Update 43
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Monday saw me back at the dentist for replacement of a crown for the second time. I’m partial to chewy caramels but unfortunately they are adept at pulling crowns from their supposedly fixed locations - careful does it when chewing a caramel. On Wednesday we went to the Waitrose cafe for coffee with composer / arranger Robin A Smith and his partner Sallie Taylor. Robin’s just finished a UK tour with his reworking of Mike Oldfield’s ‘Tubular Bells’.
We talked about the decision as to whether the planned tour of Australia should be made by the original UK based musicians or by a home grown Australian band. It turns out that the cost of rehearsing a new band would far exceed the cost of bringing over the British team, plus it’s doubtful the British guys could be bettered anyway. It’s always exciting talking to professional musicians about putting this sort of project together. Our session musicians are among the best in the world and because most of our orchestras employ a considerable number of freelancers, it’s always possible to create an outstanding ensemble whatever the show’s potential.
We spent Wednesday and Thursday nights with our friends Igor and Ellen who live in the delightful town of Ludlow in Shropshire, in fact their house is one of the most attractive houses I’ve ever seen, so much so, I thought you too might enjoy seeing it:
Broad Street,Ludlow, Shropshire
Politically there’s not a lot happening in England. In the USA or Scotland it’s a different story. In my heart I’m hoping Trump’s career is slowing to a halt but my head increasingly accepts the proposition that his arrest is turning him into an even bigger hero of the right and will therefore perhaps benefit from an upswing in his electability. In Scotland it becomes clearer by the day that the SNP’s consistent electoral success had much more to do with Sturgeon’s effectiveness as a serious and genuinely clever politician than the practical viability of her personal belief in an independent Scotland. The pace of the independent movement’s progression will now be set much more by Northern Ireland than by Scotland.
Scott Benton is merely the latest MP whose corruption has been lane bare by investigative journalists, this time working for the Times. It’s depressing just how keen our political representatives are to prostitute their reputations on the altar of pure greed. There is no honour, there are no longer any standards to be upheld, and there is no longer such a disincentive to behaving badly as good old fashioned shame. We have no Constitution in the UK so that the maintenance of standards requires that public figures behave honourably of their own volition. If , as appears increasingly to be the case, they fail to do so, then the ongoing health of our society is very much in jeopardy. Sorry to be the bearer of bad, but realistic news.
For Easter Sunday we have been invited to Madley for lunch with Simon and his family. Two of the boys will have their girlfriends with them so there’ll be nine of us plus Manny the very friendly Labrador and some excellent bottles of wine. I think I reported on my purchase of the Jancis Robinson wine course from BBC Maestro - well it’s proved to be a fascinating investment and a source not just of knowledge but also of much pleasure.
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