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25.1.2012
Just
back from a few days in Ramsgate - a strange place. The
run-down, unloved and sad look of many UK seaside resorts,
especially in rainy January. But with added benefit claimants,
much evidence of recent white flight, a winning mix of
architectural (seaside) styles, a big ugly ferry terminal and
container dock, and a gorgeous pseudo-medieval pile (The
Grange, built by Pugin) recently restored for us to stay in.
All of which has very little to do with Venice, London, or
Florence, but needed to be said nonetheless!
19.1.2012
I'm not
sure why, but I seem to have posted quite a few photos of odd
things cluttering up the South Bank Centre on my news page over
the years. These have mostly been connected to exhibitions in
the Hayward Gallery, but today's photo shows a new
temporary cabin. Installed for 2012 as an Olympics tie-in, you
can hire it for £120 a night, or you could have done if you'd
got in before it became all booked up. It needs to have a poncey
name, of course, so it's been called
A Room for London. There's a lot of talk of Conrad,
too, and hearts of darkness, and the spirey bit isn't just a
spirey bit, it's an homage to Hawksmoor's London church towers.
Sigh. But did you know that the Hayward's first exhibition was
devoted to frescoes from Florence? It capitalised on the work
done to the frescoes that had been damaged during the 1966 flood
and the subsequent discoveries. And even I can remember going
there to see proper old art, and not just the modern tosh of
recent years.
8.1.2012
Hot
news for fans of the German TV adaptations of Donna Leon's
Brunetti novels - MHz Networks in the US will be showing the
next seven subtitled episodes on their Sunday Night
International Mystery program starting next week. These follow
on from the eight already shown and released last year on DVD.
Episodes 10 and 11 I've already reviewed on my
Brunetti TV page and I have hopes
of catching the others. This year's new Brunetti novel (out in
April of course) is called Beastly Things, which sounds
more like a P.G. Wodehouse novel to me.
5.1.2012
Followers of the fortunes of the ruined Ospedale al Mare on the
Lido in Venice might like to know that
the group protesting the dereliction (of
the theatre especially) now have a website
teatromarinoni.org
to visit and an arty video to watch.
3.1.2012
Happy New Years all round!
On the immediate horizon, reviews wise, is The Midwife of
Venice by Roberta Rich and a new one from Marco Vichi (who
provided us with one of our favourite Florence reads last year)
called Death and the Olive Grove. Later in January I'm
starting a course in appreciating early Italian frescoes and am
staying in Pugin's house in Ramsgate. Also I've just been asked
to contribute to a book about Venice film locations. So no
January blues for me I'm thinking! Also...
If you've ever
though that it'd be nice to have the Venetian fiction, film and
TV content of this site all collected in one handy paperback
book I have great news for you.
Click here, or on the cover above, to purchase this
eminently portable and lovable volume, for yourself and your
friends.
19.12.2011
News
from Yvonne, a site friend who's in Venice now - filming has
finally begun on Emma Thompson's film about Effie Ruskin. On
Yvonne's blog we
also learn, or I do, that those stone shelf things in corners to
prevent men pissing are called pissotte. She has photos
of them in various styles too! And Santa Clause gondoliers!
17.12.2011
As 2011
draws to a close we can be sure that 2012 will not be so full of
news and turmoil, I think, because 2011 has used up so much that
there's hardly any left. My festive farewell to 2011 can be read
on
the facebook page and my Top 10 books and CDs of the year
can be found on the News page. The next
couple of weeks should see me reading and reviewing the novel
mentioned below. Also the proof copy of my new (self-published)
book of the Venice pages on this site, entitled Imaginary
Venice, is on its way to be checked. So all being well that
should become available in January. And it's so reasonably
priced.
Onward!
more
news here
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January 2012
Roberta Rich The Midwife of Venice
Venice
Marco Vichi
Death and the Olive Grove
Florence
December 2011
Philip Davies
Panoramas of Lost London
London
Susan Ashley Michael
Crossing the Bridge of Sighs
Venice
Craig Taylor Londoners
London
November 2011
Simon Blumenfeld Jew boy
London
Irving Stone The agony and
the ecstasy Florence
October 2011
The Girls of San
Frediano Florence
films
Robert L France
Veniceland Atlantis Venice
Lucretia Grindle The Lost Daughter Florence
September 2011
Gerald Kersh The Angel and the Cuckoo
London
Mary
Hoffman David Florence
August 2011
Executioner of Venice
Venice films
Laura Brylawski-Miller
The Medusa's Smile
Venice
The Venice Questions - Hallie Rubenhold
Max Pemberton
Signors of the night
Venice
Petr Kral Loving Venice
Venice
July 2011
Mark Hudson Titian: The Last Days Venice
Hallie Rubenhold Mistress of
my Fate London
Marco Vichi Death in August
Florence
The Venice Questions - Robin Saikia
June 2011
Linda Proud Pallas
and the Centaur
Florence
Tiziano Scarpa Stabat mater
Venice
Robin Saikia The Venice Lido
Venice
Niccolò Rinaldi Secret
Florence
Florence
May 2011
Maxence
Fermine The black violin Venice
Ben Aaronovitch
Moon Over Soho
London
Chris Ewan The Good Thief's
Guide to Venice Venice
April 2011
Ben
Aaronovitch Rivers of London London
Donna Leon Drawing conclusions
Venice
March 2011
The Venice Questions - Jon Courtenay Grimwood
February 2011
Jon
Courtenay Grimwood The Fallen Blade Venice
Robert Coover Pinocchio in
Venice Venice
Michael Morpurgo The Mozart
Question Venice
The Tourist Venice
films
January 2011
Paul Grossman The Sleepwalkers Berlin
The Venice Questions - Miranda Miller
Nero Veneziano Venice films
Giallo a Venezia Venice films
My First
Ever
Trips, 1990/1992 Florence & Venice
September Affair
Florence films
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