Post 497. THE BADGERS OF DEEP WOOD.

BY GUESS WHO

IS HERE IN PAPERBACK.
I had some rather nice Christmas presents last year, so forgive the old scribbler if he makes particular mention of one of them. Our son, Neil, gifted me the paperback of my book for children aged 6 to 18 (though I've always said 9 to 99), The Badgers of Deep Wood. It was a complete, and a wonderful, surprise to me, is printed by Amazon, and costs £12.69 to buy. Worth every penny/cent, says he. It is my one and only - probably ever  - published work of fiction, so I am delighted to have it sitting now between hardback sets of Philip Pullman and J.K. Rowling on a bookshelf that also contains a copy of  Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows.
The cheerful Badger cover was designed by Neil. What it is to have a graphic artist in the family.

So, like a television chat show guest, I have plugged the book and have not much else to say..

Please consider buying it if you have youngsters who might enjoy it. And read it to them. 

THAT'S IT

.BACK NEXT MONTH 

 

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POST 496. HERE WE GO AGAIN.

THE DISTRACTIONS

DULY  DISMISSED.
It is amazing how many distractions you can find when you're of a mind to begin a blog post. Storm Isha has blown down the trellis archway in the garden and chucked the empty garden refuse bin across the driveway a couple of times but, in comparison to the Midlands, North, and Scotland, we on the IoW have been lucky. In our house, with blinds closed and curtains drawn, we almost eliminated the sound of Isha, and this area still has electric power. Now storm Jocelyn has joined us. Ah well. At the moment my little chores are done, Mo has been ironing for England (for our part of it anyway) and I have made her the customary second cup of tea. I can find no further distraction to deflect me from the keyboard. So here we go. 
TELEVISION.

Opportunity to mention an actress who was born on the IoW. Dame Sheila Hancock's performance in the 2017 film Edie (written by Elizabeth O'Halloran and directed by Simon Hunter) was worthy of any acting award you care to name. Sheila was 83 when she tackled Suilven, a mountain in Scotland. She later joked that the role of stubborn Edie would have previously been offered to and rejected by Judie, Maggie and the rest. Well, thanks be she took it. Wonderful.

We also watched the 2012 film Quartet, directed by Dustin Hoffman and starring Maggie Smith, Tom Courtenay, Michael Gambon, Pauline Collins and Billy Connolly. It was the second time around for us, but a cast of talented oldies is a magnet to a couple of oldies like us, and this film was packed with elderly talent, bolstered by the charming young Sheridan Smith. Loved it.

Watched the first of the series Dave and Jay, too. Oh dear.

And finally in this post:

NO! NO! NO! TO NATIONALSERVICE.

I wondered how long it would be before a call for the reintroduction of National Service came from some high ranking professional serviceman or warmongering idiot MP. It would be a disaster.

I was a regular soldier during the second (1939 - 1960) period of conscription. Decent young people made the best they could of it: the troublemakers remained troublesome, no matter what the outcome. There was a constantly negative atmosphere, particularly among those called up when WW2 was over. They didn't want the army, and the army didn't want them.

Speaking as one who actually lived through the second world war, and experienced the blitzing of Portsmouth, I would gently bid sabre rattlers: Stop. Look, Think. Two world wars with the promise of a better future, and - millions of lost and shattered lives later - we're still no closer to it. 

WW3 will probably make the entire planet uninhabitable. National Service wouldn't help that.    

Enough. I hope to be back on a jollier note at the end of the month.

Careful how you go.

 

    

Post 495. ELECTION YEAR IS HERE.

 

SO NOW THEY FEIGN CONCERN

AFTER YEARS OF INDIFFERENCE.
Funny how concerned for fairness Westminster becomes when there is an election in the offing. The splendid ITV television telling of Mr. Bates vs. The Post Office (Toby Jones as Alan Bates, and a fine fellow cast) has suddenly awakened MPs to the injustice suffered by over 700 sub-postmasters and postmistresses when a faulty IT system, abetted by outright liars on the so-called 'help' line, had them wrongly accused of theft.
Reputations, minds, lives were lost, and for years only a handful of politicians showed an iota of belief in their innocence or empathy for their plight. Now there are calls in parliament for 'suitable' compensation. It will never be enough but, if and when it comes, it should be big: very, very big!
NATIONAL INSURANCE.
From 6 January the main NI rate for employees has been reduced from 12% to 10%. Did I say there is an election in the offing?
You really must avoid cynicism, Dennis, it is so unbecoming.
TELEVISION.
Why was A Boy Called Christmas my 'best Christmas film' choice? Saw Maggie Smith was in it, so knew it would have to be good. It was.
Also enjoyed a re-run of Roald Dahl's BFG, directed by Stephen Spielberg, Mark Rylance was the BFG. Of course it was good.
And, back in the day, I recorded The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy. We watchcd it again and were enchanted again. Not an indifferent human in sight.

Lovely.
WORLWIDE
FORGET THE HAPPY NEW YEAR STUFF
TOO MANY LIVES HAVE BEEN DEVASTATED.
DO LET US HAVE SOME SANITY IN 2024