- Fri, 18:26: Friday reading https://t.co/xQcYEgWImr
- Sat, 09:30: Whoniversaries 29 May https://t.co/j0NBuPMbtJ
Whoniversaries 29 May
i) births and deaths
29 May 1928: birth of Frederick Jaeger, who played Jano in The Savages (First Doctor, 1966), Sorenson in Planet of Evil (Fourth Doctor, 1975), and Prof. Marius in The Invisible Enemy (Fourth Doctor, 1977).
29 May 1987: birth of Pearl Mackie, who played Bill Potts in Series 10 of New Who (2017).
ii) broadcast anniversaries
29 May 1965: broadcast of "The Death of Time", second episode of the story we now call The Chase. The Aridians capture the Doctor, Vicki and Barbara, and are about to hand them over to the Daleks when a Mire Beast attacks and they are able to escape.
29 May 1971: broadcast of second episode of The Dæmons. Giant footprints and a heat barrier beset Devil's End; the Doctor and Jo discover a miniaturised spaceship inside the abandoned dig.
29 May 2010: broadcast of Cold Blood. The Doctor manages to negotiate an accommodation between Silurians and humans, but the situation breaks down again, the Silurians return to sleep for another thousand years – and Rory is killed and then erased from history!
Friday reading
Current
Wonder Woman: The Golden Age, Vol. 2 by William Moulton Marston
Bridget Jones's Diary, by Helen Fielding
The Mammoth Book of SF Stories by Women, ed. Alex Dally MacFarlane
Invisible Kingdom, vol 2: Edge of Everything, by G. Willow Wilson and Christian Ward
Last books finished
The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist, by Adrian Tomine
The Complete Short Stories of Guy de Maupassant
Ghost-Spider vol. 1: Dog Days Are Over, by Seanan McGuire, Takeshi Miyazawa and Rosie Kämpe
City of Blades, by Robert Jackson Bennett
Forrest Gump, by Winston Groom
Next books
Don't Be Evil: The Case Against Big Tech, by Rana Foroohar
Comic Inferno, by Brian W. Aldiss
My tweets
- Thu, 15:31: RT @BCommNI: We have published our Guide to the 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituencies in NI. It includes information about the review…
- Thu, 17:19: RT @worldcon2021: Who’s ready to vote for @TheHugoAwards? The Hugo Award ballot is now open until November 19, 2021 DisCon III member…
- Thu, 18:25: All the Fabulous Beasts, by Priya Sharma https://t.co/f2OdabA52y
- Thu, 19:47: RT @trouwschmidt: Fantastic Rembrandtesque picture by @Reuters of today’s #agrifish council in Brussels. https://t.co/gayogdixCv
- Thu, 21:51: Today’s issue of @DWMtweets Doctor Who Magazine has expert commentary on Tom Baker’s visit to Belfast in June 1978. (I did not realise that @naomi_long actually met him when he came to her school in Mersey St!) https://t.co/lNfKxg0Pe0
- Fri, 09:30: Whoniversaries 28 May https://t.co/fa5btloCVY
Whoniversaries 28 May
i) births and deaths
28 May 1935: birth of Anne Reid, who played Nurse Crane in The Curse of Fenric (1989) and Florence Finnegan in Smith and Jones (2007)
28 May 1940: birth of Frank Cox, who directed part 2 of the story we now call The Edge of Destruction (First Doctor, 1964) and parts 5 and 6 of the story we now call The Sensorites (also First Doctor, 1964).
28 May 1966: birth of Sharon D. Clarke, who played Graham’s wife and Ryan’s grandmother Grace in Series 11 and 12 of New Who (2018, 2020).
28 May 1968: birth of Kylie Minogue, who played Astrid in Voyage of the Damned (Tenth Doctor, 2007).
(Births also of Patricia Quinn and Faith Brown in 1944, Michelle Collins in 1963 and Carey Mulligan in 1985; much as I enjoyed their appearances in Who, they don't fit my criteria for a full mention.)
ii) broadcast anniversaries
28 May 1966: broadcast of first episode of The Savages, the first episode not to have an individual title. The Doctor, Steven and Dodo are welcomed by the Elders, but something very sinister is going on with their savage neighbours…
28 May 2005: broadcast of The Doctor Dances. The Doctor realises that the gas mask zombies are being created by escaped medical nanocytes, and set matters aright.
28 May 2011: broadcast of The Almost People. The Doctor and the Gangers, and a major plot twist involving Amy at the end.
All the Fabulous Beasts, by Priya Sharma
Second paragraph of third story ("The Anatomist's Mnemonic"):
Why don't we ask Sam to the party? I've invited Judith. We should introduce them.
I was blown away by Sharma's novella, Ormeshadow, which I read at the end of last year; this is a collection of her short stories, almost all of them with some genre elements (though one of the best, "Small Town Stories", seemed to me to be a straightforward psychological tale). I thought they were tremendously good, combining fantasy, horror and human elements, each one of them a real jewel. Strongly recommended. You can get it here.
My tweets
- Wed, 14:56: RT @POLITICOEurope: Claire Boussagol (@cboussClaire) appointed new CEO of POLITICO Europe. More here https://t.co/9JsStfyFR7 https://t.…
- Wed, 16:31: Dominic Cummings claims ‘tens of thousands’ died unnecessarily because of way Covid was handled – live https://t.co/SEsuvuUZUW https://t.co/mjUCEpju1E
- Wed, 16:41: RT @CovidJusticeUK: Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice response to Dominic Cummings select committee appearance. Today is a horrible,…
- Wed, 16:45: This is a brilliant blow-by-blow of Cummings’ testimony today. https://t.co/c7y7GNiPez
- Wed, 18:49: Cloud on Silver, by John Christopher https://t.co/jVSEEJ1pk5
- Thu, 00:39: RT @dmcbfs: Looked back through the some other leadership contests in NI history. I still cannot find one where the outgoing leader didn’t…
- Thu, 09:30: Whoniversaries 27 May https://t.co/5a1ReRcT8c
- Thu, 10:45: Extraordinary, given the reputation of Sheffield archaeology. https://t.co/WYiVnUbj08
Whoniversaries 27 May
i) births and deaths
27 May 1926: birth of Peter Ling, who wrote The Mind Robber (Second Doctor, 1968)
27 May 1981: death of Kit Pedler, who co-wrote The Tenth Planet (First Doctor, 1966), The Moonbase (Second Doctor, 1967) and The Tomb of the Cybermen (Fourth Doctor, 1967).
27 May 1983: death of George Cormack, who played King Dalios in The Time Monster (Third Doctor, 1972) and abbot K'anpo Rimpoche in Planet of the Spiders (Third Doctor, 1974).
ii) broadcast anniversaries
27 May 1967: broadcast of second episode of Evil of the Daleks
27 May 1972: broadcast of second episode of The Time Monster. Stu has been aged by the effects of TOMTIT; the Master evades Benton by tricking him.
27 May 1996: broadcast of Doctor Who: The Movie on BBC (it had already been shown in the USA and Canada).
27 May 2007: broadcast of The Idiot's Lantern. The Doctor prevents The Wire from feeding on the energy of TV owners watching the 1953 coronation. Includes a reference to Belgium.
27 May 2017: broadcast of The Pyramid at the End of the World. An 'ancient' pyramid appears overnight. Every clock in the world begins counting down to the Earth's destruction. Three opposing armies lie ready to annihilate each other. An alien race stands ready to offer humanity a deal that could save them, but enslave them. It is a terrifying race against time to save the world. Will the Doctor be forced to accept their help?
Cloud on Silver, by John Christopher
Second paragraph of third chapter (a long one):
Smells came over the still waters of the harbour, unidentifiable, disturbing in a way that she was not sure if she liked or disliked. And distant cries, in a language she did not know. A large catamaran, with twin red sails, was cutting across the bows of a motor-launch which was chugging out on one revved-down engine. Across the harbour the town glittered white under blue skies lightly strewn with cirrus. She thought suddenly of London, and so of John. He would be leaving the office about this time, joining the crowd that surged towards Holborn Viaduct station. Or perhaps calling in at the Printer's Devil for a drink. She smiled; that was, on the whole, more likely. Standing with one elbow on the bar, a pint of light ale in front of him, talking boisterously, laughing from time to time that deep reverberating laugh which, she so well remembered, drew people's attention to him from the furthest corner of the most crowded bar. He would not think of her until later — in the compartment crowded with strangers, walking alone along the road from the station to the neat detached house with the garden he was so proud of, and the three boys he was so proud of, and the wife with whom he spent his evenings and week-ends bickering.
Also known as Sweeny's Island, this is one of the less well-known works by John Christopher, author of the Tripods trilogy, the Sword of the Spirts trilogy and The Death of Grass. A bunch of unpleasant middle-class Londoners get marooned on a desert island in the Pacific Ocean, and come to realise that apart from their own mating rituals there is something more sinister going on – Lord of the Flies, but with grownups, some of whom are women. Some people rate this as an undiscovered gem, but I felt that the social commentary was not as interesting as the author obviously thinks it is, and that the sfnal elements were neither particularly original nor particularly memorably executed. His other books are better. You can get this one here.
This was both the sf book that had lingered longest unread on my shelves, and the shortest unread book acquired in 2014. Next on those piles respectively are Riding the Unicorn, by Paul Kearney, and The Monster's Wife, by Kate Horsley.
My tweets
- Tue, 13:18: RT @APranckevicius: Yesterday’s decision of the European Council in practice.
- Tue, 18:43: RT @MaxCRoser: Gallup asks people around the world whether they have someone to count on for help in times of trouble. – The map shows the…
- Tue, 18:54: July 2011 books https://t.co/UeKXbjCFHk
- Wed, 09:30: Whoniversaries 26 May https://t.co/bnhSGIuHSI
- Wed, 10:45: Belgium hacked, most likely by China https://t.co/uVLry8BeSM In 2019 as it turns out.
Whoniversaries 26 May
i) births and deaths
26 May 1913: birth of Peter Cushing, who played Doctor Who in the 1965 and 1966 films.
26 May 1927: birth of Julia Smith, who directed The Smugglers (First Doctor, 1966) and The Underwater Menace (Second Doctor, 1967).
26 May 1990: death of Anthony Steven, who wrote The Twin Dilemma (Sixth Doctor, 1984). Earlier this year a friend in Spain Facebooked me to say "Thinking of you, as I search on youtube for what was voted the worst Dr. Who story ever in the company of the son of the author who happens to live in our village, and wanted to show us an episode…" Yep, Anthony Steven's son is one of her neighbours.
26 May 2019: death of Stephen Thorne, who played Azal in The Dæmons (Third Doctor, 1971), Omega in The Three Doctors (Third Doctor plus First and Second, 1972-73), the First Ogron in Frontier in Space (Third Doctor, 1973) and the male version of Eldrad in The Hand of Fear (Fourth Doctor, 1976). Heavily disguised in all of them, so no photos here.
ii) broadcast anniversaries
26 May 1973: broadcast of second episode of The Green Death. The Doctor investigates the mine and the green slime in order to rescue Jo, despite obstruction from Global Chemicals.
26 May 2007: broadcast of Human Nature. To avoid The Family, the Doctor becomes a human, teaching in an English boarding school in November 1913; but they track him down.
July 2011 books
July 2011 started with a visit to Ireland to celebrate my mother's 70th birthday (which actually fell at the end of June; she turns 80 next month). My photos from the party are, frankly, embarrassingly poor. Here's the two best ones I got, my great aunt (who had just turned 95, and will turn 105 next month) with my mother and six of my mother's eight siblings; and 11-year-old F with my great aunt who unfortunately had her eyes closed at the moment I took the shot.
Back at home, I found a new place to take B, the Paterskerk at Tienen. And we had an outing to a windmill.
Apart from all that, I read 23 books in July 2011.
Non-fiction 3 (YTD 35)
Manufacture and Uses of Alloy Steels, by Henry D. Hibbard
The Faerie Queene: a selection of critical essays, edited by Peter Bayley
Terre des Hommes, by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (probably a bit fictionalised, but presented as a memoir)
Manufacture and Uses of Alloy Steels, by Henry D. Hibbard
The Faerie Queene: a selection of critical essays, edited by Peter Bayley
Terre des Hommes, by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (probably a bit fictionalised, but presented as a memoir)
Non-sf 3 (YTD 28)
Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison
The Decameron, by Giovanni Boccaccio
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Mary Anne Shaffer and Annie Barrows
SF (non-Who) 6 (YTD 43)
I Am Not A Serial Killer, by Dan Wells
The Magicians, by Lev Grossman
A Feast For Crows, by George R.R. Martin
The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, by C.S. Lewis
The Lost Road, by J.R.R. Tolkien
A Dance with Dragons, by George R.R. Martin
Doctor Who etc 9 (YTD 49)
The Brilliant Book [of Doctor Who] 2011
Doctor Who Annual 1986
The Glamour Chase, by Gary Russell
State of Change, by Christopher Bulis
The Dalek Book, by David Whitaker and Terry Nation
Conundrum, by Steve Lyons
Revolution Man, by Paul Leonard
Dead of Winter, by James Goss
Doctor Who: Aliens and Enemies, by Justin Richards
Comics 2 (YTD 17)
The Day I Swapped My Dad For 2 Goldfish, by Neil Gaiman
Agatha Heterodyne and the Guardian Muse, by Phil and Kaja Foglio
~7,300 pages (YTD ~49,700)
2/23 (YTD 29/172) by women (Shaffer/Barrows, Foglio)
1/23 (YTD 10/172) by PoC (Ellison)
My two top new reads this month were The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, which you can get here, and A Dance with Dragons, which you can get here. As per usual, I bounced firmly off Agatha Heterodyne and the Guardian Muse, which you may be able to get here.
My tweets
- Mon, 15:14: @H_Bettsworth and her pizza. (Yes, it has chips/fries on it.) https://t.co/N5vj8ZiQ4X
- Mon, 18:04: Merovingian metalwork https://t.co/1TgPxJ7rXc
- Tue, 09:30: Whoniversaries 25 May https://t.co/h3ZJSF3aNU
- Tue, 10:33: Happy birthday, @FondacioniT !!! https://t.co/p0tLuMeWf6
- Tue, 10:45: Aboard the ‘hijacked’ plane to Minsk https://t.co/0qCFi13Fsz First person accounts.
Whoniversaries 25 May
i) broadcast anniversaries
25 May 1968: broadcast of fifth episode of The Wheel in Space. The Doctor fights back against the Cybermen, and sends Jamie and Zoe on a dangerous spacewalk.
25 May 1974: broadcast of fourth episode of Planet of the Spiders. Tommy is healed by the crystal, but Sarah and then the Doctor are captured by the spiders.
ii) date specified in-universe
25 May 1972: birth of Joseph Serf, the titular Man Who Never Was in the very last story of the Sarah Jane Adventures (2011).
Merovingian metalwork
Beautiful Merovingian metalwork from a very nice exhibition, “The World of Clovis“, in the Royal Museum at Mariemont, of which I was previously unaware. There’s lots of other lovely material there, but it was the metalwork that really caught my eye – here are two fibluæ, a reliquary and some rings and things. These last are from a grave known as The Lady of Grez-Doiceau, which is just down the road from us here.
Here’s a teaser for the whole exhibition. (In French, sorry.)
I went with two work colleagues, one of whom decided to order a five-cheese pizza for lunch, and the other went one better by ordering a pizza with chips/fries on it. (I had pasta with sea food.)
My tweets
- Sun, 12:56: RT @charlottegore: Hello UK. It’s not Political. It’s not that everyone hates you. It’s that to get points from a jury or a televote this y…
- Sun, 14:48: Really fascinating analysis, comparing major/minor keys, tempo and key changes for songs that won Eurovision in last 20 years, and also songs that came dead last. https://t.co/MMS4ZYmGDQ
- Sun, 16:05: RT @DrClaireH: Welp, #Eurovision was punctuated by a linguistics controversy last night. Amanda Holden came on for the UK and quipped, “Bo…
- Sun, 19:07: Clan gathering in Oud-Heverlee https://t.co/9JYoWp7JCd
- Sun, 20:48: RT @buitengebieden_: She’s not that into you.. https://t.co/YCVIswEJrB
- Sun, 23:25: RT @thatdanstevens: Called it… #Eurovision ❤️ https://t.co/PeF3GnJiTs
- Sun, 23:28: RT @Mij_Europe: “President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus personally gave an “irrevocable command to turn the plane around and land it”, a…
- Mon, 09:30: Whoniversaries 24 May https://t.co/VgbkhHjbVU
- Mon, 10:45: RT @peterdonaghy: I’ve become completely obsessed with the treasure trove at @BNArchive. My favourite this week was Flann O’Brien’s letter…
Whoniversaries 24 May
i) births and deaths
24 May 1944: birth of Fiona Walker, who played Kala in The Keys of Marinus (First Doctor, 1964) and Lady Peinforte in Silver Nemesis (Seventh Doctor, 1988).
24 May 1945: birth of Graham Williams, producer of the 15th to 17th seasons of Doctor Who (the fourth to sixth Fourth Doctor seasons, from Horror of Fang Rock to ShadaThe Invasion of Time and City of Death, and author of the unbroadcast story The Nightmare Fair which brought back the Celestial Toymaker (and was released in audio format by Big Finish in 2009).
24 May 1986: death of the great Robert Holmes, script editor from Robot (1974-75) to Image of the Fendahl (1977), and author of The Krotons (Second Doctor, 1968-69), The Space Pirates (Second Doctor, 1969), Spearhead from Space (Third Doctor, 1970), Terror of the Autons (Third Doctor, 1971), Carnival of Monsters (Third Doctor, 1973), The Time Warrior (Third Doctor, 1973-74), The Ark in Space (Fourth Doctor, 1975), Pyramids of Mars (1975), The Brain of Morbius (co-author, 1976), The Deadly Assassin (1976), The Talons of Weng-Chiang (1977), The Sun Makers (Fourth Doctor, 1977), The Ribos Operation (Fourth Doctor, 1978), The Power of Kroll (Fourth Doctor, 1978-79), The Caves of Androzani (Fifth Doctor, 1984), The Two Doctors (Sixth Doctor with Second Doctor, 1985), The Mysterious Planet (Sixth Doctor, 1986), and the first episode of The Ultimate Foe (Sixth Doctor, 1986). See Richard Molesworth's excellent biography.
ii) broadcast anniversaries
24 May 1969: broadcast of sixth episode of The War Games. The Doctor tries to outmanoeuvre the Security Chief, but is trapped in a shrinking SIDRAT.
24 May 2010: broadcast of Taphony and the Time Loop, twentieth episode of the Australian K9 series, and for my money of the the best of them. When Gryffen breaks an alien out of VR prison, he may have put everyone in danger. I think I would recommend that the curious sample this episode if they want to see what the Australian K9 series was like at its best.
24 May 2012: broadcast of Good as Gold during that day's Blue Peter, an episode written by the children of Ashdene School.
24 May 2013: webcast of Strax Field Report: The Doctor's Greatest Secret.
Clan gathering in Oud-Heverlee
I discovered recently that I had a third cousin living on the other side of Brussels, who I had never met but whose grandmother was a Whyte; and then even more recently that I had a fourth cousin twice removed living in Brussels, who I had never met, whose mother was a Whyte. I eventually made contact with both, who had of course never heard of each other either. And this afternoon we had a gathering of the clan at our place.
First, the actual Whytes by birth and Whyte descendants:
Left to right:
1) M, my third cousin on the far side of Brussels;
2) me;
3) F, my son;
4) C, my fourth cousin twice removed who lives in Brussels;
5) F2, C's son, my fourth cousin three times removed;
6) K, C's brother who happens to be in Belgium at the moment.
2) me;
3) F, my son;
4) C, my fourth cousin twice removed who lives in Brussels;
5) F2, C's son, my fourth cousin three times removed;
6) K, C's brother who happens to be in Belgium at the moment.
Common ancestors of this group:
(3xgreat grandparents of me and M, 4xgreat grandparents of F,
5x great grandparents of C and K, 6x great grandparents of F2)
Can you see the resemblance?
And then a group selfie with everyone squeezing in:
Left to right:
1) F3, M's wife;
2) M, my third cousin;
3) in front C, my fourth cousin twice removed;
4) behind branch Anne, my wife;
5) F, my son;
6) in front K, C's brother who is also my fourth cousin twice removed;
7) F2, C's son, my fourth cousin three times removed;
8) E, C's husband;
9) me.
The weather was good enough for a walk in the woods and tea in our garden. An afternoon well spent.
My tweets
- Sat, 12:56: RT @alexvtunzelmann: This piece doesn’t pull its punches and says exactly what I’d been thinking about the hypocrisy pouring out of some re…
- Sat, 14:48: RT @wildforest_matt: Perhaps the problem with discussions over Cecil Rhodes is that people do not really understand who and what Rhodes was…
- Sat, 16:05: RT @danhett: very very rare I do this, but I politely sacked a client this week. repeat offender: vague briefs, moving goalposts, late paym…
- Sat, 16:10: Jurassic Park https://t.co/A6yMMcvrsV
- Sat, 21:04: I am finding just the opening of #Eurovision quite moving, a feeling that we are turning the corner and returning to normality. For certain values of normality, of course.
- Sat, 21:06: RT @Jim_Sheridan: It’s all very HUNGER GAMES for the opening of #Eurovision https://t.co/nFnLL04Eyp
- Sat, 21:10: RT @DaveKeating: After last year’s Maudlin #Eurovision special replacing the contest bummed everyone out, the Dutch seemed to have learnt t…
- Sat, 21:11: RT @peterjbirks: I like to think that Proust would have been fond of Eurovision.
- Sat, 21:12: And in grand #Eurovision tradition, the first song isn’t actually all that good… #Cyprus
- Sat, 21:12: RT @OsborneTweets: Sure what’s not to like about #EUROVISION ? Nothing a nice accompanying Cabernet can’t help.
- Sat, 21:13: RT @demoographics: No idea why the Orthodox Church didn’t like this… 😉 #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:15: RT @natural20: Sure, #CYP is a song I could dance or do housework to, but it’s no #Eurovision winner. (And WTF the children’s voices?)
- Sat, 21:16: A much more traditional entry with Balkan pizazz from #Albania #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:16: RT @ickle_tayto: I’m on board for #Albania .. sparkly, full on voice and one hell of a strut. #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:18: Except that it’s actually not bad at all. #Eurovision https://t.co/gRXDXEYuuB
- Sat, 21:20: RT @burntcopper: Janelle monae called and wants her hair back. #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:21: RT @FrancesLievens: #Eurovision may be apolitical, but I have to explain a lot of Cold War politics to my kids for them to understand some…
- Sat, 21:21: RT @miss_s_b: I like the Israeli lady’s hair but the song is dull #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:23: Now the one I can’t vote for. #Belgium #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:25: I wake up and I think I could use another drink I’m reaching for a smoke to forget about last night, last night I get up ’cause I need a shot of instant remedy I put a record on, it makes me think about last night, last night
- Sat, 21:25: The #Belgium #Eurovision lyrics, for the curious. I like it but I can’t vote for it. https://t.co/z2vqOiJQQ7
- Sat, 21:27: OMG what is this? #Russia #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:30: RT @urbanprehisto: Belgium the best song so far but no chance that will win. #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:30: RT @foolsgold74: @nwbrux It might be genius and a bit radical for #Russia ? #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:32: RT @DavidHenigUK: She’s good, the song isn’t. Malta #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:32: RT @pickwick: Chorus of this is basically Greased Lightning? #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:32: Exactly what I thought. #Malta #Eurovision https://t.co/KBTfFsihsW
- Sat, 21:33: RT @burntcopper: I’ve just seen the drunk girl dance and tune of the future. #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:36: #Portugal #Eurovision Loving this so far.
- Sat, 21:38: Yes, exactly. I may well vote for it anyway, even though this is true. #Portugal #Eurovision https://t.co/SKLi6U1U6l
- Sat, 21:39: Teleporting Serb maidens???? #Serbia #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:39: RT @JohnValenciacf: The importance of running order in #Eurovision. This century only one of 19 winners has started in the first nine and t…
- Sat, 21:40: It could be #Bulgaria‘s year, at that rate… #Eurovision https://t.co/vcKlXDRaBM
- Sat, 21:40: RT @shezza_t: I thought they were going to do the ketchup song dance in their video intro there. #moot
- Sat, 21:41: RT @conbrunstrom: @nwbrux Bulgaria’s entry is great this year. Honest.
- Sat, 21:43: RT @bagatsen: Also grasping the essence of Eurovision. https://t.co/cNDzW00Lj1
- Sat, 21:45: Bracing for the #UnitedKingdom entry now. #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:47: In his own words, he’s not gonna light up the room. #UnitedKingdom #Eurovision https://t.co/r74EAciOjV
- Sat, 21:47: RT @WilliamMcGowa15: @nwbrux U.K. pretty dull
- Sat, 21:48: RT @feelinglistless: The BBC should open an immediate public enquiry as to how this was chosen. Jesus, this is absolutely shocking. What t…
- Sat, 21:48: RT @shezza_t: I give United Kingdom #GBR 5/10 #moot #eurovision I probably wouldn’t turn the radio off if this came on. As long as it…
- Sat, 21:48: RT @sierrakim: #UK just managing to hang onto his song by the skin of his teeth. Nerves? #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:49: RT @AbiePB: Are you a white guy who learned ALL your dance moves watching 90s rap videos on MTV? Wanna represent the UK at #Eurovision ??…
- Sat, 21:52: Wow, #Greece. Can actually sing, interesting visuals. #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:52: RT @nicolleness: Sneak preview of Hotel Transylvania 4 in which the daughter divorces the human and gets with the invisible man #gre #Eurov…
- Sat, 21:54: RT @DaveKeating: #Switzerland up now. This is my second-favourite song this year. But I don’t know how viewers will feel about this stagi…
- Sat, 21:55: “Je vois derri�re nous des morceaux de toi” Hmm. #Switzerland #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:56: RT @demoographics: The song’s not bad, but that’s a horrible shirt #SUI #Eurovision
- Sat, 21:56: RT @AmIRightSir: The UK’s 1962 & 1963 #Eurovision entrant, Ronnie Carroll, went on to be a repeat independent parliamentary candidate, and…
- Sat, 21:57: RT @AbiePB: You have to admire the self belief of a guy who thinks he can win #Eurovision with a musical homage to French existential angst…
- Sat, 21:57: RT @gabbythegaijin: Ah, we’ve reached the Les Miserables-inspired close up shots act. It’s even sung in French #Eurovision #Switzerland
- Sat, 21:58: RT @Radlein: @AmIRightSir @nwbrux He didn’t get any votes from Austria in THAT election either
- Sat, 22:00: “Love takes some timе Takes a little time, so takе a little time… [low whisper] As it ages like wine…” #Iceland #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:00: RT @burntcopper: Iceland! @dadimakesmusic ! Amazing instruments! Synth! GLORIOUS! #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:03: RT @pedjabajovic: Kako se na srpskom kaže “Loco Loco”? – Saću da te karam!
- Sat, 22:03: “no hay nada que perder mientras dibujo un mar de memorias en tu piel” “there’s nothing to lose while I draw a sea of memories in your skin” Hmm. #Spain #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:04: RT @shezza_t: I give Spain #ESP 1/10 #moot #eurovision There’s no moon giant enough to save this performance.
- Sat, 22:05: That’s no moon… #Spain #Eurovision https://t.co/MOotAVU2he
- Sat, 22:06: RT @dmcbfs: Jeepers Spain. What the hell was that? #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:08: I like #Moldova‘s attitude, Natalia is just there to sing a song she enjoys singing and have some fun. If you vote for her, that’s icing on the cake. #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:09: RT @ameliamcd_: DO THE LONG NOTE BABY #MDA #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:11: #Germany sings “I really don’t care that you want to bash me.” #Eurovision https://t.co/1I0jRJW4R6
- Sat, 22:12: RT @gabbythegaijin: Well the Germany entry has somehow fused a 2010s ukulele YouTube personality with 1970s synth pop #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:12: RT @Weregopher: #Eurovision #GER has the backup dancer showing us how they really feel
- Sat, 22:12: RT @arrroberts: Prostate Exam Backing Dancer is the best backing dancer yet. #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:13: RT @demoographics: Having “Lousy” in big letters behind #GER on stage was a brave decision… #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:13: RT @neilwilliamson: Germany bring a uke to a #eurovision fight here. Got to give them a big hand for that.
- Sat, 22:14: RT @miss_s_b: Germany clearly trying to lose on purpose. I mean the message is great but the song is AWFUL. #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:15: By peculiar coincidence the first line of #Finland‘s entry is “Put your middle fingers up” #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:17: This isn’t particularly cheerful from #Finland so I think unlikely to win. Well performed though. #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:17: RT @WilliamMcGowa15: Finland the Heavy Rock Rapping Capital of Europe
- Sat, 22:17: RT @Eurocentrique: My mood is definitely more akin to #FIN ce soir gotta say – long week! #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:17: RT @innocent: GERMAN EUROVISION WHATSAPP GROUP: Dancer 1: “So what’s everyone wearing tonight? I’m wearing a white dress.” Dancer 2: “I’m w…
- Sat, 22:20: RT @niktwick: #Finland: Occasionally #Eurovision reminds us mercilessly that heavy metal is music after all
- Sat, 22:20: RT @JohnValenciacf: @nwbrux Finland a victim of their 2006 success. Multiple Finnish entries since seem to have decided that the way to win…
- Sat, 22:21: So here’s #Bulgaria in the magic 17th spot… #Eurovision https://t.co/vcKlXDRaBM
- Sat, 22:24: RT @jordandias: Bulgaria has an actual proper song. Deserves to be rewarded. #bul #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:25: Well, about half of us have been her. #Bulgaria #Eurovision https://t.co/efQ6ba9SJy
- Sat, 22:26: RT @DominicDoherty2: @nwbrux I liked the Bulgaria entry.
- Sat, 22:27: RT @jarrettreckse: Right Said Fred ended up wearing clothes in Lithuania #Eurovision https://t.co/tB4lTSOpfb
- Sat, 22:27: #Lithuania #Eurovision https://t.co/qMgWLXw8zW
- Sat, 22:28: Comment from the European Commissioner for Promoting the European Way of Life. (Yes, really.) #Eurovision https://t.co/mDHchFL39a
- Sat, 22:28: RT @youngvulgarian: I have feelings towards Lithuania that are not sexual but also not entirely non-sexual
- Sat, 22:30: “Гей нумо-нумо заплетемо Шума” We can all get behind that sentiment. #Ukraine #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:32: RT @MIKECOLLINS99: Now Episode 8 of Twin Peaks The Return feel for Ukraine #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:32: RT @roy_gill: Always winter but never Christmas #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:33: RT @SquidFromSpace: At last, the Matrix/Tron/Chronicles of Narnia mash-up Europe deserves! #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:36: I see the resemblance, but not sure if she could rock the French accent? Willing to be educated on this. #France #Eurovision https://t.co/EbYucR0b2g
- Sat, 22:37: Wrong era. I think. #France #Eurovision https://t.co/ujn4cHUo8A
- Sat, 22:38: RT @SabineFreizer: @nwbrux Too much has happened since last Eurovision to just sing about “voila.. moi qui je suis”
- Sat, 22:39: #Azerbaijan going for a bit of orientalism and singing and dancing girls. “I am a dangerous lover Drinking my poisonous water” Hmm. #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:40: RT @natural20: Didn’t like #AZE in the SF, don’t like it now. Can’t deny it’s catchy, but that’s about it. #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:40: RT @arasigyrn: I was not expecting to have a “Eh, hang on,” history moment in #Eurovision But, you do know she wasn’t actually any of tha…
- Sat, 22:40: It’s a rather important point! #Azerbaijan #Eurovision https://t.co/LZUJlIK7ai
- Sat, 22:43: It’s maybe because it’s getting late, but am finding #Norway ridiculously catchy. #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:44: RT @dduane: Ah, it’s the #GoodOmens entry. 🙂 #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:44: RT @DuncanWeldon: Norway going for the “deleted scene from Dogma” vibe. Interesting.
- Sat, 22:44: RT @irishhatgirl: Norway is such a boyband song. #Eurovision #Eurovision2021 https://t.co/D9vkaYxMDE
- Sat, 22:44: RT @conbrunstrom: Better to reign in hell than serve in Eurovision. #Norway #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:48: RT @nickjbarlow: Song playing over the closing credits of a Hunger Games-knock off movie. #Eurovision #NED
- Sat, 22:48: Couldn’t be much worse. https://t.co/52UZF8abCM
- Sat, 22:49: #Netherlands #NED in tune with the times. But are they in tune with the voters? #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:52: #Italy “Vi conviene toccarvi i coglioni” “You’d better hold onto your balls” Wise words. #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:52: RT @IainDale: This is among the favourites. Seriously. Heavy Metal and the Italian language are like having Marmite as the filling in a c…
- Sat, 22:52: RT @catvalente: Everything about this is the best and I don’t care what anyone says #Italy #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:53: You’ll be liberated from the #UnitedKingdom selection process anyway! #Eurovision https://t.co/qpmMOuTacV
- Sat, 22:55: RT @jordandias: Italy – erm. This is even worse than the earlier heavy metal. I’m just… Well no, not for me. Questions over his outfit. #…
- Sat, 22:57: #Sweden again rather catchy, seems to be speaking to our post-pandemic situation. “There’s fire in the rain But we’ll get up again We’re a thousand miles apart But we’ll overcome” #Eurovision
- Sat, 22:57: RT @nickjbarlow: Another song just looking for the right film to be the inspirational closing music for. #Eurovision #SWE
- Sat, 22:58: Y’know, I feel like this too. It’s a welcome return to normality and very few of the songs (apart from #UnitedKingdom) were actually bad. #Eurovision https://t.co/3XQfCwNnqb
- Sat, 23:00: In fact, she’s done it twice. The Eritrean community in #SanMarino is clearly talented! #Eurovision https://t.co/FOm4LXLUAS
- Sat, 23:00: RT @MIKECOLLINS99: Understated outfit from San Marino but all a bit Shakira #Eurovision
- Sat, 23:01: I think this is great. Let’s hear it for the micro states! #SMR #SanMarino #Eurovision
- Sat, 23:02: RT @nicolleness: Tina Turner representing #smr Bring us that adrenalina indeed! Also that rap intermezzo is sooo good #Eurovision https:/…
- Sat, 23:03: Well, we ended on a high note!!! #Eurovision Am deciding between #Albania #Portugal and #Norway. Or maybe #Bulgaria or #SanMarino.
- Sat, 23:10: RT @gabbythegaijin: The Finland entrants holding up “PLAY JA JA DING DONG” signs is utterly iconic #Eurovision
- Sat, 23:23: Comment from the Secretary General of the European External Action Service. Yes, really. #Eurovision https://t.co/zZ53HJmZ7z
- Sat, 23:36: RT @nickjbarlow: On a serious note #Eurovision is a great example of something that could have dwindled away and died out but has become ab…
- Sat, 23:36: RT @GreenSolitaire: #Eurovision Me in my head Me in real life https://t.co/A8RaYgM573
- Sat, 23:37: RT @Aisling_Pash: Oh my God! #Eurovision #GrahamNorton ‘not a dry seat in the car.’
- Sat, 23:37: RT @amyohconnor: Italy chatting to France backstage. #Eurovision https://t.co/pcFO8Hqsw1
- Sat, 23:42: OMG! Sandra Kim who won in 1986 when she was 13! She’s great. #Eurovision
- Sat, 23:42: RT @conbrunstrom: Nothing in modern Eurovision competes with the creepiness of “Save all your kisses for me, EVEN THOUGH YOU’RE ONLY THREE!…
- Sat, 23:44: RT @natural20: Evolve or die and wow did #Eurovision evolve. https://t.co/YENy8YvlaP
- Sat, 23:44: RT @AndrewBeatty: It’s that magical time of the year, when @AFP bureaus around Europe and beyond wait anxiously to see if their lives will…
- Sat, 23:44: Amen! https://t.co/8aIizCbTci
- Sat, 23:45: RT @IanMoore3000: I’m liking these performances from #EUROVISION winners of yore.
- Sat, 23:49: https://t.co/pnkunfIh5k
- Sat, 23:50: RT @FrancesLievens: @nwbrux My very first #Eurovision memory. I was six and saw it all. I don’t know how long it lasted but my parents let…
- Sat, 23:57: Strong start for Switzerland from Israel. #Eurovision
- Sat, 23:58: I cheered for San Marino just then!
- Sat, 23:58: France and San Marino top so far…
- Sat, 23:59: RT @leonardocarella: now you understand what being a LibDem feels like
- Sat, 23:59: Switzerland of course would do well from Albania given that their singer was actually Albanian.
- Sun, 00:01: Switzerland now well ahead. I think unstoppable already.
- Sun, 00:04: Nul points so far for #UnitedKingdom, #Spain and rather to my surprise #Norway. #Eurovision
- Sun, 00:11: #Moldova and #Bulgaria give each other douze points! #Eurovision
- Sun, 00:14: RT @CSharpWords: @nwbrux Do you reckon they were in a WhatsApp group?
- Sun, 00:14: RT @DaveKeating: Can we just point out that right now the top 3 songs are the ones in French? (Well for Malta the title at least) https://…
- Sun, 00:17: It won’t be him. #Eurovision https://t.co/NzkWoNXkTl
- Sun, 00:20: “I would personally like to play Ja Ja Ding Dong” #Iceland #Eurovision
- Sun, 00:23: https://t.co/Wo2XQtnd8X
- Sun, 00:26: Great bit of tech management there from #Sweden! #Eurovision
- Sun, 00:33: RT @AlexandraTheak1: Tell me you’ve left the EU without telling me you’ve left the EU #Eurovision https://t.co/SDNybg2O4T
- Sun, 00:39: #Belgium not quite capturing the Zeitgeist. #Eurovision
- Sun, 00:43: Dear heavens, Italy?!?!?!?
- Sun, 00:45: RT @NLebrecht: Britain will stage its own Eurovision next year with Singapore, Chechnya and Saint Helena
- Sun, 00:47: RT @ickle_tayto: What’s happening?? #Eurovision https://t.co/tIXTWp6W2O
- Sun, 00:49: RT @ClaireHanna: Recount! https://t.co/FlN35jus3G
- Sun, 00:55: Eurovision Song-Along (Official) – Iconic Contestants Join The Party https://t.co/maeUpsmORt via @YouTube
- Sun, 01:18: @ConBrunstrom called it. #Italy #Eurovision https://t.co/jJ0zEByLAz
- Sun, 09:30: Whoniversaries 23 May https://t.co/pc4gNTHxdq
- Sun, 09:59: RT @alanbeattie: The jury-then-public-vote thing in #Eurovision is a metaphor for EU policymaking. The Commission comes up with some carefu…
- Sun, 10:45: RT @DaveKeating: Wow what a night. Some final thoughts: : What Dutch broadcaster NOS and the EBU accomplished this week was incredible. T…
Whoniversaries 23 May
broadcast and related anniversaries
23 May 1964: broadcast of "Temple of Evil", first episode of the story we now call The Aztecs. The Tardis lands in medieval Mexico, where Barbara is received as the reincarnation of the priest Yetaxa.
23 May 1970: broadcast of third episode of Inferno. The Doctor realises that he has travelled to a parallel Earth. (This is the one with the famous eyepatch scene.)
23 May 1988: release of "Doctorin' the Tardis" by The Timelords (later the KLF). A true cultural millstone milestone.
23 May 2003: webcast of fourth episode of Shada. The Doctor and Chris discover Skagra's store of genius minds.
23 May 2020: broadcast of Doctors Assemble! All of the Doctors, though none played by the original actors.
Jurassic Park
Jurassic Park won the Hugo for Best Dramatic Presentation in 1994, the only film to win between 1993 and 1997 (TV shows Star Trek: The Next Generation and Babylon 5 won twice each in that period). It beat three other films and a TV episode, in order: The Nightmare Before Christmas, Groundhog Day, Babylon 5 – “The Gathering” and Addams Family Values. The only one of those that I have seen is Groundhog Day, and while I like it a lot, I would have voted Jurassic Park ahead of it. IMDB users also like Jurassic Park, rating it #2 film of 1993 on one system and #3 on the other, behind Schindler's List in both cases. I agree with that judgement too.
None of the cast seems to have been in previous Hugo winners, or in Doctor Who. Two had small parts in previous Oscar winners. Jeff Goldblum, playing Ian Malcolm here, was one of the Californian party guests sixteen years ago in Annie Hall:
And Jerry Molen, who was co-producer of both Jurassic Park and Rain Man, also appeared in front of the cameras in each film. Here he is Harding who looks after sick dinosaurs; in Rain Man five years ago he was Dr Bruner, the head of Walbrook where Raymond Babbitt lives.
I originally thought of doing a joint review of this and Schindler's List, because they were both directed by Steven Spielberg, both based on best-selling novels and both came out in the same year. But really, the subject matter is so very different that I felt it would be somewhat disrespectful to take that approach. Also, I am quite enjoying the pace of doing a film review most weekends, and didn't really want to lose momentum. So here we are.
In the unlikely event that you don't know, Jurassic Park is set in the present day (ie 1993) and concerns a theme park where dinosaurs have been brought back to life with Science. Two cute palæontologists scientists and two cute children are brought in to check it out before opening, and due to sabotage by an employee secretly in the pay of the competition, the dinosaurs escape their pens and all hell breaks loose. The cute characters all survive, though some of the others (including the saboteur) get eaten by dinosaurs. Here's a trailer.
To start with the usual, almost all the characters are white. This is a film set in Latin American, none of whose characters appear to be Latinx. The minor scientists include an Asian and an African-American (the latter being a curiously cast Samuel L. Jackson).
The women characters are given more agency than in the original novel – Laura Dern's Ellie Sattler, the palæontologist palæobotanist, is the peer of Sam Neill's Alan Grant rather than his student; Ariana Richards as Lex Murphy is older than her brother Tim (Joseph Mazzello), and her computer skills save the day. However the subplot of Dern trying to persuade Neill that they should have babies together (not in the original book) is pretty cringeworthy.
But look, the human characters are completely beside the point. This is a film about special effects, and making dinosaurs real. The cinematography and John Williams' music signal to you that this is a really special occasion, a cinematic big deal, and frankly that's what it is. It's one of the most effective sensawunda films out there. The opening scene with dinosaurs in the lake is still mindblowing.
And despite having seen the film before, rewatching it this time I was still on the edge of my seat for the sequence where the velociraptors hunt the children in the kitchen.
I'm putting this in my top ten Hugo and Nebula winning films, behind another novel adaptation, A Clockwork Orange, but ahead of another tale about humans misusing technology, Dr Strangelove.
I went back and reread the book. The second paragraph of the third chapter (by one count) is:
Although it was true enough, as he had told the Bowmans, that lizard bites were common, Jimenez had never heard of a basilisk lizard biting anyone. And he had certainly never heard of anyone being hospitalized for a lizard bite. Then, too, the bite radius on Tina's arm appeared slightly too large for a basilisk. When he got back to the Carara station, he had checked the small research library there, but found no reference to basilisk lizard bites. Next he checked International BioSciences Services, a computer database in America. But he found no references to basilisk bites, or hospitalization for lizard bites.
When I first read it in 2011, I said,
Of course, I saw the film when it first came out, and found myself continually comparing the book to it. But in fact the book holds up well – a lot of the shocking visual moments from the film are reasonably firmly rooted in the book, and sometimes actually come off better on the page. And the book turns out to be not really about the process of reviving dinosaurs, but about the fragility of human endeavour against the chaos of the natural world – the author's mouthpiece character, who gets to speak long infodumps and whose gnomic statements preface every section of the book, is not a palæontologist but the mathematician played by Jeff Goldblum in the film.
I did notice, however, that very few of the Costa Rican characters and none of the walk-on black characters actually had names.
Comparing again with the film, I was struck that the novel spends a lot more time on set-up – here are lizards on the main coast of Central America, here is the rather crap career structure of the average American palæontologist – where the film just gets on with showing rather than telling. It also seemed to me that the film streamlined the various goals of the humans trying to deal with the park's problems, more effectively than the book. You can get the book hereContact in 1998; meantime the next Oscar-winenr is Forrest Gump.
My tweets
- Fri, 12:56: RT @Reading_Tegan: Bell https://t.co/rzXJh2eLu7
- Fri, 16:05: Georgia’s Hypermodern Parliament Building Faces Uncertain Future https://t.co/4yi3UBtf4x A massive white elephant.
- Fri, 18:40: Friday reading https://t.co/2a1FqVDGeq
- Fri, 19:59: Well, I’ve been Pfizered! Second dose in five weeks’ time. https://t.co/gEyvymxmpk
- Sat, 09:30: Whoniversaries 22 May https://t.co/n4YhDuGrVZ
- Sat, 10:07: 430 days of plague: first dose https://t.co/4YGuqJ6jzS
- Sat, 10:45: RT @jonworth: “Brexit. That’s pretty much it from me.” A blog post on why you’re going to get a lot less Brexit / UK-EU politics diagnosis…
- Sat, 11:53: RT @georgiaEtennant: #conversationswithafiveyearold https://t.co/EBl8gE63Lq
Whoniversaries 22 May
i) births and deaths
22 May 1944: birth of John Flanagan, co-writer of Meglos (Fourth Doctor, 1980)
22 May 2001: death Jack Watling, who played Professor Travers in The Abominable Snowmen (Second Doctor, 1967), The Web of Fear (Second Doctor, 1968) and Downtime (unofficial, 1995).
ii) broadcast anniversaries
22 May 1965: broadcast of "The Executioners", first episode of the story we now call The Chase. The Tardis crew play with the Time-Space Visualiser and land on the planet Aridius, where the Daleks have pursued them.
22 May 1971: broadcast of first episode of The Dæmons. As archæologists open the ancient tomb at Devil's End, strange and deadly events occur around the village.
22 May 2010: broadcast of The Hungry Earth. The Doctor, Amy and Rory discover that a near-future Welsh drilling project is finding more than it bargained for.
430 days of plague: first dose
I’m cheating a bit by writing this on Saturday morning and backdating to the moment last night when I got my first dose of Pfizer.
My arm is a bit sore, thank you, and I am braced for further reactions today, but it’s a lot better than the alternative.
Apart from that, I went into Brussels again on Thursday and had my first outdoor coffee meeting with N, who worked in my then office exactly ten years ago (see current bookblog nostalgia posts) and has gone on to greater things.
The reasin for going in was another office leaving party, in the park (again note that we were largely maintaining social distance and sticking to smaller groups).
It was really nice to see restaurants opening up again – the first picture below is from Thursday, the second from March last year as the lockdown hit, from the same point on Place Lux.
And the Belgian numbers have continued to show drastic improvement. The death rate is already below where it was before the October lockdown, and the hospital numbers will reach that milestone today or tomorrow.
I have to correct one statement in my last entry: I forgot that I nipped across the border to France for a haircut in December, so it is only five months since I left the country; probably not a record for my lifetime, though I suspect the longest such period in thirty years.
Our current TV fixes are Stranger Things, Au Service de la France, Monty Python and Friends. Who needs new stuff??
I went to Mons on my day off for Ascension, and have another museum trip planned for Monday.
Stay well, all.
Friday reading
Current
The Complete Short Stories of Guy de Maupassant
City of Blades, by Robert Jackson Bennett
Last books finished
All the Fabulous Beasts, by Priya Sharma
Doctor Who: The Pandorica Opens: Exploring the Worlds of the Eleventh Doctor, by Frank Collins
Jurassic Park, by Michael Crichton
Finna, by Nino Cipri
Next books
Wonder Woman: The Golden Age, Vol. 2 by William Moulton Marston
The Mammoth Book of SF Stories by Women, ed. Alex Dally MacFarlane
My tweets
- Thu, 16:37: RT @swordlesbi: PLS WHO MADE THIS THIS IS THE BEST VIDEO ON THE INTERNET I— https://t.co/fJjoF06y3T
- Thu, 18:39: In the Days of the Comet, by H. G. Wells https://t.co/PXDOEVxLtU
- Fri, 09:30: Whoniversaries 21 May https://t.co/AiqUbon76G
- Fri, 10:45: RT @hhesterm: Some thoughts on a trade tweet that – as many have pointed out – is wrong. Now I try to no longer critcise tweets of others,…
Whoniversaries 21 May
i) births and deaths
21 May 1953: birth of Trevor Cooper, who played security chief Takis in Revelation of the Daleks (Sixth Doctor, 1985) and Friar Tuck in Robot of Sherwood (Twelfth Doctor, 2014)
21 May 1985: birth of Calvin Dean, who played the Slitheen in the form of a boy called Chris in The Gift (Sarah Jane Adventures, 2009) and security guard Ha-Ha in Nightmare in Silver (Eleventh Doctor, 2013).
ii) broadcast anniversaries
21 May 1966: broadcast of “The O.K. Corral”, last episode of the story we now call The Gunfighters, and the last episode before 2005 to have an individual title. Doc Holliday and the Earps shoot it out with the Clantons, to the detriment of the latter. NB that Doc Holliday and Kate Horony are the last two historical characters to be depicted in TV Who until George Stephenson in Mark of the Rani (1985), 19 years later.
21 May 2005: broadcast of The Empty Child; first appearance of Captain Jack Harkness and first contribution to New Who by Steven Moffat. The Doctor and Rose find London in the Second World War infested by zombies with gas-masks.
21 May 2011: broadcast of The Rebel Flesh. The Doctor must mediate between the original workers at an acid-mining factory, and their rebellious artificial duplicates.
iii) date specified in-universe
21 May is a crucial date in the plot of The Ghosts of N-Space (Third Doctor audio, 1996).
In the Days of the Comet, by H. G. Wells
Second paragraph of third chapter:
So said one of the two men who got into the train and settled down.
The planet earth passes through the tail of a comet, and as the result of a massive collective shift of spiritual consciousness, human society is transformed into a polyamorous happy new state of affairs. It goes on for a bit longer than that, but that's the gist. Really rather earnest, even by Wells' standards. You can get it here.
This was my top unread book by H.G. Wells. I am hoping for better with the next, Kipps.
My tweets
- Wed, 12:56: Entitled Mother ends my engagement and gets me banned from a steak house all in one night https://t.co/7fDjnSzBPK One of the more memorable posts to r/entitledparents.
- Wed, 16:05: North Macedonia PM: EU risks losing sway in Balkans – POLITICO https://t.co/9t2uw2UJ1y Some people need to remember that it is usually cheaper to keep your promses than to break them.
- Wed, 17:11: Very good and informative thread by former Australian trade negotiator on the UK-Australia deal. This tweet is the killer. Despite UK’s structural advantage, unclear policy goals lead to messy outcome. https://t.co/TvdEh6LXnI
- Wed, 18:52: The Evidence, by Christopher Priest https://t.co/j6890Ytjt0
- Thu, 09:30: Whoniversaries 20 May https://t.co/0kcYG3T5vz
Whoniversaries 20 May
i) births and deaths
20 May 1926: birth of John Lucarotti, writer of the stories we now call Marco Polo (First Doctor, 1964), The Aztecs (First Doctor, 1964) and The Massacre (First Doctor, 1966)
20 May 1961: birth of Owen Teale, who played security guard Maldak in Vengeance on Varos (Sixth Doctor, 1985) and cannibal leader Evan Sherman in CountrycideTorchwood, 2006).
20 May 1966: death of Mervyn Pinfield, who was Associate Producer for Doctor Who from An Unearthly Child (First Doctor, 1963) to The Romans (First Doctor, 1965) and also directed The Sensorites (First Doctor, 1964), Planet of Giants (First Doctor, 1964) and The Space Museum (First Doctor, 1965).
20 May 1977: death of Lennie Mayne, who directed The Curse of Peladon (Third Doctor, 1972), The Three Doctors (Third Doctor and guests, 1972-73), The Monster of Peladon (Third Doctor, 1974) and The Hand of Fear (Fourth Doctor, 1976)
20 May 1982: birth of Jessica Raine, who played Emma Grayling in Hide (Eleventh Doctor, 2013) and Verity Lambert in An Adventure in Space and Time (docudrama, 2013).
20 May 1993: death of William Emms, author of TV story Galaxy 4 (First Doctor, 1965) and the widely and justly forgotten Sixth Doctor game book, Mission to Venus (1986).
20 May 1996: death of Jon Pertwee, who played the Third Doctor from 1970 to 1974, with occasional returns to the role.
ii) broadcast anniversaries
20 May 1967: broadcast of first episode of The Evil of the Daleks. The Tardis is stolen, and when the Doctor and Jamie pursue it, they find an antique shop with added Dalek.
20 May 1972: broadcast of first episode of The Time Monster. The Newton Institute near Cambridge is in fact run by the Master, who summons Kronos.
20 May 2006: broadcast of The Age of Steel. The Doctor and friends manage to infiltrate Cybus industries and destroy the Cybermen.
20 May 2017: broadcast of Extremis. The Pope asks the Twelfth Doctor to investigate a mysterious book called the Veritas.
20 May 2020: webcast of Listen, a poem by Stephen Moffatt tying in with the epuisode of the same name.
also 20 May 2020: webcast of Fear is a Superpower, last words from Danny Pink.