Scrapbook
A monthly digital scrapbook of books, films, activities and ephemera.
This collection serves as both personal archive and public journal. More about this here.
May 25
My birthday month! A trip to Barcelona for dinner with friends and then three days of Primavera. Spent the rest of the month recovering, plus a nice meal at Sessions Arts Club, and a couple of work reunions (one with old Yahoo colleagues and one with an old client - both great).
A Sudden Glimpse to Deeper Things
Caught this Mark Cousins doc about the artist Wilhelmina Barns-Grahamon, on Sky Arts by accident, even though it had been on the 'to watch' list for ages. I really enjoyed it, but I am a Cousins fanboy.
Second beautiful birthday meal of the month - I am spoiled! Utterly gorgeous restaurant with food to match.
Blue Road - The Edna O’Brien Story
Managed to see this in the tiny Kiln Cinema on Kilburn High Road and was very happy I did. It's a stunning bit of film making about an incredible writer and formidable human being, who I definitely did not know enoguh about.
Box Office Poison: Hollywood’s Story in a Century of Flops - Tim Robey
A 'colourful catalogue of disaster, chock-full of clashing egos, runaway budgets and acts of God' that manages to treat Babe: Pig in the City with the same reverance as The Magnificent Ambersons.
Just one shot from Primaevera, this is MJ Lenderman delivering one of my favourite sets of the weekend.
I Regret Almost Everything - Keith McNally
Been following McNally on IG for years and this book did not disappoint. Gossipy, emotional, caustic and smart - it's a a fantastic memoir.
I don't post too much TV stuff on here but the new Richard Curtis series was as brilliant as we have come to expect. I scoffed it down in the course of a week.
What I Ate in One Year (and related thoughts) - Stanley Tucci
I read most of this... But unfortunately Stan comes across as insufferably grumpy, entitled name-dropper over the course of the year; and I just couldn't get to the end.
Buster in the living room, wondering why I'm reading about cats.
Yes, I got my tarot cards raead in Barcelona. I bought my friend the Hexen 2.0 cards by the artist Suzanne Treister and she insisted in telling me what my 'spirit animal' was over lunch in the sun. (Spoiler: It's an Octopus.)