Okay, dearest blog readers, let us get this latest From The North bloggerisationisms update going, with something of a bang. Or, with a something of a clang, at the very least least.
Speaking of rank stupidity, this blogger is genuinely sad to report that From The North's resident online stalker has been up to his old stalking nonsense again despite repeated requests that he cease and desist his damn-fool stalking activities. Having caused this blogger to close down From The North's comment section due to a bombardment of obscene, badly-spelled, crassly-idiotic messages objecting to this blogger's continued existence (or something), this clown subsequently took it upon himself to follow this blogger around various other blogs that Keith Telly Topping updates on a more occasional basis than From The North (like Keith Telly Topping's World Cup Trivia Page and I Wasn't There (I Watched It On The Telly) and leave similar atom bombs of indignant hate in those places too. In other words, a classic demonstration of the kind of really boring, childish behaviour which got him banned from this gaff in the first place. The interesting thing about these messages is that he seems to most object to this blogger describing him as 'From The North's online stalker' when his behaviour - moving from blog-to-blog in search of a place where he can communicate his impotent fury at Keith Telly Topping for daring not to wish to speak to him - would appear to be a dictionary definition of 'stalking'. (This blogger supposes that he should give this individual some, minor, credit in that the one of Keith Telly Topping's blogs which he didn't target was the memorial page for this blogger's late mother. One supposes, even for this risible individual, that would've been a step too far.) Anyway, the comments sections of all of this blogger's various blog-pages are now closed to this dreary clot (and, sadly, as a necessary consequence, to everyone else). One supposes he could send a letter to The Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House in an attempt to continue his angry and pointless bombast. But, this blogger knows which town he comes from so anything turning up at this gaff with such a postmark will be going straight in the bin, unopened. Isn't it odd, dear blog reader, the absolute twenty four carat shite that some people chose to care about?
When this blogger eventually shuffles off this mortal coil, he would like to be cremated, dear blog reader. Ideally, on Humberside. So that all those people (including From The North's oafish online stalker) who have said over the years 'I hope that there Keith Telly Topping burns in Hull' will get their wish. Almost.
All of which unhappy shenanigans bring us, with the tragic inevitability of the tragically inevitable, to that special part of From The North dedicated to this blogger's on-going medical malarkey. Or, strictly speaking, malarkeys as there have been - and in fact still are - several of them. For those dear blog readers who haven't been following this on-going fiasco which appears to have been on-going longer than Coronation Street, it goes something like this: Keith Telly Topping spent some weeks around New Year 2022 feeling rotten; experienced five days in hospital; was discharged; received B12 injections; then more injections; somewhat recovered his missing appetite; got an initial diagnosis; had a consultant's meeting; continued to suffer fatigue and insomnia; endured a second endoscopy; had another consultation; got (unrelated) toothache; had an extraction; which took ages to heal; had another consultation; spent a week where nothing remotely health-related occurred; was given further B-12 injections; had an echocardiogram; received more blood extractions; made another hospital visit; saw the insomnia and torpor continue; received yet more blood tests; had a rearranged appointment for his sick note; suffered his worst period yet with the fatigue. Until the following week. And, then the week after that. Oh, the fatigue, dear blog reader. The depressing, ceaseless fatigue. He had a go on the Blood-Letting Machine; got another sickie; had an assessment; was given his fourth COVID jab; got some surprising news related to his assessment; had the results of his annual diabetes check-up; had another really bad week with the fatigue; followed by one with the sciatica; then one with the chronic insomnia; and, one with a plethora of general cold-related grottiness. A plethora of general cold-related grottiness which continued over the Christmas period and into the New Year. And then, there was that whole 'slipping in The Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House bath and putting his knee through the side' malarkey.
This week's From The North medical-related malarkey has seen yer actual Keith Telly Topping suffering, increasingly, with night-time foot and leg cramps; something which has been, frankly, a right bleeding pain in the arse. As well as in the leg, obviously. This was particularly true of one night when this blogger was flung, unwillingly, from his slumber by both of his legs simultaneously cramping up. A lot. Usually the best way to get some quick relief from the searing pain is for the individual to get out of bed, stand up and stretch the affected leg by putting pressure on ones heel thus, in theory, relaxing the taut and cramped muscle. That usually works, at least in the short term. Sadly, with both of his legs being affected at the same time, this blogger found himself quite unable to lever himself up off the bed and, thus, spent several very uncomfortable and painful moments siting on the edge of Basil the Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House bed, weeping with pain and attempting to massage his lower limbs using a tube of pain-killing gel that he always keeps within arms reach. The fact that all of this was going on whilst, on the TV at that very moment, Talking Picture's showing of Nevill Coghill's adaptation of Doctor Faustus (1967) had just reached the sequence where Richard Burton's titular character goes to Hell would've been vastly ironic in circumstances which didn't involve this blogger being - if only for ten minutes of so - in screaming agony.
Research has suggested that one of the main causes of night cramps seems to be dehydration. So, this blogger will be, from now on, necking vast quantities of water prior to sleep and leave worrying about being woken up four or five times per night in desperate need of a widdle to one side.
What a ghastly, horrid, beastly and rotten day this past Monday turned into. Very quickly. This blogger received his latest three-monthly B-12 injection early doors, which - as usual - knacked like bloody jimbuggery so it did. Going to the surgery in the force nine gale that was Storm Otto (just before the point at which The Beaufort Scale starts to get Biblical) was, of course, a total joy. Or not as the case may be. At one point the wind quite literally whipped the spectacles from off Keith Telly Topping's face and stotted them against a nearby wall. Fortunately they didn't break (though one lens did suffer a light but noticeable scuffing).
On the way back to The Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House, this blogger stopped off at Aldi for a few essentials and arrived at the counter with his basket containing but nine items just as all of the supermarket's tills, simultaneously, decided to come out in sympathy with the train drivers. All shoppers (and there were quite a few of us) were assured by staff that this was only 'a temporary problem' and, if we'd care to hang on and not walk out in a strop, the system should be back up and running 'in a few moments.' A few in this case, actually meaning thirty. Ooo, this blogger was geet mad vexed. Meanwhile, most of this blogger's beast fiends were, at that very moment, having a right old time in Los Angeles. Where it isn't cold and windy and things actually work. Life, dear blog reader, don't talk to this blogger about life.
There was also fun and games to be witnessed in the street outside The Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House that same evening. Yer actual had gone to bed early due to the usual fatigue, had read a chapter of the book he's currently ploughing through and then drifted off to the land of Nod only to be a-woken from his kip around midnight by the sound of a geet rive-on occurring. Going into the living room, wearing only The Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House dressing gown, the gaff was being illuminated by flashing blue lights and, through the window, this blogger could see four Bobbies, two of them armed with tasers and, seemingly itching to offload them, involved in something of a Mexican stand-off with the people who live two doors away to the right. There was lots of 'stay where you are or I will use this' Jack Bauer-style malarkey going on before, finally, both of them seemingly got sick of being talked-back to (or, being 'looked at in a funny way,' delete as applicable) and tasered the chap. Hard. He promptly fell, a-twitchin', to the ground outside his gaff saying something like 'eyah-eyah, it knacks, it knacks, I want me mam.' At which point, one of The Fuzz told him, 'you are under arrest for criminal damage, you do not have to say anything ...' Which, frankly, this blogger thought was a bit pointless given that, at the moment, he was on the ground, wailing and, in all likelihood, evacuating his bowels into his jeans. More Lily Law started arriving (this chap must've been a pretty dangerous dude as there were about twelve there be the time he got bundled into the back of one of their Jam-Jars and driven off at speed. His woman continued to scream and bawl at Plod even after he'd be taken in custody; things like 'you didn't have to do that' when, quite clearly, they did since repeated instructions to stay still and kneel down had not been complied with even when he was warned what the likely outcome of his civil disobedience would be. By this time, about fifteen minutes had gone by and this blogger's feet were starting to get a bit cold so he went back to his pit whilst keeping half-an-ear on the continuing palaver going on in the street below. Slumber eventually took Keith Telly Topping blissfully back to where he'd been before all this nonsense kicked-off, a really nice dream about being in Los Angeles. Where The Fuzz pack real guns.
Tuesday, meanwhile, saw this blogger needing to get some important messages done despite him feeling more than a shade weary after the previous day's exertions. The morning went as follows - bed, living room, lavatory, kitchen, the leaving of The Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House, a short limp to the bus stop, bus into town, SpecSavers, McDonalds, Boots, Lloyds, the Halifax, bus to Byker, Morrisons, bus to Walker, Post Office and bus back to The Stately Telly Topping Manor. Needless to say this blogger was ruddy exhausted after all that bussing. Nevertheless, two pairs of new Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House geps have been ordered (for pick-up in a fortnight) to replace the ones scuffed by that nasty Storm Otto.
And, importantly, all of the pretty flowers were blooming outside The Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House. Happy with this occurrence, this blogger went straight to bed for an hour to recover what was left of his dissipated energy.
Then, there was what appeared at first to be an computer-related disaster at The Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House on Wednesday. This blogger discovered that his recently-installed VPN had, seemingly, got itself corrupted and he could not connect to the Interweb on Penelope, the Stately Telly Topping Manor Plague House PC. This blogger, despite being, as you all know dear blog fiends, a complete technophobe, tried repairing it. But, inevitably, he got no joy there. Keith Telly Topping then decided it would be easier to uninstall the programme and then reinstall it. But, having completed the first part, this blogger discovered that he couldn't reinstall it because, as far as the computer was concerned the blog was not connected to the net. A full system restore, of course, fixed the problem in about forty minutes. Panic over. Stress levels receding. Indeed, it should be noted that this blogger's motto in life these days seems to be 'try a system restore, see if that works.' Not just for computers either but, also, for life in general.
Moving along swiftly, here's an arty photo-image which appears to be called 'The Doctor's Back'.
Wor Geet Canny Jodie Whittaker has landed her next series role following her departure from Doctor Who last year. Paramount Plus drama One Night should provide something of a change of pace for the actress, seeing her back in the kind of hard-hitting drama which made her a household name. One Night reportedly follows three women, Simone (Nicole da Silva), Hat (Yael Stone) and Tess (Whittaker), whose friendship was destroyed by a traumatic event that took place twenty years ago. Simone is now, finally, achieving her long-held dream of becoming an author, but the story of her first novel is directly inspired by what happened to her and her estranged friends that fateful night. As the book becomes a success, Hat and Tess are understandably shocked (and stunned) to see Simone capitalising on an incident which has haunted them for decades. One Night is a six-part drama which is being filmed across New South Wales, from the state capital, Sydney to the coastal region of Illawarra.
Meanwhile, at the annual Gallifrey One convention in Los Angeles last week (where most of this blogger's finest fiends were. But, this blogger wasn't ... he's not bitter about it), Jodie was, seemingly, having a marvellous time. Especially when her fellow guests Janet Fielding and Sophie Aldred joined the former Doctor on the sofa at the end of her panel.
By all accounts, Gally was a total stone-groove daddio, with Jodie and The Chib getting a particularly fond reception from the convention audience of over three thousand. At least, that's what all of this blogger's fiends who were there have informed Keith TellyTopping. Who, just to confirm, wasn't there.
Russell Davies has called BAFTA's reaction to omitting Bernard Cribbins from its film industry memorial tribute on Sunday 'the work of an idiot.' The British Academy of Film and Television Arts tweeted that Bernard, whose movie CV included The Railway Children, Two-Way Stretch, The Wrong Arm Of The Law, Carry On Spying, Cup Fever, Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 AD, Casino Royale, Frenzy and The Water Babies was being 'considered' for inclusion in the TV awards memorial, after it failed to include him in the 2023 film awards ceremony tribute section. Of course, if he'd been a member of the cast of The Only Way Is Essex, no consideration would have been necessary, he'd've been in like a shot. After all, Bernard's TV credits only included The Avengers, Jackanory, The Wombles, Fawlty Towers, The Plank, Tales Of The Unexpected, Coronation Street and Doctor Who. So, nothing remotely important, then. Big Rusty - someone who is not to be messed with at the best of times - said on social media: 'It's fair enough to remember Bernard Cribbins at the TV BAFTA, not the film. To say he's being "considered" is the work of an idiot.' BAFTA subsequently performed not so much a U-turn as a wheel-spinning three hundred and sixty degree reverse: 'We can confirm Bernard Cribbins will be remembered in our upcoming BAFTA Television Awards ceremony broadcast in May,' they snivelled. Adding that the 'idiot' responsible for this malarkey had been told to stand in the corner and think about what they have done. Probably.
Meanwhile, From The North favourite Phil Davis has, reportedly, resigned his BAFTA membership over its recent 'embarrassing' film award ceremony. Phil tweeted: 'The BAFTA awards were an embarrassing travesty. Cutting deserving winners' speeches for toe-curling non-interviews. Poor Richard E Grant pretending to arrive in a Batmobile and no Bernard Cribbins in memorium. I resigned my membership.' You tell 'em, Phil.
Whilst we first learned late last month that Anita Dobson and Michelle Greenidge were joining new Doctor Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson on the next series of Doctor Who, no details were released about their respective roles on the BBC's popular long-running family SF drama. Now, thanks to some comments that Dobson shared with the Daily Scum Mail, have some more details to help fill in the blanks. While attending the ICON Awards in Support of Prostate Cancer Charity on Friday night, Dobson said that she would be playing Mrs Flood, a neighbour of Millie's Ruby Sunday. For Dobson, it was impossible to resist Big Rusty when he approached her about the role, adding: 'He asked me to join the ranks and he said, "Please come and play with us." How can you resist that?'
In Doctor Who Magazine issue five hundred and eighty six (available from all good newsagents and some bad ones), Big Rusty confirmed that Casting Director Andy Pryor was charged with bringing the creative team 'the best in the land,' for the role of The Doctor with Davies and producer Phil Collinson both confirming that they auditioned 'all backgrounds, all genders,' including at least one non-binary actor. The duo also confirmed that another actor was being 'seriously considered' for the role heading into the final round of auditions and then (as Collinson puts it), 'in walked Ncuti [Gatwa] and absolutely stole the part. He took control of it and did things with it that I'd never seen an actor playing Doctor Who do. It was just extraordinary.' In fact, Jane Tranter described Gatwa's audition as 'the most extraordinary' that she's ever seen ('He was the Doctor'). 'I think, as a rule, we were looking for younger - most of the people we saw were under thirty - but not as a definite rule,' noted Russell. 'And [a] kind of new talent. Ncuti's not exactly new. He's world-famous already with Sex Education. But we weren't looking for an older, established face. And in he walked. The last person to audition. It sounds like one of those stories you tell as an anecdote, but Ncuti was absolutely the last person in and everything clicked into place. I sat there thinking, "Why didn't we just offer [Ncuti the role]? Why did we need to audition the man from Sex Education? Of course, he's brilliant.'
All of which brings us, nicely, to Memorably Daft Double-Entendres In Episodes Of Doctor Whom (1963-2022). Number One Hundred & Ten: Planet Of The Dead.
Memorably Daft Double-Entendres In Episodes Of Doctor Whom (1963-2022). Number One Hundred & Eleven: Love & Monsters.
Memorably Daft Double-Entendres In Episodes Of Doctor Whom (1963-2022). Number One Hundred & Twelve: New Earth.
Memorably Daft Double-Entendres In Episodes Of Doctor Whom (1963-2022). Number One Hundred & Thirteen: The Lodger.
Memorably Daft Double-Entendres In Episodes Of Doctor Whom (1963-2022). Number One Hundred & Fourteen: The Sound Of Drums.
Memorably Daft Double-Entendres In Episodes Of Doctor Whom (1963-2022). Number One Hundred & Fifteen: Midnight.
Memorably Daft Double-Entendres In Episodes Of Doctor Whom (1963-2022). Number One Hundred & Sixteen: The Impossible Astronaut.
Memorably Daft Double-Entendres In Episodes Of Doctor Whom (1963-2022). Number One Hundred & Seventeen: Dragonfire.
The Princess of Canada is a 'sorority girl, actress, influencer [and] victim,' whilst her husband, the Prince, has written a tell-all book about his family and the media called Waaagh! The latest episode of South Park, which includes two characters who look marginally exactly similar to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex is not, exactly, kind to its stars. But, according to a spokesperson speaking on behalf of the Sussexes, reports that the couple are 'furious' about their portrayal are not accurate. 'It's all frankly nonsense,' a representative told the Gruniad Morning Star. 'Totally baseless, boring reports.' The episode, entitled The Worldwide Privacy Tour, sees the couple flying their private jet around the world in a high-profile publicity blitz intended to stop people talking about them. They carry placards saying 'Stop looking at us!', chanting 'We want privacy!' as they tour Paris, India and areas of Australian countryside populated only by kangaroos. The response follows days of media articles claiming that the Duchess of Sussex was distinctly unhappy about Matt Stone and Trey Parker's depiction of the couple. The Spectator's Kara Kennedy claimed that Meghan was 'upset and overwhelmed' by the show and that she was 'annoyed by South Park but refuses to watch it all.' Kennedy cited anonymous - and, therefore, almost certainly fictitious - 'California sources' when writing this, admittedly amusing, rubbish. A - again, anonymous and, therefore, almost certainly fictitious - Faux News 'source' even went as far as to allegedly suggest that the episode could, allegedly, result in alleged legal action. Royal commentator - and risible, worthless puddle of phlegm - Neil Sean claimed that the Sussexes' representatives were 'now watching the series closely' for any more attacks. 'According to sources close to the ex-royals, it appears that, like so many things with Meghan and Harry, this may have legal ramifications attached,' Sean claimed - seemingly incorrectly if the couple's spokesperson is anything to go by. Neil Sean talking baseless crap? What were the odds? 'Their legal team are casting an eye over the episode to see what is wrong and what could be turned into something more sinister,' he clamed. In the episode, the royal couple move into the house opposite character Kyle's, as part of their quest for a life free from media intrusion and attention. This attempt sees the Prince play a drum kit loudly in the street outside his house and yell: 'Hey, you! What you looking at? You ever heard of privacy?' They conduct late-night fireworks displays intended to stop people noticing them, while the Princess declares: 'How many more princes and his wives have to live in this nightmare?' The Gruniad Morning Star claims that 'PR experts' have suggested that the 'wrong' response to the episode could have negative ramifications for the couple. US 'celebrity publicity expert' Matt Yanofsky told the Daily Mirra that: 'Meghan Markle is divisive and South Park is playing on that image, so it won't impact her.' However, Yanofksy claims that if she were to 'lash out' at the animated comedy: 'It could impact her differently.' Although, if a report on the - always completely reliable - Yahoo News is anything to go by, the couple's currently popularity levels in the US couldn't, really, get much lower. And, as the Independent's Tom Peck noted, 'An official spokesperson for Harry and Meghan has now confirmed that they are not intending to take legal action against Comedy Central's South Park, for the as-yet-unactionable crime of ripping the absolute piss out of them. The speculation has been assisted by apparent "sources close" to Harry and Meghan, one of whom told The Spectator magazine that Meghan had been "upset and overwhelmed" by said episode. Naturally, we do not know who said "source" was, or how close to Harry and Meghan they really are, a neat PR device long deployed by the royal family and which Prince Harry spent roughly nineteen hours worth of TV interviews complaining about to CNN, ITV and his own Netflix-backed documentary company.' The Duke and Duchess 'stepped back' from their royal roles in 2020 before relocating to Canada, then subsequently California. In their much-publicised 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, the Duchess addressed numewrous 'invasions of privacy' that their family had experienced. In response to a question about whether she and Harry should expect to lose privacy due to their royal status, the Duchess said, 'I think everyone has a basic right to privacy. Basic. We're not talking about anything that anybody else wouldn't expect.' They have since worked on podcasts, a Netflix special entitled Harry & Meghan, whilst the Duke's autobiography, Spare, was released earlier this year.
Vera fans can 'breathe a sigh of relief' according to the Evening Crocodile as the popular ITV crime drama will return, with From The North favourite Brenda Blethyn confirming details of another 'special' episode which has already been filmed. Viewers have been engrossed in the latest exploits of Brenda's famous character Vera Stanhope, with the final episode of the drama's twelfth series, The Darkest Evening, being broadcast last Sunday. The good news for fans, many still upset with ITV for 'messing around' with series eleven and pulling it last year with two episodes still outstanding, is that another episode of Vera has already been filmed. In the run up to Christmas, author Ann Cleeves and Brenda's co-star Kenny Doughty let slip that the cast and crew had reunited for something, with them being spotted in various locations in the region including Holy Island, Durham and Corbridge. Brenda has revealed that the reason for the reunion was to film The Rising Tide, another of Ann's acclaimed novels. Brenda gave some details of how filming had gone on The Rising Tide, prior to the series finale, saying: 'I have to pinch myself every time we drive across that causeway to Holy Island. It is so lovely. But having filmed scenes for Vera on Holy Island over the years, working on The Rising Tide was the first time I've actually been into the village there and the little harbour and jetty itself.' She continued: 'Because I'm always up to my eyeballs in work at the location on the island we use for the exterior of Vera's house. I also went out on a boat from Holy Island this time. It was great but absolutely freezing cold on the boat. Among the locations we filmed at was The Ship pub which is The Seahorse in the story. The people there were very hospitable.'
Meanwhile, Vera's replacement in its Sunday 8pm slot on ITV this week is the first episode of the ninth and, what is scheduled to be, final series on another From The North favourite, Endeavour. The final three episodes of the Inspector Morse prequel, Prelude, Uniform and Exuent will be set in 1972, a mere thirteen years before we next see Endeavour Morse.
In From The North favourite The Sandman, Morpheus the King of Dreams fashioned his inimitable helm from the skull and spine of a nameless God he'd casually slain. Fortunately for Gods everywhere, DC's new replica of the helm is made of resin. And, fortunately for fans, it comes with a new 'piece of epistolary fiction' - in other words, a short Sandman story in letter form - written by yer actual Neil Gaiman his very self. If you're not enticed by a fifteen-inch-long imitation bone helmet, you might be by what else comes with what the publisher is calling, somewhat wordily, The Sandman: Morpheus Helm Masterpiece Edition. The helm can't be worn over the head (which some may regard as rendering it a wee bit pointless), but it does function, nicely, as a bookend and display item for a new six-volume set of Gaiman's complete Sandman work, bound in 'minimalist black leather' with the foil-embossed sigils of The Endless on their spines. 'These six volumes collect stories from the entire Sandman saga,' says DC's official description, 'including The Sandman issues one to seventy five, the comics and prose editions of The Sandman: The Dream Hunters, The Sandman: Endless Nights and The Sandman: Overture. The set also comes with a series of art prints from Michael Wm Kaluta, who most recently drew the covers of DC's The Sandman paperbacks. The Sandman: Morpheus Helm Masterpiece Edition will hit retail shelves on 14 November, for the retail price of five hundred dollars. What, you expected it to be anything other than fucking expensive? Ah, bless. Even the most stony-broke Sandman fans, however, may not be immune to the lure of a complete leather-bound edition of The Sandman to grace their shelves. This blogger will stick with his original copies of the comic, several of them scrawled upon by Mister Gaiman when he and this blogger shared a convention panel in Minneapolis in 2001.
Keith Telly Topping finally caught up with the first two episodes of the new series of Star TreK: Picard this week, dear blog reader. They're not bad - certainly an improvement on the somewhat disappointing second half of the last series though they're nowhere near as fantastically marvellous as some reviews this blogger's seen may have suggested; neither were they the utter dog-turd that a few others have claimed, for that matter. It's fine, although the leaping back and forward between the two separate plot strands (which, that bit towards the end of the second episode points to them clearly being on a collision course) could've used a bit more tightening up.
Almost sixty years since first meeting, it looks like the two surviving members of The Be-Atles (a popular beat combo of the 1960s, you might've heard of them) and the three surviving members of The Rolling Stones (another popular beat combo of the 1960s, you might've heard of them too) may, if you will, come together on a new Stones CD. Variety claimed to have heard 'from multiple sources' that Sir Paul McCartney (MBE) has recorded bass parts for a forthcoming Rolling Stones project being recorded with producer Andrew Watt. Sir Ringo Starr (MBE) is also claimed to be playing on the, yet-to-be-announced, CD. Recording sessions allegedly took place in Los Angeles in recent weeks and, whilst it is unclear which songs will make the final cut - or whether Macca and Richy would end up on the same song(s) - the production is said to be nearing the mixing phase. Frontman Sir Mick Jagger said in 2021 that the group has 'a lot of tracks done' and Saint Keef Richards said in a New Year Instagram post that 'There's some new music on its way.' Macca and Watt have worked together in the past. In a 2021 interview, Paul said as much, describing a meeting with the producer. 'I went around for a cup of tea and, of course, we ended up making a track.' More recently, he was asked in a Q&A posted on his official website what he was looking forward to in 2023. 'I've been recording with a couple of people, so I'm looking forward to doing even more. I've started working with this producer called Andrew Watt and he's very interesting - we've had some fun.' Though he did add, 'Beyond that, I don't have anything massive planned at the moment!' The Stones, who have not issued a new CD of original material since 2005's A Bigger Bang have been at work on new full-length work for some years, with occasional new songs released as singles or as part of a long string of greatest-hits collections connected to their semi-annual tours. Their last CD of newly recorded material was Blue & Lonesome, a - rather decent - collection of blues covers released in 2016 and featuring Eric Clapton on two songs. Whatever form The Stones' next studio work takes, it is very likely to include songs recorded with the group's founding drummer Charlie Watts, who died in 2021 at the age of eighty. While the group has since toured with Steve Jordan on drums, Jagger and Richards confirmed in a 2021 Los Angeles Times interview that Charlie had recorded his parts for a number of songs before his death. 'Let me put it this way,' Richards said. 'You haven't heard the last of Charlie Watts.' Despite their long acquaintance and fierce but friendly rivalry, members of The Be-Atles and The Stones have rarely collaborated musically. The Stones' second single was a cover of the Lennon and McCartney composition 'I Wanna Be Your Man' in 1963. Four years later, Lennon and McCartney sang backing vocals on The Stones' single 'We Love You' in a show of generational support: The song celebrated the overturning of a trumped-up drug conviction which saw Jagger and Richards briefly banged up in the Slammer. That same year, Stones multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones played saxophone on the Be-Atles song 'You Know My Name (Look Up The Number)'. In November 1968, Lennon and Yoko Ono performed two songs for the concert TV special The Rolling Stones' Rock & Roll Circus (which was not released until 1996) as part of a one-off supergroup that also featured Richards on bass, Clapton on lead guitar and Jimi Hendrix Experience drummer Mitch Mitchell. You knew all that, dear blog reader, right?
And, speaking of The Be-Atles (a popular beat combo of the 1960s, you might've heard of them), who told the two dead ones that they could swap guitars whilst no one was looking?
Sill on the same subject, had he not died in 2001, this week would have seen the eightieth birthday of George Harrison (MBE). Although the actual date of his birth remains the subject of some debate. According to his family (and his birth certificate) it was shortly after midnight on 25 February. Harrison himself - always a bit of contrary sod at the best of times - insisted that it was actually shortly before midnight on the 24 February. This dichotomy was noted in an amusing tweet by Be-Atles biographer and From The North favourite Mark Lewisohn.
To which everyone at From The North suggests we all join in on a rousing chorus or two of George's finest one minute and thirty seven seconds.
The V&A has obtained David Bowie's vast personal archive and will make it available to the public from 2025. Over eighty thousand items have been acquired, stretching from the artist's early career in the 1960s to his death in 2016. The V&A has also announced the creation of a new dedicated space, The David Bowie Centre for the Study of Performing Arts at V&A East Storehouse, where visitors will be able to get closer to Bowie's work. The thousands of items donated by the David Bowie Estate span a number of mediums, from film and photography to decades worth of fashion. Among iconic pieces from Bowie's career like the Ziggy Stardust Freddie Burretti pieces, 'more intimate writings' and 'unrealised projects' will be shown to the public, many of which for the first time, a V&A release states. Alongside the archival materials from the David Bowie Estate, the Blavatnik Family Foundation and Warner Music Group have contributed ten million knicker for The Centre and 'the ongoing conservation, research, and study of the archive.' Sheet music, awards and instruments - including Brian Eno's EMS synthesizer from Bowie's Low sessions - are among other items in the collection. The archive also reflects Bowie's work outside music in cinema and as an artist, for example, through film stills from Nicolas Roeg's The Man Who Fell To Earth. We can see Bowie's personal practice via handwritten lyrics and notebooks 'from every era of Bowie's life and career,' plus examples of the 'cut up' writing method introduced to Bowie by William Burroughs. Designs from Kansai Yamamoto for the Aladdin Sane tour and work from Alexander McQueen for the Earthling cover show the iconic collaborations of Bowie's career. Doctor Tristram Hunt, director of the V&A, said: 'The V&A is thrilled to become custodians of his incredible archive and to be able to open it up for the public. Bowie's radical innovations across music, theatre, film, fashion and style - from Berlin to Tokyo to London - continue to influence design and visual culture and inspire creatives from Janelle Monáe to Lady Gaga to Tilda Swinton and Raf Simons.' In 2013, the V&A was the first museum to be given 'unprecedented' access to the David Bowie archive for its exhibition David Bowie Is ..., which was seen by over two million people (this blogger included). The acquisition is the latest in this collaboration. David Bowie close fiend Tilda Swinton said: 'In 2013, the V&A's David Bowie Is ... exhibition gave us unquestionable evidence that Bowie is a spectacular example of an artist, who not only made unique and phenomenal work, but who has an influence and inspiration far beyond that work itself. Ten years later, the continuing regenerative nature of his spirit grows ever further in popular resonance and cultural reach down through younger generations. In acquiring his archive for posterity, the V&A will now be able to offer access to David Bowie's history - and the portal it represents - not only to practicing artists from all fields, but to every last one of us, and for the foreseeable future.'
A recent episode of From The North's favourite podcast, Kermode & Mayo's Take saw yer actual Mark Kermode reflecting on the strangest royalty cheque he ever received. In the years before he became the nation's favourite film critic, Mark was the bass player and musical director in a Manchester skiffle group called The Railtown Bottlers who worked extensively with another From The North favourite Danny Baker on his early 1990s TV series' Danny Baker After All, The Danny Baker Show and Danny Baker's Heroes Of Television. And, it was in relation to the latter series and, specifically, the episode focusing on Whispering Bob Harris that Mark's story concerned. In the episode, a number of illustrative clips from The Old Grey Whistle Test were chosen with a band playing the final five seconds of a performance and camera then cutting across the studio to Bob who would whisper one of his trademark one-word summations.
Or, in the case of his notoriously sneering reaction to The New York Dolls, two word summations. So, having chosen a bunch of representative band-plus-Bob clips for the Heroes Of Television episode, Danny and the director decided it would be a good idea to have band apparently finishing their number and then the camera cutting to Dan sitting in a mock-up of the Whistle Test studio. Thus, The Bottlers were called in and, if you check out the episode in question exactly six minutes and fifty seven second in, you'll find them, dressed appropriately and in the process of finishing off a song. And, yes, the singer wearing the sparkly silver jacket, leather pants and curly wig that makes him look a dead-ringer for 1968-era Jim Morrison doing a Whistle Test-style high-kick is, indeed, national treasure Mark Kermode.
After filming, Mark noted, one of the production staff approached him and asked what was the name of the 'song' they'd been playing. Mark replied, truthfully, that it wasn't a song, it was just three notes to simulate the end of a song. The team member then said that every bit of music performed on television has to be registered with the PPL (the Public Performance Licensing organisation) so that the author of the piece can be paid. Actual money. Mark quickly noted, in that case, this was a song and that he'd 'written' it. 'So, what's it called?' asked the producer. Mark didn't have a clue - he hadn't thought that far in advance - but The Bottlers' drummer suggested 'I've Got A Zeppelin In My Trousers'. This was duly noted and, Mark added, several months later he was delighted to receive a cheque (for 'something like twenty three pounds') for the sole TV performance of his 'song', 'I've Got A Zeppelin In My Trousers'!
Stargazers across Wales were able to witness Venus, Jupiter and the Moon aligned in the night sky on Thursday. The brightest planets in the sky were visible during a spectacular celestial event known as a conjunction. According to the UK Space Agency, the two planets reach their apparent closest point at the start of March when they'll appear to form one point.
Mel Brown - remember her? She used to be famous about twenty years ago - has described James Corden as one of the 'biggest dickhead celebrities' that she has ever met. And, she's met plenty. Apparently.
In The Five Doctors (1983), the line 'Great chunks of my past [are] detaching themselves like melting icebergs' was spoken. There are weeks where this blogger knows exactly how Peter Davison felt. Take thios week with the announcements of the deaths of Dickie Davies and John Motson, for instance. A world without Dickie and Motty in it simply isn't one that this blogger either recognises nor, indeed, has much time for.
Nevertheless, dear blog reader, the beat goes on and we, however reluctantly, must go on with it.
'I Tried To Find Fruit & Veg In Huddersfield During Food Shortage & All I Found Was Grapes' is the clear winner of this week's From The North Headline Of The Week award for the Huddersfield Examiner. Though, it's the accompanying illustrative photo which, this blogger feels, makes it art.
Though let us have a big round of applause for a worthy runner-up, LBC's Police Warn Locals Not To Approach Man In Cookie Monster Costume Terrorising Seaside Area.
Next, one presumes, dear blog reader, that a hungry chap can certainly get something right hot and spicy that burns the back of their throat in this particular gaff?
One also supposes that this establishment is close-by.
And finally, an occasional From The North 'ooo, a bit of politics, there' moment.
