Joan Armatrading - now there is a talent, and a very nice person too, by all accounts. I saw her perform several times in her hayday, and loved every understated moment. For a long time, I understood that she was the unlikely partner of Valerie Singleton, another very important figure in my younger days. I liked the idea of two people whom I admired looking after each other as they got old in their Putney love nest, making desk tidies out of jam jars covered with Fablon with Joan's old hits playing in the background. But now I read that Valerie is not gay at all, and was shagging Peter Purves on the set of Blue Peter almost before the credits had finished rolling - so it seems that it was just another one of those urban myths. They'll be telling us next that Bob Holness didn't really play saxophone on "Baker Street".

Tom Waits - there's another one. Put him in front of a Glastonbury crowd and, whilst half would probably leave straight away, the rest would really see what talent looks like. His tour is now well under way in America, and is getting consistently rave reviews, both from the media and the punters. The set lists are surprisingly varied from one night to the next, and extremely diverse. People seem agreed that the best bits are when the band toddle off for some refreshment, leaving old Tom on his own at the piano to do some ballads, and I imagine that'll be my favourite bit as well. Only four weeks to go till we see him in Edinburgh, and the excitement is really building - I just hope he manages to keep his ageing, over-indulged self going that long!

Based (very loosely) on a bank heist that really did happen back in 1971, this is the story of a bunch of likely lads who saw a window of opportunity, took it and then lived to reap the whirlwind. When saucy pictures of a certain Royal end up in a safety deposit box in the vault of Lloyd’s Bank in Baker Street, England’s secret services are very keen to get them back. But how can they do that without acknowledging they exist in the first place? Simple - through a bit of coersion, get a group of petty criminals to pull off the bank job of the decade and ‘steal’ them.

The bait is model Martine (Saffron Burrows), who is told she’ll be let off a drugs charge if she can persuade her old school chum Terry (Jason Statham) and his band of bodgers to do the job. They agree and think they are free and clear when they pull the robbery off without a glitch. But unbeknownst to them, there is more than one batch of dodgy pictures in that vault and there are some very dangerous people out there who want their property back, including King of Smut Lew Vogel (Ian Suchet). So, they may have made off with lots of cash and jewellery, but if they’re not careful the whole team will never live long enough to spend it.

The dialogue in this film is so spot-on it drives the whole momentum of the movie effortlessly forward. Director, Roger Donaldson, expertly choreographs his large ensemble cast (including Stephen Campbell Moore, Keeley Hawes, Peter Bowles and Colin Salmon) and keeps them all real and believable, even though some pop in and out of the action frequently. There’s a great sense of 70s London and some nice pops at the English establishment and overall this is an action thriller with heart and intelligence. Dee Pilgrim

Buy yourself a copy here.

Unbelievable, certainly to me is the fact that it is thirty years ago this week that this song was released. From the wonderful City to City album, this is most probably the first record you think of when the name Gerry Rafferty is mentioned (although a close no. 2 would be Stealers Wheel Stuck in the Middle). The sax intro is one of the best known and recognisable in music played by Raphael Ravenscroft who also appeared on several Pink Floyd albums. Billy Connoly once recounted the first time he met Rafferty at a Humblebums gig in Paisley. Rafferty had come up to talk to Connolly and mentioned that he wrote songs. The two of them ended up at a party where Rafferty played Connolly some of his songs and very soon they teamed up. Once they parted ways and after a solo album (Can I have My Money Back) Rafferty teamed up with fellow Scots Ian Campbel, Rab Noakes and Joe Egan to form Stealers Wheel. They were billed as the Scottish Cosby Stills Nash and Young, but before they ever recorded Noakes and Campbell returned to Scotland and Stealers Wheel underwent various personel changes to record an eponymous album (which contained Stuck in the Middle) before Rafferty and Egan continued themselves under that name for a further two albums. A management company going bust and lengthy legal battles meant that Rafferty was effectively grounded for about three years during which he concentrated on writing songs. Baker Street was one of these. It's a classic.

Sherlock Holmes es, sin lugar a dudas, uno de los personajes literarios más fascinantes de la literatura moderna. Creado en 1891 por Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, protagonista de cuatro novelas largas y de cincuenta y seis historias breves, Holmes no tardó en escapar de las manos de su autor para caer en las zarpas codiciosas de una serie interminable de imitadores que han venido prolongando sus aventuras hasta nuestros días. Las miles de publicaciones sobre sus apócrifas hazañas, provocadas por el éxito de sus famosas deducciones y el clima de misterio que las envolvía, es probable que se debieran, también, a los muchos cabos sin atar que Doyle dejó sobre la contradictoria personalidad de su detective. Continuar satisfaciendo a los lectores con nuevos y alambicados “casos” y tratar de explicar las razones de su misoginia, su tendencia a la drogadicción, sus ataques de indolencia o su petulante arrogancia, debió considerarse un excelente pretexto para ganar dinero sin hacer mucho caso a los escrúpulos.

Sea como fuere, el caso es que la fama de Holmes continúa resultando un caso bastante insólito dentro, incluso, del género de la novela policiaca. Grandes especialistas en resolver crímenes y misterios como Hércules Poirot, la señorita Marple o Charlie Chan no consiguieron jamás sobrevivir a sus creadores o pudieron dar lugar a una asociación similar a The Baker Street Irregulars, destinada a divulgar y analizar la figura de este héroe velando, además, por la pureza de sus obras canónicas. Tampoco ninguno de sus colegas de cachimba y lupa consiguió que estudiosos como Ronald Knox les dedicasen una biografía en varios volúmenes como si de un hombre de carne y hueso se tratase. La conocida casa museo de Holmes en una céntrica arteria londinense, en resumidas cuentas, no es sino un escaparate más de un mundo inconcebible de imaginaciones que ha venido censándose puntualmente en la World Biliography of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson.

Hace tan sólo unas semanas, quien esto escribe ha vuelto a ser víctima de la fascinación que despierta el viejo Holmes al entrar en una librería y dar con dos sugerentes volúmenes que, bajo el título de Las hazañas de Sherlock Holmes firmaban, nada más y nada menos, que Adrian Conan Doyle –el hijo pequeño del creador de la saga– y John Dickson Carr, el célebre autor de novelas policiacas especialista en plantear y resolver el consabido problemade “la habitación cerrada por dentro”, artífice, asimismo, de la única biografía autorizada de Sir Arthur.

Se trata de una docena de relatos breves, editados por “Valdemar” (2002) –seis en cada pequeño tomo– que aparecieron por vez primera en 1953 y constituyen, según la crítica, una de las secuelas más decorosas y cuidadas de las aventuras originales. ¿Cómo resistirse a su compra estando el mullido sillón aguardando tardes de misterio lejos del televisor? Aunque un segunda lectura de El perro de los Baskerville me convenció de que las obras que integran el canon de Holmes no revelan, a la manera de los clásicos, nuevas interpretaciones y que ceñirse estrictamente al código, como aseguran hacer ambos autores, no garantiza emociones inéditas, ¿quién se niega a la posibilidad de volver a experimentar las agradables sensaciones que nos produjo una lectura de adolescencia? ¿No estamos, acaso, en época de prodigios y milagros?

The Reading Machine

Here is a video from that night courtesy of CSProductions:

It costs only £6 to enter and is a bit of a tourist trap.  It was very interesting with replica  magnifying glasses, pipes, hats and furniture to boot.  The floors squeaked which gave an eerie feel to the house but the general atmosphere was good.  Upstairs there were manniquins dressed up to portray famous cases and a book which displayed letters written to Sherlock Holmes over the years by people who obviously don't know the difference between fact and fiction.

There was an interesting letter by a young boy who seemed concerned for the safety of Sherlock Holmes, asking him to take care as he believed that the evil Professor Moriarty was travelling disguised as an old aged pensioner on the number 54 bus.  He added that he was convinced he was Moriarty as he was so evil to the children on board, saying nasty comments.  I thought it was sweet.

Afterwards, Rob insisted on a Pizza Hut so I opted for the salad bar.  I just wasn't in the mood for eating... the thought of pizza just made me feel sick.

Next we went to Northumberland Avenue to find the Sherlock Holmes pub.  Hey, we'd done the museum and now we thought we'd do the pub.  Just before we got to it we saw the Korean Cultural Centre UK and they were displaying a modern art exhibition with free admission.  Since we'd visited Seoul we thought it would be a fab idea to have a look round.  It was an interesting exhibition, although nothing special.  Unless you like the statue pictured called Dogs Facing.

So, all in all a very eventful day.  Now I just want to bum out on the couch and go to sleep.  Zzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Pinball Wizard - The Who

Wasn't I hearing just the other day that there's only one pinball company left? Ah well, we all have are heros, so this song will still be there even without pinball being ubiquitous...

Baker Street - Gerry Rafferty

What can I say about this song, really? It starts out with that great sax solo, and brings Baker Street to life in it's lyrics. I have a best of Gerry Rafferty cd with this song on it, and practically every song is magic on it. Amazing how he just slips through the cracks. This song came out the year I was born, incidentally.

Sister Moonshine - Supertramp

And this song is from Supertramp's "Crisis? What Crisis?". Supertramp never gets old with me, really. Almost anything from while Roger Hodgeson was still with the band is good. The volumes a little low, so you may want to crank it a little. I may be a bit biased on this, though. You may recall that my bio says I spent a lot of time living in the Grass Valley/Nevada City? Roger Hodgson lives in the area, so I've seen him live.

"Ocean's eleven" in varianta british !!!! Bazat pe povestea adevarata a jafului din 1971 asupra unei banci din Baker Street, poveste care a fost interzisa timp de 30 de ani printr-o ordonanta de guvern, filmul prezinta unul dintre cele mai controversate cazuri de talharie si coruptzie din anglia,in urma caruia nu s-a facut nici o arestare, shi nici un ban nu a fost recuperat !!! Pe scurt: e vorba de jaful unei banci,un jaf extrem de simplu care a devenit pe parcurs extrem de complicat...atat va spun !!! Filmul e un thriler captivant,o sa va placa garantat, shi ,dupa ce il vezi , te face sa vrei sa aflii mai multe dsespre adevaratul " jaf din Baker Street " VIEW TRAILER

As any reader, even the occasional visitor, would know I am little obsessed with House, M.D. It is more than a simple television show for me. It is a tv character, finally, who has the same attitudes and personality quirks that I can truly understand. I took a little under three months to explore and watch every episode made. It was one of the greatest binges of indulgence I have undergone in my life. I never went more than three days without an episode of House.

This obsession has reached a temporary end. I have loaned the first season disks to my uncle for him to watch and given his propensity to take his time with such endeavors, I doubt I will be able to rewatch those disks for some time. Also, this season has been a slight change of pace and with the current wait until April 28th for the next episode I have had to resort to new methods of feeding my addiction.

Clearly, House is an amalgamation of Dr. Watson and his limp and Sherlock and his brain. In my search for something to fill the void, I decided I should revisit Mr. Holmes and his stories. When I was a child, my grandfather would watch Jeremy Brett bring to life Sherlock on Baker Street. It was a chillingly real show with no frills. Very true to the literature. I have also watched a movie with Brett as Sherlock recently and they are still the unchallenged best portrayals.

It has been an excellent study differentiating House and Holmes. Their styles are the same. Their attitudes towards people are as crass and clever. Their motives hold true. The stark contrast between Holmes and House is towards women. House is a player, Holmes does not pursue.

Hugh Laurie has truly created a character for the ages. His acting in Jeeves and Wooster (an older British comedy) is good, but certainly less refined and more cheeseball.  But, the continuity he has brought to House is something only a master can create. The accent is beyond brilliant, the limp is never off, the mannerisms are not mere replications of Laurie himself (a few are, but not many), and even the delivery of the lines mark a level of character creation I have rarely seen.  Finding a match like that is more rare than finding a condom on a unplanned one night stand.  The perfect match of face, body, voice, and mannerisms to embody a fictional and never before seen person.

So, while I wait for the return of Gregory House, M.D. and will tune in to the new episodes with eager anticipation, I know that I will never have that same feeling I had for three months.  I lived alone, had few friends, spent every waking moment studying this character, and nothing could have been more fulfilling.  This strange obsession with characters is in some way a reflection of my lack of having a true identity.

Resumo: Em Setembro de 1971 alguns ladrões cavaram um túnel até ao cofre de um banco na Rua Baker, em Londres, e roubaram cofres particulares que continham jóias e dinheiro, no valor de milhões e milhões de libras. Nada foi recuperado. Ninguém foi preso. O assalto fez notícia nos jornais durante alguns dias e, de repente, desapareceu – resultado de uma "mordaça" colocada à imprensa por parte do governo inglês. Este filme revela o que estava escondido dentro desses cofres particulares, envolvendo assassínios, corrupção e escândalo sexual com ligações à família real – uma história onde os ladrões eram, das pessoas envolvidas, os mais inocentes.

Un film englezesc e, în general, diferit de un film american.

Un jaf englezesc poate fi diferit de unul american.

De unde rezultã cã un film fãcut de un australian despre un jaf englezesc este cu siguranţã diferit.

Reţeta e sigurã pentru succes: avem o bancã ce va fi devastatã, avem nişte poliţai corupţi, poze compromiţãtoare cu persoane foarte importante de la nivel înalt, chiar din curtea regalã, culturã pop a anilor '70 şi, evident, banda de hoţi. Care-ţi sunt simpatici de la bun început, sunt stângaci şi au umor, iar şeful e...da, doamnelor şi domnilor, nimeni altul decât Jason Statham, pe care vi-l aduceţi cu siguranţã aminte din „Lock, Stock...” şi „Snatch”.

Ai zice cãla aşa un amalgam, s-ar putea sã pierzi firul şi sã nu mai ştii cine e cu cine şi viceversa. Dar scenariul e deştept construit, te ţine în prizã, pentru cã situaţiile în care intrã ãştia micii sunt uriaşe chiar şi pentru MI5. Iţele se tot încurcã şi se descurcã, dar cine trebuie sã scape, scapã şi prinde peşte la final de film.

Ce e iarãşi diferit faţã de poveştile cusute deja cu aţã albã şi cu plasã de efecte speciale din filmele hollywoodiene este cã povestea asta chiar s-a întâmplat. Povestea jafului de pe Baker Street, a cãrui dosar e în continuare secret, jaf mai mult decât minunat, pentru cã ce e mai frumos decât sã goleşti nişte case de valori despre al cãror conţinut nu ştie nimeni, decât proprietarii? Şi nici ei nu sunt siguri cã vor sã-l declare, dacã mã înţelegeţi.

Un film pe care cu siguranţã îl voi mai vedea, pentru scenariu, accent de la mama lui şi zâmbetul de la final.

Concluzie de final de „The Bank Job”:

„The thieves were the most innocent people involved.”

Tv-serien utspelar sig någon gång strax före sekelskiftet och handlar om några barn på Baker Street som med pojken Wiggins som ledare hjälper Sherlock Holmes att lösa olika fall. Förebilden för tv-serien var förstås barnen i "the Baker Street Irregulars" som förekommer i några av sir Arthur Conan Doyles berättelser om Holmes. Tv-serien var uppdelad i åtta halvtimmesavsnitt, där varje mysterium omfattade två avsnitt. Idén till serien kom från Anthony Read och han skrev även manus till två av mysterierna.

Drygt tjugo år senare har Anthony Read omvandlat sina manus till barn- och ungdomsdeckare. Och det funkar riktigt bra. Den första heter "Pojkarna på Baker Street: Fallet med den försvunne detektiven" och är utgiven av Argasso förlag, översättning Helena Olsson.

De sex gatubarnen - fyra pojkar och två flickor - lever i stor fattigdom och får ständigt slåss mot hunger och kyla. Men de har varandra och lyckas på något sätt hanka sig fram. Några av dem har småjobb, men annars utgörs inkomsterna oftast av de shillingmynt de får av Sherlock Holmes för att bevaka ett hus eller leta reda på någon person, på det sätt som bara gatubarn kan göra obemärkt. Anthony Read går kanske inte på djupet i någon sorts dickensk skildring av barnens misär, men han balanserar det på ett äkta sätt mot själva detektivhistorien.

Berättelsen tar sin utgångspunkt i ett bevakningsuppdrag som Holmes har gett Pojkarna på Baker Street. Det är, enligt Holmes, av stor nationell betydelse att de bevakar vartenda steg den mystiske amerikanen tar. Även Holmes deltar i bevakningen, men plötsligt är mästerdetektiven försvunnen. Alla spår tar slut vid en omsorgsfullt igenbommad dörr.

Förutom Sherlock Holmes möter vi även dr Watson, kommissarie Lestrade, professor Moriarty och andra bekanta från Holmes-historierna, men de förekommer alla ganska sparsamt. Fokus blir istället på barnens agerande, som känns riktigt trovärdigt. Det är fartfyllt och spännande och själva detektivhistorien är klurig så att det räcker. Slutet är möjligen lite för hastigt avklarat, det känns upplagt för ännu mer action och allt går lite för lätt.

Tidsfärgen i boken är fint fångad med droskor, dimma, ånglok och dynamitattentat. Lite tveksam är jag till den snabbgående automobilen som susar fram mot slottet Windsor. Det var fortfarande på den tiden svårt att komma upp i över 30 km/h med de allra nyaste bilarna och då är det frågan om inte häst och vagn hade gått snabbare att förflytta sig med. Men det är bara en petitess i sammanhanget. Och ska man hänga upp sig på petitesser så kan man överhuvudtaget fundera på hur Wiggins kan ha bevarat sin ungdom från Conan Doyles omnämnanden av honom i berättelser som utspelar sig på 1880-talet, men låt oss se detta som författarens frihet. Det är inget som stör någon annan läsare än en inbiten sherlockian.

Boken bygger på manuset till en av tv-historierna, men har omarbetats grundligt så att endast stommen känns igen. Man får i alla fall aldrig någon känsla av att det är ett tv-manus som omvandlats till bok - det är tvärtom en berättelse som står på helt egna ben i bokform. Lustigt nog gav BBC 1983 själva ut en bok som byggde på tv-serien, fast då skriven av Brian Hall.

Jag ser fram emot att läsa nästa bok i serien, "Pojkarna på Baker Street: Fallet med den olyckliga tankeläsaren", som kommer ut hösten 2008.

Winding your way down on Baker Street
Lite in your head, and dead on your feet
Well another crazy day, you drink the night away
And forget about everything
This city desert makes you feel so cold, its got
So many people but its got no soul
And its taken you so long to find out you were wrong
When you thought it held everything.
You used to think that it was so easy
You used to say that it was so easy
But you’re tryin, you’re tryin now
Another year and then you’d be happy
Just one more year and then you’d be happy
But you’re cryin’, you’re cryin now
Way down the street there’s a light in his place
You open the door, he’s got that look on his face
And he asks you where you’ve been, you tell him who you’ve seen
And you talk about anything
He’s got this dream about buyin’ some land
He’s gonna give up the booze and the one night stands
And then he’ll settle down, it’s a quiet little town
And forget about everything
But you know he’ll always keep moving
You know he’s never gonna stop moving
Cause he’s rollin, He’s the rolling stone
And when you wake up it’s a new morning
The sun is shining it’s a new morning
And you’re going, you’re going home

The movie is based on an infamous robbery from 1971. Terry (Jason Statham) and his friends are offered a bank job by an old friend who has some inside information. The small time crooks decide to take up the job to rob the safe deposit boxes at Lloyd's Bank in London. What they don't know is that these boxes hold some very big secrets including one that is linked to the Royal family and before they know it, they are entangled in a web that threatens their lives.

This isn't an entertainer like The Italian Job or the Ocean's movies or a slick, charming enterprise like Guy Ritchie's Snatch or Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. Nonetheless, it is an engaging, well-made caper flick. Director Roger Donaldson (The World's Fastest Indian, Dante's Peak) maintains the tension throughout and writers Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais (who worked together on films like Flushed Away and Goal!) weave together the intricate subplots competently. It would have been quite easy to confuse the audience but credit to the writers, director and the editor, John Gilbert (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Bridge to Terabithia) that this does not happen. Jason Statham is sincere and convincing. He can carry a film on his shoulders but this film carries itself. The large supporting cast filled with British actors (most of whom I haven't come across) is effective.

It is hard to discuss this film without giving away some of its secrets but the various subplots (apparently based on reality or at least what is known of it) keep you hooked. The robbery itself is a well-executed, tense affair. The intelligently plotted climax comes at you quick and ties up all the ends together but if you blink, you might miss one or two key moments. In between all this, the characters are given some personality and a love triangle finds its place too. There isn't a lot of humor but you don't really miss it because the film is paced well and doesn't let your mind wander. This is well worth a watch.

Programme du jour : Amandine et Londres.

Je me réveille à 7h15, et commence une discussion avec mes poupées, en anglais et en chuchotant. Puis, comme je sais que Célya est en congé ce week-end, j'appelle "Papa".

Nous descendons dans la salle à manger pour prendre notre petit dej, Célya arrive, suivie de Maman et d'Amandine.

Amandine était une des "finalistes" du recrutement de mon Au-Pair à l'été 2006, elle a ensuite passé presque 1 an aux USA, et mes parents ont toujours suivi ses aventures, et elle, mon blog.

Elle m'offre 3 livres Dora et un petit ensemble Dora également. Je fais ensuite des muffins avec Maman, et des tours de bassine à linge avec mes parents. Evidemment, j'éclate de rire !

!!!

Nous nous préparons, et vers 11h nous partons visiter Londres. Train jusqu'à Paddington Station, Métro jusqu'à Baker Street, et nous voilà dans le bus pour le circuit du "parfait touriste". Amandine prend des photos de tous les batiments, pendant que je commence a devenir un peu pénible.

Nous faisons un arrêt vers 13h pour déjeuner, mais le service est lent, lent, leeeennnnnnt !!! Evidemment, je m'énerve, Papa se fâche, et je termine dans ma poussette en pleurant.

Nous continuons ensuite notre périple dans Londres, et terminons notre visite par un magasin de souvenir que j'ai particulièrement apprécié. En effet, il y avait des peluches partout.

Nous reprenons le train pour rentrer, et faisons une halte au Tesco. Je pleure pour un rien, Papa décide donc que nous attendrons Maman et Amandine dans la voiture. A peine assise, je m'endors immédiatement.

Arrivée à la maison, un biberon, et à 20h30, je demande à ce que Papa me couche. Rédacteur : Patrick-Robin, mon Papa.

Baker Street station was opened by the Metropolitan Railway (MR) on 10 January 1863 as one of the original stations on the world's first underground railway - these platforms are now served by the Circle and Hammersmith & City lines.

Empezó su carrera como músico callejero. Su primer grupo fue los Humblebums, para después sacar un disco en solitario, y en 1972 formó un nuevo grupo, Stealers Wheel, junto a Joe Egan. Desde 1975, en que se rompió este último grupo, ha sacado todos sus discos en solitario. Su canción más conocida es "Baker Street", del disco City to city.