Goodbye April, thanks for the sunshine

April has been a month of sunshine, millionaires in space, Trumpy tariffs, the death of one of my favourite pontifs (did JD finish him off?) and a regrettable amount of chocolate. We are deep in A Level revision land and I am on permanent snack/ cheer squad duty. When I haven’t been making protein smoothies and experiencing a suspicious fruity waft from the study room, these are some of the things that I have enjoyed.

Cinema - Mr Burton

This film was unexpectedly brilliant. I anticipated a typical British drama ; the chinking of tea cups and good natured characters pottering around a Welsh mining village. However we enjoyed stellar performances from Toby Jones and Harry Lawley and the wonderful transformation of Richard Burton from valley scally to formidable star of the Royal Shakespeare Company. I loved the seamless switching between Welsh and English and could fully appreciate the conflict between troubled Burton’s two very different worlds.

Eating - The Arnold Bennett Omlette

I declare The Arnold Bennett Omlette the breakfast of dreams. Famously created by The Savoy for author Arnold Bennett in 1921, the classic omlette is made with smoked haddock, lightly cooked eggs, and a bechamel flavoured with mustard and worcestershire. The silky smooth cheesy layers are heavenly and whist it is a fiddle to make you won’t regret all that whisking. Try this recipe for the promised land of breakfasts and serve with a crisp green salad.

Reading - ‘Dream Count’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

I don’t feel qualified to summarize this astute and multi layered novel. ‘Dream Count’ is composed of the interlocking stories of four women, Chiamaka (“Chia”), Zikora, Omelogor and Kadiatou. All of these women are African immigrants living in the USA. Set against the backdrop of the Covid Pandemic, the book looks at their relationships and the conflict between cultural expectations vs dreams and living in the modern Western world,

Streaming - Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kid-fluencing - Netflix

I was disturbed but not surprised by Netflix’s new docu-series ‘Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing’ which takes a look at the murky story of child - influencer Piper Rockelle and her momager Tiffany Smith. Eight year old Piper experiences huge success creating content for You Tube and soon her Mother has enlisted several other fellow child influencers to collaborate on videos. Four years later, the kids sue Smith for $22 million, alleging they suffered “emotional, verbal, physical, and at times, sexual abuse”. It becomes clearly apparent that there is still no clear legislation that supports child content creators and the protection of these kids is entirely down to the integrity of the parent or guardian. More on my Substack here.

What are you looking forward to in May? Although June is my favourite month, I find May so invigorating : a month of bumble bees, sea swimming and sitting outside at last.

Please let me know your recommendations

Sophie xxx

Linen Tablecloth in Gelato

Some things that I have enjoyed in January

Hooray, we have made it through the darkest 6 weeks of the year. On the occasions I managed to crawl out of my duvet cocoon, I have enjoyed some great telly, films, walks, food, podcasts and radio programmes. Motivation has been at an all time low in this house, but I have found fun, comfort, and interest in the following :

8 am dog walks and owls

Sunrise has conveniently coincided with my early morning dog walks. Some sunrises have been more dramatic than others but the silhouettes of skeletal trees enable clear viewing of some whopping birds of prey. Owls with their funny, tufty ears ready to go to bed and motionless buzzards waiting to swoop. It’s a lovely way to start the day.

Gumbo

Gumbo has been a popular feature on the family menu and I can highly recommend this recipe from Felicity Cloake. Sitting somewhere between hearty stew and soup, Gumbo has a fabulous cajun kick. From the cuisine of Louisiana, it feels more fun and interesting to eat than standard English winter fare and you can create your own hybrid with whatever you have in the fridge.

Streaming

Am I the only person in the country not watching Traitors? Love all the Highland styling but I haven’t got the attention span for protracted reality TV. We were all glued to Playing Nice on ITV despite the improbable plot twists. Set on rugged stretches of coast in Cornwall, it made us think about what we’d do in the event that one of our babies had been swapped…

During ‘Born in the Limelight: Nepo Babies UNTOLD’ , Phoenix Brown (daughter of Spice Girl Mel B) explores how society views those born to the rich and famous. During the one hour documentary, Pheonix attempts to make it as an artist using her mothers name and her crude smiley faces canvases are well received. She is acutely aware of her privilege but explores whether nepo babies are being blamed for society’s inequalities and if constantly bating them is necessary or helpful.

Top of the Popes

Top of the Popes, Ralph Fiennes is excellent in Conclave and I thoroughly enjoyed the insight into the papal election behind the closed doors of the Vatican City. The Cardinal who matched his vape to his crimson robes was a real highlight.

Mr Chalamet’s sanitised version of Bob Dylan is far more pleasing than the real deal in ‘A Complete Unknown.’ I adored the images of 1960’s Greenwich Village and the Dylan bangers were fantastic.

Listening

Louis Theroux’s interview with Jade Thirlwall (ex Little Mix) links neatly to his recent documentary ‘Boy Band Forever.’ Thirle talks about her love/hate relationship to fame through X Factor. Highlights include Jade’s early-days relationship with Harry Styles and getting blasted by the Gallaghers.

I have also been enjoyed the back catalogue of the podcast ‘Unreality.’ Talia Augustidis guides us through short stories that make the listener look at the narrow margins between the imagined and the truth. I particularly enjoyed the episode ‘Sound Collector’ which discusses memory.

There are plenty of things to look forward to in February including Amandaland (the spin off from Motherland), spring bulbs popping up and longer days.. hooray!

Storm Eowyn is really kicking off here in Cornwall. I hope that wherever you are reading this, you are safe, warm and have access to some good snacks.

Sophie

Still some good stuff in the Poppy and Honesty Sale including this valance and pillowcase in Florence.

Popcorn please - the immersive joys of going to the cinema

A trip to the cinema is one of the only things which will detach me from the sofa in January. As soon as our local cinema opened their doors after the Pandemic, I was in there like a rat up a drainpipe, ordering every confection available at the Box Office. Despite the joys of being tucked up with popcorn and immersed into a fictional world, box office sales have been in rapid decline due to the increase of streaming subscriptions. With big fancy televisions and access to all films at anytime, we are seeing the slow death of the cinema.

When cinema opened back in 1930 it was the predominant cultural pursuit. Women would put on a cloche hat and wear a marcel wave and dress up for a night at the picture palace! (Lisa Stead). Cinemas continued to thrive for the next half a century and were particularly popular during the Second World War and the Great Depression in the USA. Sitting in our beautiful Art Nouveau cinema, I feel so sad to see most of the plush seats flipped up. Streaming services offer a good bang for your buck, but a trip to the cinema offers so much more.

Watching a film at the cinema will provide you with around 2 hours of uninterrupted escapism. If you are anything like me, then watching a film at home will also involve scrolling through your phone, answering to the snack needs of your family and responding to work emails. Without these distractions I can fully immerse myself in the plot, setting and characters. Watching a film at the cinema is viewing it as the Director intended. Some films are a visual feast and even the most sophisticated televisions cannot compete with the definiton of a cinema screen. I recently enjoyed the gorgeous wide angled shots in Conclave : the scarlet vestiments of the Cardinals illumininated against marble courtyards in the Vatican City.

The collective experience is the best aspect of watching a film at the cinema. Everyone is captivated by the same thing as we share laughter, sadness and surprise together. A couple of years ago, I watched the horror/comedy Cocaine Bear and the whole experience was enhanced immeasurably by the shared response of the audience. People were shouting, screaming and then laughing as the intoxicated bear goes on his murderous rampage. Several viewers had their coats over their heads and another had crawled under the seat.

One reason we go to the cinema less these days is simply because it costs so much to do so. However most tickets cost the equivalent of 2 pints of beer and there doesn’t seem to be a shortage of punters outside our local. So how can we revive The Golden Age of visiting the Picture Palace ? The experience has been elevated by companies such as Curzon who offer beautiful art deco styling and an adjacent bar. I personally think that nothing beats an evening out at the cinema, stepping out of everyday life for a couple of hours to laugh or cry with a bunch of complete strangers.