Search results

I use the V60 method as it’s quick clean and convenient. If I can be arsed the Bialetti mocha pot is me favourite. As for beans - I usually get the special from the Algerian on Old Compton St. Invariably excellent.

Went to see the Marina Abramović retrospective at the Royal Academy. Wasn’t quite sure what to expect and the first couple of rooms were ok - photos of some her performances, props etc but the middle rooms had big projections of some the films which worked really well and then I had to pass...

Yep. Those early novels are full of these devices - not just letters but diaries, news reports - Dracula is a good example. I think generally that game playing attitude which we associate with post modernism is there very early - Defoe getting in trouble for suggesting he’s telling a true story...

The Scarlet Letter does it too I think. All about how the document was found in a trunk in attic or something. Vonnegut is fond of an author’s forward which are slightly different to what you’re describing.

I think Bluebeard and Galapagos but there’s a reason Slaughterhouse is a classic. Structurally perfect and it feels like a culmination of something he’s been worrying away at for years. But Bluebeard I think is almost a summing up work - the last time all the gears mesh. I also find it one of...

As he said on a number of occasions that the only person to ever profit from the Dresden firebombing was himself. The more you read him, the more convincing that he’s riddled with survivor’s guilt.

Finished my chronological re-read of Vonnegut today. The pic isn’t a humble brag, nor is it a plain brag - just an idea of what was involved- if anyone wants to chat about Kurt, I’d be willing to talk

For me it has to be either lying down or a comfy chair. I’ve got one of those Alex lights which I really swear by - designed supposedly for readers. Anyway, when I was young and foolish, I’d read while walking along the street (I suppose no different from everyone being glued to their phones...

First half was drab - Italy certainly missing two key players due to betting investigation. Bellingham was the class act. Second half England knocked it up a gear - Bellingham, Foden and Kane all combining well. Stones looks good in possession but Rice still has work to do to convince.

And the French under the high ball. Twice they got done in the first half. That South African scrum was monstrous though And, yes, the Kiwis and SA were relentless but they get away with murder at the breakdown - some very generous refereeing there i felt.

i travelled on a few trains in Germany this summer - every single one was late. The Swiss are getting annoyed with the Germans constant unreliability. The mess that is Stuttgart station was impressively awful and even Munich's supposed refurb is already woefully behind schedule. Austria by...

My wife tricked me into agreeing a cull (I had to take my brick and plank shelves down when repainting the front room, she saw her opportunity) - took about 300 books to various charity shops. Whole swathes of genres I’m never going to read again. I reckon about 100 books have come in since then...

It wasn’t that long ago (in my mind that is) that English football rarely attracted the best players - Ipswich had a couple, Spurs had Ardiles in the 80s. Then we kind of picked Euro players on one last pay day - Klinnsman springs to mind. It’s only with the creation of the PL and the Sky money...

Beasts of England - Adam Biles. It’s a sequel to Animal Farm. He’s got the tone of Orwell right but at the moment (80 pages in) I am wondering what the point of the book is. Rather than Russia, Manor Farm is Britain and there’s clearly a Brexit theme in there. It rattles along quickly but at...

I don’t think anyone has mentioned The Bear yet. For a mainstream series I think it’s very good. Treats the the viewers like adults, storylines that take their time and shot with real thought and care to detail. Might not be for everyone but I like the way you just have to go with it and pick up...

Not read it, I’ll leave that for others. Just thought it might be of some interest. https://x.com/mark_mcglashan/status/1691409304362848256?s=46&t=dUS2_ZqIs9V4gxFYeTlirQ

Rereading Dombey. The first 200 pages do take awhile to set things up but the next 600 really rattle by. I think it’s the novel where he really starts to enjoy the broad canvas and creates greater complexity and ambiguity into his story. Still has an out and out villain but there’s a great deal...

Not sure what thread to post this in. A London institution- I’ve been going there for 27 years. https://www.standard.co.uk/reveller/restaurants/the-india-club-historic-indian-restaurant-to-close-after-more-than-70-years-b1101902.html

I wrote a long post replying to this about why this kind of thing really pisses me off but I cannot be bothered - there’s already enough philistinism on here.

Obvious two that spring to mind are YardAct and Sleaford Mods. The influence being The Fall, I think rather than dub reggae.