So do you find Keira Knightly irritating? Mad Men's Elisabeth Moss as Martha and Keira Knightley as Karen in The Children's Hour by Lillian Hellman, a story of false accusation and the power of buried sexual passion. If you go to the play awaiting some knee trembling action, then you will be sorely disappointed, however, the acting throughout is superb. Even though the first half of the play is weak in its writing and you can almost confidently arrive after the interval and still know what is going on. Whatever you think of Keira, she is tremendous on stage, with an amazing presence, especially in the final scenes with her fiance, (played by Tobias Menzies who allegedly had an affair with Über actress Kristin Scott Thomas whilst performing in Chekhov's Three Sisters in the West End) and with six times Oscar nominated Ellen Burstyn, who you cannot believe would be so taken in by young whipper snapper Mary's erratic manipulative behaviour (played by the watch this space, she will be a superstar, Bryony Hannah).
The drama was certainly played out on stage for real, when the Valentine's Day performance was cancelled due to a crack in the auditorium wall. On another evening this week, stagehands had to pull down the safety curtain at the Comedy Theatre in Panton Street, after a chair was crushed as a pillar descended for a new scene. After 10-15 minutes with no announcement, the curtain went up to reveal a different chair and the column had been put back. Am sure that with the quality of the acting the transition with the problems were smooth and just wished I had seen the whole cast perform together in a stronger written play.
So the world has gone mad. No, not the crazy fact that Matt Lucas will soon to be seen in Les Miserables and Glenn Close has been cast as Susan Boyle in a biopic of SuBo's life. Where is Tony Blair when you need him? The sanctimonious Middle East Peace Envoy has been nowhere to be seen since the Middle East demonstrations kicked off. Will the balance of power return to Egypt, who was the equivalent of the US in its day? Tony is probably still reeling from his debate 'Is Religion a Force for Good in the World' in Toronto at the end of last year, with the staunch aethist Christopher Hitchens winning over Blair: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddsz9XBhrYA Cameron has already apologised today for being slow to get Britons out of Libya. When will this coalition get ANYTHING right, it is painfully amateur. Even Nigel Farage would have done a better job.
Let's hope that Nostradamus predictions will not come true this year or next. He has been right so far on Diana's death, Hitler and World War 2 and the death of the two Kennedy brothers. He has foretold of a comet, called Wormwood, striking the Earth's surface on 21st December 2012 with the likelihood of the UK being destroyed (make a note in the diary to get away that Christmas) and creating a huge disaster. He has also predicted that World War 3 will start sometime between 2011 and 2012 and that it will be a war between the Christian world and the Arab world. The war will destroy many countries, except for the countries who will not take part in the war, being India and China.
Buddhists amongst us will know from meetings with teachers that the troubled world goes on for rather a long, long, time. Much longer than our lifetimes and we are only at the start of the troubles. Good luck to those seeking democracy in their countries and we channel good thoughts to them, overcoming oppression and unfairness as Gandhi and Martin Luther did before them. The world will become liberal, although it will take a very, very long time. It is unlikely that poverty will be completely eradicated in the future and aid to Africa is another debate for another time. What is happening is history in the making and we watch almost helpless, not knowing what to do.
Apart from being glued to the box on the impending overthrowing of strange looking dictators, I have also been glued to the theatre seat. London offers so many excellent choices and the most fantastic play of the year so far can be seen at the Olivier Theatre at the National on the South Bank, where Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller are giving it 110% in Danny 'slumdog millionaire' Boyle's production of Frankenstein. If you like penises - then for 10 minutes in the not to be missed opening scene you will be in for a treat - book a seat near to the stage, I was far too far back in the auditorium and from my seat was unclear what Angelina had got excited about in days gone by. The staging, atmosphere and music is brilliant, the acting world class and perfectly cast, with the monster being educated by a blind man who lives in the woods, with lighter moments when he next meets Victor Frankenstein, the monster quotes Milton and Paradise Lost as that is how he has been taught - note for Toby Young's Free Schools. They are both monsters in their own ways and I would see it again, only this time with a seat much closer to the action.
Aside from above, 10 other things I read, did and encountered this week that may be of interest or not to you, or maybe you would prefer me to shut up and you can go back to reading your new Heat magazine:
1. Looking forward to trying the two new restaurants on Pollen Street in Mayfair - Pollen Street Social & 5 Pollen Street - brimming with imaginative names!
2. Enjoying Heston Blumenthal's Channel 4 show, sorting out the awfully run NHS food
trolleys and other frightful companies - I say give them Daylesford's Organic Butterscotch ice cream, that would make anyone feel better in an instant;
3. Applauding Nicola 'superwoman' Horlick for encouraging quotas needed to get more women into boardrooms, although am secretly concerned that this doesn't turn into one big bitchfest which is unfortunately the case with all women teams;
4. Puzzled that the Department of Health has warned Britons to cut down on their red meat consumption because it increases our risk of developing bowel cancer, surely everyone already knew that and cut down years ago, obviously not;
5. Missing the Simon Rattle shows in London this week, a trip to Berlin it is then;
6. Julian Assange loses Swedish extradition case - someone's going to beat him up big time;
7. Loving the Waitrose free weekend sheet recipes, a great range and easy to make;
8. Toned arms are in - just check out Cameron Diaz and Paris Hilton, both transformed after going out with gym hardmen;
9. Switching off the heating now Spring is ALMOST in sight, although remembering we always have one last snow flutter before real Sping is upon us;
10. Will try NOT to stay up ALL night on Sunday watching The Oscars, when the highlights can be seen on Breakfast TV on Monday morning, way too sensible......alas I think Inception will shock pip The King's Speech to the post of Best Picture....
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