This is one of my current favorites, but then I have to see the first episode of Dexter tonight and things may change. But anyway, it looks like HBO is getting back into their game. Alan Ball is certainly back on form with True Blood which is based on the stories by Charlaine Harris about Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin) and vampires. The opening title tune evokes the feel of the series. This is the opening credits. We are now on to episode four so try and catch up (suggest check out on-demand).
I am trying to keep my political comments on my other blog. But since this one is not factual un-doctored footage but more of a political satire I think it should remain on this site. A very well done piece.
Mock the Week is a Topical comedy panel game on BBC2 in the UK. I'm surprised that with all the other US remakes of UK TV shows that this one has not been attempted. Of course with our current crop of politicians it would be renamed Mock the Weak.
But for all that this is funny.
Of course having viewed these three clips, if it was to be on TV in the US it would have to be on HBO, Showtime or Cinemax. Otherwise it wouldn't be worth watching.
This was the only entertaining section in the whole Emmy broadcast last night. As usual Ricky Gervais was truly funny. Don Rickles was not bad, but then the old pro's know how to do it without prompters.
The rest of the show was an overlong bore, with way too many commercials and way way too many reality hosts.
This is a truly amazing and beautiful feat of engineering. The next time I am in Cambridge I will surely visit it.
£1m timepiece with no hands or numbers is unveiled by Stephen Hawking. Renowned scientist Stephen Hawking unveiled a remarkable clock that has no hands and shows time with the help of light. Known as the Corpus Clock, the machine has been invented by and designed by Dr John Taylor for Corpus Christi College Cambridge for the exterior of the college's new library building. The Clock was unveiled today, 19th September by Stephen Hawking, cosmologist and author of the global bestseller, A Brief History of Time. Dr Taylor, an inventor and horologist, has put £500,000 of his own money and seven years into developing the clock, which has been inspired from a design by a clock made by the legendary John Harrison, the pioneer of longitude. One of John Harrison's many innovations, he came up with the 'grasshopper escapement, explained Dr Taylor, referring to the device used by Harrison to turn rotational motion into a pendulum motion for timekeeping. No one knows how a grasshopper escapement works, so I decided to turn the clock inside out and, instead of making the escapement 35 mm across, it is 1.5 m across, he said.
He calls the new version of the escapement a Chronophage (time-eater) a fearsome beast which drives the clock, literally eating away time.
America's Got Talent I know earlier in the year, and last year, I featured some clips from Britain's Got Talent. I have wavered on doing it for AGT since quite honestly, with a few exceptions, America don't have talent, or else they all wasted it all on Idol. Piers is obviously bored most of the time, Sharon is too nice most of the time taking the Paula road, and the Hoff is a total butt kissing flake. But I have to say the only reason to watch this show for me is these two guys, Nuttin' But Stringz. Talent will out I guess, they went to Juliard so that say's a lot for me. You can't buy your way in to Juliard. You must have talent. And these two have it in spades. True I am a fan of the violin, and I love it when soemone talented "rocks" the violin. If these two guys don't win there is no justice.
Antony Hegarty is an English-Irish singer-songwriter, best known for being the lead singer of the band Antony and the Johnsons. Born in Sussex, UK in 1971, Hegarty's family moved to Amsterdam in 1977, before settling in California in 1981. As a teenager he was influenced by the British synth pop of the time – in particular emotive singers such as Marc Almond, Alison Moyet and Boy George.In 1990 he moved to Manhattan to attend the Experimental Theatre Wing of NYU and founded the performance collective Blacklips with creative partner Johanna Constantine. [Wikipedia]
This guy has an amazing voice, but I guess we will have to wait until next year for his new album The Crying Light to appear.
This is from the tribute to Leonard Cohen movie "I'm Your Man" here is Antony singing "If it be your will". Just amazing.
Antony And The Johnsons performing for BBC Four Sessions in 2005. The song is "Fistful of Love" from his "I am a bird now" CD.
On Wednesday we went to see the Chihuly at the De Young exhibit. I think it ends around the 28 of this month, so if you have never seen Chihulys glass I can strongly recommend it. However I do have to say that I enjoyed his work much better when I saw it in Atlanta in 2004. It was at the Botanical Gardens and the contrast of the glass and nature was much more pleasing to me than glass and blank walls.
It's been a while so I feel we are in need of a John Otway fix.
An obvious BBC commentator commenting on John Otway and his style. Very funny.
And in case you need a musical fix from John, here is Geneva with orchestral backing. This is one of his more poignant songs.
Check out the lyrics and see if you don't agree with the poignant tag.
Geneva take her to yourself And Watch her while she rests,she talks of you as home Ill try to get to her somehow While in your arms she lies I hope she will not feel alone And I for the many things I've done, carry on and play the same songs Cos I never knew a better way of loving... Do you? For she is so young and my dreams will see me playing for the screaming ladies of Los Angeles And when I decided that would be my stage I was her age I remember that was a tender time for me
Geneva, Easters been and gone and fate has played its hand and I am on my own But warm is the hand that holds my arm And always leads me on so I never can stay long So smile I'll see you in a while As a tourist and a child but not a loser For you knew love is a very much harder thing to have For I am still young and it's true That I don't forget and I don't regret and I ain't going to And as I wipe away all the traces of Lisa blues It is my shoes that walk across the stage for the applause Geneva take her to yourself And Watch her while she rests you know she talks of you as home.
It's time to get back to the music, been away too long and I have not been posting any music. I just sort of discovered the Mediæval Bæbes, and really like their sound. Then I found this video by Delerium, an old favorite of mine, using the Baebes on vocals. Bliss. Delerium - Aria Delerium video of the song Aria sung in 'Middle-English' language. Vocals by Mediaeval Baebes.
Mediæval Bæbes - Adam Lay Ibounden (live) A live version of a very nice song. Who knows what it means!
Octopii love, fun animation that looks like it takes place in Santorini. Enjoy the fun, and if you have never been to Santorini you are missing out on one of the greatest places on earth.
[Presurfer] A film by Julien Bocabeille, Francois-Xavier Chanioux, Olivier Delabarre, Thierry Marchand, Quentin Marmier and Emud Mokhberi from French animation school Gobelins.
