Paul in London

Wednesday evening I took part in rehearsal for a concert the London Gay Mens Chorus is performing at the Hayward Gallery as part of An Evening of Radical Singing . I am not sure how radical it is to sing "Come Fly with Me" and "The Rose" (although I do tend to get the lyrics about the Rose mixed up and get my seeds and bleeds confused so that could sound a bit radical). We will also be doing something interesting involving a bit of movement and free singing with "Wade in the Water" a classic spiritual song. It should put the variety back into Thursday evening anyway...

Tuesday evening I caught the excellent production of The Glass Menagerie starring Jessica Lange. I thought it was a superbly staged, acted and directed show. For over two hours I was kept alert (no falling asleep in the stalls tonight). Lange was great to see on stage. A simple stare seemed to convey so much. And when in the second act she puts on her best outfit for a gentleman caller you can't help but feel horrified and pity for her as well. The rest of the cast were just as good. There was Ed Stoppard as Tom - the son who always seems to be going to the movies and coming home late (one time with a red handkerchief in his back pocket ... Say no more). And Amanda Hale as the Laura the crippled daughter too nervous to face life and its disappointments... It may not be Tennessee William's best play (some of the flashbacks and the narration is jarring and unnecessary) but there is so much in this story to ponder over (at interval and at the bar after, on the tube home) that it ...

Scenes from a South Bank subway Saturday 16:46 , originally uploaded by Pauly_ .

As a tribute to the Tate Modern's excellent Gilbert and George exhibition I thought I would include some imagery of their less confrontational shitty art. An entire floor has been devoted to their work and it isn't hard to do this since as they progressed through the years, they really went for large scale stuff. Some of it is quite impressive, but the period where they were fascinated in bodily functions seems a little quaint these days. Going through the exhibition, a highlight was watching one father point out to his two young sons the bright green and pink buttocks and testicles of the artists in a piece titled. the City Fairies. Judging by the looks of other punters in the gallery they seemed to think this was a bit inappropriate. I guess with parental guidance anything goes these days... All told, it is nice to see that their latest works have moved away from bodily fluids and to the big issues of the day such as terrorism, intolerance and extremism. Besides, turds on a ...

The Good German poster , originally uploaded by Daryl Van Horne . At one point during The Good German I turned to Ad and said to him, "Forget it Jake it's Potsdam". There was a hint of Chinatown about this movie. The only difference was it wasn't as well acted, directed or with an intelligible story. But there was plenty of confusion as Clooney plays a character called Jake who spends most of the film chasing Lena (Cate Blanchett) all over the American and Russian sectors of 1945 Berlin. Why he pursues a woman with such a badly fitting wig is anyone's guess. She spends most of the movie pouting and talking in slow, low and deliberate voice. Her line "Yuu shud naht huv cum bahk to Berlin" evoked memories of Meryl Streep as Karen Blixen in Out of Africa "Yuu have mede me barrhen"... Tobey Maguire also has a role. He gets to say very non film noir words such as "fuck" and "cunt" in an unusually high pitched voice. Fortun...

Vegetarian: You don't mind eating vegetarian? Paul: No not at all. I eat vegetables so what's wrong with eating a few more? Vegetarian: Oh... Paul: Besides, any place called Mildred's is my kind of restaurant...

Furphy . To divert attention away from main issue. Until I checked I didn't realise it was more slang from my peoples.

In a packed week I only found out on the weekend that I was quoted in this month's GT . Alas it isn't the Gin and Tonic but the Gay Times - a glossy magazine that for the most part is pretty unreadable advertorial and filler. Fortunately my quote is tucked well into the magazine so I don't expect anybody to be quoting me back anytime soon. I didn't even say something funny (or try to at least)... Such a waste...

Rather than catch a university revue while I was in Cambridge, there was a new print of Belle Du Jour playing at the local cinema, so I had to see that. Last time I saw the film I didn't quite appreciate the boredom of Deneuve's character with her perfect life. With the new print it (along with those cable-knit jumpers) all seemed to be much clearer...

DSC04511 , originally uploaded by Pauly_ . Ok I spent most of the weekend out of London in Cambridge where there were rowers and loads of bi-cyclists... It's that sort of town really. And only 45 minutes from London (assuming you don't get the train from Kings Cross that goes via Stevenage)...