Jacqueline

Weird weather indeed! I take it the California dam disaster was averted. It got quite a lot of coverage here as to what might happen. Then as is typical of the news it dropped from sight. In part presumably, because the flooding failed to occur.

I wanted to say RIP to those who lost their lives yesterday due to weather related incidents. Much calmer today and some lovely almost springlike sunshine to turn one's face to. How quickly things can change.

The prince is ready for action allright. Didn't the original Sleeping Beauty wake up expecting twins??

If you want a laugh, try The Intelligence Men with Morecambe and Wise. It is very silly but also very funny in parts. Maybe a bit dated now but a little piece of 1960s pastiche. Eric works in a espresso bar. One day he is given a secret message in the form of a musical clue. But he is tone deaf and has no idea what it means. It is a few bars of the tune from Swan Lake. He and little Ern then get caught up in the world of spies and a production of Swan Lake, where to avoid being murdered, they join the dance of the little swans while dressed as ancient Egyptians from Aida. Anyway, I don't want to ruin the plot. Odette is played by April Olrich, who actually danced with the RB at the time of Ninette de Valois. It is not a ballet film, just a vehicle for M&W. But it is funny if you like that sort of thing.

Doris eased off here quite suddenly. It seems very quiet now the wind has stopped howling. I was watching the birds earlier, trying to eat the food I put out, with their feathers standing on end. The pheasant was tapping on the window as if to say let me in. He runs away when I go to open the door though. Just as well, if he did come in he would probably poop everywhere! Janet, if you read this, do say what daytime tv you watched. I like Judge Judy. She doesn't take any crap from anybody and sticks to the law, which can be quite educational. I like the reruns of Bergerac as well, mostly for the scenery rather than the plots.

Give it some welly means if driving a vehicle - put your foot down, speed up and that sort of thing. Generally, it just means to put some power into something, run faster, get on with it - give it some welly!! I don't know where it originates from, possibly tractor related, but it is an expression I rather like.

I've just been rereading what you said about this cretin back in 2014! His behaviour was totally unacceptable. You said his wife worked in a takeaway then, was friendly but you got the impression she knew what he was doing. I do find it hard to believe when such people say they had no idea, they must have at least suspected, even though they may not be witness to anything. He was clearly carrying on his actions for your "benefit." Hopefully, he will be really unlucky in his choices one day and come seriously unstuck. You could have a look in your local paper and see who's been up before the magistrates recently!

Pretty wild in Derbyshire. I went shopping this morning and managed to get round without incident. Last time it was so windy, the roof started to peel off the supermarket and we had to vacate. We looked out at the car park and all the detritus flying around and wondered if it would be safer to stay instore. They insisted we left, presumably for insurance reasons as under their roof, what's left of it, you are in their care. But you use the carpark at your own risk so out you go and good luck! The wind is howling here but we live in quite an exposed area. Amazes me how many people you see struggling with umbrellas in this weather. What do they think is going to happen?

I hope they have gone for your sake. Nobody should have to put up with people like that. Didn't you say the female worked in a local shop or some such. Has she disappeared from there as well? Maybe there has been an "incident" and they have had to go. Who cares as long as they stay gone.

We had a terrific music teacher at my primary school. She was knowledgeable and enthusiastic and got us organised into a great choir. My secondary school was very different - the music teacher was obsessed with Beethoven and used to play piano pieces incredibly badly. If you liked music it was torture. If you weren't bothered, it was likely to put you off for life. There was no attempt to interest or inspire. It was just sort of deadening. As for the fingernail picker mentioned above, truly disgusting. I would have had to move too. Much like the smelly feet, body odour and other revolting, anti social behaviours mentioned on this thread, I do wonder at humans sometimes and their complete lack of self knowledge, awareness, manners and basic cleanliness. How difficult is it to at least be clean?

The number of people allowed to keep their licence and continue driving on our roads, despite having excessive points for repeatedly breaking the law, very often the same offence over and over. Apparently there are around 10,000 of them, including one from West Yorkshire with 62 points and yet still allowed to drive. Each case is considered individually as the excuse that a ban would cause "exceptional hardship" is open to interpretation. It could mean loss of a job or inability to care for a relative or whatever. This risk isn't enough to stop them committing the offence in the first place however. The difference between getting away with yet another offence or a ban depends on the magistrate. The vast majority do get a ban for repeated offences, very often the same one such as speeding. But it cannot be right that someone is allowed to drive despite having 62 points. How hard can it be to change the law so these people are made to take responsibilty for their behaviour and not allowed to hide behind pathetic excuses.

People eating and talking at the same time or just eating with their mouth open, especially when they have literally bitten off more than they can chew, then biting off even more while they are still chewing the first chunk. Then struggling to swallow and trying to wash it down with a drink. Yuk. Just take a smaller bite, chew, swallow and repeat. The mess people can make with even the smallest snack. How is that possible? Perhaps they are used to being waited on at home. The magic cleaning fairy will tidy up after them. People eating with mouth open is one of my pet hates. As Reggie Perrin once said to the offending chewer - once the food has passed your lips, that should be the last we see of it.

Ulyana Lopatkina is described, rather quaintly by Wikipedia, as "currently employed" by the Mariinsky as prima ballerina. Sits vac - prima ballerina required, must have experience and be able to start immediately.

My understanding of prima ballerina is that it refers to the top or main female principle in any given company. The term assoluta refers to a prima of exceptional quality such as Margot Fonteyn. The RB has several female principles but as far as I know, they are currently considered equal in stature.

Well, glad I booked when I did as you suggested. That £73 early booking deal now appears to be coming in at £106!

Further to my comments on Cinderella, I forgot to mention that when I saw Merle Park, her "sisters" were Frederick Ashton and Robert Helpmann. I was too young to appreciate the significance of this at the time, but I do remember them. I am not a fan of the characters as such, but like so many roles, the way they are played is crucial. Gary Avis is particularly good, as he has great presence but doesn't overdo it. Then again, he is always excellent whatever he does. Apart from maybe that thing with the fish!

Just got a ticket for the Sat mat at Sheffield. Looking forward to it!

I saw Merle Park as my first Cinderella with, I think, Anthony Dowell as her prince. Roberta Marquez and David Makhatelli were also wonderful, a perfect match. I do agree that you cannot put Ashton's version out of your head when viewing others. I do hope that Cinderella will be back at the ROH soon. Edited to say I also like the part of Swan Lake where time's up and Rothbart comes in to claim Odette. She is 'pulled' away from Siegfried as they try to hold on to each other. Then she reverts to swandom, her demeanour changes to rigid and off she goes, all to that extraordinary score.

Two magical ballet experiences that immediately come to my mind would be the sheer beauty of the interaction of Giselle and Albrecht in Act 2, combined with that incredible score. Then Cinderella - again the perfect fusion of Prokofiev's wonderful music and Ashton's incredible, imaginative choreography. As well as the beauty of the pdds already mentioned, I love the build up in the scene where Cinders is being prepared and is then carried off in her carriage to the ball. You can just sense her excitement and anticipation. Well, I like it! I also love the scene where the clock strikes and she flees. The music alone makes my toes tingle. There is much of Ashton's work that doesn't appeal to me, but Cinderella is the work of a genius.

Taking the scientific part of this thread's title, has anyone been to see the Soyuz space capsule that brought Tim Peake & co back to earth last year,currently on display at the Science Museum? It all looks so tiny, I can't imagine three people all done up in their space suits crammed in there for hours. Takes some guts to do that!

I sat in the ROH stalls once, about row N. I had to keep my coat on through the performance as just prior to taking my seat, I had a rather disastrous wardrobe malfunction involving my trousers and what turned out to be a sticky bench I had unwittingly sat on. It was a warm afternoon and I got some funny looks, but those people in the row behind me didn't know I was actually doing them a great favour. That was one of the very times I actually took a coat with me. Just as well for all concerned.

Perhaps we will be so busy gazing at the one we can see that the other one we can't, will just sneak up and catch us out. We deflect the one we see, the congratulatory backslapping commences, the music swells then BOOM! And I don't mean Heavy D!Probably won't matter by then. There are enough things already here to be afraid of. May as well keep calm and carry on, as it were.

Here we go again! What's peanut shaped, massive - bigger than the Empire State Building more or less, potentially hazardous and coming our way. Maybe. It's another asteroid. Or is it the same one as before? I thought that one wasn't due until 2880. I can't keep up. Should we be afraid, very afraid or totally, like, cool? Do I still have to go to work?

I like the Basil Fawlty explanation technique best. It gets straight to the point, in more ways than one and leaves little or no room for confusion or doubt. Unfortunately, it is illegal now!

Good point. A work can seem completely different if danced by a cast that understands and can put it over properly, against one that just does the steps, as if to say this is a classic so speaks for itself. Then again, you can have the best dancers struggling with the dullest choreography, so it works both ways. Swan Lake can be breathtaking or deadly dull, depending on who does it. The cygnets don't bother me as much as the endless national dances. Sleeping Beauty, for me, is always too long, but done badly or without care, it is unbearably tedious. Sylvia I found tiresome and silly. I don't get Jewels at all, I find it terribly boring. I liked parts of Winter's Tale, but I find much of Wheeldon's choreography repetitive and empty. His works make me think of candy floss. In my opinion, they look quite pretty but they have little or no substance. Apart from avoiding audience behaviour, I have become a bit spoiled by sitting in comfort at home watching dvds and being able to fast forward what I consider to be the boring bits.