Gertsamtkunstwerk

Photos photos photos

Looking for something completely different, I stumbled across the February Edition of Opera News

Opera News Awards for Distinguished Achievement

Lots of pictures from the awards ceremony held back in November in New York.

Nuffing good's ever going to happen again

When you're a kid, birthdays seem the most exciting thing possible, and you look forward to them. Then midnight passes (or you wake up next morning) and you realise that there's nothing to look forward to.

Which is weird, because I won't get the bulk of my birthday/Christmas presents until next week.

And then there's the minor matter of United being in a Cup Final. And England having the best chance in my lifetime to do something in the World Cup.

And there's May as well.

But I've still got that 'nothing good's ever going to happen again' feeling.

And I never got round to making myself a birthday cake.

And I'm still waiting for that long cold winter where we all die of bird flu and power cuts. I don't think the Pools Panel has sat this season. Does the Pools Panel still sit? Are there still Pools?

What I got for my birthday

Well, apart from a glorious afternoon at a wonderful opera, kisses from two barihunks, and a lovely meal at a restaurant I shall highly recommend and to which I want to return - Cafe des Amis, I also got

some gorgeous flowers
a trendy scarf that I shall have to learn to tie trendily
Amazon vouchers, which are in the process of purchasing an MP3 player, and CDs of Cosi fan tutte and Mozat's mature symphonies.

And a text message from my highly educated, highly qualified and extremely literate mother, written in txt..!

And losts of lovely comments from the mmofm community...

What the papers say...

...about Le Nozze di Figaro

The Guardian

Compelling: Miah Persson as Susanna and Gerald Finley as Count Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro, ROH, London. Photograph: Tristram Kenton

Musically the evening is remarkable. Röschmann is exceptional in giving voice to the Countess's despair. Finley is the most dangerous of Counts, Persson a sensual, feisty Susanna. Schrott, meanwhile, handsome of presence and gorgeous of tone, is a star in the making. Antonio Pappano's conducting is full of wit and emotional depth. A flawed but compelling evening.

The Times

Gerald Finley’s terrific Count is like a cornered dinosaur who senses the impending Ice Age but can do nothing except seethe impotently. Yet how magnificently he does seethe! I have rarely seen a Count who radiates so much pent-up anger, frustration and, at one truly shocking moment, physical brutality.

The Observer

McVicar is blessed with a multi-talented cast who can mostly act as well as they can sing, primarily Uruguayan baritone Erwin Schrott's feisty Figaro.. Swedish soprano Miah Persson complements him beautifully, a Susanna as comely and sassy as pure of voice and sweet of tone, stilling an awed house with her sublime 'Deh, vieni'.

Gerald Finley's nobly sung Count is less physically imposing than usual, lending stronger emphasis to the dark, scheming side of his shameless nature, angry and self-righteous enough to administer a shocking slap across the face to his long-suffering wife, superbly sung by the stately, if sometimes statuesque Dorothea Roschmann... Israeli mezzo Rinat Shaham makes a charmingly gamine Cherubino, perkily popping up in all the wrong places at the wrong times. The supporting cast could scarcely be stronger; Philip Langridge, Jonathan Veira and Graciela Araya all make the most of their chances as Basilio, Bartolo and Marcellina.

Bloomberg

Erwin Schrott (Figaro) has a thrilling, resonant voice, and Miah Persson (Susanna) floats her final aria ``Deh vieni, non tardar'' with exquisite beauty. They're both also talented and lively actors...Gerald Finley is vocally and theatrically outstanding as Almaviva, and gives a fierce center to the character's pride and arrogance. Young mezzo Rinat Shaham makes a memorable debut as the hormonally charged pageboy Cherubino. Her drunken turn in Act Four is a delight, and her deliberately awkward performance of ``Voi che sapete'' is charming.

Dorothea Roschmann occasionally struggles with the difficult, long phrases of Countess Almaviva, yet Antonio Pappano's conducting is so fresh and plastic you can almost touch it.

Music OMH

Le nozze di Figaro (Photo: Bill Cooper)

The role of Count Almaviva was surely made for Gerald Finley. His rendition of the Act 3 aria brought the house down, strongly projected and delivered with an aristocratic authority. His long-suffering wife was sung by Dorothea Röschmann. Everything she sang was deeply felt, but for me the easy legato that is so essential in this music was lacking in her upper register; these factors made Dove sono moving but slightly unconvincing.

Erwin Schrott was a superb Figaro, a real lyric baritone with a feel for the humour and the heart of this character. ROH debutant Miah Persson stunned as Susanna, producing spine-tingling half-tones in Deh vieni, non tardar. She carried off her character's stage-managing the events of the whole opera, and had a beautiful, if small voice, and a nice ringing tone.

Rinat Shaham took a while to warm up as Cherubino, but was cheeky and charming; Graciela Araya a witty Marcellina; and Philip Langridge was luxury casting as Don Basilio. Barbarina was the lovely Young Artist, Ana James, making a strong impression at the start of Act 4.

The Telegraph

The cast is strong: Erwin Schrott is a handsome dog of a Figaro, less of an oaf than usual and firmly sung. His Susanna is the pitch-perfect Miah Persson, radiating determination and competence until a dreamily beautiful "Deh vieni non tardar" shows another side of her personality.

As the Countess, that fine musician Dorothea Röschmann starts awkwardly with a nervous "Porgi amor", but hits vocal form in the evening's second half with a richly eloquent "Dove sono". Rinat Shaham is an ebullient Cherubino, and Jonathan Veira (Bartolo), Graciela Araya (Marcellina) and Philip Langridge (Basilio) make a splendidly Dickensian trio of conspirators.

The finest element of the evening, however, is Gerald Finley's dashingly self-absorbed Count, sung with a technical focus, sensitive musicality and crisp enunciation that disarms criticism. What a great operatic artist he has become.

The Independent

Dorothea Roschmann's extraordinarily intense account of "Dove sono" was genuinely a moment of self-revelation. The deployment of aching embellishments in the da capo was for once neither cosmetic, nor musicological, but entirely dramatic. Earlier in the same scene we witnessed the Count - the superb Gerald Finley on blistering form...

...At the centre of things Erwin Schrott's charismatic Figaro is as cocky, confident and showy with his big notes as you could wish...

Miah Persson's deliciously pretty Susanna certainly provided that. Her final-act romance, ravishingly sung, truly revealed the tender-hearted young woman beneath the feisty exterior... As for the randy Cherubino, Rinat Shaham  has him panting at the bit from her breathless "Non so piu" onwards. Again, a wonderfully complete performance. You can almost hear the hormones raging.

New York Times

Bill Cooper
Figaro (Erwin Schrott) with his Susanna (Miah Persson) in David McVicar's "Marriage of Figaro" in London.

Playbill Arts

Gerald Finley as Count Almaviva and Miah Persson as Susanna

Bill Cooper

Le Nozze di Figaro

Which I went to see at the Royal Opera House yesterday afternoon - the corporate page is here, with details of cast, future performances and so on. It will be broadcast on BBC2 on 25th February.

It is my favourite opera of all, and has only gone up in my estimation as a result of this performance. Although it and the play it was based on were written in the 1780s, it was updated to the 1820s, and I know that because it said so in the newspapers. I didn't read the programme notes beforehand (except for looking at the pictures) and as I'm not an expert in the subtle differences in interior and clothing design, I would not have known, nor cared. And I don't think it made one iota of difference.

Overall, I thought that the orchestral playing, the singing, the character depiction, the sets and the production were separately and together, first rate. My main criticism would be the interpolation of Bach's Toccata and a loud "hello" into the beginning of Voi che sapete. People who not only let their mobiles ring, but answer them "I'm in the opera" should be forcibly ejected from the auditorium and barred for a year. A second offence would involve stocks and pillories. When practically the entire amphitheatre is saying "shush", there is, in my view,an argument for restarting the intro to the aria.

One of my reasons for liking it is that however many times I see or hear it, I find something new in the story or music or both. However good the principals were, and they were, one of the best touches was the servants listening in at the door to all the intrigues.

Many parts of it were very funny, especially the almost farcical quality of the two scenes where Cherubino is hiding first in Susanna's bedroom, and then in the Countess's bedroom. And the Final Act, in the garden, when it seems that half the cast are running around trying to hide from each other. There were excellent bits all the way through; of course, the director must get a large part of credit for this, but there would be little point in planning clever moves without intelligent acting-singers to act them out.

The cast was of a very high standard. As soon as the ROH announced the new season last Spring, and I saw Nozze di Figaro, my heart beat a little faster, and when I saw "Gerald Finley" as the Count it beat even faster (and I've become an even bigger fan of his since last Spring!). I hadn't heard any of the rest of the principals, and, in some cases, hadn't even heard of them. And then when smaller parts are taken by the likes of Philip Langridge, who is, presumably winding down his career in style, you know that's luxury casting...!

I thought Gerald Finley was marvellous; everytime I see him I like him even more. He has a gorgeous voice, and a wonderful stage presence. He played the Count as one could imagine Timothy West playing him, and was very funny. Quite frighteningly physical at times.

Miah Persson was outstanding as Susanna and she with the lovely Erwin Schrott as Figaro had me convinced that they were a couple in love, which doesn't always come across in every production. I had read that Erwin took the recitative secco as spoken narrative, and, I have to say, reading about it, I was not sure. And indeed, in the first excerpt, I was still not sure. But then I began to realise, it really worked. And Erwin is most definitely a voice I would like to hear again, with an excellent stage presence (the internet says he's due to play Don Giovanni at Covent Garden in the future).

I thought Dorothea Röschmann was good as the Countess, although I will say that I am not a great soprano fan and there were some parts of her voice, especially up at the top that were not especially to my liking. I think Rinat Shaham was a fine Cherubino.

I'm trying to work out which was my favourite bit musically. There are so many great arias, duets, and ensemble pieces, it's impossible to single one out. And then, when you think you've had just too much in the way of beautiful singing, there comes these amazingly gorgeous strains from the orchestra.

Perhaps I will go along with Rob's comment to Anna, about the last couple of minutes, as the Count seeks the Countess's pardon, and the story ends happily*, with all singing and the house lights rising to include the audience in the general happiness.

One man on the end of myrow rose to leave as that final bit began. I cannot for the life of me begin to understand why anybody would do that. Yes, he was infirm and walking with a stick, but I could never contemplate leaving just before the grand final. Sure, leave as soon as the final note sounds. Jimmy commented "Remind me never to get old" (I said if he was serious, it could be arranged...)

Overall an excellent performance of a beautiful opera. It's my first opera of the year but I'm already thinking that it will be a contender for my Top 10 of 2006. If it doesn't make the final cut, it will be because 2006 will have turned out to be an amazingly good year...!

Oh, and it's on BBC2 on 25 February.

* although in Part 3 of the trilogy, the Countess ends up having a child outside of wedlock with Cherubino.

Inappropriate Music

I have taken to listening to Classic FM's lunchtime requests.

Living underneath a seven*-day a week building site means that I have to have mechanically produced sounds on from 8 am until nightfall and beyond. When I get up, before I have caffeine, I am not competent to make an intelligent choice of music - on workdays I listen to Today - so I put on Classic FM**.

Someone has just requested a piece of music to celebrate the birth of their new baby. They requested the theme from Angels in America. Do you think they've ever watched the play or even know what it's about?

* don't get me started...
** I know it's the Spawn of Satan and single-handedly responsible for the Triumph&trade of cleavage marketing over musical ability that is Kathleen "Warbling Barbie" Jenkins, but it's pleasant enough mental chewing gum.

Thirty eight is such a rubbish number

News snippet

The Observer is a strange newspaper. Like most of the Sundays (and Saturdays) it seems filled with 'lifestyle' articles by vapid halfwits that make me sigh and exclaim "Who cares?". Sometimes it contains some excellent journalism, either of an investigating nature, or the reflective researched thoughts of someone who is knowledgable and intelligent. Sometimes, they just throw a small story in, without comment or elaboration, and sometimes that story has to be taken in the wider context of the current news agenda. Down at the bottom of 7 Days | A good week / bad week for is a tiny story...

Jewellery sales (Christian division)

British Airways staff on flights to Saudi Arabia were last week ordered not to wear crucifixes in case Muslim passengers were offended.

I have never met a Muslim who would be offended by someone wearing a crucifix. My understanding of Islam is that they see Christ as a prophet, and that the Christian tradition is part of the process toward Islam, and, therefore, logically, Christianity is unfinished rather than wrong.

I can't decide whether it's clever journalism to stick that snippet in, uncommented, or whether it's lazy journalism not to have asked "Why?"

Le Nozze di Figaro

A really fabulous afternoon at Covent Garden.  Couldn't fault it. Well, I could nitpick, but that would be nitpicking.

Really amazingly fabulous music. Excellent cast. Very very good production.

And should I  mention the kisses I got at the Stage Door?

Shameless, me. Shameless. And, a year ago, I would have said I don't do baritones...

Just as Jimmy and I were walking past the Stage Door, he said he would go to the pub if I wanted to hang around in the  lobby to Backstage. Just as I got there, Erwin Schrott was leaving, so nervously I approached him, and explained that I  knew Giorgia in Italy who had asked me to give him a hug on her behalf. He seemed excited and pleased that I was a friend of Giorgia's, mentioning he had got a text from her this morning,  so I explained that she blogs, and I blog. So we had a hug and he kissed me on both cheeks. I said that Figaro is my favourite opera, so my expectations were high, and they were met, I really enjoyed it. So he hugged me again, and I got another kiss on each cheek. I don't do autograph-collecting, besides Jimmy had taken my programme off to the pub, and because I had inadequate preparation, I didn't even get a photo.

He departed, and I hung around for a while chatting with the dozen or so autograph seekers. I was wondering how much longer I should wait around, or whether I should join Jimmy in the pub, when Gerald Finley emerged (be still my beating heart...!). I waited while various people got his autograph, then I took a photo, and then I said,

"Erwin's given me a kiss for a mutual friend, so I was wondering if I could have one from you for me." There was laughter around me and someone said "I'll have to remember that tactic...". Gerald obliged. Oh my! I shall say no more on the matter on the internet, but I shan't forget that in a hurry...

I will do a more considered, and less girly-groupie, review tomorrow...

Reactions

Surfing round the underbelly of the blogosphere, I realise that opera affects people in strange ways

Phoebe Legere says

When the Duke of Mantua, tenor Rolando Villazon, sang his "Questa o Quella" I almost lost consciousness. A thrill went through my whole body - it must have been something like my pal Stafford experienced when she had her nipples pierced

Or, disappointed that Plácido had to withdraw from Tuesday's Cyrano, Rachel says

I did enjoy the woman who sat next to me though. Right before the curtain came up she took out her flask, took a few swigs of god only knows what was in there, took off her shoes, and put her jacket behind her head like a pillow and conked out. Why did she come?? She def came alone because she didn't know me or the people on the other side of her.

Whereasnkan02 hadn't even got there when she wrote

It is going to be Verdi's Rigoletto with Placido Domingo (I am going to pass out right here right now)

(And he was just conducting...!)

A Memo

From: Royal Press Secretary
To: His Majesty
Date: 1st February 2006

Subject: Cartoons

As Your Majesty requested recently, in order to divert public attention from the regrettable demise of a small number of pilgrims in Makkah during the last Hajj, Saudi newspapers were instructed to revive the four-month-old story of cartoons about the Prophet (PBUH) in a Danish newspaper, and turn it into an attack on Denmark, together with a "spontaneous demand by the people" for a boycott of Danish goods...

...continue reading The Religious Policeman

Should I Have Worn An Arran Jumper?

I stumbled inadvertently into an incongruous setting this evening. I booked a ticket a few weeks ago for a concert at the Barbican, and I swear the premise changed in between me booking it, and now.

My ticket says Billy Bragg and Special Guests...Songs of Protest.

Fantastic. Billy Bragg! Songs of Protest! Fantastic.

By tonight it had morphed into Folk Britannia. Folk! Me! It's going to be on telly. February 24th. BBC4. I'd seriously recommend watching it, actually. I think I might record it and fast forward through the Boring Bits.

I must admit I hadn't heard of all the guests. And some I'd only sort of heard of, like Neil and Callum MacColl, the sons of Ewan McColl and Peggy Seeger.

I got chatted up in the interval. Go me! I was explaining to the chap that I'm not a folkie, but I came to Billy Bragg via Red Wedge. But even I've heard of Donovan and Martin Carthy.

"They're gods...!" he said, transfixed.

I think my face gave the wrong answer. Diplomatically, I said "They're certainly more than names."

I think at the start of the evening I would have said "I sort of like folk, but not greatly..." I think now I can define it more closely: I like a great many songs of protest and I have unknowingly been a great admirer of Woody Guthrie for many years.

Highlight of the eveningwas of course hearing the wonderful Billy sing the superb "Between The Wars"

And I'll give my consent
To any government
That does not deny a man
A Living wage

Biggest disappointment - this was the first time I've ever heard him perform it live without a mass audience singalong.

I kind of had a Ghost of Christmas Future moment with Bill. He's forty eight now, but looking exactly the same as he did in 1987 at the Royal Concert Hall Nottingham. He's a good story teller, but I suddenly had this insight - he's on the precipice of his anecdotage, and I can imagine in about thirty years, turning on the TV,and Billy's there as the old geezer who reminisces about the Old Days. The bloke who chatted me up said he's turning into the Cliff Richard of British Folk. Which is a terrible thing to say. I want to emphasise that I think Billy is wonderful.

I'll write a bit more tomorrow. But Billy says you really should watch the documentary that opens BBC's Folk Britannia season tomorrow night.

Althogh it's not on his site, he's playing the Shepherd's Bush Empire on 3 May. Tempting, tempting...but the night before the London elections...I'm not sure...

An open letter to the Global Caliphate

Anger grows over Muhammad cartoon

Dear Head of Caliphate (or can I call you Caliph? Cal?)

I realise it is presumptious of me to speak on behalf of Europe, but I have a wonderful suggestion to make. I am all for negotiation and compromise, and meeting people in the middle. And I am sure many Europeans will join with me.

If you stop treating women as inferior to men we might consider not satirising your religion.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai also strongly condemned their publication, saying it was "an affront... for hundreds of millions of people".

Coincidentally, the systematic endemic oppression, rape and killing of women throughout the Moslem world - and elsewhere - is an affront for hundreds of millions of people.

Oh dear, your belief system got insulted. Does it not occur to you that if your oppressive mumbo-jumbo is insufficiently robust to withstand criticism it might just be because it's an indefensible heap of mumbo-jumbo?

I know how much you hate the materialism of the West, and, if the truth be told, there are many people in the West who have concerns about the more damaging aspects of undiluted materialism. But we had an Enlightenment a few centuries ago, and we began to develop a capacity to understand that the world isn't binary but nuanced with infinite shades of grey.

We also developed the concept of Free Speech. Imperfect in concept and imperfect in execution, but the key to developing all those technological goodies you seem very keen on, oh you know, those guns with which you surrounded the EU office in Gaza, and all that technology that allowed you to spread your message throughout the entire world. I expect you probably used cars or other motorised vehicles to get to your protests. Were there many women on those protests? I expect not, because you instruct your unthinking followers to grind women into the dust, to subjugate them, to treat them as less worthy of respect than you, to repeatedly rape them, to kill them.

In that context it almost seems embarrassing to be uptight about a couple of cartoons.

After all, people choose whether to follow a religion, and to the extent that they follow it. They don't get to choose their gender. So, while I agree that there is no justification for attacking someone just because they choose to follow a religion, it is rather marvellous that this issue can be raised, in the West, and our elected representatives demonstrate that Free Speech is precious.

So, Great Caliph, what are you doing to protect women from random and repeated hate-filled attacks, in the name of religion?

Shopping city

The thing about my office block is that, because it holds 3500 people it is capable of sustaining viable commerce. They have not yet introduced lunchtime bazaars selling cheap pseudo-ethnic jewellery, nor has the promised cash machine been installed. Despite popular demand, Friday trampolining is not yet a feature. Nor, unlike a previous workplace, Tuesday Shiatsu.

But, we do have a FastTicket machine for train tickets. And a restaurant and two cafés. Between them, and the vending machines, these catering outlets sell just about everything you can possibly want in a catering sort-of-way. Hot dinners healthy and non-healthy, soups, salads, yoghurts, cream cakes, chocolate cakes, lardy-Merkin-muffins, water fruit juices, sugar-and-fizz drinks, milk, yoghurt drinks, teas, fruit infusions, hot chocolate,coffee with or without syrup shots, chocolate bars traditional and modern organic, fruit, crisps, nuts, chewing gum, polo mints, even, on specific occasions, alcohol. I have heard it say we even have a gym (dread word...) in the basement. But one thing they do not sell is sweeties.

So, your intrepid blogger ventured to the Evil Empire that sits in the next building. Some people boycott the Evil Empire, but my plan is more cunning. I go in there specifically to buy the items that are loss leaders, mainly sandwiches, milk, Duchy Originals Organic biscuits, that sort of thing. Guiltily, I chose something that - sweeties - that wouldn't be a loss leader. The total came to £3.76, I tendered a tenner. The check-out woman apologised for not having any fivers, and having to give me maggies instead. Pleasantly, I said, it wasn't a problem, it all gets spent just as quickly. She counted out my change "That's seven pounds and twenty four..."

As I walked away from the shop, I thought "No, it's not."

When you hear that the Evil Empire has gone into liquidation, you'll know whom to credit...

Marriage of Figaro Reviews

David McVicar Plays Safe in `Marriage of Figaro' at Royal Opera via Cherubino's husband

The Guardian - Four stars "A flawed but compelling evening"

The Times Four stars  "Few of the trillion Mozart celebrations this year will match David McVicar’s new Royal Opera staging of Figaro for insight or passion. It isn’t a perfect show."

I'm not actually reading the reviews until after I go on Saturday...

Italia, ti amo

Promotional video, featuring Catari', Catari' (Core 'ngrato) - 'a bittter-sweet song of a broken heart composed by Salvatore Cardillo'

Audio tracks, and track listing.

File under cheesy videos

Surfing around the blogosphere, I found The Top 5 Nicest Celebrities I've looked After

3: PLACIDO DOMINGO

More famous to the public at large as one of The Three Tenors, but a hero to me before then, Placido moves in a world full of divas, yet displayed none of those traits himself. Gracious, quiet and funny, he is a real old-world gentleman, courtly and dignified.

Liquorice

I never realised just how amazing Liquorice is.

I've always thought of it as a very special sort of sweet. A colourful sweet with a playful Bertie Bassett character. I like the layered levels of liquorice allsorts

, and I like taking them apart and eating them stratum by stratum.  I like taking the yellow or pink sugary bit off of the liquorice centre and eating them piecemeal.  (Don't ask how I eat Custard Creams)

You can make Liquorice ice-cream

But I never knew what an amazing medicine it is, too.

Liquorice was known and grown in the region of Mesopotamia... Natural liquorice root was found in the  Tomb of King Tut.  Early Greek physicians like Theophratus and Hippocrates used natural liquorice to heal wounds and sore throats and it is an extremely important herb in Chinese and Homeopathic medicines. Manuscripts dating from 360AD, of Buddhist origin, talk of natural liquorice helping eye ailments, skin diseases, coughs and loss of hair. In the Middle Ages it became very popular as a sweet medicine and general pick-me-up. Its other past uses have included a beautifying agent, an aphrodisiac and elixir of life.

Amongst other things, it is  a powerful anti-inflammatory and soothing herb useful for peptic ulcers, gastritis, indigestion, dry irritating coughs, pharyngitis and laryngitis. It even cures Chronic Fatigue (so why didn't my homeopathic rheumatologist proscribe me Liquorice Allsorts?), and it improves memory in men over fifty-five.

But be warned, it is possible to overdose on Pontefract Cakes, with frightening consequences...

Time to shut down the internet

Paul Daniels' Diary

Giuseppe Rossi

Despite vowing not to repeat last year's Aquarius Project, I feel duty-bound to issue an addendum, because last year I had not even heard of this guy (he was a child when I began the project...), but in the intervening year he has inveigled himself into my pin-up gallery. Back in August, I thought - what an exciting footballer he looks; a few moments later I came over all hot-and-bothered, and then wondered if I was having a hot flush - after all, the potentially very great Pippo Rossi is almost exactly half my age...

Nozze di Figaro

Interview with David McVicar. Definitely worth a read. And I am so looking forward to Figaro. I'm seeing it Saturday. And twice in July.

Convoy

I caught the bus to Waterloo this evening, and then walked along the station concourse to get to the South Bank. I came out and was about to cross over the zebra crossing near where all the bikes are chained up, when a policeman on a bike with a flashing light hollered "Stand there, wait, don't cross.." There were two or three on my side, dozens on the other side, all heading for their trains. In the distance, I could see more flashing blue lights, and deduced they were motorcycle outriders. Probably a VIP, I thought, and sure enough, the convoy passed, about four outriders and two official looking cars. The lead car was a silver Jag, and the registration began BK. I couldn't see who was in it. Probably some VIP just stepped off the Eurostar.

What struck me was how everybody stood there docile, waiting. It made no odds to me, I was running early, but I bet there were people on the last minute for their train. Which shows that most people obey crowd-control orders from the Old Bill. Which perhaps demonstrates that society isn't, after all, going to the dogs.