually buying it or going to the cinema). At least his films make you think a bit.

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sing sing prison

I've been reading about Sing Sing prison in upstate New York (about 30 miles north up the Hudson river). It was opened in 1826 and was extremely brutal, ensuring the prisoners remained silent by copious amounts of beatings and whippings. The prison (Correctional Facility) is still open today, but no-where near as harsh. The cell above is one of the earlier examples, and does not look like it was a lot of fun to live in. The term "Going up the river" meaning to be sent to prison, originated from when prisoners were sent up the river to Sing Sing. The electric chair photograph is of Ruth Snyder, who was executed in the chair in 1928, and the picture was sneaked out by Tom Howard, a newspaper reporter who had a camera strapped to his leg, so he could capture the image at the moment of execution. It all makes Durham prison (where l went) seem pretty boring (although Bronco, who l shared a cell with, was certainly a character).

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whispering bob's 40th

At one time l couldn't wait to see The Old Grey Whistle Test with Bob Harris. He featured so much stuff that l love (Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Tim Buckley etc ), even though he did mock The New York Dolls after they had just stormed the place with Jet Boy. It is 40 years today since he started broadcasting, and although l certainly don't share a lot (or even many) of his musical tastes, at least he has a genuine love of the music and knows what he is talking about (New York Dolls excluded). He went bankrupt a few years ago and nearly lost all of his records, but thankfully managed to keep hold of them as they were deemed essential for his job. It's also about time some more Whistle Test DVD's were released, it's been way to long since the last ones. Anyway, we need more DJ's like like him, playing the music they like, rather than a preordained set list from the radio station. As l said before, a lot of the stuff Bob plays l don't really like, but at least l am opened up to new (and old) music that l haven't heard before. Maybe l should start my own station......

What am l saying that for? Everything is out there now on t'internet. Mostly for free if you know where to look. It's much better now for discovering new music, but it has lost it's special appeal, as you don't really have to make any effort to track anything down and then treasure it because it was hard to find. Then again, most people only get a few CD's, and then love them. I am just a saddo.

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natural history museum wildlife photos

This is one of this years entries for the Wildlife Photograph Competition by the Natural History Museum (I won't bother with the sponser's name). It's an black oil beetle taken by Juan Jesus Ahumada. Pretty damn good l think, but it will have to go some way to beat the 2005 winning picture (as featured on the 2007 Wilco album Sky Blue Sky) of a peregrine falcon chasing some starlings over Rome (by Manuel Presti). Not as good as my picture of Nozzer though (lovely little boy that he is!).

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even more beatles bootlegs

I definitely need to get out more. What a sad bastard l am. Even more Beatles Bootlegs!

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more beatles bootlegs

Lots and lots of Beatles Bootlegs

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beatles bootlegs

I certainly have a lot of Beatles Bootlegs.

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when mowgli was still with us - no room on the settee

mowgli

I loved my cat

Just lying there

With his pointed ears

And his greying hair

He was sometimes ignored

As he was often demanding

And sometimes he stank

While he slept on the landing

When you went to the shops

He’d walk by your side

And while you were shopping

In the bushes he’s hide

He’d been shot with an airgun

And had a hole in his side

That caused trouble weeing

And he very nearly died

His breath, well it smelt

And his walk wasn't straight

When you tried to call him in

Well he'd always be late

You see his hearing it went

And his eyes they got dim

His mind it got muddled

And his body got thin

His nose became dry

And his eyes became glazed

And when he got scared

His hackles got raised

His persistent meows

They kept me awake

He was always after water

Which l'd give and he'd take

And he sometimes had seizures

And often he'd wet

Be distressed when he woke

But calmed down with a pet

And l treated him bad

Which l really regret

And spent a small fortune

On trips to the vet

But He was a mate

For twenty odd years

When l think of him now

l can't hold back the tears

We grew up together

And l got old too

I even miss his breath

That stank of his poo

He was sometimes demanding

And sometimes a pain

But l would give anything

To stroke him again

JD AUG 2010 (with thanxs to James Stewart)

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I've loved you too long - submarine - the beatles - shout

I have just finshed all of these late last night and this morning (as I have no work until 9pm).

I've Loved You Too Long (2008) stars Kirstin Scott Thomas as Juliette Fontaine, who is released from prison after serving 15 years for murdering her 6 year old son. Her sister Lea knows little about it, but lets her stay with her family, although her husband Luc is wary in case any harm comes to their adopted daughters. The film follows Juliette as she tries to rebuild her life, but has a brooding and menacing feel about it, so you are never sure how it will conclude. Juliette does however, confess to her sister that she only killed her son because he had a terminal disease, so she did it out of love, but still felt guilty and wanted to be punished for it, which is why she never defended herself in court or gave any reason for the murder. As usual with a lot of these type of French films, it is slow but superbly done, with great tension and acting.

Submarine is a book by Joe Dunthorne from 2008, about a 15 year old boy called Oliver Tate, who is trying to save his parents marriage. It is an instant classic, strange, intelligent and funny, and is bound to be read by lots of teenagers in the future. I preferred it to Catcher In The Rye, and I think Oliver Tate is a great new creation.

The Beatles - Shout (1996 by Philip Norman), I have read before, but it is worth re-reading every few years (if you are a sad git like me), as it is the best biography of The Beatles out there. Nothing more to say really, apart from this is the reprinted version with some extra bits in it, and Norman does admit he was a bit too harsh in the earlier versions of the book. I do think he is still too harsh and opinionated about some other things (such as Stella McCartney's clothes range), which usually l would be all for, but l think he just comes across as a bit spiteful sometimes. Never mind, it's still great.

Right, back to the coalface (kettle and TV) to make the most of my time off.

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see through skirts

These are not really see through, they just have a picture on them to make it seem as though they are. Clever idea, but l can't say l like them.

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rolling stones bootlegs

As a follow up to the Beach Boys bootlegs l posted earlier, here's The Rolling Stones ones. I have more Stones stuff, these are just the bootlegs . The top picture looks like the normal albums, but these are my illegal Russian ones, all with extra out-takes etc on them. Of course l have them all as normal albums as well (which sad git wouldn't?).

The Beatles ones will be next.

I need to get out more.

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london map from 1845

This is fantastic. London has certainly changed a lot since then.

This is from :

http://www.ianvisits.co.uk/blog/2010/08/11/huge-panorama-of-london-in-1845/

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nirvana and the jacksons - go home productions

Out today by Go Home Productions (Mark Vidler). Class

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beach boys bootlegs

As l am such a sad bastard, l have been sorting through some of my bootlegs today, just to confirm how pathetic l am. These are some of the Beach Boys ones. If that seems a bit over the top, wait till l show the Beatles and Rolling Stones ones.

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steve mcqueen's hunger with michael fassenbender

I was a bit unsure about this film beforehand, in case it just glorified Bobby Sands and the hunger strikers, just putting across that they were all heroes and the English are all bastards, but it didn't. The English still didn't come out of it very well, mainly because they were represented by the Tory government at that time and Margaret (milk snatcher) Thatcher. It did however, show some of the guards in the Maze prison to be human, without pulling back from the violence inflicted on the prisoners.

This is another superb film where the actor loses weight (in this case about 3 stone in 10 weeks) to play the part convincingly. Michael Fassenbender (Bobby Sands) is the actor in question, and is superb throughout. He has a zealous look about him during the first part of the film, and is totally convincing when he loses his weight (when Bobby is on the hunger strike). I do wonder if this may go too far one day, with actors competitiveness taking over, and them trying to outdo one another, may result in permanent damage (just as people trying to outdo Jackass will eventually (if they haven't already) end up killing themselves).

The film is very realistic and portrays what it must have been like in the Maze at the time, so much so in fact, I had flashbacks to my own dirty protest in Durham prison in the 1980's. There is also a great scene where Bobby talks to the priest (Father Dominic Moran, played by Liam Cunningham), which has one very long uninterrupted shot of them speaking to one another. That must have taken one hell of a lot of remembering and it is very impressive.

Another film well worth watching (just don't be eating something at the same time).

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milk

Watched this yesterday and it was excellent. Shaun Penn plays Harvey Milk, a gay rights activist who eventually gets murdered. Penn lost weight for the role and plays him just right, stubborn, brave, and a bit camp. Apparently Milk was more hot tempered in real life and would fly into rages, but this doesn't alter the fact that this is a really well made film. l put off watching it for ages as l always have other stuff to do, but it was well worth viewing. Shaun Penn has certainly matured, l used to think he was crap when he was younger, but he has certainly developed into a fine actor.

l have just double checked and found that Penn won the best actor Oscar for the film, and the film itself won the best movie Oscar. A good choice.

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