Sadler's Wells

I've loved coming to Sadler's Wells ever since Ibolya first brought me there when we first started seeing each other.
Last night we went to see a company called Rosas perform 'Steve Reich Evening'.
I'm a big fan of Steve Reich's orthodox and highly rigorous minimalism and was very excited to hear his music performed live (by a group called Lctus), accompanied by some thrilling dancing. The programme consisted of:
Pendulum Music, Marimba Phase, Piano Phase, Eight Lines, Four Organs, Poeme sypmhonique pour cent metronomes (Ligeti) and Drumming Part 1.

31 Weeks!

Little One will have been in Ibolya's tummy for 31 weeks on Tuesday, leaving only 9 weeks left before he or she enters the world, on or around the 3rd of December.

We're feeling ever closer to Little One as he makes his presence known ever more loudly and frequently with movements and kicks which are now visible just by watching Ibolya's tummy.

It was an extraordinary feeling the other day, when, cuddling Little One and Ibolya in bed, I could feel a pounding heartbeat through Ibolya's tummy. It made me feel incredibly close, physically and emotionally, to the tiny Human Being, in between us, wriggling to find a comfy position.

Little One will have to make the most of the tummy gymnastics, as space is fast running short as he grows rapidly and in a couple of weeks he'll be a tightly curled bundle of about 32cm.

We have a GP visit this Thursday and the nursery will be feeling more complete when the family crib, very significantly, is passed from Sara to me this week.

This has been used to cradle all my nieces and nephews (and I think by my elder sister Jane?), most recently by Florence, so finally being custodian of this heirloom will make me feel very happy.

Gunnersbury Park

Paul Newman

I've been expecting to hear of Paul Newman's passing since news of his terminal cancer was reported earlier this year but I'm no less sorry that the day has now arrived.
He was every bit a truly great cinema actor who's work has given us immense pleasure and happiness to watch.
Only after reading many books on Hollywood and the movies, particularly William Goldman's 'Adventures in the Screen Trade', I begun to be aware of what incredibly high regard his profession and peers hold him in. He became, during the course of my reading, a recurring motif in these books for a universally admired and loved person.
And it's easy to see why. Not only modest, ego-less, humorous and liberal, he led an exemplary life for a Human Being.
Married and faithful to the same woman for over 50 years, he put his family before all things. He enjoyed but never took his work too seriously. Passionate and politically active, he was a campaigning Democrat and a vocal supporter of gay rights and marriage.
He understood that the disproportionate fame and wealth, that came with his work, could be turned to benevolent, philanthropic goodness. His 'Newman's Own' products donate 100% of all profit to charity and have generated more than 100 million dollars to charitable causes.

What finer life can one have than to have lived it so selflessly and to leave behind such great films like 'The Hustler', 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid', 'The Verdict' and 'The Hudsucker Proxy'.

Furthermore, like so many great men, Paul Newman was Hungarian. Well, one-quarter Polish and three-quarters Hungarian. His mother was born in Hungary and his father was the son of a of a Hungarian father and a Polish mother.

Weekend

We had a weekend of sheer, glorious, domestic bliss. Just the two us, Little One and Georgi.

Some of things we did included some things which are my most favourite things to do in the whole world!A chicken tikka masala from the Acton Balti House. One of my absolute most very favourite things in the world

Lots of walks and fun with Georgi and Ibolya in Roundwood Park

An afternoon sunbathe and snooze in the garden

Picked ripe pears from our pear tree

A pint of Guinness in the Mason's Arms

Watched a really great film, 'The Diving Bell and the Butterfly'. What a film! Brilliantly directed by the great American painter, Julian Schnabel, in French, from an English script by Ronald 'The Dresser' and 'The Pianist' Harwood, starring the fabulous Mathieu Amalric, Godlike screen legend; Max Von Sydow and several very beautiful French actresses including Marina Hands and Emmanuelle Seigner.

Listened to a really great album, which sounded good even on first listen. Elbow's 'Seldom Seen Kid'

Ibolya made an absolutely delicious Hungarian pea soup with dumplings

We also got some chores done. Ibolya stripped the paint of these drawers, which will be repainted for Little One and go in the nursery

I put up some roller blinds

and did a little bit of clothes shopping.

Knock2Bag

Rupert's Knock2bag comedy night resumed this week after a hiatus while he prepared and performed at the Edinburgh fringe with Mark.
This month's line up was Andrew Lawence, Earl Orkin, Darren Ruddell and Knock2bag resident, Brian Gittins. I love Brian's routine of awkward silences, coughs, constant trouble with the microphone wire and always makes me cry with laughter.
The mood of the evening was quite edgy. A female heckler gave the acts quite a hard time and a lot of people didn't take well Andrew Laurence's dark routine involving midgets, 'mongs' and a great joke about Madeline McGann. I thought he was brilliant and very, very funny.

Ranos

We're on to the sixth and very last series of 'Sopranos'. But sadly, the first 3 episodes were not up to usual standards with another long and tiresome dream sequence.
However, Meadow's little dance, at the beginning, did liven things up for us all.
Despite the lacklustre episodes, Mark, Stephen and I were more than satisfied with our steak dinners, washed down with a superb bottle of Chateau Canuet.

Park Lane

We were back at Sara and Matthew's on Sunday for a Read and Bennett family get together, to celebrate Matthew's 40th. It was a thoroughly happy and enjoyable occasion.
It was wonderful to see Suzanne and Shahid, who Ibolya and I haven't seen for a few years and it's always an immense pleasure to see Arthur and Rosemary.
The late summer weather couldn't have been better and Matthew served up as good a Sunday lunch as it's possible to have.

Patio

Bacon

Thursday night, I met Stephen, Christophe, Pete and Karen in the Morpeth Arms before going to the private view of the Francis Bacon exhibition at Tate Britain.

I've loved and admired Bacon since I first begun to be interested in art and have been aware of his work since I was a child.

I thought I'd seen a lot of his work over the years but nothing like as many that's being shown in this vast and comprehensive show.

I think it confirms him as the greatest British painter since Turner and I hope to go back many times while it's on.

Afterwards, we had dinner in the Rex Whistler restaurant, which was an absolute treat. It's such a terrific restaurant; superb service, well priced, great food and wine list. I had pigeon breast on celeriac, followed by (my favourite) duck, spinach and (dripping fried) chips. Wonderful way to finish a lovely evening.