the web The Book Club Blog

Saturday, May 29, 2004

UKTV Style's Big Brother alternative

Watching Paint Dry

Posted by Nick @ 07:37 GMT

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Thursday, May 27, 2004

Ella Minnow Pea - Mark Dunn

Ella Minnow Pea - Mark Dunn

Posted by Nick @ 14:35 GMT

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Friday, May 21, 2004

London News Review

Andy Kaufman Returns: is he actually Belle de Jour?

Hadn't even considered that.

Posted by Nick @ 07:08 GMT

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Monday, May 17, 2004

The Whitsun Weddings - The Book Club Blog's chosen book for the coming month

- The Whitsun Weddings, Philip Larkin
- Philip Larkin biography - The Philip Larkin Society
- Philip Larkin - Wikipedia
- Guardian Profile - Snippet: "Larkin caught something of the essence of England, or at least of the England that was left behind in the 1960s. For Tom Paulin, he reports back from the desolation of the English emotional life: "He journeys into the interior, into the unknown heart - the maybe missing centre - of Englishness."

Posted by Nick @ 21:18 GMT

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Friday, May 14, 2004

In modern America, no nightmare is forbidden

An intriguing piece from JG Ballard, who generated a very stimulating discussion when we discussed Crash last year.

"We might think that the US had enough problems coping with Iraq, where the abuse of prisoners has given a spin of sexual perversion to its drive towards world domination, something the British Empire, with its croquet and memsahibs, never achieved, alas" (The Guardian's leader writer seems less convinced that we're not capable of this kind of thing)

"As the nation infantilises itself, the point is finally reached where the abandoned infant has nothing to do except break up its cot. "

Posted by Jon @ 12:44 GMT

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Monday, May 10, 2004

Billionaire Thai PM in talks to buy a share of Liverpool FC

After Roman Abramovich's money-flushed Russian revolution at Chelsea, English football is bracing itself for further foreign investment in the Premiership as the Thai prime minister bids to buy into my beloved Liverpool.

Somewhat worrying is the fact that it looks like Thaksin Shinawatra may be a Man Utd fan.

Posted by Nick @ 07:34 GMT

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Sunday, May 09, 2004

Johnnie Moore's Weblog: Blogs can pay

Someone visited from Johnnie's blog today, so I popped over to have a look. No link to The Book Club Blog but the tantilising idea that blog's can pay caught my eye!

Posted by Nick @ 21:22 GMT

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Friday, May 07, 2004

All's well that ends well

Ross gets Rachel.

Posted by Nick @ 09:57 GMT

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Is there a Belle de Jour on the terminal next to you?

My treasured Vitis coignetiae is coming into leaf again.

Recently, postings to The Book Club Blog have fallen away a little, owing to a million and one reasons which can be summarised thus - not enough hours in the day to be frantically busy in the real world AND blog it all - I take my hat off to bloggers who manage to LIVE and BLOG simultaneously - that really is an art.

Anyway, to stay on top of pressing matters - it is probably worth knowing that Belle is BACK in Blighty and possibly sitting next to you if you are sitting in a London cyber cafe or public library or somesuch - look out for the TAN.

As for The Book Club - I sense that the imminence of the next gathering has everyone frantically steaming through Samarkand, which is shaping up fantastically well and is essential reading during the current crisis. How long can George, Don and Dick keep their mits on power for now?

Posted by Nick @ 09:49 GMT

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Monday, May 03, 2004

25th anniversary of the accession to power of my first political heroine

ON THIS DAY 1979: Election victory for Margaret Thatcher: "Where there is discord, may we bring harmony. Where there is error, may we bring truth. Where there is doubt, may we bring faith. And where there is despair, may we bring hope."
- Thatcher Prepares for 25th Anniversary of Historic Election: "Her close friends say that Lady Thatcher is now coming to terms with the death of her husband, Sir Denis, last year, and that her health has been improving. She is still under doctors’ orders to make no public speeches, but as one of her colleagues said “you can never tell with her.”"
- Margaret Thatcher Foundation
- Michael Howard: “the greatest British Prime Minister since Winston Churchill”.
- Time 100: Leaders and Revolutionaries: Margaret Thatcher: Champion of free minds and markets, she helped topple the welfare state and make the world safer for capitalism, By PAUL JOHNSON (Who else!)



- What a way to spend the May Bank Holiday 2004: Election replay 1979: All set for political change - the BBC election nerve centre - BBC Parliament marks the 25th anniversary of the dawn of Thatcherism by broadcasting the 1979 election results programmes on Bank Holiday Monday.

Posted by Nick @ 07:21 GMT

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How is "Samarkand" coming along?

Sher Dor Madrassahh, Samarkand



Map from "Journey Into Russia," Laurens van der Post, 1964.

Posted by Nick @ 07:10 GMT

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