Twitaceous Era 50: Ooh, haze effects!

This week I was ill so my Twitter feed is likely to make even less sense than usual.

Pearce Brosnan thinks Idris Elba should be James Bond. Or Colin Salmon. Or Daniel Craig. He doesn't care, stop asking him about James Bond.
8:19 AM - 18 Feb 2015

The people who can answer any question except the one they've been asked are out in force today.
3:46 PM - 18 Feb 2015

Last night's fever was so bad my legs stopped working. Scary. But slightly like a fairground ride.
12:12 PM - 19 Feb 2015

Twitaceous Era 49: The wrong sort of terrible

This week on my Twitter feed I end up at some bad theatre I should have been able to avoid.

Things my followers might care about slightly: Simon Darwen's in The Armour at the Langham Hotel. (Also Finty Williams and Hannah Spearmint)
Retweet 1
2:48 PM - 11 Feb 2015

Appalled at man on train in lipstick, rouge and blue eye shadow. I mean, blue eye shadow? In 2015?
Favorites 2
6:46 PM - 11 Feb 2015

If this show's the wrong sort of terrible I'm blaming @OughtToBeClowns for saying I shouldn't skip it.
Retweet 1 Favorite 1
7:24 PM - 11 Feb 2015

Twitaceous Era 48: Most sharks jumped

This week let's call my Twitter feed "minimalist" or something, rather than admit I have nothing to say.

I've just noticed that Gemma Whelan's wearing a shirt with butterflies on it in the Radiant Vermin poster #RidleyMemes
Favorite 1
1:58 PM - 4 Feb 2015

Slept for 15 hours. I might be turning into a cat. Which would make me allergic to myself.
11:29 AM - 7 Feb 2015

Is Supernatural trying for some kind of "most sharks jumped" record? Why yes, I have just watched the one with the talking dog.
6:44 PM - 8 Feb 2015

Book review: A Storm of Swords I: Steel and Snow

After a break I'm back to George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series, hoping to get ahead of the Game of Thrones TV series. I've still got a way to go though, and the third novel A Storm of Swords is the first that was so long it got split into two volumes. The first half, Steel and Snow, comes in the wake of all the big battles at the end of A Clash of Kings, so rather than a huge amount of action there's a lot of politics and scheming. So I can see why the TV series didn't follow the same order but personally I enjoy reading about intrigues more than I do descriptions of action sequences, so I really liked this installment. I'm going straight on to the second half for the consequences of everything set up in this one.

Twitaceous Era 47: Paging Dr Morissette

This week on my Twitter feed, I'm feeling a bit sleepy.

Today I found out that the Council workers call the head office the Death Star. Which is fair enough.
6:45 PM - 28 Jan 2015

Theatres! Best avoid giving a character the line "it's so boring!" unless you're DAMN SURE the audience don't feel the same way.
Retweet 1 Favorite 1
11:06 PM - 28 Jan 2015

It's especially awkward when you say it just as @OughtToBeClowns is leaning over to look at my watch.

Favorite 1

11:08 PM - 28 Jan 2015

Twitaceous Era 46: "I take it to be music."

This week on my Twitter feed I am outraged at Hollywood stars being divas.

@webcowgirl Theatre peeps seem to be terribly touchy at the moment about being told they're anything less than perfect.
10:49 AM - 21 Jan 2015

Nice to see Indhu Rubasingham in Rufus' first season.
11:32 AM - 21 Jan 2015

I knew the Old Vic couldn't stay dark that long - Kev Stands In A Circle And Talks A Bit is coming back.
12:46 PM - 21 Jan 2015

Book review: The Boys from Brazil

The last of the classic Ira Levin books I got on a cheap kindle deal some while ago, The Boys from Brazil is another enjoyable thriller, that also serves as a sort of wish-fulfilment as it sees an elderly Nazi-hunter go after the Nazis' sadistic doctor, Josef Mengele (who in real life died before he could be captured.) It sees a mysterious plot hatched in Brazil to send assassins around the world to kill seemingly insignificant men, which will in ways not initially apparent ensure the rise of a Fourth Reich. Only a handful of people even believe in the plot's existence, but as the men do indeed start dying in "accidents" on the exact dates predicted, plans are uncovered that must make it one of the first thrillers to use cloning as a plot point. Though playing on one of the biggest fears of the 20th century it does it through an entertaining story.

Twitaceous Era 45: #friendsofNick

This week on my Twitter feed, a fan's turned on, and some shit hits it.

By all means, kiss your teeth at me when I say you've come to the wrong department, that will magically make it the right one.
10:58 AM - 15 Jan 2015

Imagine being barred from a theatre because they didn't like your reviews though.
Favorites 3
2:36 PM - 15 Jan 2015

@Weez Well they've just screamed down the phone at me WE KNOW WHAT YOU LOOK LIKE! WE KNOW WHAT YOUR FRIENDS LOOK LIKE!

Favorite 1

2:40 PM - 15 Jan 2015

Twitaceous Era 44: A failed experiment

This week on my Twitter feed, one of my tweets ends up in Metro. But nobody notices. Because it's Metro.

This summer's Swansemble: http://wos.im/1woL5gD
11:17 AM - 7 Jan 2015

I look forward to seeing them try to pull off "complex Machiavellian protagonist" rather than "jaw-droppingly offensive Jewish stereotype."
11:19 AM - 7 Jan 2015

"Pop stars are awful," says awful pop star. http://www.gigwise.com/news/97123/sam-smith-slams-awful-pop-stars-in-chaka-khan-v-magazine-interview#.VK0w_ZERhWg.twitter …
1:13 PM - 7 Jan 2015

Twitaceous Era 43: Queenie And Duckface Sass Each Other

This week on my Twitter feed, I watch TV and talk about it, because it's the tail end of the Christmas holidays, what else is there to do? Also, any negative thoughts in the direction of James Corden seem to go down quite well.

"Oh come on, 2014 wasn't as bad as everyone's sayi... What? James Corden OBE? Damn you 2014!"
FAVORITE 1
10:44 AM - 31 Dec 2014

I hope we get another series of Queenie And Duckface Sass Each Other #mappandlucia
RETWEET 1 FAVORITES 4
9:59 PM - 31 Dec 2014

I've had this cold for a week, this morning I woke up around 5am unable to breathe. Happy New Year! 🎆
12:00 PM - 1 Jan 2015

Book review: Thorne at Christmas

I didn't get much reading done over Christmas, not having got round to picking a ghost story like I usually do. Instead I read a Mark Billingham ebook of two short stories, Thorne at Christmas. Actually of the pair, only "Underneath the Mistletoe Last Night" really lives up to the collection's title, Thorne investigating a murder under a Christmas tree. The slightly longer second story, "Stepping Up," is a first-person narration by an ageing ex-boxer who finds that old instincts die hard. It's just a very short collection but made for a nicely sour antidote to Christmas cheer.

Santa Clawed

I know I've grumbled a lot about the last few series of Doctor Who, but even I think some people must be automatically programmed to complain about it, given the stream of insults I saw hurled at "Last Christmas" on Twitter the minute it ended - I actually thought it was one of the best Christmas specials in ages. Of course, one of my friends turns out to have some kind of notoriety among Whovians, as the person who more or less invented complaining about Doctor Who in the 1970s, so perhaps it was inevitable I'd hear grumbling.

"Last Christmas" by Steven Moffat, directed by Paul Wilmshurst. Spoilers after the cut.

Twitaceous Era 42: Really bloody big and sometimes on fire

This week on my Twitter feed, Christmas happened, as it is sometimes wont to do.

Christmas Congratulation, Twitter! https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B5sM6eQCAAIjt-B.jpg
FAVORITE 1
9:21 AM - 25 Dec 2014

Never felt more middle-aged than while bellowing DO SOMETHING WITH A TUNE! at Christmas Top of the Pops.
2:40 PM - 25 Dec 2014

That was so much better than last year's! Of course, so's rectal surgery #doctorwho
7:17 PM - 25 Dec 2014

Book review: Broken Homes

The fourth of Ben Aaronovitch's PC Peter Grant novels, Broken Homes, brings the policemen from the supernatural branch of the Met, The Folly, to South London. I felt like this book was following me around actually, as most of it is set in the Elephant and Castle, which isn't far from me, and which I was often going through on the bus while I was reading. But then when I went to the Barbican a couple of times last week, the action briefly moved there as well.

This time the action centres on a tower block at the Elephant and Castle, an unusually-shaped building which to be honest I thought it took the characters a bit too long to figure out must have been built to harness some occult power. It's another fun book although it feels very much like a transitional one rather than ever really kicking off its narrative. Without spoilering, certain events at the end confirm the impression that the book is largely setup for things that will happen in later installments of the series.

Googling for a picture of the cover to illustrate my review with, quite a few photos of Samuel Anderson crop up. I guess that campaign to get him cast as Peter Grant if the books are ever turned into a TV series must have a lot of supporters. He wouldn't be a bad choice, certainly, and his recent stint on Doctor Who should make for a high enough profile to launch a show around (especially if you added a well-loved older actor as Nightingale - any thoughts?)

Twitaceous Era 41: Cicely Bumtrinket

This week on my Twitter feed, Paloma Faith is still very, very old.

The Barbican towel dispensers are so demanding. "Now dry your hands. NO NOT LIKE THAT YOU IDIOT, LIKE THIS."
FAVORITES 2
7:10 PM - 17 Dec 2014

@Elsiebrewster I need Jewel Staite and Morena Baccarin to complete the set of "Firefly good guys playing bad guys in other Whedon projects."
5:46 PM - 18 Dec 2014

Sleb Spot: Suchet (clothed) at the Barbican.
6:59 PM - 18 Dec 2014

Twitaceous Era 40: I embrace change!

This week on my Twitter feed: The answer to a question Charles Dickens never thought to ask.

These carollers are singing entirely the wrong lyrics to "Get Dressed You Merry Gentlemen."
6:59 PM - 10 Dec 2014

I think @emsler must have taken up lighting design - walked into the Menier to see Parker's forearms the main focus.
FAVORITE 1
7:58 PM - 10 Dec 2014

Aaron Tveit spat on me, so we're technically married now #straightthroughnointervaltweets
FAVORITES 2
10:26 PM - 10 Dec 2014

Book review: A Clash of Kings

I have to say, these new paperback covers for George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series, with the generic landscape photos, are a bit dull; but the one for the second book, A Clash of Kings, is also a bit of a mismatched one, as the desert it shows is obviously meant to link to Daenerys' story, but she doesn't actually appear in this part of the story much, with only four or five chapters from her POV.

What's actually going on in this novel is a fight for the throne that she's not quite ready to join yet, as Robb Stark and both Stannis and Renly Baratheon all stake their claim to the throne that Joffrey, not actually the dead king Robert's son, is falsely sitting on.

Again I enjoyed reading the story I'd seen on TV, as well as seeing those areas where the two versions started to diverge, the TV version understandably having simplified certain elements. The next installment is one of those so long it got split into two volumes, so I'm taking a break now to read other things, but I'll probably be heading back to Westeros in the new year.

Twitaceous Era 39: Rainbow mirrorball bauble

This week on my Twitter feed: Dick.

"Unexpected item in the bagging area." That's the receipt, you div.
3:24 PM - 3 Dec 2014

Not that anyone who follows me would be remotely interested *whistles* Sleb Spot: James Norton at Southwark Playhouse.
FAVORITE 1
6:23 PM - 3 Dec 2014

Kitson Old Vic tickets acquired with minimum fuss *thumbsup*
FAVORITE 1
12:21 PM - 4 Dec 2014

A devastating existential nightmare. You know, for kids!

Oh noes, Clara's going to destroy all the existing TARDIS keys with lava, such peril! How will the Doctor ever get back into his TARDIS now, other than by snapping his fingers, which he's been able to do for the last three regenerations?

"Dark Water"/"Death in Heaven" by Steven Moffat, directed by Rachel Talalay. Spoilers after the cut.

Twitaceous Era 38: Shake It Off

This week on my Twitter feed: Treacle.

Is Family Guy and American Dad constantly hiring real English actors to do terrible English accents some kind of in-joke I'm missing?
5:35 PM - 26 Nov 2014

Off to look at topless men smeared with treacle because Culture.
7:20 PM - 26 Nov 2014



Some people avoid the front row if it needs a splash guard. These people are theatreing wrong #straightthroughnointervaltweets
9:22 PM - 26 Nov 2014