Gertsamtkunstwerk

Tiles

Going through my holiday photos from Costa Blanca last September - photo album available - I remembered how I had been enchanted by the decorative tiles I found on so many streets, especially in Denia. I photographed a lot. They're not especially interesting or good photos in themselves, but I thought it worthwhile blogging a selection of them as a sort of collection!

   

David Laws and the £40,000

I do have a certain amount of sympathy for David Laws, given the circumstances which led him into this mess.

There is no precise analogy with a straight or indeed out gay MP. I am a bit irritated at the claims that he is an intensely 'private' person; 'private' people don't tend to put themselves up for public office. But I feel a bit uncomfortable writing that, because there's obviously a very good reason for him wishing to be 'private'.

That having been said, it's not the sole domain of gay people to value their privacy above office - I can't think of any minister (past or present) and doubt there are many, if any, women MPs who have children by 'father unknown' or 'father did a runner pronto', even though, reportedly, it's rife throughout the nation¹.

My instincts tell me that this case is unlikely to meet the requirements of 'beyond reasonable doubt' required by Criminal Justice, but an employee breaking the rules of expenses claims in such a way would be subject to an internal disciplinary to be decided 'on the balance of probabilities'. Even though the charge would be the euphemistic '(Gross) misconduct', the nub of the matter would be fraud.

I don't feel any great need to defend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury who will be implementing a massive cuts programme, even though that wasn't in his party's manifesto and would be going ahead irrespective of which personality happened to be holding the job. (I also feel disinclined to defend a rich banker who appears also to be greedy). I was attacked by a Lib Dem supporter who stated:

Hey, Labour women, gloat about Laws in your homophobic way. When Tory anti-abortionists get overall majority, you may be sorry.

Even acknowledging that that was a 'Friday night special', it was still bizarre, to say the least. I don't really see the connection between alleged expense fiddling - or indeed economic liberalism - and abortion rights.

I find extremely objectionable the implication that the only area of public policy women should concern themselves with is abortion; and in any case, abortion bills are customarily on a free vote because the pro-choice/anti-abortion split goes right across party lines.

When this rant was followed up by a comment including the words 'Your pin-up Hazel Blears' I knew that enough was enough and I blocked that person. You see, there is political debate and then there is personal attack. And the great thing about Twitter, as opposed to newsgroups, it's possible to ignore someone entirely without then having to tolerate disjointed conversations.

The Lib Dems really have to wake up to the realities of being in power. It does take time to adjust, I remember that from 1997. It probably is true that the Telegraph was motivated to release this story because of its dislike of the proposed rise in Capital Gains Tax.

I happen to support the rise in CGT and am bewildered it has been so low for so long², but I think it is entirely legitimate for the Telegraph to campaign against it.

It isn't exactly noble to do so by unearthing this story³ but there is a harmony in exposing how someone is profiting from a second home whilst reducing the rights of many others to profit from their second homes.

And, in general, it is correct for the Press to scrutinise the actions of politicians - as politicians - even if I believe they often go too far in invading personal lives: I felt it entirely unnecessary for downmarket newspapers to publish photos of the Cameron's stuff being carried into a removal van, including a mattress for crying out loud, and I have argued repeatedly that extra-maritals or unusual 'arrangements' are not in themselves subject to scrutiny or cause for resignation.

I'm inclined to feel that if this situation had ceased after last Spring and the Great Expenses Scandal, I would have been fairly relaxed. It was an opportunity to stop claiming with no fuss. When I read that Laws was putting out propaganda highlighting how squeaky clean he had been over expenses, I felt weary. And I think it is entirely disingenuous for LibDems to state that if he had rented a flat commercially, it would have cost the taxpayer more. That is almost certainly true, but it's never a valid defence, not for benefit claimants nor for employees caught being creative with their expense claims.

By the way, a couple of years ago when Jimmy was unemployed we had a conversation about whether he should claim benefit on account of being my 'lodger' rather than be entitled to nothing as a result of sharing his life with me. The answer was no, not least because I dread the 11th Commandment (thou shall not be found out). I expect we could have got away with it and been a few thousand pounds better off. But we didn't. We don't share bank accounts either and arguably have very different social lives.

It's unusual for a CSttT to be so under scrutiny, in a way that hasn't been so since the Thatcherite cuts in the 80s. I know that the 'second homes' issue is a thorny one and I certainly wouldn't wish to return to the bad very old days when MPs were expected to meet out of their private income or personal fortune the necessary costs of being in both London and the constituency. I also recognise that David Laws chose not to be out and I'm glad we no longer have malicious outing for its own sake. But the message after last Spring is that people really resent some others enriching themselves while others are losing their jobs or having to suffer paycuts.

As for Hazel Blears, I've only ever said one nice thing about her, and that was about her stepping aside to let me pass when I was carrying a coffee. Her practices were dodgy and unethical, to say the least, but as far as I know she didn't break the rules at the time (which we all know were crap). Furthermore, she stood before an electorate who were in knowledge of the facts, and even though it's very difficult to imagine Salford being anything other than Labour, safer seats have fallen. And in any case, one could argue that Hazel is fully representing the spirit of Salford by being on the make⁴.

1 I may be wrong; I haven't studied the circumstances of every single woman MP, especially not the new ones, but even if I am wrong and there are women MPs like that, I don't think it invalidates the point

2 I expect a decision was made that the political cost of sustained attacks from the right-wing Press on the rights of middle-classes to make easy profits was disproportionate to the financial gain; I happen to think that's wrong.

3 by the way, some people have questioned why now, others have suggested it would have been 'ethical' to keep it under wraps because of the ramifications. It's possible - though unlikely - that maybe they did keep it until now for precisely those ethical reasons.

4 I'm kidding, right; there are plenty of honest people in Salford.

Plácido in Doha, Azerbaijan & California

I've been a bit remiss in keeping up with this blog recently. (Not enough hours in the day!)

Spanish tenor Placido Domingo performs the anthology of zarzuela (Spanish operetta) with members of the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra in Doha on May 13, 2010. (From Getty Images: used without permission)

Placido Domingo wows crowd

Eleven-time Grammy Award winner Placido Domingo delivered yet another solid performance before 3,500 adoring fans on Thursday night at The Pearl-Qatar featuring in a new spectacular production of ‘Antologia de la Zarzuela’.

The world-renowned tenor brought the audience to the height of their emotions with his versatile and strong voice possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout the two-hour show.

Placido Domingo Says in Good Health After Surgery

"For me, this music is my life. It's the first music I ever heard in my life. Wherever I go in the world, I always bring the Zarzuela repertoire in my concerts. When I can do a program like this of just Zarzuela, it is even more special."

The 69-year-old was back at work within weeks of surgery in New York to remove a malignant polyp from his colon.

Cantar con Plácido fue un placer

Sobre Plácido Domingo afirma que «sólo tengo palabras de elogio,  es una leyenda andante, y como persona tiene una calidad humana que nos sorprendió a todos. Compartió las felicitaciones con nosotros y siempre se prestó a posar con una sonrisa para que nosotros tuviéramos una fotografía», explica la soprano. «Lo que más me ha sorprendido es su fuerza, tanto encima del escenario como fuera. Prácticamente le acaban de operar y  nadie lo diría», añade.

PRESIDENT ILHAM ALIYEV PARTICIPATES IN CEREMONY MARKING 87TH BIRTHDAY OF NATIONAL LEADER HEYDAR ALIYEV AND 6TH ANNIVERSARY OF HEYDAR ALIYEV FOUNDATION

World-known Spanish tenor and conductor José Plácido Domingo Embil sang at the concert and met President Ilham Aliyev.

Music review: Plácido Domingo conducts young singers at the Broad Stage

Elephant in the room

On Wednesday, I popped out of the office to take photos of elephants in Victoria Tower Gardens. I got better pictures than this of the actual elephants but they can wait.

As I was close to College Green, the epicentre of the media circus surrounding the formation of the new coalition government, I thought I would linger and shoot there, too.

The elephant in the room may well be that no one seems to have mentioned that Simon Hughes may not be entirely overjoyed at having to work closely with the Conservatives

NB: Anyone who posts a confrontational comment arguing on the basis of serious political points will be deleted; this isn't supposed to be taken seriously as Political Commentary. And yes, I know it's lame opportunistic attempt at stretching a metaphor/chiché to breaking point.

Also, in retrospect, I should have changed the angle to get the full glory of the clock face.

You are what you eat?

A trifling little Tweet:

Interview with JDF Says he's a vegetarian. Somehow, I could never imagine a heldentenor being veggie;-)

brought forth this response from Ruth:

I see that from the other angle - can't imagine a veggie becoming a Heldentenor...

and made me ponder the correlation between voice-type and diet, or favoured food. Plácido Domingo's voice has been described as 'chocolate', Gerald Finley is a connoisseur of fine wines. I'm the sort of off-pitch mezzo or alto who falsely claims to be a vegetarian* whilst capriciously ignoring the likelihood of meat stock in my leek soup, a phenomenon also spotted in Neath.

I expect that Jonas Kaufmann eats steak for breakfast, and Dmitri Hvorostovsky regularly snacks on Beluga Caviar. I am sure we can all think of singers who, surely, feast on broken glass on toast.

Does the food cause the voice-type or the voice-type the food preference?

*I don't actually, but please don't let facts interrupt when I'm on a roll!

Traviata

A very quick and almost instant review of Tuesday evening performance at the Royal Opera house

Basicaly, a routine revival with a largely unstarry cast. I had a thoroughly enjoyable evening, luxuriating in this great great work. Because the tunes are so familiar and so hummable, it's so easy to dismiss it as fluffy. An opera you'd suggest as a possible 'First' for a newbie. Being familiar and accessible does not diminish its greatness.

The conductor Yves Abel led the orchestra in an unusually intimate interpretation. His pacing was relaxed, never quite falling into langour, with passages of light, and some delicate touches and beautiful arching phrases.

Dmitri Hvorostovsky was as expected as Giorgio Germont, exemplary as a performer and delightfully stiff and stuffy as a character. He sounded a bit gruff to begin with, but he soon warmed up and settled in, and at times sounded utterly gorgeous. He is, of course, a superstar name, so I'm not quite right in saying it wasn't a starry cast. And 70-year old Robert Lloyd was luxury cast in the tiny role of Doctor Grenvil.

I had very mixed feelings about Ermonela Jaho. When she was good she was very good, and was physically convincing as Violetta. When she wasn't so good she squawked. She seemed vulnerable when she had those wonderful solo passages with minimal orchestration that Verdi so lovingly gave to singers, but she flourished against the heavier orchestration and in ensemble. Never a beautiful voice, she seems to have made a career out of singing Violetta when it is quite possible that she would be a much better Tosca.

In an unusual Albanian double (these Eastern Europeans, where are they flocking from?) Saimir Pirgu was a sensational Alfredo. He's been on my radar for a while - I loved him in the one-aria tenor role in Gianni Schicchi, three years ago, and last year he didn't disappoint as Christian in Cyrano de Bergerac in Paris, despite it being a thankless part.

And frankly, as soon as he caressed the word 'palpito' soon after his entrance in Act 1, he was mine. And he just got better and better. A bit wayward of pitch once or twice, but not in some painful straining way - in exuberance and passion. Still in his 20s, he was a credible and sympathetic Alfredo, and, actually, young enough to be Dima's son (!).

What a voice! I love him. I love him so much I would go and see Boheme if he was in it. His voice moved me to tears. It also worked so well with Dima's in ensemble; I have never realised before how emotional the finale of Act II is, how complex and expressive the music. I hope that he 's got someone looking after his interests, not persuading him into roles too heavy too soon - I suspect he will emerge as a  very exciting spinto in time. 

He looked good on stage and moved with confidence. Through the binoculars, he looked very easy on the eye, too, which is no bad thing for a romantic tenor: not entirely sure how impressive he'd look on TV.

It was Traviata, which every opera fan knows well, and it was the old old Richard Eyre production which every London opera fan knows (and was immortalised on DVD with Angela Gheorghiu). No point in analaysing the story or the production, enough to say it didn't nnoy me too much. There were elements in it I didn't recognise; whether they're new or I've just not noticed them before, I can't say!

My most favourite moment is when Violetta is singing Sempre Libera and Alfredo's voice is heard from off-stage. So, I'd just like to say to the stupid laughing woman behind me - that was one of the occasions when you shouldn't have laughed. How completely stupid or hard do you have to be to think that that is funny? How many clues do you need, such as over 2,000 other people aren't laughing?

Recent photos

Pirate Ship, in the playground of my local Primary School/Polling Station

Brixton Windmill

Brixton Elephant

3 Contenders

Electoral Reform

Suddenly, after 27 years of near-silence people other than political geeks are talking about a need for electoral reform.

It's a subject I have views on, of course I do, but I've never felt a passion for it. I haven't perceived any great desire for it in all the time I've been politically active. It doesn't come up on doorsteps or in pubs, when people are more concerned about public services, the economy and social justice

Anybody with an A-Level in politics can write an essay outlining all the various different systems and the textbook pros and cons of them all. Essentially, they boil down to whether you want your representatives to be closely identifiable with and accountable to a defined geographical area or whether you want your party of choice to have a share of people elected that reflects, at least broadly, the share of votes cast for them.

It's really important to emphasise how much many people value the perception that they 'know' their MP and councillors. This is probably not important to people whose community is virtual or have few ties to the area they happen to live. But it's vitally important to people who care - often passionately - about their area and who use services, many of which are area based.

An effective councillor knows every street and tower block in their ward, and is well acquainted with the chair of every residents' association and school governors. Similarly with MPs although with less detail. Irrespective of party, a good constituency MP is known throughout the constituency and on balance is liked and/or respected irrespective of party allegiances.

This isn't just about wanting councillors and MPs to be Super-Caseworkers, because both have a duty to scrutinise and be strategic. I want my representatives to think beyond potholes, but I also want them to be acutely aware of the impact of their policies on the wide range of people they represent. Politicians are often accused of being out of touch, often by journalists who wouldn't dream of visiting the estates and day centres, or don't have the opportunities to hear how ordinary people are struggling, be it with anti-social behaviour, access to services, benefits trap and childcare, or any of the other myriad commonplace problems people raise with their representatives. It's not good enough merely to know the theoretical textbook says.

A local connection is the biggest advantage of First Past the Post and would be preserved with an AV system (and weakened with AV+).

For European Elections and for the London Assembly, the 'fair share' system works reasonably well. It's important to have MEPs that understand and represent the interest of my region on a wider stage. It allows for smaller parties to get elected. In the case of the Greens, this is undoubtedly a Good Thing (I am currently writing as a student of politics rather than a tribalist); in the case of the BNP it appears to be a bad thing, but I'm relaxed about them: the more scrutiny they get, the more odious they appear. Their annihilation in Barking and Dagenham reflects previous results nationwide - they get elected by mobilising the support of people whose racism is passive and lazy, who feel hopeless and need to blame the poor sod one step higher or lower on the relative ladder of life. Once these people become aware of the BNP's active violent racism and their incompetence in office, they turn away from them.

I have read a lot of people complaining that their views or preferences go unrepresented. Someone was shown on the TV yesterday saying that not getting the MP of your choice is akin to getting apple pie when you order cheesecake. It's not: there is a difference between individual and collective choice.

However, that doesn't deny the broader point that for many people going out to vote seems like a waste of time. People who live in safe seats held continuously by a party they dislike intensely are often forced to choose between the party they prefer or the one they dislike but perceive as being the best placed to defeat the incumbent. They often feel they might as well stay at home. If they guess wrongly who is challenger, that feels even worse.

I don't think that the Alternative Vote system would really address that.

Suppose I lived in a constituency which was Tory held, reasonably safe but not impregnable, with Lib Dems generally well behind in second place and Labour in third. I would have voted Labour on Thursday but would have found it difficult to persuade others not to vote LibDem: I guess I would have put my campaigning efforts into a neighbouring area.

Under AV, I would happily have voted Labour, and guessed that my first vote would be eliminated. So I suppose I would have lent my alternative vote to the Lib Dems (unless I had several alternative votes, in which case Greens would have got my second). If the plan worked as predicted, there would be a good chance that the Lib Dems would have got elected as being the second preference of Labour, Green etc voters in addition to their actual supporters.

But I would still be left with an MP who doesn't support my views. And if the electorate behaved differently, the Tory MP who under FPTP gets say 40% of votes, could end up being elected with 60 or 70% of ultimate votes, reinforcing the Big Majority. This system would probably mean more LibDems elected, but I don't think it would actually make any great difference to parties such as the Greens (or UKIP, BNP etc).

The other extreme is to go for a party list system. You can dress it up with endless variations and fancy names but ultimately you vote for the party. It would be conducted on a much wider geographical basis than FPTP or AV. I reckon local to me the smallest area that could be sustained is about four Boroughs - say Lambeth, Southwark, Wandsworth and Lewisham, roughly one eighth of London. This would mean we elect about ten MPs in "Inner Sarf London". Perhaps a quarter of London would be preferable, so 20 MPs (roughly, I haven't actually totted up the precise numbers, I'm trying to make the arithmetic easier).In Inner Sarf, I would expect 4-6 Labour MPs, perhaps they could have one or more that 'specialises' in Lambeth, but I couldn't realistically demand they have instinctive intimate knowledge of local concerns.

Any party getting 10% of the vote would be guaranteed an MP in Inner Sarf London. For South West quadrant it would mean only 5%. This would mean that Parliament would approximately reflect the political preferences by party of votes cast. It would change voting behaviour. People would feel happier to vote for the Greens, for example, and probably most importantly would stop voting 'anti'.

Psychologically, that is a massive change - and I have no idea how it will play out. I suspect in time it will lead to far more smaller parties, as the artificial coalitions within the Big Three are no longer relevant pre-election. At the moment, you have to accept the coalition and ensuing compromises put forward by the party that most closely echoes your views; under a system more proportional you'd have to gird yourself for surprise coalitions and compromises you don't envisage or desire (which could never happen under FPTP, /sarcasm).

I suspect a plethora of smaller parties would have some unforeseen consequences because they would probably lack the expertise and sheer numbers to run an effective campaign. A well-oiled campaigning machine, with bodies running round the streets on a Thursday evening can make a big difference currently in marginal seats and potentially to vote share, but there is a risk of poorly targeted and under-resourced campaigns leading to lower turn-out. On the other hand, more people might get involved with a party which is a closer match than the loose unsatisfactory coalition they end up supporting at elections. Alternatively, there is the risk of endless fragmenting like the Judean People's Front!

I don't think it's enough to offer 'electoral reform' and hope that *everyone* agrees. Constitutional reform is messy and takes time - Parliamentary (and thus that of officials) time to process the legislation, plus it's one of those areas where I think it best to establish a broad consensus rather than forcing through legislation on a Three Line Whip.

I have always felt, right back to Sixth Form, that 'Lords Reform' should go hand-in-hand in with changing the way votes are counted (that's a way to solve the dilemma between local and proportional).

I also believe it makes little sense to do all that without considering the Monarchy. I suppose we could do nothing till the Old Dear pops her clogs, but if Charles had a scrap of decency in him, he'd indicate his willingness to submit to a referendum. Or if not him, William, who is rumoured to have no desire for the job so long as he can keep his wealth. But as was illustrated in Australia, a referendum has to be worded right. Also, the wrong result would end up legitimising the monarchy and closing the question off.

Five years ago I wrote about Electoral Fraud, and yet despite my blogpost, nothing has changed. There are questions to be asked about whether Thursday is the right day - although I also feel there are strong arguments against Sunday voting. I have mixed feelings about Fixed Term Parliaments, and I strongly oppose cutting back on the number of MPs, unless it could be accompanied by a similar restriction on the number of ministers and shadows - otherwise it would be a cull of potentially independent-minded backbenchers vital for scrutiny.

Vote Early Vote Often

 

Gordon Brown's speech to Citizens UK

Gordon Brown triumphs in unofficial fourth TV leadership debate

 Prime minister puts in extraordinary performance when the three party leaders addressed community groups

Gordon Brown today put in one of the most extraordinary performances of his tenure as prime minister when the three party leaders took part in an unofficial fourth debate – addressing community groups in the largest live audience of the election campaign.

Brown appeared to find an emotional range and vocabulary previously unheard from him. Prompting repeated standing ovations, he told the audience: "As you fight for fairness, you will always find in me a friend, a partner and a brother." The speech, before 2,500 voters in a large church hall, may end up having been the most electrifying event of the campaign. Critics of the prime minister described it as one of the best speeches they have seen by a politician.

Simon Boccanegra, Milano - in the cinema

It's such a splendid idea of having live performances transmitted (live or otherwise) into cinemas. I would also quite like a TV-Channel (Pay Per View if necessary) that did similar. But it's rather nice to treat an evening at the cinema as a bit of a night out, walking into the foyer and spotting so many familiar faces (it's not actually true that I knew everybody in the cinema, but I did recognise about two-thirds of faces!)

First of all, I must talk about the production. It wasn't the direst production I have seen but it was pretty lame. That having been said, I have seen at least four different production of Simon Boccanegra and have found them all a bit risible. Perhaps there is something inherent in the work - it doesn't lend itself to updating, and there isn't a lot of scope for anything but confrontations within tableaux.

Some aspects of the camera work were a bit dubious; perhaps worse was the direction that seemed to introduce transitions in the style of Powerpoint presentations circa 1996, often at the most poignant moments.

My greatest criticism was for the ludicrous decision to have a corps of ballet boys being sailors. I could see the point, but the way they were choreographed as a bad borderline-homophobic 1970s mincing joke. I also could not understand why a crowd of men in 19th century coats and hats suddenly emerged as background in the final scene, when the whole of the rest of the opera had been costumed in generic 'old' costumes (the opera is supposedly set in the 14th century).

Some of the scenery was very stupid. Not least in the garden scene, where there was a heap of rubble in the background. It was basically a pile of slabs arranged in a triangular or pyramidical pile; this was later reflected in a painting in the Council Chamber of rocks at sea in the pile. Why, who knows? But in among the almost plausible pile of slabs was something that strongly resembled a section of track from a model railway. Shrug. Three trees were suspended above the stage and I just kept looking at them thinking 'Why?' I would have been prepared to believe it was an attempt at perspective and distance except that they had a mass of roots clearly visible at the bottom. At some point they descended to ground level; instead of highly visible roots we had conspicuous wires holding them up.

I don't think there was much production except for scenery and crowd scenes. Very unimaginative. I felt that the singers were basically told to get on with it and act. Which was largely fine for these principals but I'm not sure it would work with singers less able to act.

I have to admit that I like the story and characters of Simon Boccanegra much more than I like the music. I don't dislike the music but for some reason it refuses to lodge in my sub-conscious, in the way that many Verdi operas do so easily (And I don't just mean the obviously hummable ones like Rig and Trav). But even with that caveat I don't really understand the booing of Daniel Barenboim (the live coverage stopped strategically before he took a bow). I don't actually rate Barenboim as that great a conductor, but I have heard a lot worse. I suspect this booing lark is as much about disturbed or insecure wankers needing the attention as an informed rational objective music judgement. My feelings about the music was that there were some good bits - most notably the sound of the sea - no obviously dreadful bits, and it seemed reasonably sympathetic an accompaniment of the singers.

Ah, the singers! What a splendid cast! Really first class. It comes into my category of operas with 'too many indistinguishable men in comprimario roles' but the leading players were excellent. Massimo Cavalletti as Paolo and Fabio Sartori as Gabriele Adorni were more than satisfactory. 

But the real luxury lay in the three main roles. Ferruccio Furlanetto was superb as Fiesco. He must be my favourite bass, admittedly just on the basis of three fabulous Verdi roles. I love his voice and I love his stage presence.

I was really impressed by Anja Harteros as Amelia.I don't think I've ever heard her live. I made the mistake a couple of years ago of going to a Boccanegra at Covent Garden in which she wasn't Amelia. She's a bit odd-looking, and the camera close-ups of her rather odd facial expressions doesn't do her any favours. But vocally she was superb and I was happy at her portrayal.

But as you know full well, the only reason I was actually at the cinema as opposed to, say, watching The Leaders' Debate live on the TV was for Simon Boccanegra, the man himself - a sixty-nine year old tenor doing a passable impression of a fifty year old baritone!

I know the debate goes on: does he has the right voice for this role? My answer, no, probably not. But I actually can't think of any baritone singing now who'd I really wish to hear in this role, except for Dmitri Hvorostovsky, about whom it has also be said is vocally unsuitable! And the next question - should Plácido have retired as a consequence of his recent surgery? On this evidence, no absolutely not.

He was a bit shaky in the Prologue, but after that he was absolutely fine. I had been prepared for him being less active on the stage, mentally preparing myself for a lack of dramatic falling to the ground. Again, no problem there. He wasn't exactly leaping around the stage - the sword fight in the Prologue was pathetic (maybe because of the 'direction'?) and he looked quite awkward towards the end - but that might have been because he was playing the role of someone dying from slow-working poison. His final deathly collapse was suitably dramatic: not his finest example of falling-to-and-rolling-around-the-ground, but more than satisfactory.

Vocally, he was superb. I'm not sure there's a lot more to say. His voice never fails to thrill me. He is convincing and sympathetic in the role, especially in the one-to-one interactions with Amelia. I have no problem taking him for a baritone, although I concede that in another baritone role that I'm more instinctively familiar with, say Rigoletto, I may be better placed to notice the difference. He certainly didn't sound like a tenor.

And for the most part he looked good. Ruggedly handsome as ever, of course, even though there were odd moments when I thought 'he's looking old'. I guess when he's tired he tends to look older than when he's bouncing around, there again, refer back to my earlier comments on 'character affected by slow-working poison'

I doubt that I shall ever love Simon Boccanegra as an opera, even though I find the Garden recognition scene and the final death scene intensely moving. I am looking forward tremendously to seeing it in London  - so far, only two performances booked:-(, and I salivate at the all round superbly good cast assembled.  I enjoyed it in the cinema but other than it being the best cast I've seen in it, I don't think it will otherwise figure as a 'best ever'.

There were no sub-titles on the transmission. I don't know whether there was supposed to be, even though they were promised on the cast-list/synopsis sheet handed out beforehand. On the way out the manager handed each of us a complimentary ticket for a future performance of anything in any Odeon, which I consider a gracious gesture.