Yearly Archives: 2010

I Will Let Taslim Have The Last Word in 2010…

Out and About…At the V&A

This winter you can escape to the world’s greatest museum of art and design… The V&A in South Kensington, South West London. Until the 27th of February you can visit their wonderful exhibition of Imperial Chinese Robes from the Forbidden City. This exhibition shows three centuries of beautiful and historic royal robes worn by the emperors and empresses of the Qing Dynasty, the last ruling dynasty of China (1644-1911). On display are elaborate and exquisite robes, hats, shoes and childrens clothes, plus beautifully patterned fabrics created for the fashion conscious Empress Dowager Cixi and her court ladies. The exhibition also explores the complex rules and conventions specifying what clothes should be worn on different court occasions: from official robes for important rituals to festive dresses for banquets and celebrations, and travelling ensembles for hunting and royal visits to the provinces. On show for the first time in Europe, this is a rare opportunity to see these sumptuous garments. The V&A is online @ www.vam.ac.uk/exhibitions

Special Thanks To All Of You

I would like to thank you all for your support to my weblog throughout the last two years. Since we launched in December 2008 we had no less than 9,219 visitors and a total of 46,201 pageviews. So a hearty thanks goes out to each and everyone – Have A Happy And Peaceful Christmas and I look forward to seeing you in the New Year.

Patrick.

Enid Stamp Taylor in Hyde Park…

Enid Stamp Taylor in Hyde Park… This popular blog is repeated here for Christmas.

To come close to her world… take the serpentine path across Hyde Park, and as you walk, think of her. She would have walked this path, just as you. She would have paused, and looked upon the golden yellow of spring daffodils and the racing heart of early bluebells. You are seeing what her eyes saw. The same birds are singing… and you are so close to her… that you can hear her silent feet over green fields, and taste the sweet smell of Hawthorn blossom that fills your soul… and when you come to a bend in the path, where she too, saw the first shimmer of April blue upon the lake, I know… that you, have only to turn your head… to see her walking beside you.

 

More of The Saltair Pavilion…

December 2010 Many of you still find this erie Pavilion compelling, so I’ve re-blogged it from November 2009 and given the Pavilion another airing. To the best of my memory the Pavilion had been many things in its life-time; from being a saltwater spa and ballroom to its decline as a sort of Coney Island set-up in the 1950′s. The Pavilion has many ghosts in its past and is never more convincing than portrayed in ‘Carnival of Souls’  The movie seems hard to find on DVD, but if you get lucky and find a copy – then it should be watched, and nurtured, and treasured, but yet, hidden away… For it plays with your mind, plays on your fears, and tempers your thoughts and your soul.

The Saltair Pavilion Utah…

 

Saltair Pav

Some of you have watched with interest the DVD of ‘Carnival of Souls’ 1962 after my recent blog, and emailed to say that you enjoyed it, but wondered if I knew anything about the creepy derelict Pavilion used in the movie.

The Pavilion was built in the 1800′s as a health spa on the edge of The Great Salt Lake in Utah. Thousands came to take to the waters that were heavily salted… the only creatures able to sustain life in it’s saline depths were tens of millions of Brine Shrimps, harvested today as pet fish food… In those days one could simply float without drowning in the water! The end of the Pavilion came as part of The Great Salt Lake began to dry, and by the time the movie ‘Carnival of Souls’ was made in 1962 The Saltair Pavilion was in a sorry state. 

I hope that makes the film even more interesting for you… By the way, the director had seen the Moorish type Pavilion driving home one night across state, and seeing it at its most erie gave him the idea for the film.

Isle of the Dead… 1945

Vorvolaka… This nightmare vampire was very much on the minds of the people in the time when Greece fought her war of 1912…A classy screenplay from RKO which features Boris Karloff, Ellen Drew, Marc Cramer, Katherine Emery, Helen Thimig, and Jason Robards. It was written by Ardel Wray and Josef Mischel, with masterly direction from Mark Robson. Not a run of the mill - ’blood and guts’ vampire movie… but a creative story with strong and convincing acting from the whole cast!

The Olde Water Mill…

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This lovely old bus sits outside the Dickensian village and olde water mill at Barton-Le-Clay in Bedfordshire, England.

Adrian and I made a visit to this Bedfordshire community on Saturday and found there an excellent eating house with an even more excellent menu.

After lunch we took a step back in time and entered the world of a Dickens Victorian village. Here we embraced the sounds of hustle and bustle walking its cobbled streets. We strolled on to a garden centre and relaxed by a beautiful mill pond of Mallard and Carp. We visited some twenty shops of clothes, jewellery, candles and crystals, chocolates, antiques and collectables, a farmshop, hair and beauty, a photographic studio, and an arts and crafts and gallery, and for the children a pirates and mermaids recreation park. A visit that was truly original and worthwhile.

Whisky Galore…

 Well, would you ever believe it!…

 The ‘SS. Politician’ sank off the Scottish Island of Eriskay in 1941, and eight years on the Ealing movie romanced the story of how the islanders seconded some of its 24.000 cases of Scotland’s finest scotch whisky.

Whisky Galore can be found at: www.thewhiskygalore.com/

The Water of Life is available in many blended and single malts from Whisky Galore…

It was in the summer of 1948 when the Ealing crew arrived on the beautiful Island of Barra in the Western Isles of Scotland. Michael Balcon, head of Ealing Studios had not been happy about the production, saying as he looked at the story board, he just did not understand it!  “It holds few laughs” he was heard to comment. Based on a Compton Mackenzie novel, shooting almost entirely on location presented huge problems, everything, including cast and crew, and a huge amount of camera equipment, had to be shipped from mainland Scotland. Actors were billited with a number of the Islanders, and in fact, many of the inhabitants appear in the production. Their view of the film people was… That they were quite mad! Prefabricated sets were constructed at Ealing Studios in London then shipped for assembly on Barra. Under the brilliant direction of Alexander Mackendrick, an American born Scot, the film gently eases you into a world of warmth, gentilityand innocent skulduggery. It think this was partly due to Mackendrick’s insistence on being present during every scene, however, this did push the budget over by 20,000, and in those days that was a lot of money…as Michael Balcon soon pointed out, and when he saw the rushes he hated it, and ordered the film to be cut and released as a B’ supporting picture! At this point, Mackendrick asked Charles Crichton, a top editor, if he would look at the negatives. He did… And Recut, and Recut… the result was a more acceptable product for the Ealing Studio boss. Being based on a true maritime sinking means that some facts had to be changed. The real sinking took place off the Isle of Eriskay, and the local Islanders did profit from their huge haul of ‘Scotch’… Unlike the movie that had to deal with the moral issue. In America the movie was given a new title and called “Tight Little Island” because a number of States were at the time ‘Temperance’  If one looks at the stills today Alexander Mackendrick is always there beside the camera operator, and I think, that is what made it such a lasting and enduring, warm and attractive film.

Christmas Warmth…

The Glenlivet… Glenfarclas…. Glenfiddich… Cragganmore… Macallan…. Lagavulin… Taliskar… Aberlour… Tomintoul….

Dispite Tartan and an over abundance of Sainsbury’s obsession with Haggis and Shortbread… Scotland’s best outgoing product, aside from wandering Scots… Is Scotch Whisky! Thought to have been introduced into The Highlands and The Lowlands by Irish Monks determined to inflict their rare concoction on the rest of civilization, set about a myriad on the unsuspecting Scots – After all, it had only been the Romanos and their wine-ways until then! But you have to understand Scotch to fully appreciate its wonderful value to mankind. ‘The Water of Life’ is what the Scots call it! Early distillation in the 17th Century was a very ‘Dodgy’ affair! – ‘For shots’ are poisonous and ‘after shots’ are undrinkable… And Gunpowder was even added! Scotch is distilled in copper vats – why?… well, if you have ever cut yourself on stainless steel you will know what I mean - copper can heal  much quicker than Stainless Steel…!  Scotch is matured in Oak Sherry Casks for a minimum of 3 years – in order to be called Scotch Whisky! –  Single Malt means that it is the product of a single distillery. On my many visits to this wonderful land… I would tell you that ‘The Scots’ are the most welcoming people in the World!