Blog 14

Reading down the list of theatre productions in London there are something like twenty musicals including a number of revivals. With the cost of mounting musicals these days this is really quite surprising. What happened to the minimum cast one set play managements always used to be asking for? I notice “Spamalot” is still there and thought, if Gilbert and Sullivan allegedly wrote a pornographic opera for the edification of their friends, maybe I should write a pornographic musical based on the legendary mythical court of King Arthur and call it “Spermalot.” I’m sure it would be a mega hit! Apart from a lot of symbolism and saucy double entendrés; lances, body armour, swords, cods, round tables, turrets, crennelations, swoonings, spoonings and moonings it could actually all be terribly innocent and frustrating right until the end when the eleven o’clock number could be off with a bang, off with the chastity belts, and then it’s lions rampant before the final curtain and everyone goes home happy, maybe for a spot of the real thing to the rhythm of the big number that brings down the curtain on act one. It couldn’t be worse than the original “Camelot” which I saw in Richmond, Virginia and hated to the point of embarrassment.
Have just finished reading Paul O’Grady’s autobiography, “At My Mother’s Knee – and other low joints” (an old music hall gag methinks?) and thoroughly enjoyed it. Whipped through it in a couple of days and, at one point, laughed so much I could have done myself a serious injury. As the book ends with the end of his teens and on a cliff-hanging note, I presume, hopefully, there will be more to come.
Stopping at Papyrus in Kalyves yesterday I browsed through their selection of second-hand paperbacks and can verily believe 120000 books in English are published every year. Just how many people are out there scribbling away all over the English speaking world? And what is it about a book that makes one want to buy it? They’re all top of the best seller lists, according to their publishers but although I recognised a number of names and was fairly intrigued by a number of titles there wasn’t one in which there was interest enough for me to make a purchase. I have, anyway, enough reading matter to last me quite a while. Apart from “Half of a Yellow Sun” that I am finding much more interesting than “Purple Hibiscus” which I gave up on, I have five books on loan which are, in no order of preference: “The Wood Beyond” by Reginald Hill, “Dead Simple” by Peter James, “The Outcast” by Sadie Jones, “The Ghost” Robert Harris and “Azincourt” by Bernard Cornwell.
So what have we been watching on TV? Well there has been nothing to speak of from any of the Greek stations so it’s been all DVDs. Still enjoying “Ugly Betty”, the second series, though did not like the episode with Alexis and Daniel doing their paint battle bit. Found this all rather silly, unbelievable, and consequently irritating. But that is the exception. Still don’t know what happened in Mexico to allow Mister Suarez to escape certain death! Did the son shoot his father, shoot himself, or put a hole in the ceiling? Maybe this will be explained in a later episode. Watched ten minutes or so of “Happy Feet” before walking out on that one. Douglas lasted a little longer but we evidently both missed, according to Chris who watched it to the end with the aid of the fast forward, the environmental message in the movie and the homage to various musicians whose music we’re not familiar with anyway. I seem to remember “The Quiet American” wasn’t all that well received by the critics but that one we did enjoy.