Quintus

I can tell it's a few days off exercise rather than a surgery job, as I've had one of those - a bad cartilage tear from a spinning kick just days before the karate black belt grading I'd been training 6 months for.. My knees at least just seem inconsistent - I can work them hard with no problem one day then pull something getting out of a chair the next..

A friend of ours' Burmese has been getting them into hot water with the local golf club by lurking in the bushes then nicking the golf balls as they roll past. He's now even featured in the Daily Mail! : http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3795454/The-golf-club-cat-burglar-Merlin-ruining-players-rounds-running-fairway-stealing-balls.html

Knees can go in Room 101. Poorly designed and wear out far too soon. I just popped off the treadmill to get a drink, hopped back on and pow, stabbing pain in my right knee. Can now go upstairs on it but not downstairs.

... and on impulse a used bluray of Ondine for 7.99; not sure that will be my cup of tea but seemed worth a punt!

Susan, that's very kind of you, thanks for the offer. I hadn't spotted it on Amazon, so seeing David's comment above i have actually just ordered a secondhand copy from there!

A question rather than a comment - have there ever been DVD releases of Sylvie Guillem's classical performances, as opposed to her contemporary work? the only thing I've seen on Amazon is 'Work/Portrait' which seems more of a documentary with snippets of dance. I never saw her dance, and would love to see something of better quality reproduction than hazy Youtube clips.

Anne - having just gone to the Amazon checkout, it does not ask for a prescription. I'll have to try this, as our cat eats lots of rabbits and hence constantly picks up fleas; this product seems to be targeted at larger animals (mentions pet rabbits over 4kg), which is perhaps where Frontline has been failing us.

This is probably due a proper thread in the performances section soon, but to continue here for now... ENB had a social media event whereby they invited half a dozen 'mega instagrammers', i.e. people with say a hundred thousand followers, to come and photograph a Giselle rehearsal session. The pics are up in the usual places, Facebook, the ENB web page and of course n the instagrammers' pages. I have to say that while it was a good idea in theory, I am pretty underwhelmed by the resulting pictures. I can see no difference between the output of these megagrammers and that of any random teen girl with a phone plucked off the street. No real insight or originality. The more interesting pictures have been coming from the many dancers who are also competent with a camera e.g. Liotardo, as they also have an understanding of what is going on and a personal connection to the dancers.

Staatsballett are using their Facebook page to promote the petition - has a couple of hundred likes and the comments are mostly supportive

My local Sainsbury has a section signed "Adult Cereal". Appropriately enough, it's on the top shelf. I shudder to think what the free toys inside are.

well I thoroughly enjoyed the GFOR, though I winced when the poor Wilis had to do stamping double-footed hops en pointe - looked really painful! While the event didn't have the benefit of explanations from AK, on the upside pretty much the whole company seemed to be there, and all the Giselles and Myrthes were rehearsing their parts simultaneously, which gave a unique change to 'read across' all the principals and some others ..

I wonder how they define 'influential' for this list, and particularly in the case of the dancers rather than the choreographers/directors? Is it seen as a function of public profile and social media presence, i.e. their capability to build awareness and draw people to performances?

If I didn't need to support my family I'd rather be a photographer (wildlife, travel, and dare I say dance). I utterly, utterly, utterly loathe what I do for a living, so I frequently take flights of fantasy that also see me as an archaeologist, palaeontologist, marine biologist etc !

some came up yesterday Lin... but went very quickly

I have Fernanda and Fernando, which would not have been my top pick, as when I saw all the Giselles rehearsing simultaneously in the studio, she seemed less engaged than the other principals. However I almost missed out completely, so am grateful to be seeing it at all. Wish they'd named the Myrthes as well; fingers crossed for Bella Brouwers in that role.

Just released by ENB: http://www.ballet.org.uk/media/filer_public/2016/09/08/akram_khan_giselle_principal_casting.pdf

Sorry, my invite was folded - it actually reads 'Swooning ladies will be tenderly borne in the arms of their chosen Principal to their [Private Jets at 6pm]'. And there's a cream tea! ????

It says 'Private Jets at 6pm' on mine

There are two events. Mine is all Friday afternoon - it's the 'Great Friends' rehearsal. The one on Thursday is probably for a different membership - perhaps 'Bare Acquaintances' or 'Ships That pass in The Night'. Or perhaps the far more exclusive 'Practically Part of The Family' class.

well I won't be wearing a badge but on Friday will be at the ENB Friends' rehearsal of Giselle at Markova House, which will be a very small group. Anyone else attending?

Given his recent embarrassing experience on Virgin, I'd suggest Jeremy Corbyn wears one of these badges

Doing a mini-Olympics today for 30-odd guests from Mrs Q's tennis teams. We have badminton, mini-tennis, table tennis, golf putting and an equestrian event that sees my tractor dressed up as a horse and navigating obstacles in the paddock. We decided archery and air rifle would have been asking for trouble. My son has just cleared off to work for the day without setting up the sound system and it's blowing a gale, but apart from that it's looking good!

Mab, as you liked Wadjda, I'd highly recommend Mustang, which is now out on DVD. Some similar themes but set in rural Turkey and a delightful young tomboy lead. We watched it last night and found it both funny and moving.

If you liked Cinema Paradiso then try Malèna by the same director; blend of coming-of-age charm and nostalgia with the less palatable reality of what it took to survive in Italy under the Occupation

Surprised by several members associating seeing films strictly with visiting the cinema - I'd have thought most people watch at home these days, either DVDs or subscription streaming services like Netflix, BFI, Amazon - Lovefilm etc. As I tend to like art-house / world cinema, which doesn't make it to many cinemas, I'm a regular trawler of online secondhand sites, where it is often possible to pick up obscure gems for a few pennies plus postage!