Goodbye 2020
A very wise Vulcan once said “change is the essential process of all existence”. 2020 has demonstrated that unequivocally. How our privileged, pampered lives have altered over the last twelve months. We’ve had to stay at home, curtail our social interactions and reflect upon the meaning of existence. I appreciate that things are relative, so it’s not helpful to compare the concerns that discombobulate people today with the realities that folk had to endure during World War II for example. I won’t trivialise the sense of isolation and desperation some folk have felt over the lockdown. From my own perspective, my life as a carer is regimented and focused, so 2020 hasn’t really “cramped my style” to use an old fashioned phrase. However, several things happened over the course of the year that have had an impact upon myself and my family.
A very wise Vulcan once said “change is the essential process of all existence”. 2020 has demonstrated that unequivocally. How our privileged, pampered lives have altered over the last twelve months. We’ve had to stay at home, curtail our social interactions and reflect upon the meaning of existence. I appreciate that things are relative, so it’s not helpful to compare the concerns that discombobulate people today with the realities that folk had to endure during World War II for example. I won’t trivialise the sense of isolation and desperation some folk have felt over the lockdown. From my own perspective, my life as a carer is regimented and focused, so 2020 hasn’t really “cramped my style” to use an old fashioned phrase. However, several things happened over the course of the year that have had an impact upon myself and my family.
In April I fell ill with COVID-19. My symptoms were not sufficiently bad enough to require hospitalisation but it was a singularly unpleasant experience. The feeling of having restricted breathing as if I was being held in a perpetual bearhug, was most disconcerting. My biggest fear was infecting Mrs P who is unfortunately in a high risk group due to her heart condition. The initial symptoms burnt themselves out within two weeks but it took at least another three to four months before I felt healthy again. And then in late August my 90 year old Father became ill and was hospitalised. He endured four years of very poor health after several strokes and frankly he was fed up with it all. He passed away on September 16th. Due to COVID -19, I could only visit him once in hospital. It then fell to me to sort everything out. I still to this day do not feel I’ve grieved “properly”. Every time I think I’m coping well something trivial reminds me he’s not about anymore and I suddenly become aware that I miss him profoundly.
Another terrible weight that many have laboured under, here in the UK, has been the state of contemporary politics. Irrespective of whether you specifically voted for the incumbent government, one naturally expected them to rise to the occasion when faced with a national crisis. Because COVID-19 and Brexit are issues that should be considered above petty, partisan politics. Sadly that has not been the case. Boris Johnson has handled both issues poorly and is surrounded by an equally inept cabinet. The country is still terribly divided and he’s made no attempts to build bridges or pour oil on troubled waters. He is untrustworthy, a liar and shambolic in his rhetorical style. His paucity of talent, along with his dishevelled appearance, denigrates the office he currently occupies. He lacks principles and conviction which means he will never commit to anything that requires him to maintain a position. Hence he is late to deal with things and does so in a weak, non-committal fashion. Sadly, we have to endure this inept, coward and his craven government for another four years.
Mercifully, it hasn’t all been doom and gloom. 2020 has shown that there are still plenty talented, focused and empathetic people in the world. From healthcare professionals to the staff in the supermarket and delivery drivers. While some of our so-called best have proven to be dull and tarnished, some everyday folk have pulled together, gone the extra mile and truly shone this year. Another positive event to reflect upon is that Trump lost the US election and the entire world will not have to endure his insane ramblings in 2021. His departure certainly doesn’t fix the broken state of US politics but every journey has to begin with a first step. And on a personal note, I get to meet my new Grandson in February. So the next twelve months have some positive aspects already. The COVID-19 vaccines won’t solve everything and I’m sure the immediate future is going to be tough. But as Churchill may or may not have said, “if you're going through hell, keep going”. Wise words. Onwards and upwards I say.
COVID-19 Pandemic 2020 Part 7
Although I don’t especially enjoy doing so, I thought it prudent to update this series of blog posts about the state of the COVID-19 pandemic here in the UK. A lot has happened in the last few weeks and there has been a degree of optimism in some quarters, because of the news regarding the vaccine and hopes that the lockdown rules would be “relaxed” over the festive season. However, those who look beyond tabloid and 10 Downing Street propaganda, have had growing concerns that the chickens are coming home to roost and it would appear that is now happening. A new strain of COVID-19 has been identified and is now spreading rapidly in London and the South East. It does not appear to be deadlier than the original strain but the increased speed at which it spreads is the major concern. The National Health Service is very worried about reaching capacity of ICU beds.
Although I don’t especially enjoy doing so, I thought it prudent to update this series of blog posts about the state of the COVID-19 pandemic here in the UK. A lot has happened in the last few weeks and there has been a degree of optimism in some quarters, because of the news regarding the vaccine and hopes that the lockdown rules would be “relaxed” over the festive season. However, those who look beyond tabloid and 10 Downing Street propaganda, have had growing concerns that the chickens are coming home to roost and it would appear that is now happening. A new strain of COVID-19 has been identified and is now spreading rapidly in London and the South East. It does not appear to be deadlier than the original strain but the increased speed at which it spreads is the major concern. The National Health Service is very worried about reaching capacity of ICU beds.
The UK government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic has been shambolic to say the least. Today’s U-turn regarding restrictions over the Christmas period is yet another example of the Prime Minister’s personal failure to implement a coherent and credible policy that the public can get behind. At present he is being pilloried by people and institutions that don’t feel he is doing enough, as well as those who feel that he is acting in too much of an authoritarian fashion. He faces the ire of his own party over the damage being done to the UK economy and is in danger of losing the trust of his scientific advisers who are despairing of his noncommittal approach to making tough decisions. In fact the confusion that all speeches by Boris Johnson engender has become an internet meme and a standing joke nationally.
— MATT LUCAS (@RealMattLucas) May 10, 2020
The UK was slow to take up a national lockdown but when it finally did in late March, it had a clear message driving it. “Stay at home. Protect the NHS. Save lives”. The public understood the restrictions and what they could and could not do. There was a degree of financial assistance and although far from ideal, the situation meant that UK hospitals were not overwhelmed. It broadly worked, although a lack of PPE and testing meant that the death toll was far higher than it needed to be. But the public endured the restrictions on the understanding that the time gained would be put to good use. Sadly and utterly predictably, it wasn’t. Contracts for the manufacture of PPE, test and trace and other essential support services were given to companies with no prior experience. Many of which had direct links to the government and cabinet. The results were woefully inadequate.
Furthermore, since his election a year ago, the Prime Minister has centralised a lot of power at No: 10, away from the ministries. Experienced civil servants have been bypassed and important decisions have been driven by special advisors. Hence, when the first lockdown ended in July, the subsequent handling of the pandemic has been determined by those prioritising the economic consequences. As a result, the rules and overall message became more vague and subject to multiple interpretations. “Stay alert. Control the virus. Save lives”. Those that balked at the prior restrictions now had sufficient room to fudge things and do what they saw fit. It was this ambiguity, along with several high profile cases of ministers and government staff breaking their own rules, which finally put pay to any further effective strategy.
Therefore throughout late summer and autumn, the UK has existed in a curious state of “doing your own thing”. If you can work from home, afford to have groceries delivered, or access to parks or a garden, then the ongoing restrictions are manageable. If you work in a service industry, get paid weekly and simply cannot afford to stay at home then do your job and take your chances. The COVID-19 pandemic has clearly highlighted the social and economic divide in the UK and the fact that although we may all be in it together, some are more in it than others. And then there are those elements of society that just don’t like being told what they can and cannot do. Who view any inconvenience as an assault upon their personal liberties and who are utterly ill disposed toward considering the needs of others. Attitudes towards face masks is a microcosm of this.
There has always been a strong chance of a second wave of COVID-19, especially during the traditional winter flu season. Which is why the UK saw a tightening of rules throughout November. Hairdressers, pubs and restaurants had to close again to try and keep the R number down. Again the mantra became protect the NHS. The latest slogan being “Hands. Face. Space” to reinforce the need for hygiene, wearing a face mask and social distancing. Yet the notion of relaxing these rules to accommodate Christmas has always been ludicrous. It’s not as if the virus itself respects the holiday season. However, the government was hellbent on not “cancelling Christmas”, not only for the PR reasons but because it knew that a lot of the public were no longer onboard with the restrictions and were going to do whatever they saw fit. And so promises were made and even more tortuously complex rules issued.
Which brings me up to events of the past week. The discovery of a new strain of COVID-19 meant that the scientific advice changed and hence so did the restrictions. Rather than immediately come out and meet the problem head on, the government started publicly briefing against their own guidance for the Christmas period. Ministers appeared on national TV stating although we’ve said you can meet up with family over Christmas, it’s best if you don’t. This risible approach simply made a confusing situation even more so. However, today the scientific modelling has predicted such problems that the PM was compelled to reverse his earlier decision. In recent months, rather than have another national lockdown, comparable to that in March, there has been a series of localised ones in areas deemed to be hotspots. This is a tiered system, consisting of three levels. One being the lowest and three being the highest. London and parts of the South East of the UK have now been placed in a new fourth tier for the immediate future. The mixing of households is now prohibited. Christmas is now seriously curtailed.
Naturally, the pushback against this has been predictable. Travel restrictions due to commence at midnight, has led to a mass exodus of those who can afford it. Airports and stations around the UK have seen a major influx of travellers, seeking to get to their Christmas destinations early and “beat the ban”. For the bulk of the UK public, the festive season will now be a low key affair without any major family gatherings. Businesses are having to shut again due to the current regulations and many may not survive into the New Year. It’s also highly likely that the COVID-19 deniers will go about their lives and contribute to the winter surge in cases. Overall, a person’s socioeconomic status will determine how shit a Christmas they’ll have. As for the New Year, it’s not looking especially good. The rollout of the new vaccine will be overseen by a government that so far has not covered itself in glory. I suspect it will take a lot longer to achieve than promised. And then there’s the prospect of “no deal” Brexit and the woes that such a situation can bring. 2021 may well be worse than this year.
From a personal perspective, my household’s routine has become fixed since March this year. I only visit the local shops, pharmacy and Doctor’s Surgery. I am in a “support bubble” for my disabled Mother and Sister who live one road away. My caring commitments are shared with a care agency that still visits my Mum four times a day. They have been resolute in their commitment this year. Mrs P stays at home due to her health and is currently awaiting an appointment with her heart consultant. We are fortunate to be financially independent and able to maintain both households' needs. The restrictions have predominantly curtailed our social lives and limited our interactions with our grandchildren. But this is a legitimate price to pay, given the circumstances. The new strain of COVID-19 is concerning and we’ll be even more particular about following the rules. We intend to drop off presents for the grandchildren but will not enter their home. Our interactions with family and friends over the festive season will be confined to online, WhatsApp and phone.
This year has highlighted a lot of problems that have always been present in UK society. The country’s recent flirtation with Nationalism has left us with a poorly equipped government, bereft of the talent and leadership required in a national crisis. The notion of British Exceptionalism is still a major flaw in our national character. This combined with a lack of empathy and emotional literacy means that a large percentage of the UK population dislike being told “no”, having to consider others and having to follow rules. The ongoing culture war that is waged by politicians and the tabloid press means that reality is very much out of fashion and ignored. The UK also has yet to come to terms with its current position in the world or to find a new role. We remain a country riven by class distinction, a lack of social mobility and uneven distribution of wealth. None of which will be in any way addressed during the remainder of the current government’s term of office. COVID-19 was briefly thought to be a chance to reset society and right a lot of wrongs. Unfortunately the only thing that has become crystal clear is that the status quo will continue to remain.
Video Games: Just Another Leisure Industry
I was going to start this post with the phrase “there was a time” but then it struck me, that sounds like the opening gambit of a power ballad, so I decided against it. Instead let’s keep it simple. I’ve always played video games. But overtime my relationship with this activity evolved from just being an amusing diversion into a major hobby that I became enamoured with. Two factors contributed to this change in perspective. Moving from console to PC gaming in the late nineties and playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG) circa 2008. By 2010 I was regularly writing about gaming, immersing myself in the culture and participating in the wider community. I naively thought for a while that video games were a unique and exceptional manifestation of pop culture, compared to music, film and literature. However, ten years later, although it is clear that video games can at times be true art just like those other mediums, they also suffer from all the endemic failings and iniquities that exist in the other leisure industries.
I was going to start this post with the phrase “there was a time” but then it struck me, that sounds like the opening gambit of a power ballad, so I decided against it. Instead let’s keep it simple. I’ve always played video games. But overtime my relationship with this activity evolved from just being an amusing diversion into a major hobby that I became enamoured with. Two factors contributed to this change in perspective. Moving from console to PC gaming in the late nineties and playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG) circa 2008. By 2010 I was regularly writing about gaming, immersing myself in the culture and participating in the wider community. I naively thought for a while that video games were a unique and exceptional manifestation of pop culture, compared to music, film and literature. However, ten years later, although it is clear that video games can at times be true art just like those other mediums, they also suffer from all the endemic failings and iniquities that exist in the other leisure industries.
The production of mainstream, so called triple A video games is a textbook example of how contemporary capitalism works and a microcosm of all its shitty foibles. Game developer’s may well have artistic visions and creative aspirations. Those that bank roll them seldom have such lofty ideals. Video games are products to be monetised, sold and used as a means to continuously generate revenue. This business necessity is not something bolted onto a game once it’s completed. It is something that directly shapes their creation. Hence we’re sold a base game; a starter pack as it were. If you want the complete experience, then you pay more. And despite the massive development costs, these products are intended to be ephemeral. The moment the ROI drops they are abandoned and replaced with new products. Therefore the short attention span of customers leads to the brief life cycle of premium games and perpetuates the treadmill of continuous new product culture.
The buck apparently doesn’t stop with Yves Guillemot, CEO of Ubisoft
Sadly, the video games industry has sadly proven itself to be as predatory, exploitative and emotionally dysfunctional as music and cinema. Employment rights, working conditions and pay are poor. The industry’s management structure attracts the usual suspects with their borderline sociopathic traits. Bullies, racists, misogynists and those with a penchant for sexual assault act with impunity. Such individuals like to cultivate an image akin to rock stars, vicariously claiming to work in a hip, modern and creative line of work. But instead it’s just the same, seedy, entitled, spoilt middle-aged white men who seem to think the rules don’t apply to the. A malady that runs throughout modern life in western culture. Whenever such individuals are held to account and scrutinised, they quickly show themselves to be the modern equivalent of the wealthy mill owner from the 19th century. And in their misplaced vanity they always see themselves as the victims.
But there are other factors contributing to the negative state of the video games industry. The first is marketing, which like contemporary politics doesn’t wish to engage in any sort of discussion to justify itself. It merely wants unfettered access to multiple platforms and to be able to make statements unchallenged, irrespective of their veracity, integrity or legality. Hype culture, the wane of quality journalism along with a decline in critical thinking among consumers have contributed to the current hubristic stance adopted when promoting a new triple A game. And this insidious approach by sales and marketing enjoys a curious symbiotic relationship with that other Achilles heel of gaming, zealous fandom.
An all too common aspect of fandom these days
Fandom has become increasingly fundamentalist, binary and bellicose in recent years. It is tribal and at times devoid of reason. Criticism, commentary and analysis are rejected and any differing of opinion is seen as a personal attack. Fans continue to erroneously equate enjoying a product with having some sort of ownership of it. They’ll even pick a side and go to war over titles they haven’t even played yet. Such is the depth of emotional investment made. Furthermore, if a game falls short of expectations that gamers have created themselves, it is seen as an act of treason and a violation of one human rights. Again, you’ll find no difference between ardent video games fans and those of popular TV and cinematic franchises like Star Wars and Star Trek.
I used to enjoy my “love affair” with gaming. It was a new creative endeavour, that unlike pop music, TV and cinema had grown up over the course of my life. I was proud to be part of a writing and podcasting community that shared my affection. That community is still there and remains active but it has diminished. Many, like myself, have had their eyes opened to the unpleasant underbelly of the industry. An industry that does not reflect the diversity of its customers. An industry that is often immoral and unpleasant. An industry that refuses to take a stance against those fans that wish to usurp it and set its course. An industry that wants to have its cake and eat it. So ten years on, I still enjoy games. But I don’t have any illusions about their provenance. Many mainstream games are built upon the blood, sweat and tears of others. Just like cheap clothes made in developing countries. Or TV shows that purport to be about giving people a shot at fame but are really just the modern day equivalent of a Victorian freak show. The video games industry is exactly like all other industries and that is not in any way a compliment. Cognitive dissonance can only keep me tacitly supporting such things for so long. At some point they’ll be a parting of the ways.
Sean Connery (1930 - 2020)
Growing up in the seventies, by the time I became aware of Sean Connery as an actor he had already transcended the role of James Bond and become an international “superstar”. Roger Moore was my generation’s 007 but I was constantly reminded by the “older people” that he “couldn’t hold a candle to Sean Connery”. For many the Scottish actor defined this iconic role and so before I even became familiar with the man and his work, I was aware that there was some kind of mystique surrounding him. Around the time I was eight, I was finally introduced to his inimitable acting style with his performances as Mulai Ahmed er Raisuni in The Wind and the Lion (1975). It was a larger than life performance of a larger than life character; the sort of role that came to define Sean Connery in his later years. On paper it was utterly preposterous. A Scottish man playing an Arab potentate. But it worked and left a marked impression upon me.
Growing up in the seventies, by the time I became aware of Sean Connery as an actor he had already transcended the role of James Bond and become an international “superstar”. Roger Moore was my generation’s 007 but I was constantly reminded by the “older people” that he “couldn’t hold a candle to Sean Connery”. For many the Scottish actor defined this iconic role and so before I even became familiar with the man and his work, I was aware that there was some kind of mystique surrounding him. Around the time I was eight, I was finally introduced to his inimitable acting style with his performances as Mulai Ahmed er Raisuni in The Wind and the Lion (1975). It was a larger than life performance of a larger than life character; the sort of role that came to define Sean Connery in his later years. On paper it was utterly preposterous. A Scottish man playing an Arab potentate. But it worked and left a marked impression upon me.
As I grew older, I finally caught up with Sean Connery’s tenure as James Bond and the films were notably different to those that followed in his wake. The first two Bond instalments were quite brutal and 007 was not quite the caricature he later became. I also understood why Connery tried so hard to break away from that character and the stifling trappings of the success it brought. Yet many of the experimental roles he decided to take during the seventies, which were the polar opposite from Bond, did not find an audience or box office success. By the eighties he appeared to finally embrace the bravura roles that he was constantly offered and carved a new niche for himself, endearing him to a new generation of fans. Again the casting of Sean Connery was often incongruous. Look no further than Juan Sánchez-Villalobos Ramírez in the Highlander. But on other occasions, characters such as Henry Jones in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade were spot on and pure Hollywood gold.
Sean Connery remains a curious paradox. In many ways he was a textbook example of a Hollywood star whose sheer charm and charisma could carry him through roles that were somewhat implausible. Consider for a moment his Oscar winning performance in The Untouchables (1987) where he played an Irish Cop with a distinct Scottish accent. Yet he could provide nuance when required or more to the point when it suited him. His acting chops are clear in films such as The Man Who Would Be King (1975), The Offence (1973) and The Hill (1965). But more often than not, filmmakers just wanted Sean Connery “the star” in their movies and so that is what he gave them. He liked big speeches and monologues; scenes in which his character would philosophise or reflect upon life. Often John Milius, a writer and director he’d worked with before, would “fix” scripts to provide such dialogue for him.
However, in 2003, old age and a growing frustration with a film industry that was run by “idiots” prompted Connery to retire. He turned down the role of Gandalf in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy and a second opportunity to play Henry Jones again. In many ways this was a wise decision.Not only were quality roles declining but the media is seldom kind to ageing celebrities. For many, seeing “James Bond” grow old would have been unbearable. Even now it is quite difficult to reconcile the reality of his death with his show business persona. However, he leaves behind a broad body of work filled with numerous, eminently watchable films. The Hunt for Red October showcases Connery the Hollywood star. Marnie or Robin and Marian highlight a different side to the actor. Personally I’ve always had a soft spot for his performance as Agamemnon in Time Bandits and as Marshal O'Niel in Outland.
Caring for the Elderly Part 13
The funeral service for my late Father was held today. As ever I would like to collate my thoughts and present them here in the hope that I may be able to assist someone else who is currently dealing with a bereavement. Funerals can be challenging at any time but are further complicated at the moment due to the various restrictions imposed due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. However, there is still scope to give a loved one a fitting send off. You just have to be a little more creative about it and try to be understanding of the current regulations regarding social gatherings. Despite my concerns today’s service at our local Borough crematorium went well, if such a term is appropriate. I feel that my Father was honoured appropriately and that his family and friends were able to pay their respects and celebrate his life in a manner that he would approve of.
The funeral service for my late Father was held today. As ever I would like to collate my thoughts and present them here in the hope that I may be able to assist someone else who is currently dealing with a bereavement. Funerals can be challenging at any time but are further complicated at the moment due to the various restrictions imposed due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. However, there is still scope to give a loved one a fitting send off. You just have to be a little more creative about it and try to be understanding of the current regulations regarding social gatherings. Despite my concerns today’s service at our local Borough crematorium went well, if such a term is appropriate. I feel that my Father was honoured appropriately and that his family and friends were able to pay their respects and celebrate his life in a manner that he would approve of.
When my Father died on September 16th one of the first tasks that followed was the registering of his death. During that process there was the option to include the details of which Funeral Directors you are utilising. As I had done some research prior to speaking to the registrar, I had already chosen the Co-op Funeralcare as my vendor of choice. I made this decision based on recommendations from two friends who had used their service and because of the comprehensive FAQ the company has on their website. They have clear guidance of what to do after a bereavement from registering the death, notifying all relevant third parties, administering a will and the etiquette and protocol of arranging a funeral. The information is clear and accessible. Co-op Funeralcare also has a range of products which suit a variety of budgets. They also offer environmentally friendly options and can accommodate humanist and non-religious services.
I subsequently booked an appointment with my local branch of Co-op Funeralcare and was seen five days after my Father’s death on 21st September. The Funeral Arranger was sympathetic, supportive and exceedingly helpful. We discussed a range of potential options for my Father’s funeral in a relaxed atmosphere. The offices are designed to be “homely” and less like standard corporate premises. The first question discussed is whether the deceased was to be buried or cremated. Cremation was the case in this instance. I then picked a coffin from an extensive range. As the family did not wish a viewing, there was no requirement for an open casket, embalming or any other morticians services. We then moved on to the logistics of the service. Usually the coffin is brought to the crematorium via a hearse. There are limousines available to bring family members. However, due to the lockdown there are restrictions on the use of limousines, so it is more efficient to simply make your own way to the crematorium. My Father wasn’t a religious man so there was no requirement for a minister of any kind. Hence, the overall costs for the funeral were quite low.
All of this was arranged on my first visit to the funeral directors. When I left, the date had been set for the service, which was to be held at the local Borough Crematorium. With regard to the costs, there were several payment plans available from the funeral directors, depending on the customer’s financial circumstances. I paid the entire cost by bank transfer the following day. Over the next week there were a few additional tasks to sort out. I had to choose two pieces of music to be played at the service. One for when guests arrive and take their seats in the chapel. The other at the end when they exit into the garden of remembrance. For the former I opted for Tchaikovsky: Souvenir d'un lieu cher, Op.42 - 3. Mélodie performed by Janine Jansen. I chose this because my Father played the violin in his youth and loved such music. For the second piece my Father had specifically requested Ich hatt' einen Kameraden ("The Good Comrade"). This is a popular tune played at German military funerals. My Father had a penchant for military culture, having done his National Service after WWII and then joined the Territorial Army in the Fifties. I must admit I was pleasantly surprised when the funeral director’s managed to find the latter track performed on the Trumpet by Dirk Jess. Apparently a lot of UK funeral directors use the Wesley Media library which is quite comprehensive.
I took some clothes to the funeral directors. Although my Father was in a closed casket, I wanted him dressed in his regimental blazer and tie, rather than just a funeral shroud. Another aspect associated with funerals are floral tributes. My Father left instructions that attendees not buy any as he considered this wasteful. Instead he suggested that a charitable donation was made in his name, in lieu of flowers. In this case his charity of choice was The Royal British Legion, which provides financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants. However, I did order a floral spray for the coffin, so it was not completely unadorned when placed on the catafalque. The final arrangement I had to make was creating and printing an Order of Service. There are plenty of online printers that offer this service, providing templates in all the most common formats, so this was not a major problem. Adobe also offers a free online service for editing photos. This proved useful in restoring an old photo of my Father, for use in the Order of Service.
Once all of the above preparations were made, it was simply a case of inviting family and friends to the service. Under current rules up to 30 people can attend a funeral in the UK. The service is allotted 30 minutes running time. Which brings me to today’s events; the funeral service itself. We all met at the Eltham Crematorium which has an outside waiting area inbetween it’s two chapels. At present the internal waiting rooms are closed. The noticeboard told us which of the two chapels our service had been assigned. The hearse arrived and I was greeted by the funeral director. We had been given a choice in advance as to whether a party of mourners wished to carry the coffin into the chapel. We decline this and my Father’s coffin was carried in by staff with suitable reverence. The first piece of music played and we entered and sat on the pews in a socially distanced manner. There were ten people in total. I welcome all attendees and then read my eulogy to my father. My Aunt, his only surviving Sister (93) then gave some lovely personal reminiscences about their childhood. Finally, one of my Father’s best friends spoke of their 65 year friendship and how they met in the Territorial Army. There was then a minute's silence for prayer and reflection. We then exited in the garden of remembrance and made small talk, as you do at such events. As there was no function or wake in light of the pandemic, we said our goodbyes and departed.
So these are my recent experiences of arranging and attending a funeral for a loved one in 2020. Due to my Father’s specific wishes, I don’t know if the service would have been radically different even if there wasn’t a pandemic. We may have used the limousine service and perhaps have sung a few of his favourite hymns but beyond that I don’t think there would have been too many further embellishments. Overall I did not find this an emotionally overwhelming experience and certainly feel that Co-op Funeralcare did much to make the arrangements and logistics as straightforward as possible. In the space of three weeks, I have administered as many of my Father’s affairs as I can. Some must now be dealt with by solicitors. I think the funeral service struck the right tone. There was deference and dignity but the speeches focused on celebrating my Father’s life. And so, now that everything that can be done, has been done, it’s a question of moving forward. In a week I can collect my father’s ashes. I’m sure the reality of my loss will catch up with me then and I shall grieve in my own way. But life goes on.
COVID-19 Pandemic 2020 Part 6
When I last wrote about the COVID-19 Pandemic in May, the UK was just beginning to see an easing of lockdown restrictions. As a lot of people surmised, the government was trying to do too much, too soon and without the appropriate logistical support. Hence the last five months have been a litany of political disasters, all of which have contributed to the UK having the highest COVID-19 related deaths in all of Europe. Furthermore, the government's failure to provide PPE, make available a universally accessible testing service and implement an effective national tracing service, has highlighted their lack of talent and overall incompetence. Every week another “dead cat” is thrown on to the altar of politics in an attempt to divert the attention of 24 hour rolling news away from their utter ineptitude. Hence on top of the COVID-19 Pandemic, we’ve seen the spectre of both BREXIT and the “migrant crisis” re-emerge.
When I last wrote about the COVID-19 Pandemic in May, the UK was just beginning to see an easing of lockdown restrictions. As a lot of people surmised, the government was trying to do too much, too soon and without the appropriate logistical support. Hence the last five months have been a litany of political disasters, all of which have contributed to the UK having the highest COVID-19 related deaths in all of Europe. Furthermore, the government's failure to provide PPE, make available a universally accessible testing service and implement an effective national tracing service, has highlighted their lack of talent and overall incompetence. Every week another “dead cat” is thrown on to the altar of politics in an attempt to divert the attention of 24 hour rolling news away from their utter ineptitude. Hence on top of the COVID-19 Pandemic, we’ve seen the spectre of both BREXIT and the “migrant crisis” re-emerge.
There is a general malaise of confusion abroad in the UK at present, as local lockdowns and seven months of constantly changing messages have left people perplexed or indifferent to the latest rules. Several high profile transgressions of the lockdown by senior politicians and their special advisors has further contributed to the crumbling of public support. It has become clear that we are not all in this together. The poor have to return to work regardless of the risks and the rich want them to do so because they require access to the service industries that employ the poor. And then there are the COVID deniers and those who object to the minor inconveniences that arise from being considerate. Who would have thought that wearing a mask as you enter a shop, would be held up as an unconscionable violation of human rights? And by a demographic group that up until now, haven’t been especially concerned about such things. What times we live in.
For my family, life goes on in much the same way as it did in March. My Mother is disabled and housebound, having daily carer visits. Those who care for her still wear PPE and maintain scrupulous hand hygiene. Although my Sister is currently off sick, the government department for whom she works, is still mainly working from home. It is unlikely that staff of her garde will return to the Central London offices anytime soon. I visit their home daily at present although I am looking to reduce this schedule. I go shopping twice a week and visit the pharmacy and doctor’s surgery once a month. Beyond these journey’s I remain in my own home which is one road away. I have coped with the lockdown quite well and maintain a strong social presence online. However, Mrs P who in normal circumstances has a packed social schedule, has found the travel restrictions quite frustrating. But we try to work within the regulations to come up with viable ways to do some activities.
I fully expect the next three to four months to be bad both economically and with regard to COVID-19 deaths. I think we can finally dismiss all thoughts that the pandemic will be a touchstone for social change and a fair and equitable restructuring of the UK’s job market. The country is divided and volatile. Traditional politics has been subsumed by a culture war and it is playing out exactly as expected. Everyone is retreating into their respective “safe space” and battening down the hatches. It’s just a case that some people’s “safe spaces” are better than others. Oh and the panic buying is happening again. As soon as it was announced last week that the Prime Minister was to address the nation, the middle class started block booking all the supermarket delivery time slots and toilet paper once again began flying off the shelves. So I shall do my best to enjoy whatever curious Christmas 2020 has to offer. Because I suspect that it might be the calm before the storm. COVID-19 may well turn out to be an unwelcome New Year guest.
Caring for the Elderly Part 12
Long-term care can often end with a bereavement; which is a complex subject in itself. I will not be discussing grief in this post, as that is an immensely personal and subjective experience that we deal with in our own way. Instead, I would like to talk about the administrative and logistical problems that arise after someone has died and use my own recent experiences as an example. My Father died on Wednesday 16th September. He had a series of strokes in 2016 which left him disabled. Over the last four years his level of health has slowly deteriorated and his quality of life has subsequently diminished. This year saw a noticeable change not only in his well being but overall attitude. His stoical outlook finally faded and he lost all interest in life. He fell ill in mid August with Sepsis and then developed a lung infection. When I saw him last on Friday 4th September he told me he was tired and wanted “an end to it all”. Six days later he asked the Senior Doctor on the ward to stop treatment, which wasn’t working anyway. He died a week later on Wednesday 16th September. He was 91.
Greenwich Town Hall
Long-term care can often end with a bereavement; which is a complex subject in itself. I will not be discussing grief in this post, as that is an immensely personal and subjective experience that we deal with in our own way. Instead, I would like to talk about the administrative and logistical problems that arise after someone has died and use my own recent experiences as an example. My Father died on Wednesday 16th September. He had a series of strokes in 2016 which left him disabled. Over the last four years his level of health has slowly deteriorated and his quality of life has subsequently diminished. This year saw a noticeable change not only in his well being but overall attitude. His stoical outlook finally faded and he lost all interest in life. He fell ill in mid August with Sepsis and then developed a lung infection. When I saw him last on Friday 4th September he told me he was tired and wanted “an end to it all”. Six days later he asked the Senior Doctor on the ward to stop treatment, which wasn’t working anyway. He died a week later on Wednesday 16th September. He was 91.
In the UK the first and most important administrative task that needs to be done after a bereavement is to register the death of the deceased. Because my father died in Queen Elizabeth Hospital and not at home, his death had to be registered with Royal Borough of Greenwich and not Bexley where he lived. The Medical Examiner discussed my Father’s care with the Doctor who was responsible for his medical treatment and then called me to explain what cause of death they would be putting on the death certificate was Aspiration Pneumonia. They then notified the Registrar who set up a telephone interview with me. Traditional face to face meetings are suspended due to COVID-19. This phone call took place two day later. I went through some personal details that are required when registering a death. These are similar to those that are entered on a Marriage Certificate. I ordered 5 copies of my Father’s Death Certificate for administrative purposes. There was a fee for these. The registrar then gave me a code for the “Tell Us Once” website. This is a government online portal that confirms the details shown on the Death Certificate and notifies all relevant departments, such as tax, state pension etc.
What has become apparent during the course of my administrative endeavours is that it’s somewhat easier dealing with a bereavement if there’s a surviving spouse or partner. There is not always an immediate requirement for Probate in certain circumstances and fortunately my Mother meets these criteria. Therefore, the two most important administrative tasks currently outstanding are transferring my Father’s Teacher Pension to my Mother, along with having the deeds to the house put in her name. Both of these are common changes of circumstances and are well documented on their respective websites. The transfer of the pension requires the completion of a form and copies of my parents Marriage Certificate and my Father’s Death certificate. The house deeds are all managed via the Land Registry. This task is a little more complex but again due to the pandemic is now handled via the post, which means I don’t have to travel to the regional office in Croydon. I recently found a lot of paperwork pertaining to my parents paying off their mortgage in 1986, so I should have everything necessary. If I don’t the Land Registry can provide duplicates. Again there will be fees involved but nothing too expensive (although that is a relative term).
After the aforementioned tasks are completed, there are a few more outstanding changes of circumstance to be made but these are less complex. The UK has an ageing population and therefore bereavements are a common occurrence. Hence a lot of companies have a dedicated phone line and protocols in place to deal with such circumstances. So transferring account ownership of utility services such as gas, electricity, water, internet access along with Council Tax is relatively simple. Claiming the life insurance policy that my Mother had for my Father also appears to be straightforward and only requires the completion of a form along with a copy of the Death Certificate. My parents shared a joint bank account from which all major household bills are paid. The only change required here is to take my Father’s name off the account. His personal account is now “frozen” and will be closed. The assets will be paid to my Mother. All of which are within the tax threshold so there’s no dealings with HMRC.
Eltham Chapel
The only other administrative and logistical matter arising from my Father’s death is his funeral. Like most of the UK population, my Father will be cremated. At present Government Guidelines allow up to 30 people to attend the service, however, there is a major caveat regarding this depending upon the capacity of the Crematorium. Social distancing has to be observed. As of writing this post I haven’t yet been to the Funeral Directors, although I have an appointment for Monday. It will be interesting to see what size restrictions there will be if any. There will only be about 10 people well enough to come to my Father’s funeral anyway. Both my Mother and Sister will not be able to attend due to ill health. I’m also curious to see if Co-op Funeralcare (who I have contracted to deal with proceedings) offer more contemporary services. My Father stipulated that he didn’t want any floral tributes so I wonder if the funeral directors will set up a “JustGiving” page for charitable donations or whether that falls to me?
Once all the above has been carried out then all the major administrative tasks arising from My father’s death will have been done. Then there’s the more difficult task of going through his personal effects and deciding what to do with them all. This is another one of those situations where there isn’t a standard solution. For some people, this part of a bereavement is the most difficult to deal with, as it brings to mind so many personal memories. However, I am not overly sentimental about such things and my parents' house is cluttered and needs to be clear out. This will create space so I can make some home improvements. Hopefully this will help me make my Mother’s daily life better. Dealing with all these administrative issues is a very curious experience. I have experienced it once before when my Father-in-law died, so I was somewhat prepared this time. As bank accounts are closed and my Father’s details are erased from various companies and public bodies, it does bring home the fact that life goes on, regardless of an individual or a family's grief. But these tasks, painful as they may appear, have to be done. Ignoring them only makes a difficult situation worse.
Shopping for Clothes
I am a 52 year old man, who has unofficially retired and therefore no longer has to commute, work in an office or interact with clients. I am also in a long term, stable relationship. I don’t have to worry about having to dress to impress, cutting a dash or maintaining a professional appearance. Nor do I put any particular stock in fashion. I view clothes as mainly functional, tempered with a degree of style. Comfort is by far the biggest deciding factor, along with durability. I don’t overly worry about my age, so I don't feel the need to dress especially “young”. My day to day clothes consist of t-shirts, jeans and trainers/sneakers. If it’s cold I put on a fleece. If I need to “look smart” I wear a shirt. If it’s jacket weather I wear a hooded top or something casual. Hence it will come as no surprise that my wardrobe is not at the cutting edge of fashion. However, I don’t look like a hobo either, to quote my granddaughters. It’s all a far cry from my parents' generation when clothes were far more formal and each age group seemed to have an unofficial uniform.
Hope they’re not Autons
I am a 52 year old man, who has unofficially retired and therefore no longer has to commute, work in an office or interact with clients. I am also in a long term, stable relationship. I don’t have to worry about having to dress to impress, cutting a dash or maintaining a professional appearance. Nor do I put any particular stock in fashion. I view clothes as mainly functional, tempered with a degree of style. Comfort is by far the biggest deciding factor, along with durability. I don’t overly worry about my age, so I don't feel the need to dress especially “young”. My day to day clothes consist of t-shirts, jeans and trainers/sneakers. If it’s cold I put on a fleece. If I need to “look smart” I wear a shirt. If it’s jacket weather I wear a hooded top or something casual. Hence it will come as no surprise that my wardrobe is not at the cutting edge of fashion. However, I don’t look like a hobo either, to quote my granddaughters. It’s all a far cry from my parents' generation when clothes were far more formal and each age group seemed to have an unofficial uniform.
I don’t buy clothes regularly, tending to buy in bulk every couple of years when things start wearing out. I was recently told by Mrs P that I need to “buy some new clothes” which was a subtle way of saying that some items of clothing were approaching the end of their lifespan and I was in danger of looking shabby. So the first step was to decide where to go. I’ve never liked clothes shopping. I despise the entire culture associated with it. I loathe going into poorly laid out shops where everything is organised by brand and not item, having to interact with indifferent sales staff, all while being subject to music and advertising via a PA system and TV screens. Hence I wanted a one stop solution and ended up going to Sainsbury’s at Crayford. It’s their biggest store in the UK and has an entire second floor dedicated to clothing and footwear. They also own their own clothing brand which is very reasonable both in quality and price. I am no longer a slave to brands (with a few exceptions).
Very stylish
I bought 4 pairs of jeans, some marvel themed socks, a plain t-shirt and a jumper. I spent £105. When I got home I then went online and ordered two further t-shirts. These were more expensive as they had puerile logos and graphic adorning them but they amused me and that is sufficient justification for their purchase. I shall probably buy a couple of “going out shirts” so I don’t disgrace Mrs P when we’re next at a function or restaurant. I also need a new winter jacket. I estimate that by the time I’ve bought all this, I’ll have spent about £300 or so. I bought some Sketcher’s footwear this summer and although comfortable, I don’t think they’re suitable for walking major distances. However I only recently replaced my Reebok Hi Top Trainers (one pair white, one pair balck), so I don’t need anything further in that department. I still have a decent cashmere coat and a couple of suits, along with some proper shoes left over from my “city days”. But I have no call to wear them except at weddings and funerals.
In some respects a fifty year old man’s wardrobe is a perfunctory affair. That’s not to say I am indifferent about my appearance. But as long as my hair is cut regularly, my beard is trimmed and my weight is managed, then I don’t worry too much about what I’m wearing. As I mentioned at the start of this post, comfort and convenience are now major factors that determine what I buy. In recent years the UK has started enjoying longer and warmer summers. So I now find that I wear shorts around the home a lot longer throughout the year. However, I have not made the mistake of buying larger sizes. That is a very slippery slope. If what I’ve bought today is a little snug, then that’s additional motivation to lose weight. Overall, if I had to summarise my personal sartorial elegance it would be casual, functional and neat. If I feel the need to add some additional distinction and character I suppose I could always wear a cravat and sport a monocle.
Caring for the Elderly: Part 11
I last wrote a post about “caring for the elderly” in February. There have been significant changes in my family's fortunes since then and like anyone in a caring situation, the lockdown has had a major impact and sadly not for the good. As ever, I choose to recount my own experiences in the hope that they may be of some use to others who are in a similar situation. So to begin with, my Mother went into Respite Care just as the pandemic was hitting the UK and the lockdown was being implemented. Hence her stay in a nursing home was not the best experience. All the additional social activities usually on offer were suspended so all she effectively did was swap one sick room for another. She came back home just as my sister moved from working in London to working from home. Hence from March onwards both her and I have been caring for both my disabled parents on a daily basis. However, my sister has had to hold down a job at the same time.
I last wrote a post about “caring for the elderly” in February. There have been significant changes in my family's fortunes since then and like anyone in a caring situation, the lockdown has had a major impact and sadly not for the good. As ever, I choose to recount my own experiences in the hope that they may be of some use to others who are in a similar situation. So to begin with, my Mother went into Respite Care just as the pandemic was hitting the UK and the lockdown was being implemented. Hence her stay in a nursing home was not the best experience. All the additional social activities usually on offer were suspended so all she effectively did was swap one sick room for another. She came back home just as my sister moved from working in London to working from home. Hence from March onwards both her and I have been caring for both my disabled parents on a daily basis. However, my sister has had to hold down a job at the same time.
Both of our parents have noticeably declined both physically and mentally during the lockdown. The mobile library service has been suspended and family and friends naturally have not been able to visit. My Mum and Dad have a long list of low level medical problems that are usually treated at home. The Podiatrist and the ear clinician have both been absent for the last five to six months. However, there have been a few minor victories. I finally managed to get both parents dealt with by the same care company which has made scheduling visits a lot easier. This particular company has been quick to move to a phone based app, so I always know who is coming and at what approximate time. My Mother now also sees the district nurse team due to several foot injuries not healing properly. But even these two improvements to the situation do not greatly change the overall outcome. Both parents have a poor quality of life. My Mother spends the day in a chair and is simply fed and medicated. My Father is washed, dressed and placed in front of a TV for most of his day. They cannot do anything else without the assistance of several able bodied people.
However in the last calendar month there have been several radical changes to both my parents conditions. My mother has been getting community physiotherapy at home, where they have been attempting to improve her mobility. It is somewhat belated, considering she fell and broke her arm in late November last year. But that can’t be helped. Over a series of visits and physical tests it has been determined by the senior physiotherapist that although she can lift herself up out of a chair and stand, her knees cannot sustain her walking for more than a step or two. As of today she has been officially classified as immobile and will never walk again. Due to her hearing issues she was aware of some of what was discussed with her. But once the therapist left, I had to tell her in simpler terms that she could no longer walk and in doing so took away the last vestige of hope she’s been clinging to for the last ten months.
My father contracted another UTI in early August and went into hospital for five days. After treatment with antibiotics he met their criteria to be sent home. I was surprised and concerned by this decision. Just under two weeks later he developed sepsis and was rushed back to hospital, where we were told to expect the worse. However, contrary to medical expectations he has pulled through this life threatening situation. Sadly this has been achieved at a significant cost. His already diminished health has taken a further turn for the worst. He is now diabetic and can barely walk using a frame. He may also have long term renal problems. While he’s been in hospital my Sister has gotten ill. She suffers from Ulcerative colitis and is enduring the worst bout she ever had at present. She cannot do any caring task and now needs to convalesce herself. I have an ongoing injury with my left elbow and have now been told that the tendon may rupture if I do not rest. Effectively there are now three people in need of 24/7 care and I can no longer cope with such a situation.
Today, I visited my Father in hospital for the first time in nearly three weeks. I had to explain to him the significance of his change in health and the simple fact that he cannot be safely cared for at home. My Sister and I can no longer carry out our current caring duties and that after four and a half years there needs to be major changes. Effectively I told my Dad he needs to move into a nursing home to get the care he requires. I am fully aware that this is not an option he wants but he has decided to do it for his own good and that of the family. However, as you can imagine this was not an easy conversation to have and it was very traumatic for both of us. He is no longer engaged with his life and wants the current situation to end. I suspect that the stress and anxiety of a move to a new environment such as a residential nursing home is not going to be without consequences.
The events that I have recounted are far from unique to my family. Here in the UK we have an ongoing crisis with regard to adult social care. Improvements in medicine have extended life expectancy but there has not been a reciprocal change to social attitudes or government policy regarding dealing with the realities of an extended lifespan. The default position seems to be “life regardless of quality”. Both my parents are ill, tired and have little or no quality of life. Yet they are forced to endure a patentantly untenable situation because there is no mechanism to deal with it in any other fashion. Setting aside the loaded issue of “euthanasia”, all carers potentially face a situation where the demands placed upon them become impossible and they need to stop. Yet, we do not live in a world where there are universal, commonly accepted policies and social attitudes as to how to address such problems. Hence an already complex matter is further compounded by guilt and organisations with their own agendas and motivations. Social Services doesn’t always want the same as what the carer or patient wants.
Drawing upon my own first hand experiences, I would say the following to anyone who has chosen to care for an immediate family member. Once you have decided to embark on such a path, it is perfectly fair and justifiable to set parameters to your care and to consider the future. Caring is an act of love, compassion and often practical necessity. But it is not a wheel to break yourself upon. To be an effective carer means you have a duty to look after yourself as well. Help is available but you often have to actively seek it out and utilise it. If you qualify for assistance from the state or local authorities then take what is on offer. You deserve it and have paid for such services through taxation. Come to terms with the realities of old age and chronic illness. Things will inevitably get more complex and there will ultimately come a time when you can no longer provide effective care. You will have to defer to more specialised bodies. When this happens you will need a suitable exit strategy.
Of course all of these things are far more difficult to deal with in reality because you will be living in the middle of these events and emotionally caught up in them. But if you consider the bigger picture and make some preparations in advance, then may be when you reach the day like the one I’ve had today, then it may not be quite so traumatic. Sometimes you have to recognise that there isn’t always an optimal outcome. It may come down to choosing the least bad option from a very poor selection. Reflecting back upon many of the talking points that have arisen out of previous “caring for the elderly” posts, I do think we need to change as a society and not be so fearful of talking about old age and end of life care. We should encourage a healthy discussion of these issues among the young, so that they are more aware of what lies ahead and able to make suitable provisions. Perhaps it will then make the problems that arise in our autumn years less surprising and overwhelming.
An Ode to the VCR
Sometimes it really helps to have “been there” to fully appreciate an event or cultural phenomenon. We now live in an age where there is easy access to a multitude of television channels and movies, 24 hours a day. TVs are no longer bulky, luxury items that sit in a corner of your lounge. They are now elegant flat screened devices that occupy nearly an entire wall, offering crystal clear, high definition picture quality. Movies are now available for home viewing a lot sooner after their theatrical release and the current pandemic has brought the era of simultaneous release on all platforms just a little bit closer. And even the most obscure and niche market films are accessible in a remastered, HD or UHD format. It’s all a far cry from my youth when cinema and television were far more compartmentalised and consumers had far less choice along with access. All of which you can explain to those born into this modern world of plenty but they’ll never fully comprehend the realities of living such a life and in such times.
The Sony C6 Betamax VCR. A “Titan” in the format wars
Sometimes it really helps to have “been there” to fully appreciate an event or cultural phenomenon. We now live in an age where there is easy access to a multitude of television channels and movies, 24 hours a day. TVs are no longer bulky, luxury items that sit in a corner of your lounge. They are now elegant flat screened devices that occupy nearly an entire wall, offering crystal clear, high definition picture quality. Movies are now available for home viewing a lot sooner after their theatrical release and the current pandemic has brought the era of simultaneous release on all platforms just a little bit closer. And even the most obscure and niche market films are accessible in a remastered, HD or UHD format. It’s all a far cry from my youth when cinema and television were far more compartmentalised and consumers had far less choice along with access. All of which you can explain to those born into this modern world of plenty but they’ll never fully comprehend the realities of living such a life and in such times.
I shall try to keep my reminiscing to a minimum for reasons of brevity. Anyone who is familiar with my writing will know that film played an integral part of my youth. My parents loved cinema as it was the primary form of entertainment when they grew up. Hence by the age of ten or so, I was well versed in classic Hollywood, mainly through watching films on TV with my family at weekends. However, we had little say over what they watched. Firstly it took several years for major films that had been successful at the box office to be broadcast on TV. Major titles tended to be shown at either the Christmas or Easter when audiences were potentially the biggest. Also, when a “big” movie finally got shown on TV there were often broadcast in a sanitised, re-edited version. Furthermore, if a film was originally shot in an aspect ratio such as 2:35:1 then it would be panned and scanned to accommodate the 4:3 academy ratio of TV screens. And let us not forget that commercial networks would have advertising breaks throughout. So the optimal way to view a film would be at the cinema. Watching at home on TV was an inferior experience but it was what we knew, so we accommodate it.
Bond movies came to UK TV approximately 4-5 years after their theatrical release during the 70s and 80s
Another aspect to consider was that TV companies would license the showing of movies and naturally wanted as much bang for their buck as possible. Certainly the BBC offered a broad choice. But you would often find that a lot of content just didn’t make it onto TV. Or if it did, it would be shown at obscure hours. If you failed to watch something then you missed your opportunity to do so. There was a culture of financially successful films getting re-released at the cinemas. Disney has always been an exponent of this, understanding quickly the benefits of controlling supply and demand. But broadly speaking, what you could watch was decided and controlled by private companies and driven by vested interests. So the advent of the home video cassette recorder (VCR) was a major cultural and consumer revolution. Video tape recorders (VTR) had existed since the 1950s but were mainly industry products. But the moment the technology was made available for domestic use in the 1970s via bespoke cassette formats, it quickly gained traction.
The ability to record TV programs from one station while watching another was exceedingly novel at the time. Often big TV networks prided themselves upon making viewers make a tough choice over what shows they watched at prime time. As a child I remember having to decide whether to watch either Doctor Who or Space 1999 (season 2). It’s one of the reasons why UK viewing figures for popular shows were so high at this time. This and the fact that until 1982, there were only 3 terrestrial analogue TV stations broadcasting. So naturally the VCR was met with a lot of pushback from network TV. There was a lot of talk over the legality of recording shows etc. but it was too late and the genie was out of the proverbial bottle. And then there was the second aspect that the VCR offered consumers; pre-recorded tapes containing movies or other content. Initially the big studios simply didn’t grasp that people would want to watch a movie of their own choice, at home, at a time that suited them. When they began to see how independent distributors were getting on the bandwagon they sought to “fight fire” with lawyers. The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) were especially aggrieved. But common sense and business acumen prevailed, leading to the growth of the video rental market, the rise of Blockbuster and the social etiquette of rewinding a tape and returning it on time.
BBFC rating title card
Now the next anecdote is specific to the UK. As soon as cinema became a popular form of entertainment in the early twentieth century, then a regulatory body was set up. A film had to be rated by the British Board of Film Censors before it could be shown in cinemas. Hence the establishment guarded public morals and suppressed sentiments and subjects it didn’t like. Mercifully this doesn’t happen now. The BBFC has changed radically in the last 20 years. It is now formally the British Board of Film Classification and it’s focus is rating. Censorship is now mainly self imposed by distributors who seek the most commercially lucrative rating. But that is a separate subject. Back in the late seventies, all cinema releases required a BBFC rating or else they didn’t get shown. VCRs, like most technological changes, caught the establishment off guard. All of a sudden there was a medium for distributing content outside of the auspices of the BBFC, free from any form of censorship. Overnight small independent video companies sprung up, disseminating any material they could get their hands on. A wealth of european exploitation cinema suddenly found its way into UK households. For someone like me it was hog heaven but it didn’t go down well with lobbyists concerned with declining morals.
In 1982 our household became a proud owner of a Sony C6 Betamax VCR. We already had an older C5 but that was a top loader. The C6 stylishly loaded tapes from the front. By now our family was fully immersed in video rental culture. There seemed to be a video rental store on every street corner. Even newsagent and corner shops would have a rack of tapes to rent for £1 or so. At this point VHS had not fully won the format wars in the UK and most stores had material equally available on both formats. I remember one that even rented V2000 tapes. At one point my Dad had rental cards for about six different establishments. We’d rent films to watch as a family and then my parents would indulge myself and my sister, so we’d often come back home with horror films. I remember one store in Burnt Ash Hill Road in Lee Green, which used to put the most lurid VHS cases in the shop window. I and my school friends would gawp at the likes of Driller Killer, Cannibal Holocaust and Zombie Flesh Eaters. But this brief halcyon period of unfettered access to uncut eurosleaze quickly came to an end.
UK poster for Lucio Fulci’s Zombi (1979)
The eighties were a decade with a strong streak of moral and social conservatism running through it. This was embodied by the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association (NVLA) led by christian lobbyist Mary Whitehouse (known to her enemies as Mary Shitehouse; a shitehouse being UK slang for a toilet). The organisation lead campaigns against the publication and broadcast of media content that it viewed as harmful and offensive, such as sex, violence, profanity and blasphemy. To cut a long story short the unregulated video market became an easy target and the NVLA and the “popular press” went for it like a dog with a bone. They coined the hyperbolic phrase, “video nasty” to describe exploitation films such as I Spit on Your Grave. As usual, the least informed and poorest thinkers among our parliamentary representatives saw an easy bandwagon to jump on. And then tragically in 1993 a two year old boy, Jamie Bulger, was murdered by two ten year old children, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables. It was an horrendous case made even worse by the tabloid feeding frenzy. It was alleged in some newspapers that the attack on Bulger was inspired by the film Child's Play 3. There was no evidence for this but the campaign against unregulated videos gained support and ultimately led to the Video Recording Act of 1984. This granted the BBFC powers to rate existing and all future video releases and ushered in a decade of censorship. Many titles simply became unavailable for nearly twenty years, such was the sense of social hysteria.
But time and tide wait for no man. The VRA had some very interesting side effects. A cottage industry of fanzines sprung up, reviewing and analysing many of the horror movies that were “temporarily available”. I met many people through this medium, participated in film festivals and partook of the black market trade in second generation VHS copies that sprung up. As the eighties gave way to the nineties and the BBFC still enforced arbitrary cuts to most mainstream films, I discovered the Laser Disc format and imported uncut movies from the US and Japan and so moved away from video tapes. Laser Disc and VHS were subsequently replaced by DVDs and by the time the year 2000 arrived, the BBFC in the UK had a major change in policy once the longstanding incumbent Director, James Ferman, retired. Censorship as I mentioned previously, is not really an issue anymore although a BBFC rating is still required to show a film theatrically or to distribute on home media. Most streaming TV platforms and VOD services rate their content in accordance with BBFC guidance. Despite my dislike of censorship, I believe in rating movies for consumer advice and believe the BBFC do a very good job of it nowadays. Leopards can sometimes change their spots.
The Pioneer DVL-909 combination Laser Disc and DVD player was a thing of beauty
I like the advances that have been made in home cinema. I prefer to watch films in the correct aspect ratio and in the best picture quality available. Hence I do not miss the technical limitations of the VHS or Betamax tapes (especially the NTSC VHS EP tapes which had awful washed out colours). But having been in the past, a consummate film collector, I still fully understand the allure of physical media. Whenever I see an old VHS rental tape at a collectors fare, it briefly rekindles that sense of excitement I got as a child. Because our access to entertainment was not as ubiquitous as today and we were also not aware of every aspect of a film production due to the internet, a VHS tape of a movie you hadn’t seen before held so much promise. When you combine this allure with an impressionable child who considers watching exploitation cinema as a test of endurance, it becomes clear why such a strong association was created and remains. VCRs, video rental stores and “video nasties” were my generations Rock and Roll, which is why just a small part of me nostalgically misses those days.
Libraries
If you wanted to find me on a Saturday afternoon during the late seventies and early eighties, then the local library was a safe bet. At one point I belonged to three including one in a neighbouring borough but Blackfen Library was my favourite. It was the nearest to our home and I was fond of the oddly austere building. Both of my parents have always been prodigious readers so going to the library quickly became a regular part of my youth. Initially, I was content to confine myself to the children’s section reading Hergé's Adventures of Tintin and the escapades of Asterix the Gaul. However, I was never really content with fiction aimed at children and especially stories about children. Hence as I grew older I expanded my horizons and strayed into the adult section. My parents didn’t interfere in my choice of books and took the attitude that if I were reading, then I wasn’t getting into trouble. My Dad would make the occasional recommendation. Usually classic science fiction by authors such as Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke.
Blackfen Library prior to it’s relocation in 2004
If you wanted to find me on a Saturday afternoon during the late seventies and early eighties, then the local library was a safe bet. At one point I belonged to three including one in a neighbouring borough but Blackfen Library was my favourite. It was the nearest to our home and I was fond of the oddly austere building. Both of my parents have always been prodigious readers so going to the library quickly became a regular part of my youth. Initially, I was content to confine myself to the children’s section reading Hergé's Adventures of Tintin and the escapades of Asterix the Gaul. However, I was never really content with fiction aimed at children and especially stories about children. Hence as I grew older I expanded my horizons and strayed into the adult section. My parents didn’t interfere in my choice of books and took the attitude that if I were reading, then I wasn’t getting into trouble. My Dad would make the occasional recommendation. Usually classic science fiction by authors such as Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke.
Despite it’s somewhat foreboding appearance, Blackfen Library was always warm and tranquil inside. The library ticket system was uncomplicated. Your ticket was a small cardboard pocket. Each book had a physical ticket associated with it which was filed along with your ticket when you borrowed it. Inside the cover of each book was a “date due” sheet which was stamped by the librarian with the return date. I believe you could keep your books for up to three weeks and borrow a maximum of six. As this was the seventies, the books were filed and organized using the Dewey Decimal System. I quickly learned to use this so I didn’t have to rely on the librarians to assist me. Choosing my books was always an exciting process. Sometimes I’d know in advance what I wanted and I’d race in between the heavy wooden bookshelves to the required section to see if my prize awaited. Other times I’d peruse the shelves in a leisurely fashion, reading the plot synopsis on the dust covers. They say not to judge a book by its cover but when you’re 10 years old, a glossy illustration by Chris Foss or Frank Frazetta was a major selling point.
Classic science fiction with Chris Foss artwork
Due to my parents and my local library, I still have a deep and abiding love for books and reading. One of my favourite excursions (pre-lockdown) is to travel to Rochester in Kent and lose myself in Baggins Book Bazaar, the biggest second hand bookshop in the UK. It has many similarities with a library and is a haven of tranquility in an otherwise noisy and frenetic world. Sadly, the original Blackfen Library in Cedar Avenue has now closed and the building was demolished and the land sold to a property development company in 2004. There’s a block of flats on the site now. The library has relocated to new premises in Blackfen Road. It has diversified and modernised in an attempt to stay relevant. It now has internet access and PCs that you can use. The premises also offer several meeting rooms and run numerous clubs and activities. It’s now a bustling and dynamic place. It’s all a far cry from the black and white tiled floors and quiet atmosphere of the former site.
As you may discern, I believe passionately in libraries and making books, knowledge and learning accessible to all. The ability to read is not only a great leisure activity and escape from the rigours of life but it’s also an opportunity for self improvement and to expand one's horizons. Which is why I greatly resent and deplore the closure of over 800 public libraries that have happened since 2010 in the UK. A recent survey from the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (Cipfa) has found that there are 3,583 public libraries open at present. 35 fewer than last year and 773 fewer than in 2010. The closure of nearly a fifth of the UK’s libraries is a result of a decline in spending by 29.6% over the past decade. The reduced funding is due to the UK government cutting spending on all public services after the banking crash of 2008. The debate continues as to whether this was necessary or driven by political ideology. I believe author and comedian Alexei Syale may have some insight when he said “austerity is the idea that the 2008 financial crash was caused by Wolverhampton having too many libraries”.
Blackfen Library as of 2020
I am a child of the seventies and although I won’t universally extol the merits of that decade, it did have some good points from a child’s perspective. Blackfen Library introduced me to the joys of H. G. Wells, Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, J. R. R. Tolkien and many other classic authors. It also taught me that silence is not to be feared but something to be savoured when appropriate. Like most adults, as I’ve got older I find that I don’t read as much as I used to, although I still manage a book each month or so. Reading for me now centres on blogs and other online news outlets. But I still enjoy finding a quiet corner and losing myself in a good book. And I still visit my local library (which have now reopened) although now it tends to be more when they hold events. But it is important that we as a society fight any further closures and continue to foster in our children the importance and pleasure of reading. Although I suspect this will be more of an uphill struggle in the current political climate.
It’s Not Losing That’s the Problem But How You Lose
The title of this post doesn’t really cover what I’m trying to express but it’s the best I could come up with that wasn’t an essay in itself. Now I’m going to try to be as brief as possible, as I know sometimes I write too much and get bogged down in the minutiae. Hopeful you’ll follow my train of thought. So to begin, some video games have a very specific fail mechanic. If you play Mortal Kombat either against bots or with another player, there can be only one winner. If it’s not you then you have lost. It’s the same in Call of Duty Warzone if you play Battle Royal Mode. Looking to other genres such as MMOs, if you don’t defeat the boss at the end of the raid and your team wipes, then again you’ve lost. But this doesn’t have to be a problem. The player knows in advance exactly what the criteria for winning is. You lose due to the mechanics of the game, the skill of other players or the lack of your own.
The title of this post doesn’t really cover what I’m trying to express but it’s the best I could come up with that wasn’t an essay in itself. Now I’m going to try to be as brief as possible, as I know sometimes I write too much and get bogged down in the minutiae. Hopeful you’ll follow my train of thought. So to begin, some video games have a very specific fail mechanic. If you play Mortal Kombat either against bots or with another player, there can be only one winner. If it’s not you then you have lost. It’s the same in Call of Duty Warzone if you play Battle Royal Mode. Looking to other genres such as MMOs, if you don’t defeat the boss at the end of the raid and your team wipes, then again you’ve lost. But this doesn’t have to be a problem. The player knows in advance exactly what the criteria for winning is. You lose due to the mechanics of the game, the skill of other players or the lack of your own.
As a man of a certain age, I tend not to get too annoyed when I lose playing video games. More often than not what frustrates me is my own incompetence and poor reactions. I am more often than not, the architect of my own demise. And when I play any sort of game in a pick up group, I lower my expectations by default. Sometimes I’ll find myself in a group that plays as a team, follows a strategy and performs well. All of which is done with the minimum of conversation, be it text or voice. On occasions it goes the other way where the selfish behaviour and stupidity of some players actively impede your progress and this is something I find less palatable. A point I shall return to in a moment. Overall failure and losing are an inherent part of video games. Hopefully you learn from your mistakes and “git gud” or something like that. Also, although I’m not exactly enamoured by elitist gaming culture or like over competitive people (they’re so tediously wearing), winning too easily or too often does mitigate the point of certain types of games.
Still with me? Good. I’m nearly at my point. To summarise, losing is an integral part of gaming although you don’t have to like it. It is an important component that contributes to the overall environment from which the fun, enjoyment or whatever else you get from video games derives. It is not malevolent per se. However, there is another kind of losing or fail state that comes via a human agency. It is predatory in nature and happens when you lose because someone decided to mess with you. It’s the gaming equivalent of someone coughing or nudging you when you’re playing darts and about to throw. This manifests itself in PVP and survival games when players predate other new or less knowledgeable players. Or in racing games when one player knows they will not win so willfully causes carnage or tries to block others. I saw such behaviour today while watching someone streaming Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout. At first glance this looks a very benign game but it would appear that players will wait at the finishing line to try and stop people from crossing. Even in a easygoing, fun environment such as this, there are still people who want to fuck with you.
And therein is the issue. Life is problematic enough because some people just aren’t happy unless they’re doing something to others. Do we really need this in our game space as well? I don’t mind losing, failing or getting beaten in a game by its mechanics or more skilled players. But I don’t want to be inconvenienced because someone just wants to fuck with me for the sake of just doing so. And this is where I trot out my standard argument about how being a paying customer changes the dynamics of gaming. Forget notional ideas about freedom of expression and emergent gameplay. The moment money is paid, I expect rules and parameters to constrain others bullshit shenanigans. The same way when I go swimming at the sports centre and racing competitively, no one is allowed to enter my lane and mess with me.
Irrespective of what genre(s) of game you play, I think we can all make the distinction between losing in an intended fashion IE falling foul of a game’s fail state mechanics and having something done to you by some asshole. It’s paradoxical that developers will always sing from the rooftops about the superiority of playing with and against real people and then subsequently being utterly flabbergasted by the fact that people treat each other abominably. But players will happily indulge in sociopathic behaviour if given an opportunity. Look at the recurring problem with aimbots that plague popular FPS games. As for losing “building character”, that’s a bogus term and a flawed philosophy. But losing in the manner discussed is an object lesson in why so many problems in life are just people problems. As a society, we still await a solution to this, although judicious use of a claw hammer as a correctional tool is a good place to start.
Exclusivity: A Play in One Act
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: Hey you. Would you like to play an action-adventure video game based on the Marvel’s Avengers franchise?
Mildly Interested Gamer: Sure. Sound’s cool. What platform will it be available on?
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: All of them!
Mildly Interested Gamer: Great.
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: It gets better. After the launch, there'll be free DLC of additional playable characters.
Mildly Interested Gamer: No way!
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: Hey you. Would you like to play an action-adventure video game based on the Marvel’s Avengers franchise?
Mildly Interested Gamer: Sure. Sound’s cool. What platform will it be available on?
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: All of them!
Mildly Interested Gamer: Great.
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: It gets better. After the launch, there'll be free DLC of additional playable characters.
Mildly Interested Gamer: No way!
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: Yes away. First up we got Hawkeye.
Mildly Interested Gamer: Oh okay…
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: And then we got Spider-Man
Mildly Interested Gamer: Outstanding. I’ll go pre-order my Xbox copy now and get me some of that Spider-Man action.
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: Oh, sorry. Spider-Man is a Playstation exclusive.
Mildly Interested Gamer: Say what?
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: Yeah. Spider-Man is only going to be available to owners of the Playstation version of the game.
Mildly Interested Gamer: Well that fucking sucks. How do you justify this shit?
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: It says here in my “Marketing Guide to Tough Questions” that the standard answer is “that’s capitalism, bitch”. Plus Sony owns the rights to Spider-Man and Marvel were happy to go along with this “arrangement”.
Mildly Interested Gamer: But that’s so unfair. It’s like you’re punishing gamers that didn’t buy a Playstation.
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: Not at all. We’re offering exclusivity and creating value. Admittedly we’re doing this by devaluing the product on competing platforms but we’re pretty sure we can get away with this. We’re even hoping that some gamers will buy a second console just so they can play as Spider-Man.
Mildly Interested Gamer: What makes you think that will happen?
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: Because gamers such as you have a track record of being what we call in the business “fucking gullible”. You buy into all our “promises”, give us your money upfront before we’ve even finished a game and then you happily keep paying for baubles and trinkets while we pretend to fix the problems we created.
Mildly Interested Gamer: You sonofabitch…
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: And for all your posturing and complaining, you keep coming back like a Golden Retriever that’s desperate to please its owner after shitting on the carpet.
Mildly Interested Gamer: Fuck you. Not this time.
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: Oh you will. You always do. It never ceases to amaze us as we sit around at night in our volcano lair, counting all our money, that the only reason we get away with so much is because you let us. You pathetic fools.
Mildly Interested Gamer: That’s it, I’m done.I’m quitting games. I’m going to keep bees.
Unscrupulous Video Game Developer: Really? Would you like to pre-order a Marvel themed virtual hive?
Living With Chronic Pain
To begin with, I am not claiming to be living with “chronic” pain in this blog post. I am fully aware of the definition of the term and am fortunate that my current injury does not force me to endure such levels of discomfort. However, my recent experience has provided me with a new insight into something that most of us only notionally know about and have little or no true understanding. I believe I appreciate my Mother’s daily circumstances a lot better now (as well as several friends and colleagues who also live with chronic pain) and finally understand how debilitating both physically and mentally living in constant and acute pain can be. Hence I decided to write this piece. To share my experience with an injury that continuously hurts and to help inform others about the realities of living with chronic pain. Sometimes you need to experience something first hand to fully get the measure of it.
To begin with, I am not claiming to be living with “chronic” pain in this blog post. I am fully aware of the definition of the term and am fortunate that my current injury does not force me to endure such levels of discomfort. However, my recent experience has provided me with a new insight into something that most of us only notionally know about and have little or no true understanding. I believe I appreciate my Mother’s daily circumstances a lot better now (as well as several friends and colleagues who also live with chronic pain) and finally understand how debilitating both physically and mentally living in constant and acute pain can be. Hence I decided to write this piece. To share my experience with an injury that continuously hurts and to help inform others about the realities of living with chronic pain. Sometimes you need to experience something first hand to fully get the measure of it.
Approximately 8 weeks ago, I was vacuuming my Mother’s bedroom. I needed to move the bed to reach underneath it, so without thinking I grabbed the frame and lifted one end. This is the sort of thing you usually do without thinking because normally, a bed isn’t necessarily that heavy. However, on this occasion I forgot that this is a hospital bed which weighs over 170 lbs (77 kg). To cut a long story short I damaged my radial collateral ligament (RCL) in my left elbow. It hurts when I extend my arm or rotate my wrist. The pain is considerable and continuous. The only practical way to minimise this is to strap the joint tightly with a bandage or sports support and then use a sling with the left arm raised as high as possible. The doctor has recommended resting the limb for the immediate future. As a carer of two disabled parents that is not a viable possibility.
Being in constant pain to the degree that I currently experience is unpleasant and frustrating. The pain is sufficient to be ever present regardless of what activity you’re doing. The most innocuous action can sharply remind you of your injury, making the most mundane, everyday tasks problematic and irritating. Using cutlery is difficult at present. Trying to find a comfortable position to sleep is challenging. Washing and getting dressed takes twice as long as normal due to a new degree of self imposed caution. The net result of these factors is a change in mood and demeanour. It is difficult to be positive and upbeat when you are in pain. You also become aware that because of your mood it may be best to avoid other people. Now all of the above has been sufficient for me to stop and think. Imagine what day to day life is like for those who are experiencing a more intense and continuous level of pain?
My Mother will be 90 years old in October. She has ongoing Rheumatoid arthritis; an affliction that has plagued her since her late sixties. Her ankles, knees and hands are the most affected part of her body, although her shoulders and hips are getting progressively worse. To tackle the levels of pain that she faces each day she is currently prescribed transdermal patches containing 20 micrograms of Buprenorphine, that are changed weekly. These are supplemented with paracetamol. Both drugs combined simply diminish the pain and do not eliminate it. Due to her continual discomfort, lack of mobility and declining faculties, she is often morose and taciturn with a penchant for lachrymosity. It is only in recent weeks that I’ve come remotely close to fully understanding what she endures daily. So if you know anyone with a chronic and painful medical condition, who at times is a little cantankerous and curmudgeonly, think twice before judging them too harshly. Living with pain is a terrible burden from which there is often no respite. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemies.
Ennio Morricone (1928 - 2020)
Treasure of the Four Crowns (1983) is a somewhat confused and shoddy action movie that attempts to ride on the coattails of both Raiders of the Lost Ark and the 3-D revival of the time. It lurches between set pieces where anything and everything is thrown at the camera, to moments of unpleasantness and then into slapstick comedy. Yet there is one aspect of this unremarkable film that remains with the viewer after they’ve endured its 97 minute running time. The opulent and charismatic orchestral score by Ennio Morricone. Because "Maestro" Morricone always brought his immense talent to bear on a film regardless of its quality or provenance. Hence there are just as many genre movies and exploitation films with exceptional Morricone soundtracks as there are cinematic masterpieces and art house classics. As writer and director Edgar Wright said “he could make an average movie into a must see, a good movie into art, and a great movie into legend”.
Treasure of the Four Crowns (1983) is a somewhat confused and shoddy action movie that attempts to ride on the coattails of both Raiders of the Lost Ark and the 3-D revival of the time. It lurches between set pieces where anything and everything is thrown at the camera, to moments of unpleasantness and then into slapstick comedy. Yet there is one aspect of this unremarkable film that remains with the viewer after they’ve endured its 97 minute running time. The opulent and charismatic orchestral score by Ennio Morricone. Because "Maestro" Morricone always brought his immense talent to bear on a film regardless of its quality or provenance. Hence there are just as many genre movies and exploitation films with exceptional Morricone soundtracks as there are cinematic masterpieces and art house classics. As writer and director Edgar Wright said “he could make an average movie into a must see, a good movie into art, and a great movie into legend”.
Ennio Morricone was a prodigious composer, who eschewed Hollywood despite his success. He preferred to compose at his palazzo in Rome, working at a desk as opposed to a piano. He wrote in pencil on score paper, creating all orchestra parts from what he could hear in his mind. He would frequently compose after reading a just a script, viewing rushes or a rough cut of a film. Due to his musical diversity and at times experimental approach, he was much sought after by similarly creative film makers. His musical range was exceptional featuring an array of techniques; tarantellas, psychedelic vocalisations, sumptuous love themes along with minimalist beats to underscore tension. He was not afraid to be quirky or to use that most dangerous musical device silence. He composed for TV, cinema, wrote concert pieces, and orchestrated music for singers including Joan Baez, Paul Anka and Anna Maria Quaini, the Italian pop star known as Mina. Whatever he did both he and his music always left an impression.
Given his extensive body of work across multiple genres, it is difficult to collate a short list of material that adequately summarises Ennio Morricone’s musical capabilities. His mainstream renown stems from his work with director Sergio Leone and “The Dollar” trilogy which has quite rightly become an integral part of cinematic pop culture. However his collaborations with the “Master of the Giallo”, Dario Argento, are equally noteworthy. The Bird With The Crystal Plumage (1970) features pop inflected vocal harmonies, avant improvisation and salacious lounge music. The Mission (1986), features a plot device in which a Jesuit Priest uses his Oboe to fill the cultural divide between the Catholic Church and the idigenous people of Paraguay. This is sublimely realised by Morricone in his iconic piece “Gabriel’s Oboe”. Director John Carpenter 1982 sci-fi horror The Thing benefits greatly from Morricone’s minimalist synth driven score. And the sleazy 1972 thriller What Have You Done to Solange? becomes more than the sum of its parts due to melancholic and melodic Morricone score.
Here is a short and personal selection of music cues and tracks by Ennio Morricone that I enjoy. He leaves behind an exemplary legacy and body of work as well as having influenced several generations of musicians and composers. A friend of mine who is also a “man of the cloth” and a commensurate fan, once told me that he feels that “there are brief glimpses of the divine” in Morricone’s work and that on occasions “it reflects the majesty of creation”. Although I’m not especially religious myself, I feel that there is truth in these words. Ennio Morricone’s music, especially his more sumptuous scores for the likes of Roland Joffé, Giuseppe Tornatore and Brian De Palma, contain an inherent beauty. And that beauty is pure and timeless. Addio Maestro.
Ray Harryhausen
Today Ray Harryhausen would have been 100. Sadly he died on 7th of May 2013. He is one of a handful of creative artists who due to his skill, passion and good nature, influenced generations of fans and had a significant impact on filmmaking worldwide. In 2010 I had the pleasure of attending Ray’s 90th Birthday celebrations held at the British Film Institute. Hosted by charismatic director John Landis, all manner of celebrities, actors and filmmakers queued to heap praise on this quiet and retiring gentleman. It was a wonderful evening and a fitting way to honour a man who was not only a pioneer in the visual effects industry but a great source of inspiration for so many. His work was so influential that it has shaped many aspects of contemporary fantasy cinema. For six decades Ray Harryhausen made unique movies where he breathed life into monsters and mythical creatures. Through the medium of stop motion animation he endowed all of his creations with a unique character. He quite simply made dreams real. And that unique gift had a colossal impact
Today Ray Harryhausen would have been 100. Sadly he died on 7th of May 2013. He is one of a handful of creative artists who due to his skill, passion and good nature, influenced generations of fans and had a significant impact on filmmaking worldwide. In 2010 I had the pleasure of attending Ray’s 90th Birthday celebrations held at the British Film Institute. Hosted by charismatic director John Landis, all manner of celebrities, actors and filmmakers queued to heap praise on this quiet and retiring gentleman. It was a wonderful evening and a fitting way to honour a man who was not only a pioneer in the visual effects industry but a great source of inspiration for so many. His work was so influential that it has shaped many aspects of contemporary fantasy cinema. For six decades Ray Harryhausen made unique movies where he breathed life into monsters and mythical creatures. Through the medium of stop motion animation he endowed all of his creations with a unique character. He quite simply made dreams real. And that unique gift had a colossal impact
As a child growing up in the seventies, audiences had a subtly different relationship with blockbuster movies and special effects than they do today. They were not as ubiquitous or cynical as contemporary films and hence had an immense impact upon young and impressive minds. Jason and the Argonauts, The First men in the Moon and One Million Years B.C. had a profound influence upon me and subsequently shaped my future tastes, not only in terms of film but also in TV and literature. I studied Classical Civilisation at school in part due to my curiosity in ancient Greece that Ray had inspired. His work also sparked for me an interest in the technicalities of filmmaking. Something I still revel in today. I don’t just like to watch a film, I enjoy learning about the entire production and the creative choices made by all involved. Cinema is after all a collaborative process. My love of his work is also one of the reasons I blog about films today and through writing I often encounter others who were equally inspired by his unassuming genius.
One of the things that came across a decade ago when I saw this softly spoken man, was how passionate and genuine he was, even at the age of 90. He was more disposed to talk about others than his own work. Something his good friend Ray Bradbury pointed out in a video message. Ten years on, although Ray’s talent is no longer with us, his work and the art of stop motion animation still lives on through his foundation, I'd like to say thank you Ray for the hours of wonder and joy you gave to us all. Not only for the visual delights you entranced us with but for the honest storytelling with its gentle morality that under pinned it all. By giving us Medusa, Talos, Ymir (and even Bubo) you also gave us Rick Baker, Peter Jackson, Tim Burton, Peter Lord, Phil Tippett and so many others. You were an innovator and a true artist. Those who collaborated with you, such as Bernad Herrmann and Miklós Rózsa, knew this. Your profound influence will continue to inspire future generations and your work will always find news fans because it is timeless. True art always is.
Community and Friendship
I joined Twitter back in 2010. Perhaps the most surprising thing I quickly discovered about the platform is the immediacy of communication that it offers. You can follow someone, reply to something they say or initiate a conversation with them in real time. Hence interacting with those who share a common interest becomes very accessible and enjoyable. It’s a far cry from going to a convention, wandering around and then plucking up the courage to speak to someone or join in a conversation that others are having. Social media removes those awkward “ice breaking” moments. Of course not every Twitter exchange is a pleasant experience but overall I’ve not encountered many problems using social media over the past decade. Twitter has broadly been a positive experience and introduced me to a wider community. It has provided me with an opportunity to meet new people and become part of something that is both social and positive.
I joined Twitter back in 2010. Perhaps the most surprising thing I quickly discovered about the platform is the immediacy of communication that it offers. You can follow someone, reply to something they say or initiate a conversation with them in real time. Hence interacting with those who share a common interest becomes very accessible and enjoyable. It’s a far cry from going to a convention, wandering around and then plucking up the courage to speak to someone or join in a conversation that others are having. Social media removes those awkward “ice breaking” moments. Of course not every Twitter exchange is a pleasant experience but overall I’ve not encountered many problems using social media over the past decade. Twitter has broadly been a positive experience and introduced me to a wider community. It has provided me with an opportunity to meet new people and become part of something that is both social and positive.
Although I have always written throughout my life, it was my introduction to MMOs that really galvanised my endeavours. When I enjoy something I often feel compelled to write about my experiences and share them with others. So I initially blogged about The Lord of the Rings Online and later expanded my writing to encompass other games. Twitter proved to be a good medium to promote my material and I quickly found others who shared similar interests and wrote their own blogs or produced their own podcast. In an act of hubris I actually emailed one such podcaster and “suggested” he have a “european correspondent”. The next thing I knew I was talking to the two existing hosts of that show on Skype and subsequently found myself part of the team. This act of kindness and good faith was quite remarkable when you think about it. Here were two people who were doing a podcast by the “seat of their pants”, that were prepared to take a risk on some over enthusiastic British guy who basically tried to gate crash their project. But they took a gamble and it worked out well.
This was one of many acts of kindness that I’ve encountered over the years. The podcasting and blogging helped me find a very industrious and friendly fan community. Many of which were already established and had an online presence. Yet all were happy to promote new blogs and podcasts, leave positive feedback and generally be supportive. But it seems to be a recurring theme. So many of the content creators I’ve met over the years seem disposed towards helping others by default. And outside of our immediate shared fandom, it’s nice to get to know folk from all over the world. Because you do get to know people over time. Many of us are careful about what we share on social media or write about in our blog posts. Privacy is ever evolving and can be abused, so it is logical that people don’t fully “pull back the curtain” on their lives. Yet often a writer’s personality will bleed through into their work. They’ll occasionally throw in an anecdote about their life, be it a remark about their work, partner or family. It is these personal touches that build a sense of rapport.
There was a boom time for gaming blogs and it has now passed. Many of those who were active within the community have moved on or significantly reduced their output of content. And then there are those who just keep going because it’s “what they do”. Yet the blogging diaspora still endures and many of the people I met a decade ago are still about on social media. It’s always pleasant when someone you haven’t heard from for a while turns up in your timeline. It’s very much like bumping into an old friend as you come back from grocery shopping. And yes I am happy to use the word friend. I think the somewhat dismissive view that online friendships are not the same as those with people you physically meet, is archaic and simply incorrect.
I hold my online friends and peers in very high regard. I respect their opinions and am very grateful for the support they’ve shown me over the years and the way they’ve encouraged my content creation. I also find the different perspectives that they often provide invaluable in helping me to understand the modern world and learn about life. I like to hear about their families, their pets and the shenanigans that go on at their work. It proves that people have far more in common than differences. I am also saddened by the trials and tribulations that some face and hope I can be supportive when they need it. Even if all I can do is to raise a wry smile. And yes, if possible, I’d love to meet up with all of them. I think it would be a most enjoyable experience to finally put faces to virtual names.
The world is a complicated and difficult place at times. There certainly seems to be a palpable sense of gloom spreading at the moment and we’re all too often encouraged to get angry with each other. Yet I take immense comfort and hope from the community that I am part of and the people I am proud to call my friends. The mutual respect, support and kindness, along with the capacity to keep a sense of humour is in many ways an antidote to all the negativity that abounds. While writing this post I toyed with the idea of referencing a few of my Twitter buddies and what I enjoy about their virtual company. However, I quickly realised that it was impossible to do so as I didn’t want to leave anyone out and I am fortunate to know so many good people. So I’ll simply finish with a classic quote from Bilbo Baggins. “I don’t know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve”. Thanks for being you, so to speak.
Why Are So Many Gamers Assholes?
First off before we begin, I am not going to apologise for using the term “asshole”. Yes I could use more eloquent language but finding a non profane definition is complicated and potentially difficult to agree upon. Are we talking about antisocial gamers, the deliberately obtuse or those with specific prejudices and axes to grind? Is this all about tribalism, real world political affiliations or the whims and caprices of professional malcontents? Perhaps all these examples are correct and just different facets of the same problem? See, it’s easy to get bogged down just with the terminology. But most people know what is meant by the phrase “asshole”. Within the confines of gaming culture, we know exactly who and what they are. We also know where to find them and sadly they are not an endangered species.
A representation of an “asshole”
First off before we begin, I am not going to apologise for using the term “asshole”. Yes I could use more eloquent language but finding a non profane definition is complicated and potentially difficult to agree upon. Are we talking about antisocial gamers, the deliberately obtuse or those with specific prejudices and axes to grind? Is this all about tribalism, real world political affiliations or the whims and caprices of professional malcontents? Perhaps all these examples are correct and just different facets of the same problem? See, it’s easy to get bogged down just with the terminology. But most people know what is meant by the phrase “asshole”. Within the confines of gaming culture, we know exactly who and what they are. We also know where to find them and sadly they are not an endangered species.
Moving on to the main question, “why are so many gamers assholes”, there are numerous explanations to consider. Perhaps the all time classic answer is the old “anonymity of the internet” theory. The idea that because someone can hide their identity and thus avoid any repercussions, they will by default indulge in abhorrent behaviour. But this explanation is not as comprehensive as it first appears. I often have opportunities to indulge in consequence free behaviour, yet refrain from doing so. If none of us did then there wouldn’t be a gaming community per se, as it would just be a constant battleground. So like all social issues, the reality is more complicated and nuanced when scrutinised properly. Yes, the freedom that the internet affords is certainly a factor in the problem but not the defining one. So what are the other possible explanations?
Although gaming and sports are not identical in nature, there is certainly a lot of crossover in their social attributes. Both have a culture of fandom that is often based upon tribalism and competitiveness. The former is not something that can be reasoned with, leaning more towards blind loyalty. The latter can at times lapse into a “winning at any cost” mindset, which is hardly conducive for equitable community relationships. Stepping away from sport, public discourse in politics and the news agenda has become more partisan and bellicose in recent years. Traditional notions of data driven debate and facts underpinning an argument has given way to slogan driven rhetoric, gaslighting and appealing to “feelings”. All of which are incredibly flexible for those who don’t want to be restrained by reason or logic.
A bona fide “asshole”
Other factors to consider are levels of emotional and social literacy. There is data to suggest that certain quarters of society are not learning the social skills needed to navigate life. Then there has been decades of reinforcement of the old trope of resolving conflict through violence via TV, cinema, music and literature. But perhaps the biggest factor is one that has blighted not just leisure activities but most social communities. Gaming has for years been perceived, defined and marketed as a white male “space” and it is only in recent years there has been any attempt to challenge and change that. It should be noted that such efforts have always seen a reciprocal amount of pushback from those who see it as “their preserve”. As gaming has become more culturally “acceptable” and hence more commercially viable, it has reached wider audiences and demographics. Yet the industry has been slow to embrace representation as many of those who effectively run it are not cut from the cloth of inclusivity.
And at a grass roots level, a great deal of “assholery” goes unchallenged and unchecked due to there being little effective community based moderation or policing. Censorship and free speech are often invoked as a bogus defense but usually it just comes down to cost. The most effective moderation is done by experienced people and employing them comes with a cost. Plus imposing sanctions on “assholes” hits the bottom line, irrespective of their character traits. “Assholes” are paying customers. Sometimes they are whales. Hence we all too often see the pretense of caring and a lot of hollow press releases and mission statements that promise much but deliver little. Environments such as these, along with the wider social factors discussed are ideal for “assholes” and allow them to thrive.
Now there are some who think that the entire toxic gamer trope is blown out of all proportion and that the reality is different to the perception. Arguments often centre on “assholes” being just a disproportionately vocal minority and it all being a case of visibility bias. Then there are sound arguments to be had about nonverbal cues and how social media often masks intent etc. Are all of those who trot out inflammatory epithets really advocating them and the philosophy behind them or simply repeating something they’ve read in an attempt to get a rise? Is there genuine malice behind all incidents? I have also discussed with others whether the brevity and lack of nuance that is inherent in all text based chat systems makes it difficult for anyone not to appear as an “asshole” at some point. However, where I think many cases do fall into these categories, it doesn’t excuse or explain those gamers who exist in a perpetual state of malcontentment. You’ll find examples of these people on every game related forum and subreddit. They seem obligatory, like a copy of Queen’s Greatest Hits in your music collection.
A man who sang about “assholes”
Finally, I would like to add another reason to explain the abundance of “assholes” in the gaming community. A somewhat depressing one that some folk may reject due to its implications. Maybe people collectively just aren’t as nice as we like to think. It has always been purported within western society that there are more good guys than bad. We tell our children to study and then work hard, play by the rules and that society and the establishment will treat you well. The myth that there is a sort of cultural social contract and quid pro quo. I suspect that the last decade may have proven that this is patently not true. Social conventions and lack of access to communication platforms masked this in the past but now the reality is clearer to see. A lot of people have a beef with life be it legitimate or imagined. Plus being nice takes effort. Being an “asshole” does not.
Yes there are good people who do the right thing, that believe in fairness, equality and treating people as they like to be treated themselves. There always will be. But then there’s an opposite constituent that is self centred and mortally afraid of difference. Anything perceived to threaten the status quo that enshines their world view and socioeconomic advantage is resisted. I think the big revelation of recent years is that the former group is not the majority as previously thought or claimed. In fact the split between the two is probably a lot more even. Hence there are more “assholes” than previously thought. As for the question of whether we can beat or contain the tide of “assholery”, the answer is the same as it always has been. You call out offenders, challenge the ideologies that drive them and lead by example. But it takes an unified effort from all and ultimately, you cannot elect to just sit it out. We tend to get the standard of communities that we allow, rather the ones we notionally aspire to. And that is why so many gamers are “assholes”. We let them.
The Insincerity of Corporate Platitudes
For decades myself and others around the world have watched aghast at the state of race relations in the US. For a nation that exalts democracy, freedom and equality it seems to continuously fail to live up to such principles. In the last 4 years things have gotten demonstrably worse for obvious reasons and the outrages and injustices against the BAME community have increased further. The killing of George Floyd was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back and so for the last week the US has burned, figuratively and literally, in the fires of righteous indignation. A national wound has been laid bare and once again an opportunity presents itself to either address the matter and treat it, or to simply bandage it and ignore it. The major difference on this occasion is the presence of social media which for good or ill provides a platform to share information and express views as events unfold.
Activision Blizzard
For decades myself and others around the world have watched aghast at the state of race relations in the US. For a nation that exalts democracy, freedom and equality it seems to continuously fail to live up to such principles. In the last 4 years things have gotten demonstrably worse for obvious reasons and the outrages and injustices against the BAME community have increased further. The killing of George Floyd was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back and so for the last week the US has burned, figuratively and literally, in the fires of righteous indignation. A national wound has been laid bare and once again an opportunity presents itself to either address the matter and treat it, or to simply bandage it and ignore it. The major difference on this occasion is the presence of social media which for good or ill provides a platform to share information and express views as events unfold.
The magnitude of what is currently happening and how it is being handled means that this story has penetrated most social groups and like it or not, this subject is now on pretty much on everyone’s radar. Thus many feel the need to make some sort of statement on the matter and show support for the African American community. The majority have done this for genuine reasons such as empathy and a sense of humanity. Others are driven more by a sense of obligation or a pragmatic concern not to be on the “wrong side of history”. And as well as individual citizens, social institutions, religious bodies and even businesses have spoken out lending their voice to ongoing condemnation and cries for justice. But “business” is a broad church. Covering a spectrum that begins with the startup run by one person from home, to billion dollar global corporations. And therein lies the rub.
Daybreak Games
When relatively small video game developers make statements pertaining to recent events, showing solidarity and support, I’m inclined to take them at face value. Such studios are populated by a lot of everyday people, working for a pay cheque that isn’t as much as you’d think, who are just trying to get by. Ultimately, I see real people. However, what I find particularly unpalatable are similar statements from the likes of Activision Blizzard, Playstation and Daybreak Games. These generic press releases from global companies reek of insincerity and are the worst kind of bandwagon jumping. Big business is hardly a paragon of virtue. They tend to favour the status quo and governments that look after their interests over others. They often have a shocking track record regarding employee rights and are havens for the worst aspects of corporate culture. Capitalism offers nothing other than the bare minimum to the poor and marginalised, seeing them as a disposable resource rather than people.Yet it suits them for the present to be perceived as an ally and friend.
So please don’t insult our intelligence, Activision Blizzard, Playstation and Daybreak Games with your mealy-mouthed “I’m on your side” calumnies. You are not part of the growing voice legitimate dissent but are just another part of the ongoing problem. You are not expressing any genuine concern but are merely trying to buy “good will” and capitalise on something you see as a business opportunity. How you have the gall to feign integrity when your actions in recent years scream the opposite, simply beggars belief. Go back to counting your money and keep your bogus corporate platitudes to yourself, because they are insulting.Your utterances profane the dignity of the situation. When we want the opinion of mendacious parasites, we’ll ask for them. Until then hold your tongue.
Time For a New Project (Again)
I am currently in a quandary with regard to my creative output. There’s a good chance that the lockdown has contributed to this state of mind and perhaps even the recent Blapril blogging event is partly to blame. I feel the need to do something at the moment but have no specific idea as to what it should be. I want to write but can’t think of anything at present that enthuses me sufficiently. I also want to return to podcasting, which is something I’ve always enjoyed. But I don’t especially relish producing a one man show. I’ve tried live streaming but don’t really think the medium plays to my strengths. Plus, I’m a little burnt out with gaming per se at present. Perhaps the answer lies in trying my hand at something completely new? This could potentially kill two birds with one stone as documenting the resulting learning curve could be a good source of blog posts. However, the first hurdle is deciding what my next project should be?
I am currently in a quandary with regard to my creative output. There’s a good chance that the lockdown has contributed to this state of mind and perhaps even the recent Blapril blogging event is partly to blame. I feel the need to do something at the moment but have no specific idea as to what it should be. I want to write but can’t think of anything at present that enthuses me sufficiently. I also want to return to podcasting, which is something I’ve always enjoyed. But I don’t especially relish producing a one man show. I’ve tried live streaming but don’t really think the medium plays to my strengths. Plus, I’m a little burnt out with gaming per se at present. Perhaps the answer lies in trying my hand at something completely new? This could potentially kill two birds with one stone as documenting the resulting learning curve could be a good source of blog posts. However, the first hurdle is deciding what my next project should be?
New projects can be fun and a great way to renew your sense of motivation and enthusiasm. However, they don’t always work out as expected. One of the most common pitfalls I find with any new project (and I know I’m not alone in this) is that the planning stage becomes the focus and the main source of enjoyment. I like plans. They’re an opportunity to buy new stationary or download new software, to stick post-it notes on your monitor and write numerous to-do lists. I always get a real kick out of all this planning and activity. However, once a coherent and finely tuned strategy has been drafted to tackle the new project, I find that I’ve somewhat lost interest in it. The planning was far more enjoyable and engaging. Hence my ambitions to produce YouTube videos, build a Box Girder Bridge and play the Sousaphone have never come to fruition. My potentially award winning musical based upon The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, also remains unwritten.
Upon mature reflection and sober consideration, there seems to be a simple problem at the heart of this dilemma (or minor “first world” problem). Rather than just undertaking activities that simply fill my time, I am very much focused upon activities that yield a result, achievements or produce something tangible at the end. Obviously the former is a lot easier to do than the latter and I am happy to do as such to a degree. However, I don’t just want to continuously passively consume and would consider it a personal failing if I stopped doing any kind of creative pastime. Which neatly brings this somewhat circular post back to its initial premise (like a word based Möbius Loop) that I need a new project. Perhaps a suitable idea will present itself within the next week or so. If not you can look forward to a series of blog posts called “The Beginners Guide to Playing the Sousaphone”.
