My Life In ... Films

The eighteenth in an occasional series of alternative Curriculum Vitae because no-one on their death bed says "I wish I'd spent more time in the office". 

FaceBook. July-2018.

Talking to the daughter of a friend in the pub, after debating favourite music artists, I realised this post has been sitting in draft for ages. So here it is...

Following a previous meme to nominate your 10 favourite albums [My Life In ... Albums], there followed another. "Dopo la musica non potevano mancare i film ! Quelli che vi hanno fatto ridere, piangere, pensare e che potreste rivedere in ogni momento*.  Top 10 movies ! Day n. I nominate no one. 

*[After music, movies couldn't be left out! The ones that made you laugh, cry, think, and that you could watch again anytime.]

Day 1 of the 10 day challenge: The Blues Brothers.

This was the first that popped into my head as I have watched it many times and it features many quotable lines. At one point we bought the Italian version and even without subtitles I pretty much knew every line.

My favourite quote is “Elwood: It’s 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it’s dark. And we’re wearing sunglasses. Jake: Hit it.” 

Day 2 of the 10 day challenge: Die Hard. 

Obviously a classic Christmas movie. A cracking adventure movie with some of the best smart arse wisecracks. And the inevitable Bruce Willis stained and ripped T-shirt.

My favourite quote is “No fucking shit, lady! Does it sound like I’m ordering a pizza?”.

Day 3 of the 10 day challenge: The Shawshank Redemption.

Another movie we have watched over and over. The combination of Tim Robbins quiet and meticulous patience of Job combined with the incomparable voiceover from Morgan Freeman - great combo.

Favourite quote is “I’m known to locate certain things from time to time.” 

Day 4 of the 10 day challenge: The Terminator.

Some say that Terminator 2: Judgement Day is a rare example of the sequel bettering the original. That is probably a fair judgement (see what I did there) but I did see this one first so deserves it’s slot. What I like is Arnie’s ruthless determination as the ultimate bad guy and a heroine who shows some gumption.

Favourite quote is “Listen, and understand! That Terminator is out there! It can’t be bargained with. It can’t be reasoned with. It doesn’t feel pity, or remorse, or fear and it absolutely will not stop… Ever, until you are dead!” 

Although an honourable mention should be given to the classic, “I’ll be back!”

Day 5 of the 10 day challenge: Back to the Future.

Another time travel movie and an absolute classic. I read that they filmed Part II and III back-to-back. The plot device of the protagonist seeing the same scene from different angles is a something I first saw way back in the early 80s at the National Film Theatre in an obscure Czechoslovak film called “Tomorrow I'll Wake Up and Scald Myself with Tea”. 

I have the BTTF box set, but only occasionally watch Part II and III as the original is sufficiently self-contained to stand on its own.

Favourite quote is "If my calculations are correct, when this baby hits 88 mph, you’re going to see some serious shit."

Day 6 of the 10 day challenge: The Empire Strikes Back.

I saw this when it first came out in a cinema in Leicester Square. It was a group outing organised by Maureen who rushed off to buy enough tickets for a crowd of us to go and see it together.

The scene that really knocked me out was the section set on the planet Hoth. It was so convincingly real it was like they actually filmed on location on this distant ice planet!

Favourite quote is from Yoda “No. Try not. Do… Or do not. There is no try.”

Day 7 of the 10 day challenge: Blade Runner.

A visual treat - dark cyberpunk style and futuristic design proving an inspiration for many later films.

Favourite quote just has to be Batty’s final words, “I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire of the shoulder of Orion. I’ve watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments will be lost in time.. Like tears in the rain... Time to die.”

Day 8 of the 10 day challenge: The Draughtsman‘s Contract.

A bit of an outlier this one I have only seen it a couple of times. The first time was at the Everyman in Hampstead in a sparsely occupied cinema and it struck me as both beautifully filmed and mysterious. It took the second viewing for me to really understand what was going on although that was secondary to the sheer visual treat.

I do not remember any quotes from the film, but looking up on IMDb one made me chuckle. "Why is that Dutchman waving his arms about? Is he homesick for windmills?"

Day 9 of the 10 day challenge: 2001: A Space Odyessy.

When this film came out my father, a die hard science-fiction fan, took us on family trip from Coventry to London to see this on first release in Leicester Square in CinemaScope with surround sound. A film that made a huge impact. Two things I remember vividly was the chattering sound of apes as they scampered off behind us in the auditorium and the scene where the hostess walks round in a hamster wheel style contraption to end upside down and it felt like the whole cinema was tilting. A very unnerving sensation on the inner ear.

Favourite quote is "Dave Bowman: Open the pod bay doors, HAL. HAL: I’m sorry, Dave I’m afraid I can’t do that."

Day 10 of the 10 day challenge: The Fifth Element.

A another visual treat and an entertaining plot with a nice mix of drama and humour.

I have always liked the concept of the four elements: fire, water, earth and air. Going back to the ancient Greeks and popping up again in mediaeval times with the paradigm of the four humours. 

Favourite quote is “Mul-ti-pass."

Looking back on the list the heavy science-fiction bias is very apparent. Hardly surprising as my father was a keen reader of sci-fi and growing up the family bookshelves were full of titles from the golden age of science fiction and formed much of my childhood reading.

Carlisle Christmas Farmers Market 2025

Carlisle Cathedral, Cumbria. Saturday 06-December-2025.

We had booked a slot at the Christmas Farmers' and Makers' Market in the grounds of Carlisle Cathedral for a charity stall supporting Friends of Carlisle Victorian and Turkish Baths. The market is held once a month from 9am to 2pm. 

The objectives, as always, are raising awareness and raising money. The first consists of buttonholing passers by and asking if they knew of the baths, to then start the conversation about its history and our plans for the future. The second was to make use of tombola prizes which we had set up ready for Penrith Winter Droving in November. Unfortunately, that was cancelled due to a forecast of high winds so we had boxes of prizes all numbered up and ready to go.

It turned out to be a pretty damp day so the turnout was not nearly as good as we might have hoped and the ground around our gazebo was a mud bath. Nevertheless, we did have lots of interest in the baths, some very useful chats with locals and were happy with the amount raised considering the conditions. 

The Friends also decorated a Christmas tree in the crypt (along with various other charitable organisations such as the Round Table) as part of the cathedral's Christmas Tree Festival 2025. Yet another way of making people aware of the Baths.

Much of Sunday we spent cleaning the mud off the gazebo, tables and chairs, and boxes.

Edy Hurst at Theatre by the Lake

Keswick, Cumbria. Friday 05-December-2025.

We booked to see Edy Hurst performing “Wonderfull Discoverie of Witches in the Countie of Himself“. The central conceit of this performance is that Edy is a direct descendant of one of the witches of Pendle*. This means he has wizardly powers which is the cue for some hyperactive spell casting. Interwoven with this is an obsession with the Vengaboys 1999 album The Party Album and their female vocalist Kim Sasabone.

We ignored the first rule of comedy club which is "Don’t sit in the front row". So when the time came for a "volunteer" from the audience, he picked on me, front row right by the aisle. Fortunately, nothing too embarrassing. Edy proceeded to deliver an hour’s worth of magick entertainment in a slapstick style that can best be described as manic! It was all quite a hoot really.

* Read more about the Pendle witches at Lancashire witch trials. 

Christmas Tastings - 2025

Bassenthwaite Lake Station, Cumbria. Thursday 04-December-2025. 

For the third year running we went to the Bassenthwaite Lake Station food and wine matching event to celebrate the festive season. We learned our lesson from the 2023 and 2024 Christmas tastings and were prepared for the ample snacks provided. We had a filling lunch and then a light snack at home before heading out to Bassenthwaite.

As a reminder, the train is a replica of The Orient Express built for the 2017 version of the film. I was informed that I was sitting in Johnny Depp’s chair. When you look at the poster for the movie and look closer at the fabric design for this chair you can see that it is indeed the very same. Unfortunately the similarities end there says Mary!

As well as buying the carriages of the movie set Simon and Diana obviously also purchased all the contents See [Bassenthwaite Lake Station: Our Story].

There were many Christmas jumpers and Santa hats on display, but the couple on the table next to us definitely win the prize for the best outfits.

Wine, ABV, Country, Supplier & Price. 

• Tasting notes 
• Food Pairing
• Mary‘s notes and star rating

1 Lachetea Cremant de Loire, brut, 12% France £16 Ocado 

• Lively, well structured, persistent effervescence, This Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc blend displays a touch of lemon and berry fruits. Lemon, tangerine, exotic fruits on the nose. Translucent, brilliant, pale yellow. Should cut nicely through the cream cheese. 
• Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Blini 
• Decent acidity, not completely bone dry, light nose and body. ✱

2 Trimbach Pinot Blanc, 13%, France £16 Booths Or Majestic £18.

• Made from Pinot Blanc and Auxxerois, this complex wine spends two years in bottle prior to release. Vinified dry, you'll discover fresh and elegant stone-fruit flavours. Its rich and rounded character makes it incredibly food-friendly. Enjoy as an apéritif, or with fish and poultry dishes. 
• Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Blini  
• Pale yellow; dry, Fuller nose, some spiciness on the nose; fuller body, peachy, good acidity. ✱✱

Preferred wine with food:
Mark - Trimbach Pinot Blanc;
Mary - ditto.

3 Belles Lettres Cote du Rhone Blanc, 2024, 13% France £10.50 Booths. 

• A special offering from the southern Rhone region. Grenache blanc is blended with Marsanne and a touch of Clairette to create this refreshing wine with hints of peach and honeysuckle. Should hold its own well with this rich velouté. 
• Parsnip and Chestnut Velouté 
• Pale lemon; slight green nose, some spicy; good body, peachy, lightly oily, decent Length. ✱✱

 4 Wynn's Coonawarra Chardonnay, 13.5% Australia £15.75 Booths 

• Lifted white peach and nectarine aromas, complemented by subtle nut and nougat flavours. Soft stone fruit, citrus and poached pear flavours linger on the fresh, lightly creamy palate. Flavoursome wine for a flavoursome soup! 
• Parsnip and Chestnut Velouté. 
• Very pale; vegetal nose (green pepper?); unoaked, clean, stone fruit, very slightly green, nice texture. ✱✱

Preferred wine with food:
Mark - Cote du Rhone Blanc;
Mary - Coonawarra Chardonnay.

5 Leyda Reserva Pinot Noir 2024, 13% Chile £13 Booths. 

• Bright ruby red colour. A fruity nose with strawberries, hints of red cherries and a subtle wild herb notes with a delicate smokiness and tobacco. Refined on the palate, juicy and full of ripe berry flavours, a hint of minerality and refreshing finish. Pinot Noir and turkey? A classic pairing! 
• Festive Turkey Bonbon 
• Light, pale mahogany; strawberry on nose, slight vegetal/herb; soft ripe, berries, slight mineral. ✱✱.

6 E. Guigal Cotes Du Rhone 2021, 14.5% France £15.75 Booths 

• Cotes du Rhone is characteristically supple and smooth, easy-drinking, appealingly fruity and full-flavoured with a twist of sweet spice on the finis, typical of the Grenache Noir and Syrah grapes. This would be at home with all sorts of rich meats and bold vegetable dishes. 
• Festive Turkey Bonbon 
• Dark purple; darker fruit, deeper nose; spicy, peppery, plum, good length. ✱✱✱

Preferred wine with food:
Mark - Pinot Noir;
Mary - Cotes Du Rhone.

7 Susana Balbio Crios 2023, 14% Argentina £14 Booths 

• A fresh, pure expression of the variety, this superior Malbec displays aromas of violets, cherries ahd spices. Fruity, with balanced acidity on the palate, notes of ripe red fruits and a subtle hint of oak. Hopeful of a perfect pairing with a roast! 
• Roast Beef and mini Yorkie with rich red wine jus 
• Dark purple; light chocolate, caramel? Dark fruit. Plum/damson, some astringency, soft dark fruit. ✱✱✱

8 D'Arrys Original 2020, 14.5% Australia £15.50 Booths 

• Deep, dark and brooding on the nose with delicious notes of black forest gateau. Grenache and Shiraz work well together to create a ripe and generous Australian red. Dark-berry flavours are joined by red-fruit and black olive notes on the finish that vill be fabulous with this rich dish. Wine Champion 2023 on Wine Society website. 
• Roast Beef and mini Yorkie with rich red wine jus  
• Dark mahogany; much softer/sweeter nose, Tobacco, slight vegetal/green pepper?; Spicy, pepper, dark fruit (black/redcurrant). ✱✱✱

Preferred wine with food:
Mark - D'Arrys Original;
Mary - ditto.

9 M&S Sweet Ruby Port, 20% Portugal £10 (on offer) Ocado 

• A powerful, rich, full-bodied wine with aromas and flavours of red berries like plums, cherries and strawberries. With balanced sweetness and a smooth, long finish, some tastings show a hint of dark chocolate and some spice which should be perfect with this dessert and strong cheeses. 
• Dark Chocolate and Cherry mousse, 2 Cheeses 
• No notes. ✱✱

10 Barbadillo Pedro Ximenez, 18.5% Spain £17.50 Ocado.

• This Barbadillo Pedro Ximenez Sherry offers an indulgent experience with its rich, sweet flavour profile. Made from sun-dried Pedre Ximenez grapes it boasts a deep, dark colour and intense notes of dried fruits, caramel and molasses. It is a perfect choice for rich chocolate desserts or strong, salty cheeses. 
• Dark Chocolate and Cherry mousse, 2 Cheeses
• No notes. ✱✱

Preferred wine with food:
Mark - Pedro Ximenez;
Mary - ditto.

The two puds and wines went equally well in both combination with both desserts and cheese. The last time I had Pedro Ximenez it was disgustingly sweet. This was much so much better; alcoholic raisin in a glass. As Mary is lactose intolerant they made a separate dessert for her. These are the two puddings.

Replete with fabulous food and wine, it was a short stroll back to The Pheasant for our usual beery nightcap and so to bed.

Arbitrary 300 parkrun Analysis

Mark's 300th parkrun.

I do like a spreadsheet! Having just hit my arbitrary 300 milestone I thought I’d do a bit of analysis. At Salento parkrun I tell tourists that it may not be my home parkrun but it is the one I’ve done most often. In fact more than my current and previous home parkruns added together. We live in Southern Italy half the year so our NENDYs (Nearest Event Not Done Yet) are 400 km away (Sicily and Rome)! 

I do like a pie chart so here is the circular version. 

Eglington is close to where my mother-in-law used to live, Talkin Tarn Country Park and Keswick are local when we are in the UK. Most of the 2’s are where I had to repeat to allow Mary to catch up having started parkrun 18 months later than me. The “Once only” are down to Mary having got the tourist bug, mostly driven by challenges such as Alphabeteer, Pirates, etc.

Mary's 250th parkwalk.

Mary also loves a spreadsheet but she uses it more for planning e.g. second Alphabet, 100 locations and getting the latter to coincide with her 250 parkwalks. 

It seemed only right that I do the same for Mary’s recent milestone of 250 parkwalks. The numbers:

And the pie:

We have done the same countries but in a different order owing to starting parkrun at different times; I was already five countries in before Mary started.

Mark's performance by year.

Someone in the parkrun discussion group on FaceBook asked, “What have older people's thoughts been about seeing their performance drop off? How do you feel when you look at your times from a few years ago and notice a decline?”

Of course I had to do an analysis of my average time and age percentage by calendar year.

I looked back and my average time is the same in 2025 (age 73) as it was in 2017 (age 65) and the age grading has correspondingly increased. Feeling Smug!

The improvements in 2018 and 2019 are attributable to training for the London marathons. The improvement in 2021 was thanks to twice weekly runs with Nigel around Penrith during lockdown when you were allowed to exercise with one other. Looking at the two parkruns bracketing the lockdowns I improved by two whole minutes, from 29:07 to 27:07.  

Mary's performance by year.

The same analysis for Mary would show slowing down with age and injury but would not really be worthwhile as she occasionally volunteers as tailwalker or parkwalker which would skew her results.

Dom Martin and Blue Nation at The Clooney

Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Tyne and Wear. Saturday, 15-November-2025.

A weekend trip to Newcastle upon Tyne to see two bands that we have seen before, three times each individually, but now together as a double header. As before, at this venue, we dined at the excellent Cook House close by.

Apparently on this tour Dom Martin and Blue Nation take it in turns as to who goes on first or second. This particular night it was Dom on first and he plays a really mean guitar! I would put money on one of his guitar heroes being Jimi Hendrix, he definitely had that skill and style. Another of his heroes is Rory Gallagher who he mentioned several times.

At one point, Dom came down off the stage and did a walk amongst the audience so we got a close-up view. We have several of his albums but he is definitely an artist to see live. His shows are much more rocking and upbeat than most of his studio albums.

After the interval it was Blue Nation. The lead guitarist does a lot of chat and there is great banter between the two guitarists. At some point one of them always makes an appeal to the men in the audience to take care of their mental health. An excellent set of blues-influenced rock  

For an encore, the two bands team up with two guitarists and two bass players on stage, but I don’t know which drummer was on duty.

It was clear that they greatly enjoy each other’s company and playing as an ensemble.

An excellent evening with some class musicianship. After the gig, it was a quick Uber home and so to bed.

Wine Tasting - North vs South

Bassenthwaite Lake Station, Cumbria. 06-November-2025.

This tasting was a comparison between the northern and southern hemispheres. Each pair of wines were the same grape but from opposite sides of the equator. All wines from Majestic.

It was a slightly smaller crowd than normal, so the wine tasting was held in the lovely saloon car which worked very well there, perhaps due to the openness of the carriage.

Name, Vintage, ABV, Retail Price, Hemisphere, Country 

• Tasting notes 
• Mary’s notes and star rating out of three
• My preferred hemisphere 

For each pair of wines, a show of hands was taken to decide which hemisphere was the winner. Generally we were in agreement with the consensus. On our table my vote was: Northern hemisphere 3, Southern hemisphere 1.

1 Winzer Krems Gruner Veltliner 2024, 12.5% £11.50 Northern Austria 

• Crisp and refreshing, look for peach and citrus with notes of mineral and pepper on the finish 
• Pale lemon; zingy on nose, tart; citrus, good acidity, mineral, medium length ✱½.
  A low score because Mary is not a fan of this particular grape variety!

2 Saint Clair Pioneer Gruner Veltliner 2021, 13% £15 Southern New Zealand 

• Handpicked in a relatively warm vineyard that intensifies and ripens the characteristics. Look for stone fruits and white pepper on the nose and a fruity balanced structure with enough acidity to hold its own with curry or spices. 
• Warmer/soft nose, green apple, citrus; richer, more body, much softer/not so acidic/bit flabby? ✱
• Preferred

3 Naudin Pere et Fils Chardonnay 13.5% £11.50 Northern France 

• Made by one of the oldest mansions in Burgundy, this wine is remarkably aromatic with flavours of mango, peach and citrus. Fresher than its southern hemisphere counterpart it will pair well with white fish. 
• Light nose, not oaked / not much oak; green very slight butter; fresh, sharpish, green, pepper. More like Chablis ✱✱
• Preferred

4 Luis Felipe Edwards Gran Reserva Chardonnay 2024, 13.5% £11 Southern Chile 

• From one of the largest family-owned vineyards in Chile, the fine wines produced offer great value for money. This is a rich, creamy Chardonnay with notes of tropical pineapple, mango, butterscotch and vanilla and a gentle nuttiness. Great with creamy chicken.  
• More open, stronger nose, peachy, tropical, buttery; gentle, tasty, tropical, vanilla/butterscotch; decent length ✱✱
  Note: comparison of these last two was probably as much about the oak treatment as which hemisphere.

5 Le Grand Retour 2021, 12.5% £12 Northern France

• Wine production of the Malbec grape began in South-West France, specifically in Cahors where this wine comes from. This wine is exceptionally fruity with flavours of raspberry, blackcurrant and blackberries and gentle tannins. Great with roast pork! 
• Not typical Malbec/Cahors. Mahogany with brown at rim; soft, fruity, slightly sweet, lighter nose, lighter body; soft, fruity, nice flavours, berry fruit fruits, soft tannins ✱✱½
• Preferred

6 Intacto Gran Reserva Malbec 2022, 13.5% £12 Southern Chile 

• This Malbec has intense notes of black fruits, ripe cranberries and chocolate with some violet notes. A spell in French oak gives structure in the mouth. Great for pairing with slow-cooked meats or char-grilled barbecue foods. 
• More purple; strong nose, vegetal, softer, fruity ✱✱

7 Chateau Sainte Michelle Cabernet Sauvignon 2022, 14% £18 Northern USA 

• From the cooler Washington State, this wine is unlike anything we have tasted from the warmer producers of the USA. Sainte Michelle is Washington's most respected winery, named Winery of the Year no less than 22 times! Look for exceptional complexity and notes of blackcurrant and plums.
• Light nose, lovely nose, dark fruit, slight acetone?; yummy, dark fruit/plums, complex, some tannins but soft, good balance, great length ✱✱✱
• Preferred

8 Rustenberg Cabernet Sauvignon 2023, 14% £16 Southern South Africa 

• Twice winner of Young Winemaker of the Year, Murray Barlow is one of South Africa's most exciting young producers reflected in thiswell-crafted Cabernet. Expect dark berries, tobacco, oak ageing and ideal for ageing. May need decanting. Northern v South 6th November 2025 
• Softer, stronger nose; dark fruit, plums, tobacco, some tannins but more astringent, not as fruity, too young? ✱✱

They opened one last bottle for a supernumerary glass after which we staggered back to the Pheasant Inn for a completely unnecessary last pint of beer before bed.

City Break - Glasgow, October 2025

Glasgow, Scotland. Thursday/Sunday 30-October/02-November-2025.

Another action packed M&M weekend, this time in Glasgow. 

Fulfilling the corporate mission "To Eat, Drink and Have a Good Time!"

Thursday 30-October. 

Since the 30th is our wedding anniversary we decided to extend our weekend in Glasgow and go up early, on the Thursday, for a nice meal there.

A friend recently shared a couple of photos from his album of our wedding that we had never seen before.

We had hired a couple of double-decker buses to ferry our guests from the church (Saint Paul’s Cathedral) to the reception venue on Wimbledon Parkside.

For our anniversary dinner we went to Six by Nico which had been recommended by several friends. Their USP is that they only offer a six course tasting menu (with the option of a matching wine flight). The menu has a theme which they change every few months. That night the theme was Space. Somewhat tenuous connections with some of the courses but the first course was a flying saucer: a levitating spinning dish.

Friday 31-October. 

The morning was a tour of some of the fantastic Glasgow murals. Fortunately, Mary was able to provide some social context for these two murals. At a disco a lad wanting to ask a girl for a dance might approach her and ask using this phrase “Are ye dancin?” to which the reply might be “Are ye askin?” as popularised by Scottish comedians Rickie Fulton and Jack Milroy as Francie and Josie [youTube].

A collage of the best. Unfortunately, a number of the murals have been defaced with tags by graffiti artists.

This cultural walk was followed by a late curry lunch and drinks with old friends Geraldine and Alasdair at Obsession of India.

After lunch, we headed off to the Hydro to hear the multi-talented sisters that make HAIM. Full gig report here Haim at the OVO Hydro.

Saturday 01-November. 

Victoria, Glasgow 01/11/2025 29:11 [272/430]. .

Saturday morning was parkrun (of course). There are many park runs in Glasgow to choose from but this one gave us a “V” for our second alphabet. It was also my 300th parkrun. While not an official milestone it is worth celebrating so I emailed the RD and got a shout out.

SIL Sandra came and joined us and then drove us back to see their brand new house in Killearn, half an hour north of Glasgow. Then back to Glasgow for a rest.

Saturday evening's entertainment was a pre-dinner drink at Vroni's then dinner at Sarti's which again came highly recommended and lived up to expectations. Over a final glass back at Vroni's we got chatting to a lad from Belfast and now have lots of great recommendations for a planned trip next year. 

Sunday 02-November. 

A not-too-early train back to Penrith and a relax. Phew!

Haim at the OVO Hydro

Glasgow, Scotland. Friday 31-December-2025.

We cannot remember how we were introduced to Haim but their third album, Women in Music Pt. III, has been a regular on our play list. They are three sisters who play melodic tunes and sing in harmony. My favourite track on that album is “Don’t Wanna”, closely followed by “I Know Alone”.

We bought these tickets way back in April as soon as we learnt about their tour. Glasgow was the obvious venue which is easy to get to for us and which happens to be the last night of their UK tour.

I’ve got so used to going to smaller more intimate venues that it was a bit of a shock to be re-introduced to a cavernous stadium.  The standing arena area is massive and was only partially filled when we arrived but soon was packed to capacity.

The support act was Nell Mescal who we had never heard of but must be an established artist as she is on her third EP and has a dozen singles to her name already. As we have found with previous support acts they are incredibly grateful to have been selected, in this case at very short notice, and the mutual admiration and support is heartwarming to see.

Haim then took to the stage preceded by a ticker tape of “I Quit…” messages; “I Quit” is their latest album which this tour is promoting. We had listened to “I Quit” in preparation for the concert but live it came across as much more rock. The bass was ramped up to 11; it set my rib cage rattling.

The three girls Alana (guitar, percussion), Danielle (lead guitar) and Este (bass guitar) - actually all play multiple instruments and took it in turns to take the spotlight. They are all supported in the background by a drummer and a keyboard / sax player. 

They played mostly songs from the new album plus a couple from Women in Music Pt. III. Full set list at setlist.fm. It was a much livelier and more rock-n-roll set than the more mellow studio album sound.

Being unsure of the best way to get home from the venue we snuck out before the encore and thus were able to snag a taxi before the mass exodus without queueing and were whisked back to our apartment.

The Dutty Moonshine Big Band at the Old Fire Station

Carlisle, UK. Thursday 24-October-2025.

We were pleased to see that Dutty Moonshine Big Band’s tour dates included this venue close to us and while we were in the UK. Tickets booked pronto! Our friends Wade and Tanya also booked tickets and Wade very kindly volunteered to be designated driver which meant I could have a beer (or three). Wade had listened to some of their music but this was the first time of seeing them live.

The support act were Cavegirl and the Neandergals, a female rock trio dressed in Flintstones inspired costumes. I thought they were OK but the others were not so sure.

Dutty and the band launched into their high energy electronic dance and got the audience moving. For most of the time there were 10 musicians on stage. They played some tracks from albums we already have ("City of Sin" and "Villain") plus tracks from their forthcoming EPs: Blood, Sweat and Tears. Dutty explained that each EP is a different style of music - ably demonstrated with a bluesy track from Tears with vocals by Maria and "Gorgeous George".

They had a couple of guest appearances. The first was rapper and MC, Abi Nyxx, the lady in the red hat.

The second guest artist was MC Pean, Drum and Bass MC in the brown jacket.

Mary showing her support in her Dutty Villain T-shirt.

Maria doing her high-speed rapping. She has a wonderful voice and an amazing machine gun delivery - not sure when she gets to take a breath!

Wade was at the front when Dutty picked up the set list and, as is apparently something of a custom, when Wade held his hand out, Dutty handed it to him as a souvenir.

Our friends were seriously impressed and agreed that it was a great night and a fantastic band. We knew that but it’s always satisfying when you introduce somebody to a band and they share your enthusiasm.

CSC Annual Technology and Business Solutions Conference - Baltimore

Baltimore 1993 (? Tbc).

Introduction: there was a time before social media! Can you believe it? I used to work for a large American corporation and managed to swing an invite to their annual technology conference in the states. 

Part of the deal was that I had to write a visit report for my UK colleagues. A written report is pretty dull so I thought I would do a photo journal. Bought myself a cheap disposable camera with 24 shots and documented my visit. 

How to share it with my colleagues? These were the early days of websites and I had created one handcrafted using notepad to write the raw HTML. So I scanned in the developed photos and did a kind of slideshow. It was very clunky. I was reminded of it recently going through some old photos and decided to re-create that journal using blogger. So here it is: version 2.0.

What is the ATBSC?

CSC as a learning organisation is the main theme.. Nearly 800 CSC'ers from around the globe attended the 8th Annual Technology and Business Solutions Conference (ATBSC). The main theme was CSC as a learning organisation. There were two days of parallel sessions on a number of themes such as:

• Organisational change
• Knowledge Asset Management
• Awards for Technological Excellence
• Case studies
• etc...

In addition there were presentations from various Strategic Alliance Partners, a key note speech and a final plenary session with prize draw.

Baltimore - location for the ATBSC.

Baltimore Inner Harbour. A sunny day at the Inner Harbour. Baltimore seem like a very pleasant town. Like any city near a body of water it seems to derive a certain bustle from its historic trade links.

Registration - People queuing to register

Queuing for a "goody bag". On arrival at the conference delegate register and receive a CSC shoulder bag. In it go a CD-ROM containing all the presentations, a delegate list, session descriptions, pen, lecturers wand, name tag and a small puzzle.

First coffee break.

First caffeine fix of the day. Coffee breaks are all too short as we rush from one session to another. The whole conference is very tightly time-tabled. It is an opportunity to talk to complete strangers and marvel at the breadth of CSC's collective experience.

Shopping Mall Atrium.

View from "the Gods". The hotel is a part of a combined building that includes a shopping mall. The general conference area outside the meeting rooms is, in fact, the top floor of the mall. At break times we could look down on the shoppers.

Booths.

Legacy Management Business Solution. Around the coffee area were a number of booths about various aspects of CSC sources and the Knowledge Management initiatives. They are focussed on Business Solutions:

• Enterprise, Program, and Project Management
• Systems Architecture
• Legacy Systems
• Large Complex Systems
• Package Based Development
• Transition Management
• Continuous Infrastructure Services
• Component Based (CSC Lynx) Solutions

This is Yvonne Decker manning the Legacy booth and on the right is Don Henn.

Networking.

Break times are any opportunity to talk to friends and colleagues. This is Pauline Gardner Martin talking to X and Y (who?).

Dr. Pascal Gambardella.

Pascal Gambardella heads up the team that is coordinating work on incorporating DSDM into Catalyst. He is flanked by Elizabeth Buie (left) and Sue Stuven (right).

Dinner table.

Here are Elizabeth Buie, Pauline Gardener Martin (Catalyst and Sources, UK), Terry Martin, Diane Kropiewnicki, Dennis O'Neal (Systems Consulting, UK), Eddie Coombes (Data Warehousing) and Allan Andrews.

Technical Excellence Award Winners.

The technical excellence award winners received a trophy plus a certificate for CSC Share options - worth real money. The award winners were:

• ISD: Automated Enterprise Management System
• CSC Benelux: Automatische Traject Controle Systeem (ATCS)
• SSD: Autonomous Satellite Navigation Using GPS Technology
• SED: Hydra Security Tool Set
• CSC Benelux: Implementation of a customer care & billing system for Belgacom
• CSC Consulting / CSC UK: MCI, Integrated Product & Supply Chain Introduction

To learn more see the Lotus Notes database: technlgy\Award for Technical Excellence.

Keynote Speaker: Peter Cochran.

Professer Cochhrane gave a very entertaining speech on some possible futures. To learn more about his views visit the BT Labs web site.

Knowledge Asset Management.

Carol Bothwell explains the CSC Corporate Knowledge Program. The lady in the front row (back of head) is Sara Vose, Communications Manager for the Knowledge Program.

Artie Kalemeris and Email room.

Artie is the organising genius behind the ATBSC and deserves the big round of applause he gets for the incredible smooth running of this event year after year.

Baltimore Aquarium.

Friday night was a trip to the Baltimore Aquarium to see the dolphin show. Followed by an opportunity to see round the aquarium itself. A very impressive aquarium well worth the visit (better than the Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans).

Steel Band.

Before the show we dined to the music of a steel band. When I say "dined" it was really a buffet, overlooking the harbour.

Beer.

The essential social lubricant of a beer or two. Personally I avoided the boring Bud and Miller; instead I went for local breweries wherever possible. The US has an increasing number of micro-breweries (aka brew pubs) which produce tastier beers.

Food.

The food was interesting with the option to go round twice and a number of people did. I liked the corn bread.

Bob Carlsen.

Bob's taste in Hawaiian shirts rivals his choice of cartoon socks. He tells me this really is from Hawaii, bought there on his last vacation.

Elizabeth Buie.

Elizabeth is the chair of the SIG on HCI (Human Computer Interaction) and works for SSD.

Elizabeth and Antonio Vallone.

Elizabeth and Antonio very kindly acted as my host as the hotel was fully booked by the time I got confirmation of my attendance.

Packing up the booths.

Charlie Wainwright and Tanya Lazar pack up the booths at the end of the conference.

Taking the "Red Eye".

That overnight flight is a killer. My preferred option is to eat before the flight and then settle down for the night even before we take off. If you ever fly business class keep the eyeshades because they are better than the nasty plastic ones you get in coach class. Also I use an inflatable travel pillow. Not only are they good for the flight but I use them on the beach as well.

Home at last.

Good old National Express coaches go direct from LHR to Ringwood just 2.5 miles from home. Note hand luggage only for a week in the USA - it is the only way to fly.

The End.

Footnote: Original clunky version.