How does she do it, Hopkins,
so much bile and hate
in one mealy mouthed squished
heart. I would
ignore her but she refuses to go away
as I was taught at school
and home
that if you give no quarter to the verbal
spouting gob talking shit bully
they disappear long
into the night, their shadow blissfully forgotten.
If only there was a way to lose you.
Ian D. Hall 2016
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
It is a cry of anger, frustration or absolute certainty, the moment when you reach a point in a relationship with someone, platonic or otherwise when you understand they are with you just so they can try to change you, to turn you into something you are not; the strong minded, the resolute and the clear thinking know and appreciate this and stick to their guns no matter what. Take Me As I Am, for better or for worse, each person has the right to be incredible no matter what.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Amanda Abbington, Louise Brealey, Sian Brooke, Lindsay Duncan, Mark Gatiss, Rupert Graves, Una Stubbs, Marcia Warren.
It is one way for a television writer to divide an audience and more than half enjoying the spectacle of seeing a former British Prime Minister’s bust of her head smashed to the ground in annoyance and righteous anger and fair play to both Stephen Moffat and Mark Gatiss for having the courage to be bold in making it a part of the return of Sherlock and its opening episode of series four, The Six Thatchers.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Cast: David Suchet, Dave Heam, Chris Leask, Ellie Morris, Henry Lewis, Charlie Russell, Jonathan Sayer, Henry Shields, Greg Tannahill, Nancy Zamit, Michael Bodie, Bryony Corrigan, Niall Ransome, Harry Kershaw, Adam Meggido, Rachelle Beinart, Rebecca Hyland.
Many times you may have found yourself wondering what it would be like to see your favourite play acted out on television, not in a sense that television sanitises it, completely takes over and muddles up the magic on stage but to catch it raw, completely as it is with all its minor fluffs and possible dropped lines; would it give it a different perspective, would it generate more income for the theatre world which is stretched by budget constraints and a typical government that doesn’t care about the arts, just the bottom line.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
They remain an enigma, the product of fusion, of two distinct writing styles between the members that graced the name and the now iconic nature of the band, a natural progression from the 60s fashion in which they could trace the first roots of the group and one that quite rightly is still performing today, albeit with only one original member at the helm. 10cc were a group of diversity, of experimentation and of a solid reliability, you could not fault them in the day and anyone taking time out to devour the rich back catalogue will soon follow the point that you don’t have to just like 10cc, you have to love them unconditionally as well.
Rang an old friend before Midnight,
before the clocks rang out
and Big Ben, guardian and trustee
of celebration, rememberance and morning salutation
looked at the revellers below,
crowded streets, drink passed round
the merry go round as kisses
are exchanged
and promises made, secret liaisons and encounters
hanging in the crisp night air.
I rang my friend at home, a brief call,
from my front step to his leather Lazy Boy
and whilst my year was spiralling down,
his was content,
television drowning the drowning;
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
To live an Honest Life is one that surely is the advantageous of all, it might not win you plaudits and people might try their damndest to take advantage of you but an Honest Life is and will always be one of purity, heartbreak and outstanding cool. Like an angel who manages to find she is the most sincere in all of creation, the urge to sing and take the lyrical responsibility for ensuring everybody is content is understandable.
I hear the door close, one of many,
after one, after one,
I could do the same, shut the door,
slam it, barricade it completely
and let go, hide behind the door,
behind the memory of everything that ever went wrong,
my door, my fault, I am so very sorry
to have let it get to the point
where even the postman cannot push the letterbox,
cannot dump the adverts, the mix and match rubbish
bag fillers, the black plastic coffin
for the unwanted junk mail for this junk male,
I carry in my pocket bread,
two one pound coins, coal from the surround
we can never afford to put on
for more than half an hour,
and salt, it is not a fetish
but just my way of offering you fortune,
life, heat and wealth in the coming year.
I will walk across your threshold
with a smile and propose we shake hands
under your hallway light, twenty watt bulb,
may you be happy and know love
in the next twelve months, may your Sunday
lunch with family and friends
Lead me into midnight, let me feel the new
dawn rise, artificial construct though it maybe,
we all need to hear the chime of midnight
and the serenade of ships’ horns on the Mersey,
the minute watched diligently
by a Captain’s beard and the deck hand
letting off a series of fireworks into the cold
night air, no snow, perhaps rain
and the shower of memories to come.
Lead me into midnight where for a moment,
Peace reigns, there is no alarm
at the moment of surrender;