January 2010 Miscellany

A substantial change to the way in which my life is organised, and especially the time I have available, took place this month when, to my considerable surprise, I was elected Chairperson of the Birmingham LINk (an organisation which seeks to improve the provision of Health and Social Care in Birmingham). I now have to devote considerable amounts of time to this, to a much greater degree than I have done in the past (and that had been steadily increasing). It is now going to be the case that a day without a meeting is an exception rather than the reverse.

Some thoughts on Kane

Embarking on an Orson Welles programme I have started chronologically, which means of course Citizen Kane (1941). There are a couple of major problems with this.

Blawn’s Britain

9th July 2007

For anyone foolish enough to believe that the substitution of Brown for Blair would make any difference to the ideological tenor of the Government today’s (8.07.07) Times front-page supplies an instant corrective. The latest subject to be introduced into classrooms is ‘lessons in money’.

Election Lack-of-Fever 2005 (OP)

This one is especially interesting given I will be facing the same choices in a few months time.

Lock ‘em Up (OP)

19th November 2007

Way back in August – yes I know its a long time ago – an extraordinary column appeared in The Times by one Theodore Dalrymple.

Class Divisions (OP)

18th December 2007

Sometimes articles which are just so damned good they demand reproducing on any blog going, get posted on one of the lists. This, like most of the best, was posted to WWTTA.

Pilgrimage Books 1-3 (OP)

3rd August 2007

Unusually this is a fairly straight reproduction of a list post – in this case to WWTTA on the subject of Dorothy Richardson’s Pilgrimage Books 1-3 (Volume 1).

Friday Night Lights (OP)

8th March 2007

Friday Night Lights is an American TV series which started airing in the US in October 2006. It has been showing in the UK on ITV4 for the past three weeks.

John Clare : ’strange death of life’ (OP)

7th September 2005

At the ECW list we are reading Bate’s biography of John Clare.

Cranford and Other Events

18th December 2007

 There have now been two superb television series this year – Rome Part 2 (and I have written extensively of Rome) and now Cranford.