Jacqueline

No, they were definitely living. But now they are gone. I wondered if perhaps they had completed the mission and returned to their own planet. But the rather more prosaic explanation is that they were told to move on, because somebody complained they were creeping out the kids in the nearby play area. I never did find out what they were doing or get to do my secret signal. As for statues, our town is being treated to weeks of traffic disruption, courtesy of the council (again!) and some local businesses, which have decided the main entry into the town, via a roundabout which caters to some very busy roads, is just not attractive. What it needs apparently, is a sculpture costing £300.000. This will be in the shape of a giant wheel, to commemorate the town's industrial 'heritage'. Various lanes have been closed to traffic, to facilitate the construction and the traffic lights switched off. The resulting queues are unbelievable at certain times, although I have to say getting about is easier without the lights as people are forced to think for themselves. Of course there are always those who can't do this and there have been a number of accidents. I am all for heritage and acknowledging past achievement, but this town has so many social and infrastructural problems, a disastrously congested road system thanks to all the tinkering over the years and an obsession with traffic lights. There is very little real work here or investment, just a clinging to the past rather than any forward thinking. Still, we will have a sculpture of a wheel to look at in the autumn. On a busy roundabout too, just the place for a major distraction to drivers.

Bruce, thanks for this.I thought it was Victoria Beckham at first! It gave me a laugh although she is, presumably, dancing on his grave and supposed to be terribly serious of course. I would love to see them dance together again, but not like this. It seems a perfect example of everything Luke Jennings was talking about recently. Each to their own, but I am so glad I am not wasting money on this show.

Could be! Next time I see them I will raise my arm in a traffic signal style and see if they respond. Then thumbs up and a theatrical wink. It's weird but not as funny as when I was once teaching a person to bay park, courtesy of the large car park belonging to a well known DIY store. It was quite early and as we sat there, a large group of people appeared, wearing the company uniform. They formed a circle and proceeded to give a rendition of the hokey cokey. This, presumably, was a team building exercise and some members of the team were giving it their all,perhaps with promotion in mind. Others less so. My pupil and I found it much more interesting than bay parking.

I wondered about Tai Chi, but thought that required a bit more movement, not that I know anything about it. It is certainly slow motion, only one of them moves an arm up and down, like an old fashioned traffic signal. They are always facing north if that is significant? Or they could just be facing the town hall which is in that direction. They are not wearing hi-viz jackets over their tracksuits!

I saw this the last time it was on at Sadler's Wells. I enjoyed the evening, sitting near the front Guillem was more or less right in front of me for 'Two', which I found mesmerising, particularly as the audience managed to keep quiet in the early stages. I think as each piece was so different, it didn't seem such a short programme, even though it was. Not as short as some though! Lynette, what did you think of it?

I walk my dog in the local park some mornings. Over the last few months, I have observed two people standing stock still, side by side, amongst the trees. First time I nearly jumped out of my skin as they were partially hidden. They are wearing tracksuits and seem to be doing some sort of exercise/meditation. Whatever it is doesn't require much effort although they both have the obligatory water bottles. One of them occasionally stretches an arm out to the side. I don't think they are doing anything untoward, but I do wonder what they are doing. People have started to stop and look at them but there is no speaking or waving. So, any ideas as to what is going on?

There was a scene in Coronation Street a few months ago, where Gail Platt was doing the ironing. David, her son, came in and they started having a huge row about something. All the while, the music from Swan Lake was playing in the background. On the radio, I hasten to add, not a full orchestra! It was a very amusing juxtaposition.

Should have said his mother was part Cherokee! Sorry, I remembered it wrong.

Yes, R.I.P. James Garner. I used to like Rockford and his screen partnership with Doris Day was very entertaining. He seems to have been a genuinely nice guy. As an actor, he had great comic timing and presence, plus he was very attractive. I was interested to learn from the obituary that his mother was pure Cherokee. I am not surprised he altered his name though!

Indeed there are many types of journalism, from the truly courageous who risk their lives in war zones or have the integrity to carry on investigating wrongdoing in the face of threats to their safety, to the other end of the spectrum. There must be a market for the gutter end of journalism. There is certainly no shortage of publications catering to this apparent need to read about human behavior in all its sordid detail. I believe The Sun is still the top selling 'newspaper'? Reminds me of that great line from Porridge, when Fletcher asks for a copy of The Sun, 'Oh, and get me something to read as well'. One of the things that struck me in the trial about hacking celeb's phones, was who on earth is interested in these people? I couldn't care less what A said to B about C, but obviously somebody does, or thinks they do. Of course if you are not interested in celeb 'news' or generally lazy, soundbite reporting, you avoid certain programmes/publications. My point about Channel 4 News, was that it is a serious news programme, which takes itself very seriously. Because of my work schedule, it is the one I tend to watch. I don't care for the increasingly hectoring tone of the interviewing, in which interrupting and shouting down seem to be the order of the day, as if to say look at us, we are a serious news programme and we don't give our interviewees an easy ride. Nevertheless, it is somewhere I expect to find some attempt at responsible reporting of the facts and not somebody doorstepping family, friends, neighbours of victims, who are clearly traumatised and the intrusion is unwarranted and utterly insensitive.

I was thinking just that! If you feel your purpose for being somewhere has sort of run its course and things in general are changing, it is natural to start thinking back and I do think it is something you have to be very careful about. You have so much to lose if you make a mistake, financially and emotionally. Where you, thequays, live now sounds rather lovely. I am not dissing Manchester, as like anywhere else, there are good parts and bad. Although it is 'home', you could well be looking at it through the old rose tinted specs, perhaps as I am with Sussex. The main difference being I absolutely hate where we live. It has nothing whatsoever to commend it in my view, although lots of folk love it. We had the house valued recently and were rather disappointed to find it has barely increased since we last thought about selling. We have had quite a lot of work done since then but nothing that wouldn't be considered just maintenance rather than improvement, according to the estate agent. New boiler, roof etc. Apparently, the property in this area has reached its peak in value. As far as moving goes, we won't be going this year but at least it gives us time to really think about what we are going to do and have a budget in mind. I think LinMM's suggestion is spot on, try just visiting Manchester for a weekend/mini break, go to a show, have a purpose in mind, see if you get that warm glow when you get off the train and still have it two days later! See how you feel about the reality of living in a big city on a budget. Those Irish mountains and all that fresh air and space may seem very attractive after all!

I watched Channel 4 news last night and was dismayed at the coverage of the airline tragedy. What really got me was the presenter's comment about how the Dutch press has been largely restrained in its coverage, preferring to wait until there are some actual facts about what happened. Unfortunately, our own coverage did not see fit to do the same, or even apparently, the irony in mentioning Dutch restraint but showing none of our own. The reporter then went to the florist that was owned/run by two of the victims, to ask customers, passers by, anybody, how they felt about what had happened. This extended to the man who runs the shop next door, who had agreed to take in his now deceased neighbour's post while they were on holiday. How did he feel knowing he would never see them again? And other questions along those lines. Disgraceful. I would have expected better from Channel 4.

'Slightly' off topic but as Stalin has been mentioned, did anyone see Harry Enfield's recent sketch, in which he played Stalin in the style of Alan Bennett and his Talking Heads monologues. Hard to imagine Stalin being amusing, but done with a Leeds accent and having the most banal conversation with someone he considers a nice chap but is still having shot later. Acutely observed and very, very funny.

News from Irina Kolesnikova's website/club. Irina gave birth to a daughter on June 30th, the child's name is Vasilina. Mother and baby fine and well. Congratulations!!!

That Jane sounds a canny little piece of work with the doll swap! My mother kept everything including all my schoolwork, every crappy picture and project. Not, I think, out of any sentimental feeling. Just because she won't throw anything away. She has loads of stuff in storage since she moved to a smaller property and as of next year, she is going to have to start paying for that storage herself, so I am hoping it might encourage her to have a clear out. I, on the other hand, am quite unsentimental and don't really keep anything for long. But I agree, it is not for somebody else to make the decision for you, whether to keep or not what belongs to you. I would be quite happy for her to chuck out my old stuff, but I would expect her to ask me first. I would be outraged if she just went ahead. Much as she would, if I did it to her. I have owned and chucked so much stuff over the years, I wonder sometimes if it would be fun to have a conveyor belt like on the Generation Game, and see all my stuff go by. I wonder what I would remember and wish I had kept. I am sure I once owned a topsy turvy doll!

Interesting replies to my query about the ticket sales at The Coliseum. Many thanks. I gather there are special offers for tickets now, but rather like Janet's email, too little too late. Still a few days to go, but on current form, the auditorium is going to be a lonely place on Saturday night. The stalls are practically empty for a start. How soul destroying for the performers. From what Bruce Wall has said, I am also amazed that they chose to return to this venue, knowing what the set up is like with marketing and so on. It must be hard enough to fill a venue that size at the best of times, although someone like Carlos Acosta seems to do it. Is there a difference in the way he is marketed or is it simply the power of his name? I don't know much, indeed anything about how these things work, but how many visits can a company like this make to a - for them - poor selling venue, before they go elsewhere. I wouldn't keep going back to somewhere I got poor service if there were alternatives.

If that's how they water it, you should be safe from an unexpected shower for a few weeks.

Just had a look at the ENO website, ticket sales for all these performances seem shockingly poor. Why? It looks rather interesting.

I would recommend Sylvie Guillem's 'Invitation' which is an amazing and massive book of fantastic and varied photographs. Also, a less massive but most excellent book of photos of Irina Kolesnikova, imaginatively titled Irina Kolesnikova. As far as I am aware, both books are fairly easily available but a bit costly. Worth it though, within reason anyway!

I quite agree, it is annoying but you hit the nail on the head with 'like listening to toddlers'. I understand an ad has to get the message across in a short time slot, but some of them are so patronising I wonder about the attitude of the company towards the potential customer. Does everything have to be so infantilised? Why can't we aim higher instead of the lowest common denominator? I can picture the power meetings with the execs yelling 'ya gotta spell it out for the plebs!'. One ad that used to get on my nerves was for products that might lower cholesterol. They were fronted by a celeb who was only saying what she was paid to say but is supposedly known for her high I.Q.. Nevertheless, there she was telling us how this product could help us to 'reduce down' our cholesterol. As opposed to increase up? Was this tautology deliberate and if so, what was the point? Or was it an assumption we might not know the meaning of 'reduce'. Or was it just plain ignorance of grammar? You hear this sort of thing 'increasingly more' now, even on programmes where you would expect the presenters to have some grasp of literacy. Perhaps we will eventually go full circle and return to the days when speaking properly wasn't considered a character defect. As for Wimbledon, I also agree with comments about the uniforms. It does get very hot on those courts and the uniforms look uncomfortable and frankly, scruffy for such a high end event. It can't be that difficult to come up with a smart but functional outfit, that takes into account weather conditions and different shapes and sizes.

You can tell this isn't a council job cos she's not wearing a hard hat and a hi-viz vest!

Don't know if this counts as gardening news but the Parish Council arranges for hanging baskets to be suspended from lamp posts round here. Last week, I was awakened by noise outside my house at 3.30 A.M. This turned out to be somebody getting out of a pick-up and erecting a step ladder under the lamp post in front of my house. He then climbed the ladder and attached a metal bracket to the post, using a cordless drill. Then off he went to the next post and so on. At 7 A.M., another pick- up arrived with two men, who proceeded to hang the flower basket from the new bracket. Half an hour later, the original bloke returned to water said basket! I rang the council to complain and was told my comments would be passed on to the people who provide the baskets. This week the chappie turned up at 3 A.M. to start watering the baskets. This seems set to continue for the lifespan of the baskets and beyond. In previous years they have continued to water, long after the contents have ceased to be, but never at this hour. Is it unreasonable of me to question why these activities need to be carried out at such an unsociable hour and how much it is costing? Apparently, 'no-one else has complained' although a number of people have agreed with me that it is absurd. As I pointed out to the Parish Councillor, these baskets are not free. We, the taxpayers, pay for them. Does it really need two pick-ups and three people, starting at 3 A.M.? Perhaps I am just an unreasonable old grouch. After all, if you gaze up at the pretty flowers it does distract you momentarily from the grimness of this place. Like the proverbial sticking plaster I suppose, much easier than tackling the real problems. Just not at 3 A.M. though.

My thoughts on the BRB matinee at Buxton. I didn't really care much for Quatrain. I have to say I hated the music and that probably did for the piece. I find screechy, busy strings very hard on the ears. Much as I admire the skill of the dancers, the dance itself made little impression. I realise that sometimes these pieces require more than one viewing, but I really wouldn't want to see this again. So to the 'bites'. I am afraid the clog dance sends my twee-o-meter into the red. Onto Beauty and the Beast, I found this rather intriguing and would like to see more of it. La Fille was very pretty but as has been said elsewhere, the dancers were somewhat limited by the small stage. It also seemed to be very brightly lit, but I also think this was due to the rather soothing darkness of the Beast that went before. I very much enjoyed Facade. The different elements in this piece actually came across very well on the small stage and it is interesting to see a ballet performed much as the choreographer intended. It is full of wit and character and seemed to be over in no time. There is so much some modern choreographers could learn from watching this ballet, and indeed almost any Ashton creation. He had such a skill for matching choreography with music, an eye for subtlety and clever little details. He seemed to believe that an audience might be able to think for itself and not need everything spelled out. All the dancing was of the highest quality but I would like to mention Celine Gittens in particular. I first saw this delightful dancer in Sheffield about five years ago. She has that magic and elusive ingredient, if I can call it genuine star quality. She is beautiful to look at, full of charm and stage presence. I would like to know why she is still 'only' a soloist and not a principal by now. Anyway, that is my opinion. I would also like to say it was a pleasure to meet Janet McNulty and Marg S in the intervals. It is good to meet people who share my enjoyment of ballet and I hope you both enjoyed the final evening performance.

I am in the front row of the dress circle. Will look out for you! Yep, they probably are! Perhaps if BRB shoehorned Swan Lake into the performance title, it would be a sell - out. It could even be called '(it's not) Swan Lake!' as in '(up to) 50% off!' Meaningless but gets them in! People see the words Swan Lake and they won't notice the small print. Somehow, I bet there'll still be a queue for the lavs tomorrow.

I am going to the BRB matinee at Buxton tomorrow and look forward to it. I have just been looking at ticket sales for all three performances and am dismayed at how many unsold seats there are. The tickets are very competitively priced for such a world class company and the programme looks varied and imaginative. Where is everybody?