That’s a bit rich

The Daily Fail making a drama. This must be the third story I’ve read in as many days.

Some choice quotes

There is a lot of anger. Lady Annabel (Ben’s formidable mother) is especially incensed and upset.

Feelings are running high at the moment, and another complication is the fact that Kate’s sister, Alice Rothschild, is going out with Ben’s elder brother, Zac.

Alice is well-liked in the family, but the Goldsmiths are asking, how much did she know about Kate and this rapper? Alice and Kate are close. It’s very awkward.

Friends say that the situation is difficult, too, for Jemima Khan — Ben’s older sister, who was on good terms with Kate, but will now be expected to cast her adrift.

It’s hard, but Lady Annabel will expect all of them to rally behind Ben

If there is any basis to the story, that would be rather rich of Lady Annabel. Not just because of this Alice being (partly obviously) responsible for Zac Goldsmith’s marriage breakdown, but Lady Annabel’s own past. Being a bit of a femme fatale herself. Well in a well-built Englishwoman who most likely loves dogs more than people kind of femme fatale.

I’ve always thought (since a child and first read about their ‘sordid past’ – there used to be an awful lot of James Goldsmith bashing in the press at one time) of it as an upgrading husbands thing. Mark Birley must be rather alpha, but James Goldsmith had an amazing presence (just reminded the other day on a tv clip), and of course he was ‘different’ to boot.

This looks different though.

When they married, Ben was the more confident of the two, and the ‘dominant’ one in the marriage. Kate, say those who know her well, has a more vulnerable air. 

‘People often say she’s rather like Princess Diana,’ says a friend. ‘Her father’s suicide had a profound effect on her, and she has this way of making people protective of her.’

But as the marriage wore on, Kate grew in confidence  and, say friends, became tired of ‘being told what to do all the time’ by her husband. 

 

If her daddy’s rich

“If her daddy’s rich, take her out for a meal If her daddy’s poor, just do what you feel”

In the summer time by Jerry Mungo 1970

 

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

Is Salmon Fishing in the Yemen playing in the US?

It’s a nice British feelgood movie. I enjoyed it for being that. No amazing plot or high budgets. I suppose you could say it was a rom com but the story focused on the salmon fishing rather than their romance*. 

So we have quirky topic and Emily Blunt was a fairly realistic British girl in her late 20s/early 30s (though her office was nicer than most *sigh* and no dreaded open plan for her). Ewan McGregor plays science (not lab) type guy who works for the government. He works in a 1960s frefab building and wears cardigans and has a pond and is very into making sandwiches (to be fair I think everyone like a good sandwich and it’s not like he was really into flasks as well). Being Ewan McGregor he has to be Scottish. 

I thought Kristin Scott Thomas was the best character though. She plays the Prime Minister’s press svengali. Late 40s, married of course (as she says ‘very happily, details in Who’s Who’).  Smokes, says f***ing a lot, is on the go all the time and the scenes with her teenage son (she also has some younger ones) are funny. She just comes across as an absolute hoot. I can’t help feeling a similar character in an American movie would be portrayed in a completely different way. Like some ballbusting harridan who was unlikable? Maybe I’m wrong. 

She’s a realistic character though. 

The only thing that was unrealistic in the whole film (the salmon fishing is more realistic to me) is that in the end Emily Blunt stays in the Yemen with Ewan McGregor, rather than leave with the good looking army captain  boyfriend. The one that’s just come back from presumed dead on an elite squad initiative in Afghanistan. Hah.

*probably just as well they glossed over the budding romance for most of the film as Ewan McGregor is married in a humdrum life. And the boyfriend of course.

Spreadsheet Guy

I know both Rivelino and He Formerly Known as the Dark Lord have blogged about this guy in America who kept a spreadsheet of his dates on match.com.

I only saw the story fleetingly in the Daily Mail so cannot comment about it beyond it looked like he did not really know how to utlise the functionality in excel. Seemed to be using it as a word processor.

And I felt a bit sorry for him being outed like that. He just needed to keep track and it is rather common parlance that boys aren’t as good at multi tasking as girl.

I hope he isn’t being criticised for just having the spreadsheet. This girl gets positive coverage for her business *rating* men and get funding from men and visits from the Prime Minister (though it has to noted which this article does not mention is that it would have been part of a particular day to that area not a special visit to that company).  I hope the functionality is much better than excel not being used properly. I’m not  inclined to find out personally. So no comment on the functionality from me.

Quick google and some interesting comments on how the service works with Facebook in an article in the Guardian.

Wimmin’s studies

I’ve been a bit surprised with all the railing in certain necks of the blogosphere about young women doing wimmin’s studies at university. I thought perhaps it was a north American thing but then some British men were moaning about it too. Is it really true?

Completely passed me by. I don’t think my university had it. 

Have they actually met many women who have done it? I mean besides say Islington council in the 1980s or something. Some of the paranoia I see in certain places really reminds me of reading the Daily Mail when I was a child (sneak peaks when out and about)

Just googled it. 

Found this article from 2008, appears it did exist but was about to disappear.

http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storycode=400363

 

 

‘The Best Birth Control in the World’

http://techcitement.com/culture/the-best-birth-control-in-the-world-is-for-men

Doesn’t quite sound that ‘incredibly simple’ to me though.. ouch.

Does this song make you want to cry?

If it did, this could be why

Mystic River

Just having a chuckle on Sean Penn of all people thinks he’s an expert on the Falklands.

Ok that was quick, I saw Mystic River a while back, never seen previously. I supposed I  assumed the film was about something else (mysticism perhaps? lol). It’s a sort of drama/murder/thriller so my favourite sort of film which isn’t action.

Sean Penn’s character is a criminal type. His wife is super weird, but you’ll have to watch till right at the end to see that bit.

 

 

 

 

US poverty

Interesting Panorama documentary about poor people in the US.

There is a (sounds like British) man who had been raising money for the Amazon but realised that there was just as much need in the US so spending it there.

There is an American man who lost his job and needs medical care. There is a bit from TV where they have some politician type saying even in relation to healtcare that part of living in the great nation is risk and reward. They ask him what happens when a dying man needs medical care, should society let him die. He dodges the question.

I am amazed at how different the mentality (at least shown here) is from here (and Europe of course).

No judgment, just an amazing contrast in intrinsic attitudes.  

“Could tiny organisms carried by house cats be creeping into our brains, causing everything from car wrecks to schizophrenia”

Reading this article, whilst this man seems sweet enough, for some reason I get the impression he probably reads IMF or Dalrock.

I can’t quite put my finger on why. But spending years on a cats are evil meme is making me think that even more.