Failure is the Key to Success

Better late than never! I will finally get round to finishing and posting this!

Last Saturday A couple of weekends ago, we went down to the Royal Albert Hall in London to see the Classical Spectacular concert. We got the tickets back in April as it always sells out very quickly. It seemed a long way off at the time.

Anyway, on Saturday we went to the Music Centre as normal for the first two sessions and left at break time to take the instruments home. Then we drove over the Hemel Hempstead to catch the train. It takes about 25-30 minutes, which is similar to the time it would take to get to Luton Parkway station, however Hemel is much quieter and there is a huge carpark, so parking is never an issue. After buying our tickets, we only had to wait about 5 minutes for the next train to Euston; we were able to get seats without problem. The train was quick and clean, only stopping at Watford Junction on the way to Euston.

Continue reading » Classical Spectacular

I was reading the post on Red Monkey about Dollhouse the other night and it got me thinking about the scifi series that had been on over the years that I had watched and enjoyed. Of course there are the ones that Red Monkey mentioned: Tru Calling, Dark Angel and Firefly which are long gone, Terminator:The Sarah Conner Chronicles now finished and Dollhouse which has just started showing in the UK and has been renewed for a second season.

Then you have the classic Babylon 5 from the 1990’s. This ran for 5 seasons and spawned several films. I still love watching episodes of this when I get the chance. One of the things I liked about it was the long story arcs, sometimes across all seasons. Although they were individual episodes, they all fitted into the overall story. The characters were believable and watch able. I’ll mention the less than successful spin-off series Crusade. This failed due to studio interference and was cancelled before it even aired. Only 13 episodes were made.

Continue reading » SciFi series that have been and gone

Tags:scifi

Yesterday, 21st May, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith made the announcement to the House of Commons that the Gurkha Justice Campaign have been fighting for for years. All ex-Gurkhas who have served more than 4 years in the British Army will have the right to settle in the UK if they wish.

For the first time I had contacted my MP Andrew Selous, via www.theyworkforyou.com, at the end of April and asked if he could support the vote in Parliament calling for a fair deal for Gurkhas and had an email back that evening to say that he would be voting in support of the Gurkhas. Following the government’s defeat in the Commons over the issue, it was only a matter of time before they had to bow to public opinion.

Tags:Gurhka,Gurhka Justice Campaign

We just watched ‘The Hunt for Gollum’. It is a 40 minute, unofficial, not for profit short film. It is only available to watch on the Hunt for Gollum website.

From the website: ‘The script is adapted from elements of the appendices of The Lord of the Rings. The story follows the Heir of Isildur; the “greatest huntsman and traveller in Middle Earth” as he sets out to find the creature Gollum. The creature must be found to discover the truth about the Ring, and to protect the future Ringbearer.’

It was made for about £3000, which is a long way from the $270 million budget that Peter Jackson had for the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Considering this, it is brilliant. It doesn’t feel like it was made for next to nothing. It fits well into J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-Earth that Peter Jackson brought to life and at times you forget that you are watching something else. The funding was raised by donations from fans.

The music was composed specially for the film and has the same feeling as Howard Shore’s original scores, which just adds to the total package.

If you enjoyed Lord of the Rings pop over to The Hunt For Gollum movie website (http://www.thehuntforgollum.com) and have a watch.

Continue reading » The Hunt for Gollum

Tags:Born of Hope,Dúnedain,Lord of the Rings,The Hunt for Gollum

We were considering going over to Aldbury, a picturesque village in Hertfordshire, for their May Fair today, but true to form for a Bank Holiday Monday, it started raining. While it would have been great to see the dancing around the maypole and the morris dancers, standing in to rain to do so didn’t really appeal.

Anyway, this year, there was a carnival procession again. Last year the procession had to be cancelled as there were too few entrants. It was going to be leaving the council offices at 12:00 noon on the route through the town to the Bennett Memorial Recreation Ground. We walked up to the end of the road with some of our neighbours just before 12 and other than a policewoman, were the only ones there. As the rain was coming towards us, I took my camera to the other side of the road so it was coming from behind me. The road filled up quite a lot before the procession came by.

The parade was led by Harpenden Pipe Band, who led the 2007 Dunstable Carnival procession. They had dressed for the British weather! I got several photos of them, a couple of which I have put on in a gallery of Dunstable Carnival 2009 photos. I have tried to include photos of all of the entrants in the procession in my gallery, although, I seemed to have missed the mayor!

The one that made me smile the most was the clown at the end, she seemed in a world of her own walking in the rain, and then she realised she was quite a way back from the others and had to catch up. All in all it was all over in about 20-25 minutes, but worth watching.

It’s just a shame after the effort people put into the procession that the weather couldn’t have been better. I was very pleased with the clarity of the images I got considering the poor light. Not all the photos were good photos, more a record of being there.

Tags:dunstable carnival,Harpenden Pipe Band

The UK government released new rules today, clarifying the application criteria for Gurkhas who wish to settle in the United Kingdom.

The government had originally denied the automatic right to settle here to any Gurkha who had retired before 1997, but this was overturned in the High Court last year. The judge, Mr Justice Blake, said the Gurkhas’ long service, conspicuous acts of bravery and loyalty to the Crown all pointed to a “moral debt of honour” and gratitude felt by British people. He ruled that instructions given by the Home Office to immigration officials were unlawful and needed urgent revision.

The Gurkhas have served all across the world in the defence of our Country for nearly 200 years. Over 45,000 died in the two World Wars as part of the British Army. They are still fighting in the British Army today.

The governments new rules mean that permission to settle in the United Kingdom for those who retired before 1997 may be granted if they meet one of the following:

• Have spent at least three years continuous lawful residence in the United Kingdom during or after service;
• Have close family settled in the United Kingdom with whom you enjoy family life within the meaning of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR);
• Received a Level 1-3 Award for gallantry, leadership or bravery for service in the Brigade; (Level 1: Victoria Cross; Level 2: DSO/DCM, DSO/DCM Bar, IDSM (India Distinguished Service Medal); Level 3: Military Cross, Military Cross Bar Military Medal, Military Medal Bar, Jangi Inam)
• Completed 20 or more years’ service in the Brigade;
• Have a chronic/long term medical condition which is attributable to, or was aggravated by, service in the Brigade.

Continue reading » Gurkha veterans betrayed by UK government

Tags:Gurhka,Gurhka Justice Campaign