Addressing the audience at the New Year's Day Concert in Vienna, Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin said...
"Only with kindness comes peace".
I'll just leave that here...

Und ich wünsche euch allen, 
Prosit Neujahr!
@Vienna_Phil #neujahrskonzert

​Today, we have once again reached what for me is the most psychologically important day of the year. In my World it holds greater significance than any Christmas Day, any New Year's Day, any Birthday or other celebration. It is December 21, the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere; followed by the longest night. Today is the Winter Solstice. 

The change in day and night hours, both North and South of the Equator, is actually caused by the Earth's angle of tilt to the Sun, (some 23.5°), in relation to its position in orbit. Yet for me, there is a strange symbolism in this date which highlights the seemingly endless struggle between light and dark.

For six months, the light in the Northern Hemisphere has fallen back, as onward surged the triumphant darkness; but tonight, as if in a great battle like a Gettysburg, or a Stalingrad, the tide of this struggle will turn, the advance of the darkness will be halted, and the light will at last begin to return. As the Solstice passes, we can start to look forward again; to the rebirth of Spring, to those long Summer nights in the garden, or better still on the beach.

This date also held great significance for the followers of ancient customs like paganism, for whom the Sun and the seasons were particularly revered. These festivals were of course, incorporated into what has now become Christmas, when we followers of Jesus will celebrate His birth. However, some historians suggest that Jesus was actually born in early to mid April, others place His birth later; but almost all agree it was not 'in the bleak midwinter'; and our Christmas decorations are drawn from various sources including the Roman festival of Saturnalia.

​It was perhaps from my late Father that I inherited my dislike of these long, dark nights and English Winters. Dad always said if he became a rich man, (he didn't), he would live in England from April through September; and in Australia from October through March! Sounds good to me, and for Dad, who loved his Summer days and Cricket, it would have been a kind of Shangri La...

This date also holds a particularly poignant place in our family's life, as it was on this day, ten years ago, that my Father-In-Law, Denis, one of the finest Gentlemen I ever knew, made his final journey to the Promised Land. He is loved and missed today, and every day, by all who knew him, and for the rest of my life, in addition to its place in the solar calendar, this date will always be tinged by the sadness of his loss.

Some 700 years before the birth of Christ, the Prophet Isaiah foretold of the event we are about to celebrate saying...

"The people who walk in darkness
Will see a great light;
Those who live in a dark land,
The light will shine on them."

Isaiah 9:2 (NASB)

So whatever December 21 means for you, I would like to wish you and your loved ones well in it. May this day remind all of us that even in our darkest moments, there are brighter times ahead; and I pray that your world will be filled with light, both literally and figuratively, in the months to come.

Have A Very Blessed Solstice...

I must say I feel very saddened by the news of Astronaut, Jim Lovell's passing at the age of 97.
As an eleven year-old boy I watched, enthralled, the black and white images of the Apollo 11 mission which landed Humans on the Moon for the first time. By the time Apollo 13 launched it was almost a case of: "Oh Right. Another Moon Mission"! Then came, out of the void, the words which have become immortal in the annals of human endeavour: "Houston, we've had a problem".
An oxygen tank had exploded, and the Spacecraft was losing the gas upon which the three mens' lives depended. Quick thinking and innovation in space and at Mission Control turned the Lunar Landing Module into a lifeboat. Aborting the Moon landing, they used its gravitational field to slingshot the craft back towards home. Almost six days later, they made it.

Whenever I remember the Apollo 13 mission, I always feel deeply emotional and even spiritual. I might sound a bit of a melt, but that was such a strange time. It was almost as if the entire World stopped what they were doing, and gazed at the Heavens.
Prayers, Thoughts, Hopes and Good Vibes were sent from every part of the Earth to the three brave souls in a crippled Spacecraft, who were desperately limping home. The sense of worldwide relief was palpable when they splashed down on April 17, 1970.
Imagine if we could find that sense of 'oneness' again? But I digress...

In conclusion, I could not let this post end without reference to the magnificent cinematic re-telling of this story in the movie: Apollo 13 (1995), in which Jim Lovell was portrayed by Tom Hanks. If you haven't seen it, do yourselves a favour!

James Arthur Lovell Jr. (1928-2025)
Requiescat In Pace...
https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/acting-nasa-administrator-reflects-on-legacy-of-astronaut-jim-lovell/

My Wife and I recently caught up with the much discussed Netflix series: Adolescence; and I have to say, I thought it was overrated and missed an important opportunity.

To open however, with the positives, I thought it was very well acted. Stephen Graham is excellent in everything he does, and Christine Tremarco gave a moving delivery as his Leading Lady. Erin Doherty gave a very powerful performance as the Psychologist in episode three, and fifteen year-old Owen Cooper was an absolute revelation in the leading role. A quite outstanding young Actor.
I also liked the way it was shot, using long takes to really build the drama.
So what, you may ask, is my critique?

Well, first of all, I felt the episodes were disjointed, and did not really link together well. It was rather like watching four different programs all dealing with aspects of the same subject. And it is that, vitally important subject, that was largely missed, and which was only alluded to in the final episode, (spoiler alert), when the comment was made about the Parents believing their Son was safe because he was in his room on the computer. Apparently oblivious to the danger which that computer exposed him to.

It is my earnest belief that in modern society there is a crisis in masculinity. Traditional gender roles and stereotypes have changed dramatically over the years, often for the good. However, I cannot help but feel that young men in particular are grappling with what it means to be a 'real' man. Humans are 'pack animals' who form their sense of identity from group associations, but such associations for males seem blurred and confused; and into that void have moved nefarious online forces like Andrew Tate, indoctrinating boys with gang culture and misogyny as the masts to which they should nail their colours in order to become 'real men'.

I had great hopes, having heard the reports about Adolescence. Over three quarters of all suicides are male; and suicide is the biggest single killer of men under the age of 49. I genuinely thought I would see a program that would concentrate on the struggles of boys and young men, and those exploiting them. Instead I saw an excellent drama which failed to deliver its message.

But that's just me...

2024 was a year which, like so many new years, began with hope of things to come. Little did my family know then, that we would be taken to the halcyon heights of attending the most beautiful wedding we have ever known, watching our Son marry the love of his life, Ashleigh, on March 16; to the depths of utter despair on the night of November 20-21, when we learned that our precious boy had died suddenly. He was 34.
In the course of those 34 years however, he travelled across the United States, worked for a year in Canada, another year in New Zealand. He travelled across Europe, went to Football, Rugby Internationals and Grands Prix; and honeymooned with the lions, (and his Wife!), in South Africa. In his all too short life, he yet achieved what many could not achieve in ten lifetimes. Now, he has gone to that place that Shakespeare called "the undiscovered country, from whose bourn no traveller returns".
Enjoy the journey, Son. We will meet you there later...

It is desperately hard right now for us to do the 'Happy New Year' thing. But life goes on. And Adam and Ashliegh will be blessed with their Daughter in late March, 2025; so amidst our desperate grief, there is still joy and hope to look forward to. And just today, I saw an online post from a good friend, announcing that he and his Wife had welcomed their baby Son into the World! God Bless all three of them...

And so to all of you, whatever your hopes and aspirations for 2025, in acting and in life, my family and I hope they are fulfilled, and we wish you every happiness.

Happy New Year...

I am saddened to learn of the passing of Actress, Olivia Hussey.
Strikingly beautiful and probably the most believable Juliet, she was a fine Actress and is a great loss.

Requiescat In Pace...

Well, once again we have reached the final day of October, which for many folks is celebrated as Halloween. To be honest, I don't really do it. Pumpkins, trick-or-treat and dressing up in scary outfits is so much imported nonsense if you ask me; and people have all but forgotten that it's actually the day before a Christian Festival. November 1 is All Saints' (All Hallows') Day; which makes October 31, 'All Hallows' Eve'. Hence the name.
It is also linked to the eve of the Gaelic Festival of 'Samhain' (pronounced 'Sar-win', I believe), which marked the end of the harvest season and beginning of the darker half of the year. Pagans believed that the veil which separated the living from the dead was thinnest at this time, from which comes the notion that ghostly apparitions can be seen.
One of these years I might stick a pumpkin out front and give the little blighters some sweets, but for now I shall probably stick with a time-honoured ritual of mine, and watch a favourite horror/suspense movie which I always reserve for Halloween: Night of the Demon (1957); directed by Jacques Tourneur.

Starring American Actor, Dana Andrews in the lead role of Dr. John Holden, and the rather lovely Actress, Peggy Cummins as Joanna Harrington, (both pictured here); the film was given an extra degree of menace by Niall MacGinnis who was magnificent in the role of devil-cult leader, Dr. Julian Karswell.
The film was released in the United States in a shorter version entitled: Curse of the Demon, but the British release is definitely the go-to version. It was criticized by some for showing the demon itself too early in the film, and yet I have always felt that even though the special effects show their age, and it was shot long before CGI, Night of the Demon is a genuinely eerie and menacing piece of cinema, made even more so by the incidental music and choice of locations which included Brocket Hall in Hertfordshire (as Lufford Hall), Stonehenge, Bricket Wood Railway Station and the Reading Room of the British Museum.

So whatever it means for you, I hope you have a good evening. I shall once again be on the edge of my seat during that final train carriage scene, wondering if Dana Andrews' character will succeed in passing the parchment in time!

Happy Halloween...
#amorvincitomnia #actor #actorslife #allhallowseve #allsaintsday #halloween #happyhalloween #greatmovies #horrormovies #nightofthedemon #suspensemovies #alwayschasingmagic

Just been watching 'The Sky at Night' and some ridiculously clever Astronomer chap was asked about something in his field that really annoyed him. He picked on the movie 'Titanic' (1997), pointing out that when Rose is lying on that floating board thing and freezing at the end of the film, she is looking at the stars in the clear sky. Well get this: that event took place on April 15, 1912, in the North Atlantic; but the STARS ARE WRONG! Apparently, the star field shown in the movie puts the character somewhere in the tropics in March! So this Astronomer fellow asks some pertinent questions about said movie... For example: how did the Navigator on Titanic drift so badly off course? And who put an iceberg in the tropics?
Just think, if only they had known where they were, Rose could have worn her bikini, and instead of dying in the freezing abyss, Jack could have swum in his Bermuda shorts.

This Astronomer has changed my life forever. I am an absolute stickler for historical accuracy in movies, and from now on I will never be able to unsee a tropical sky in March when I am watching Titanic sinking in the North Atlantic in April.

Disappointed, James Cameron... Disappointed.
​(In fairness, it was corrected in the 2012 re-release!)...

Surely the greatest assembly of Alpha Males in movie history! (Left to Right): Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Horst Buchholz, Robert Vaughn, Charles Bronson, Brad Dexter and James Coburn in: The Magnificent Seven (1960)...\\n

Directed by: John Sturges
\\nDistributed by: United Artists\\n

"There won't be any trouble - if you ride on."

Whatever your hopes are for 2024, I wish you and your loved-ones every blessing; and I shall be pleased to know that you are finding success and fulfilment.

​God Bless You All and Happy New Year...

​"Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbours, and let every new year find you a better man."

Benjamin Franklin