Mum's Monday: The Second Sleep by Robert Harris

This type of book is not normally my type of thing. I was recommended it and the more I thought about it the more intrigued I became, in the end enough to buy it and to start reading it. I should say I like paranormal stories and books set in places I have visited. This is, I have been reliably being informed about kind of ‘Time travel’, a priest and set in an Exmoor village, somewhere I haven’t been to.  

As I am reading the first two chapters I get the sense that this will actually be an interesting book for me to read. I am happy to read on and see how it progresses, a sign of a good book if you are not normally into the initial subject of it. 

During reading this first part of the book there is mention of a ‘Curfew’ and also the members of the house hold are up in the middle of the night and the title of the book ‘The Second Sleep’ is mentioned. In the year 1468 this must mean something, with my lack of too much knowledge of the history around this time and the fact that the story doesn’t go into an awful lot of detail as yet on this particular subject, so for me I don’t want to put this book down to find out more. 

In chapter six, whilst reading the letter I forgot that this is a story set in the 1400s. this is brilliantly well written I really don’t want to put it down. 

It is heart-warming how Father Christopher Fairfax reacted to what he found at the ‘Piggeries’, a little comforting can be very reassuring to the mother. 

Despite Rose wanting or as it first seemed Rose wanted Father Fairfax gone, I read that he may have a murder mystery to solve. Only reading on will tell and what has Rose revealed to him? I still don’t want to put this book down, the plot as they say thickens. 

This book is a good example of ‘A Priest’s work is never done’. With some good news to announce, Father Fairfax wants to leave after the Sunday service, yet as there is still a lot more of this book to read, something else may come up to prevent him. It has already been mentioned that ‘If he stays too long he may never leave’. This is all very well written. 

I can see the irresistible draw to visit where Father Lacy was found dead, after reading about all the place in England that has somehow disappeared. It is interesting to read about either obscure places or made up for the purpose of this book. I wouldn’t mind looking to see if the place mentioned in this book is real or not. If they are it will be nice to think about/learn more of the places not so well known in the UK.  

I would like to know why Shadwell’s demonstration was thought to be illegal, hopefully as I read on I will find out. What I do find interesting is how the characters in this book think all the items/events happened long ago in the past, but when talking about things in the future back in the 1400s, it is realistic not to have the understanding of things as we do today in the year 2019. Or have/did the events happen the way it is described in this book? I do wonder how this story will end. 

This could be seen as a controversial story with priest’s breaking their vows. This is a brave but sadly, I feel a realistic book in maybe a case or two. Although this isn’t the only storyline where a priest has broken their vows. There is ‘The Thorn Birds’ with Richard Chamberlain, ‘Father Ted’ with Dermot Morgan and even a storyline in the Australian soap ‘Neighbours’. Sadly, the phrase ‘No smoke without fire’ springs to mind for real life.  

It is intriguing as the ‘Dig begins’ to see what the group will find. One member of the team has already found his books he thought he had lost, which is a good thing, but the plot is thickening still and I want to read until the end. I do like how things are described in this story, but the name of the item is not actually mentioned, yet instinctively I know what the things are.  

I have no clue how this story could end, how all that is happening can come together. Now I have read too the end, this book doesn’t actually end how I thought it would. It seems, now I don’t want to give away the ending, but you could say this story is about ‘The Second’ something. 

The Written Podcast: New York (Part 11) – The Phantom of the Opera

One of the items on my to do list was to see a Broadway show. Being so popular, I was expecting the tickets to be incredibly difficult to get hold of. There’s a chance I’d be told I would have to book well in advance to stand a chance of getting a good seat. 

Before I came to New York, I was given the advice by someone who’s been there and had the pleasure of experiencing a Broadway show. She told me to go as early as possible, preferably as son as they open to stand a better chance of getting a ticket, but you’ll be extremely lucky to get any ticket close to the stage as they’ll be snatched up by people who’ve pre-booked months in advance. 

It was still raining when coming out of Bloomindales, and the majority of what I had on my list of things to do was done yesterday, so really, a Broadway Show was among the few items left. I thought it wouldn’t hurt just to see what shows they had on and see if I could purchase myself one. I immediately prepared myself for a restricted seat that had a corner of the stage cut off by a pillar, but at least I was there, and it was my own fault for not following the advice I was given. 

The kiosk for buying tickets for numerous shows was in Times Square. The set of stairs tourists stand on to get a decent eye view of the crossroads; the kiosk is built into those stairs, around the back. A good use of space, I’d say. 

The only question I had whilst walking to Times Square was what show I want to see. I concluded that there was no point of me trying to decide because I simply do not know what they’ve got, and considering it’s in the middle of the day, there’s a strong chance all the good shows have been sold out. Once I was there, drenched once more, I read through what shows they had on offer, and as expected, each one was a show I’ve never heard of, except one: The Phantom of the Opera. My mum and dad have seen that show, and they’ve raved about how good it was. I was to young at the time to go and see it, but it wasn’t necessarily one I absolutely wanted to go and see anyway. I never really dedicated my time into booking tickets for the show. But I have heard of it. I do know the story, unlike the others in the list, and if it’s on the board, that means there’s still tickets available for it. I made a snap decision. I sought it logical to go and see a show I’m familiar with but haven’t seen instead of a show I haven’t seen nor am familiar with and dislike it. At least with The Phantom of the Opera I’m familiar enough with it to say I don’t dislike it. I wanted to see a Broadway Show, The Phantom of the Opera still has tickets available, I’d be foolish to pass on the opportunity. 

The kiosk wasn’t as busy as I had expected it to be. Maybe it was the rain or maybe most people were already at their shows, whilst there were a few people queueing up, there were plenty of booths open for seven people to be served at once, allowing the queue to whittle down quickly to my turn. Asking for one ticket to see The Phantom of the Opera, I hardly believed the answer I received. One ticket available within the front row. I wasn’t the only ticket left, but it was the only seat available for someone like me who’s on their own, in the front row. There was definitely no way I was going to let that one slip through my fingers. $80 later, I purchased myself a front row ticket to The Phantom of the Opera, somehow, and the show starts in an hour’s time. I’d better make my way to the theatre right away. As I was walking through the streets, I stronger the disbelief of the situation became. It was one of those “right place, right time” moments. 

The theatre was grand, and there was a massive queue of people outside, eagerly waiting for the doors to open so they can get out of the wet and cold weather. Joining the end, about fifteen minutes later, the doors open and a security guard stood in the doorway, demanding everyone open their bags and have them ready for checking. You’re not allowed to take food and drink into the theatre, which means the person checking my bag needs to be retrained because there was food in my bag – a doughnut I brought from Dunkin’ Doughnuts whilst walking to Times Square. I didn’t mention that until now simply because I wanted to emphasise the fact, I walked into a theatre that strictly prohibits outside food being brought into the building with a doughnut in my bag, because the security guard barely even looking in my bag. He was the terrible version of the amazing guard back at the Empire State Building. I didn’t plan for that to happen. If I had known they were going to throw away outside food, I wouldn’t have brought the doughnut, and fully prepared for them to take it out of my bag and throw it in the bin, but he didn’t. And it wasn’t hidden either, but merely resting on top of my stuff inside my bag. I made sure not to draw attention to myself about that, even when the person behind me did have their food taken away from them, because reasons, I guess, going by the logic he displayed towards me. 

The Phantom of the Opera was amazing, especially when viewing it from the front row seat, literally on top of the orchestra. The acting was superb, the music was incredibly atmospheric, and the titular song sung by the two lead actors was something else entirely. Hearing it sung by many artists over the years is one thing, but being at a Broadway Show, hearing it and watching it sung right in front of you is another thing entirely. I was right in choosing The Phantom of the Opera over the ones I never heard of. I certainly recommend it if you have any opportunity to go and see it. The set pieces on stage alone are enough to make your jaw drop. 

I certainly saw how and why the Broadway is as popular as it is, because a lot of attention and care goes into their plays. I was mesmerised throughout the entire play, not even leaving my seat during the interval just in case I miss the beginning of the second half. 

It’s not often I experience being in the right place, right time, but when I do; and if you find yourself in that moment, do me a favour and make sure you enjoy every moment, because something like that won’t happen every day. 

Thanks for reading 

Antony Hudson 

(TonyHadNouns) 

Film of the Week: Star Wars Episode 9 – The Rise of Skywalker

Warning, spoilers.

Episode 7, The Force Awakens was seen as a copy of Episode 4, A New Hope; Episode 8 was heavily criticised for having a pointless plot and contradictory side characters, but did include the highly spectacular light speed crash scene where one ship obliterated the other. Episode 9 sees the conclusion to the storyline first introduced at the beginning of Episode 7. Set to answer many burning questions and defeat the First Order once and for all. We discover who Rey truly is, and who has been pulling at the strings the entire time.

Palpatine is back. Last seen when Darth Vader sacrificed himself by throwing himself and Palpatine off the ledge, saving Luke Skywalker, bringing balance to the force as the prophecy foretold. Being an incredibly strong user of the dark side of the force, he survived, and he began building himself a new empire. Before, he hid himself in plain sight, subtly manipulating Anakin Skywalker to the dark side, creating one of the most iconic villains - ney - characters in all of fiction. Darth Vader, at the height of his powers, was feared among even the strongest users of either side of the force, because he was born from it. Palpatine manipulated the force to create life within Anakin’s mothers’ womb, and if he wasn’t wearing his suit, Darth Vader’s power would have been seen as unlimited, if it wasn’t already. Palpatine, now keeping himself hidden, continues to manipulate as much as possible, bringing in Ben Solo - also known as the last living Skywalker - known now as Kylo Ren, who strives to be just as powerful as Darth Vader, and finish the job his grandfather failed to complete.

The revelation that it was Palpatine’s plan all along does make sense, whilst also a surprise. The film plays off our surprise alongside the characters as they learn the Sith Lord is still alive, and has been building an army bigger than ever before, called the Final Order. Discovering that Rey is the granddaughter of Palpatine was certainly an unexpected twist. Of all the theories surrounding her being related to the Skywalker family, this was refreshing and a new twist I’m sure no one saw coming. 

If you’ve read this far into the article, you should have already seen Episode 9, which means you already know what’s good and bad about it, and I can write such a long piece of text explaining what I think are the good parts, and believe me there are plenty, especially within the final battle. Instead, I’m going to highlight what I feel they missed out on. A couple of moments where I envisioned something happening but didn’t.

The first example is when Rey is fighting Palpatine during the climactic battle, when he’s pelting her lightsaber with his force lightning. Just before that scene, she’s on the ground struggling to get up and we hear the voices of the Jedi who’ve come before her, including Obi-Wan, Luke Skywalker, and Anakin Skywalker himself. What I feel they missed out on during that moment she fully embraced being a Jedi was the force ghosts of those who came before appearing beside her and helping defeat the Emperor. Luke Skywalker alongside his Dad, Anakin, would have been a touching moment, and would have given more meaning to the title, The Rise of Skywalker.

Another opportunity I feel they missed out on was when Rey went to the house where Luke and Anakin grew up in, and declared herself to be a Skywalker just after seeing the force ghosts of Luke and Leia. They even put them two on the left of the screen instead of the centre, as if they had planned for more people to appear, but decided against it last minute. Again, Anakin and Obi-Wan should have been there, too. A fitting ending, passing the mantle of Jedi to Rey once and for all.

On the other hand, if they opted to do that, it would have been criticised as being cliched. I can see how that trope of those who’ve come before helping the one to lead the future, but I certainly wouldn’t have cared if they did that, and dare I say a lot of people would have seen that as a touching moment, too. Cliche or not, it still would have been a powerful symbol of unity, and the final defeat of the Emperor by those who’ve fought against him from the very beginning.

Or maybe I’ve completely gotten the wrong end of the stick and misunderstood those two scenes entirely and I’m an idiot who needs to stay away from talking about Star Wars if I am going to do nothing but write a load of nonsense. What do you think? Were they missed opportunities, or the inclusion of those characters be too much - after all, the force ghost of Anakin Skywalker coming back to help Rey defeat the Emperor is great symbolism; defeat him once, defeated him again.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)

Mum's Monday: The Green Green Grass – Christmas special

Warning Spoilers

Following on from the last episode of series one, this Christmas special sees, Rocky the bull is still gay. Farmer Aubrey Boyce (John Challis) has a plan to sell him at ‘The Christmas Ball’ held in a hotel in Somerset. Also with all the worry about Elgin Sparrowhawk’s (David Ross) ‘Farm Manager’ operation it comes to light and is so funny to hear of what you have to do if you are an astronaut going into space. One I can agree with, but the other is so amusing and easily fools Bryan (Ivan Kaye) and Jed (Peter Heppelthwaite). When Aubrey Boyce says something is good business, I cannot agree. He hasn’t seen any accounts/books, the area where the new Polo place is being built or anything. Things are now taking a dark turn and while Elgin is recovering in more ways than one, Merry Christmas to the Boyce family and staff including the highly disliked acting ‘Farm Manager’, Santa has sent snow and lots of it. Now the cab driver can’t get in so no one can get out. It is realistic, clever and amusing to hear the conversations that trapped people find themselves having. It is however, disappointing to hear a misguided line that implies only women can suffer with an eating disorder. In modern times we are now more aware that men can suffer just the same. it is now so mad, but at least Farmer Boyce feels better, well not for long, but at least in the end he has had a very lucky escape. 

Following on from series two, this Christmas special sees ‘Myth and Legend’ and unnecessary fear has hit the farm. Of all the things Tyler (Jack Doolan) doesn’t learn at school, he has to learn this, it all causes quite a stir. It is amusing to hear of all the ‘Black and White’ creatures there are here on earth. It now seems ‘Earl’ the Boyce family pet Rottweiler dog has had some fun and now Llewellyn’s (Alan David) collie dog is pregnant. It has ‘Misunderstanding’ written all over it, Mrs Cakeworthy (Ella Kenion) ‘Is not one for gossip’.  Now the risk of two three misunderstandings as to what Tyler has actually got Beth (Lisa Diveney) for Christmas. Correction now four, with Mrs Cakeworthy now Five. It is brilliant how it all slots together and yes ‘What is happening?’ it is all mounting up. it is a nice surprise to see Mr Colin Cakeworthy (Paul Bown) Mrs Cakeworthy’s husband. And now the sixth misunderstanding. Who’d have thought two black eyes could be a silver lining? It is sad to see Beth’s Christmas present now looking dishevelled, after looking so cute. Now just when you think this episode is over, there is still time for one final ‘Misunderstanding. Sorry and another. 

Following on from series three, this Christmas special sees a hoard of military weaponry found on the Boyce family ‘Winterdown Farm’ and it is a nice surprise to see Mr Colin Cakeworthy again. It also seems the Boyce family has now acquired an American Guest Cliff Cooper (George Wendt) and he is causing quite a stir at the local pub and now again in the Boyce household. It is however, all in, who’s teacup it is, if you tell a little white lie and in a uniform. By the end of this episode we may well, could at last know the truth though.