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If I was to be asked to name one film studio that I thought had shaped the minds and also captured the hearts of a nation I think it must be honest and say Ealing studios and the films they produced throughout the 1930’s through to the 1950’s. But let us also not forget the other film studios that were active in Gt Britain during the 1930’s right through until the 1970.s. There are within this collection of motion pictures many titles that are now regarded as classics, and for me anyway they became essential weekend afternoon viewing on the television making empty Saturday afternoons and late Saturdays nights that extended into Sunday more bearable. When I was younger and right up to the 1980,s I would say, there was at least one British made black and white film production being shown on the television every week, whether it was on the BBC or the Independent channels in the UK. Stars (I mean real stars) such as Alec Guinness, Alistair Simms, Hugh Griffith, Stanley Holloway, Thora Hird, Benny Hill, Peggy Cummings and David Niven all featured. And via these and other convincing performances by so many iconic actors we as a movie going audience started to build up an affection with not only the films, but the ever familiar faces that we saw on screen, and I think this is an affection that continues to this day and has been passed down to younger generations.
Their style and mostly their humour transcended into later productions and influenced films such as THOSE MAGNIFICENT MENT IN THEIR FLYING MACHINES, MONTE CARLO OR BUST and to a degree films such as THE OBLONG BOX and TV shows like HERES HARRY, HANCOCKS HALF HOUR and BOOTSIE AND SNUDGE and even maybe went a little further in 1970’s sit coms such as ON THE BUSES, BLESS THIS HOUSE and GEORGE AND MILDRED. The same can be said for dramas thrillers and horrors they were produced during this furtive period and certainly the war movies such as REACH FOR THE SKY, THE CRUEL SEA and I WAS MONTYS DOUBLE to name three had a lasting influence on later productions such as WHERE EAGLES DARE, 633 SQUADRON and their like.
To pick out one or even two films and mark them as superior or as favourites I think is almost impossible, the quality and inventiveness of the productions being second to none, whether they be comedies, dramas or of any subject matter. Only the other night Talking pictures the TV channel, screened GUNS IN THE DARKNESS (1962) which was a great movie, starring Leslie Caron, David Niven and the wonderful James Robinson Justice, a lesser known example of British film drama but one that was well acted, wonderfully directed and scored by Benjamin Frankel. The film was directed by Anthony Asquith, and produced by Associated British Pictures, and Cavalcade films.
The British studios that were active in the aforementioned decades commissioned many great composers to score the movies that they released, Sir William Walton for example and George Auric, John Addison, Ernest Irving, Eric Rogers are all names that featured on the credits of many of these movies, and later as the 1950’s unfolded composers such as James Bernard, Richard Rodney Bennet, Malcolm Williamson, Clifton Parker, etc began to also feature in films produced by the likes of Hammer Pictures who were re-inventing many of what were seen as classic horror tales as produced originally by Universal in the U.S.A.
So, I thought it might be interesting to look at these studios and also investigate the films and the musical heritage left by them. A heritage that was created by so many talented composers, who were in certain cases at the early stages of their careers and some accidentally at times stumbling into film music composition because of their ties with so called serious music. Mention Ealing, British lion, Renown etc and people straight away think of the many comedies that they released, but it was not all about comedy, one movie that has lodged in my memory is WENT THE DAY WELL? A war movie with a difference, and one I am certain inspired the author Jack Higgins to write his novel THE EAGLE HAS LANDED.
Released in May 1942 whilst the second world war was still being fought, the movie was directed by Alberto Cavalcanti, based upon a story by Graham Greene, with a score composed by Sir William Walton. It Focuses upon a small English village, BRAMBLEY END where the war seems to be almost put on a back burner, until that is it is taken over by German Paratroopers, who arrive in the village disguised as typical British tommy’s, the movie was a semi unofficial propaganda film, produced by Michael Balcon and displayed the real fear that many British people felt at the time of a German invasion, although by the time the film was released these concerns had somewhat dissipated, because the Battle of Britain had been fought in the skies some two years previous and any real threat of invasion had been averted. Nonetheless WENT THE DAY WELL? Was a masterful and a gripping piece of cinema.
The score by Walton was quite sparse, in that there was not a great deal of music in the movie, but Walton was known at times to write short scores and use his music sparingly not swamping the movie he was working on with music, allowing the actors and the storyline to grow, and the audience to absorb the films ongoing story. In Hollywood however the style was the opposite for many productions, with many American composers doing the opposite and almost smothering films with music, at times the score running continuously, like a musical wallpaper, that did not support or enhance, but was just in effect there.
The style that Walton employed on many movies from this period would eventually deal him a great blow in the late 1960’s when because of the composers meticulous and precise way of writing which was time consuming and also for producing a score of a short running time led to his work for THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN being rejected by the film’s producers, with only one cue remaining on the finished print which was BATTLE IN THE AIR, the remainder of the score being written by composer Ron Goodwin. In later years, many aficionados of movie music agreed that the Walton score was a worthy addition to the composers already impressive canon. With the DVD of the film being released containing both the Goodwin and Walton scores available for the viewer to listen to and reach their own conclusion, the rejection and replacing of the score was done so quickly that a number of prints of the movie were released into British cinemas crediting Walton for the score that was conducted by Malcolm Arnold.
British studios produced so many movies that I think we have to agree are classics, they are films that are iconic and also important within the history of cinema, many being simple romps that were a slice of escapism, with other examples at times being based upon true events and were seen as not only entertaining and informative but thought provoking. Then there were other examples such as the Ealing picture DEAD OF NIGHT, released in 1945, this is a horror anthology, which included four different stories, directed by Alberto Cavalcanti, Basil Dearden, Charles Crichton and Robert Hamer, four filmmakers that figured large in the Ealing studios output.
The movie had a strong cast that included, Googie Withers, Sally Ann Howes, Michael Redgrave and Mervyn Jones. The film is still today hailed as a remarkable and unsettling piece of cinema, the concluding section of the movie, which features an evil ventriloquists dummy being the most memorable and harrowing. It is true to say that DEAD OF NIGHT was the inspiration for the handful of horror anthologies that were produced in later years by the likes of Hammer, Tyburn and Amicus films as in VAULT OF HORROR. The last story in the quartet of films also it is said served as inspiration for later movies such as MAGIC, which starred Anthony Hopkins.
During the war years films that were of the Horror variety were banned from being produced, so Ealing were treading on unfamiliar ground with DEAD OF NIGHT, but it was a gamble that paid off as the film is probably one of the most successful British films from the 1940’s. Although the movie was essentially a horror picture, it did contain elements of comedy, which is what Ealing became more remembered for.
The music for DEAD OF NIGHT was the work of French born composer George Auric, who also became a music critic, he scored a number of movies for Ealing studios, many of them such as PASSPORT TO PIMLICO, HUE AND CRY, THE LAVENDER HILL MOB and THE TITFIELD THUNDERBOLT, becoming firm favourites of cinema audiences. But he was not under contract to score just films produced by British studios, the composer wrote the soundtracks for a wide variety of movies and worked in France on BEAUTY AND THE BEAST and wrote a suitably majestic and romantic soundtrack for CAESER AND CLEOPATRA in 1945, as well as scoring MOULIN ROGUE for John Huston and in 1961 produced a superb score for THE INNOCENTS a screenplay adapted from the story THE TURN OF THE SCREW and directed by Jack Clayton, it starred Deborah Kerr. I was always attracted to the music of Auric, I remember that he utilised solo trumpet a great deal within his scores as well as strings.
The composer had a style which I considered to be rather like that of Walton, but at times when required he could adapt and alter his style and the sound achieved became a little more flamboyant.
He displayed a great versatility in his work and specifically within his film scores and excelled when writing for comedies in particular, the composer seemed to be able to purvey the correct amount of comedic tone but also had the ability to incorporate more romantic and melancholy sounding themes into his soundtracks. PASSPORT TO PIMLICO is probably one of his better known Ealing comedies, the composer fashioning a not only highly enhancing work but an entertaining one, that in later years when sections were re-recorded took on a life all of their own away from the images on screen, but re-kindled fond memories of the movie and its stars. George Auric was born in Lodeve Herault in France on February 15th 1899, he was associated and considered to be one of Les Six which was a group of artists who worked with and were mentored by Erike Satie and Jean Cocteau. Auric was a prolific composer and also an arranger and orchestrater. Before the composer had reached his twenties, he had already orchestrated and composed music for ballets and stage productions. Which would stand him in good stead when he began to write for the motion picture industry. His involvement with music began at an early age, he would perform piano recitals when he was twelve years of age and several of his songs were performed as he reached his teens at The Societe Nationale de Musique.
Auric also studied at the Paris Conservatory and was schooled in composition by Vincent D’Indy and Albert Roussel at the Schola Cantorum de Paris. Auric was a recognised child prodigy and because of his abundant talent became the protégé of Erik Satie, from 1910 through to 1920, he contributed many pieces to the world of Avant-garde music in the French capital. It was in the 1930.s that the composer began to write for film, scoring the movie A NOUS LA LIBERTE in 1931, the movie itself was criticised heavily for its communist themes, but the score that Auric penned was well received. In 1931 he composed a piano sonata which was It seemed at one point that although the composer’s music for films was being applauded his music for the concert hall was entering a period of stagnation, his 1931 piano sonata received very little recognition and this led the composer to enter into a five year period where he wrote very little apart from three film scores. The composer’s friendship with Cocteau continued during this period and Auric penned the score for his LE SANG D’UN POETE. But by 1935 had decided to write for what he called a younger audience and began to compose music that he thought would reach a more general audience rather than the elitist few he had been previously associated with. He also began to attempt to express his own political views via the way he wrote music, and between 1935 and 1945 worked on a variety of pictures all of which were French language productions, these included.
THE MYSTERIES OF PARIS (1935), THE MESSENGER, THE ALIBI, THE RED DANCER, (all 1937), THE LAFARGE CASE (1938), BEAUTIFUL ADVENTURE (1942) AND FRANCOIS VILLON (1945). It was also in 1945 that he began to score British pictures his first being DEAD OF NIGHT for Ealing studios. The rest as they say is history. Auric died on the 23rd July 1983.
Alan Rawsthorne was a composer who was prolific in the writing of music for British films, his scores for THE CAPTIVE HEART, WEST OF ZANZIBAR, WHERE NO VULTRES FLY and THE CRUEL SEA being classics in every sense of the word. The composer scored a handful of films for the Ealing studios, THE CRUEL SEA and WHERE NO VULTRES FLY to name but two, his style was grand and dramatic, often with emphasise upon rasping or exciting brass, that was accompanied by strident and melodious strings underlined and punctuated by percussion and timpani. In many ways his film music resembled both William Walton and William Alwyn in style and sound, it had to it a patriotic and proud aura, which was perfect for the type of movies he worked upon. Alan Rawsthorne was born in Haslingden, in the county of Lancashire on May 2nd, 1905. He studied at the Royal college of music from 1926 through to 1930 and then in Berlin from 1930 to 1931, where he was tutored by Egon Petri.
As well as his film music Rawsthorne composed for chamber orchestra and the concert hall. He died on July 24th 1971, in Cambridge England.
From films scored in the 1930’s and 1940’s.to a film that was made in 1951 and contained a score by British composer Richard Addinsell. SCROOGE starring Alistair Sim, was in my opinion the quintessential cinematic version of the classic story A CHRISTMAS CAROL by Charles Dickens. Released by Renown pictures and produced and directed Brian Desmond Hurst, this is a film that never ages, it entertains and keeps giving even after all these years. The score too by Addinsell, is an accomplished one, a large symphonic work that is overflowing with melodies and filled with an air of festive cheer and apprehension. The composer underlining both the miserly and miserable persona of Scrooge, whilst at the same time providing a light and airy sense of carefree thematic material for the likes of Tiny Tim and his long-suffering Father and employee of Scrooge, Bob Cratchit.
It is without a doubt a musical work that deserves the label classic, and one of the best scores from that period in British cinema. Richard Addinsell, was born in London on the 13th of January 1904, one of his many popular compositions was from the movie DANGEROUS MOONLIGHT, for which the composer penned the dramatic, haunting and now classic piece called The Warsaw Concerto, which was brought to greater life by the wonderful orchestration of Roy Douglas. The film’s producers had told Addinsell that they wanted something in a similar style to Rachmaninov and Addinsell obliged them with The Warsaw Concerto, the music became an instant success and was recorded by numerous artists and has to date sold well over five million copies, the piece was released on many recordings and appealed to three sets of fans, the classical market, the popular market and also admirers of film music and it is still to this day performed regularly as a standard concert/film music piece. Addinsell studied at Oxford University and then later at The Royal College of Music in London. The composer began his career by writing songs for revues and providing stage productions with incidental music. In 1928 he wrote the incidental score for ADAMS OPERA which was by writer Clemence Dante, and this was the beginning of a collaborative partnership that was to endure until Dante,s death. Addinsell also on many occasions wrote music for and accompanied singer Joyce Grenfell, who became a close friend. During the early 1930, s the composer travelled to the United States and there began to write music for a few Hollywood motion pictures.
The composers first major film score was to be GOODBYE MR CHIPS in 1939, but his greatest success however was to be his music for the film Dangerous Moonlight, which included the Warsaw Concerto for piano and orchestra. On the actual film score the concerto was performed by Louis Kentner with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by the great Muir Mathieson.
Addinsell’s film scores included, Amateur Gentleman (1936 for Alexandre Korda), Fire Over England (1937), South Riding (1937), Goodbye Mr Chips (1939), Gaslight (1940), The Lion Has Wings (1940), Men of the Lightship (1940), Love on the Dole (1941), Suicide Squadron (1941), The Avengers (1942), Blithe Spirit (1945), A Diary for Timothy (1945), Passionate Friends (1949), Under Capricorn (1949), The Black Rose (1950), A Christmas Carol (1950-aka SCROOGE) ,Highly Dangerous (1951), Tom Brown’s School Days (1951), Encore (1952), Sea Devils (1953), Beau Brummel (1954), Out of the Clouds (1957), The Admirable Crichton (1957) for which he received no credit, The :Prince and the Showgirl (1957), A Tale of Two Cities (1958), Loss of Innocence (1961), Macbeth (1961), The Roman Spring of Mrs Stone (1961), Waltz of the Toreadors (1962), and Life at the Top which was the composers last film score in 1965. He passed away on November 14th 1977.
For the next film and score we stay with the writings of Charles Dickens, and to probably his most well-known tale OLIVER TWIST, directed by David Lean in 1948, the musical score was by The Master of the Kings Music no less, Sir Arnold Bax. The score is as windswept, jolly and as desperately heartrending as the tale of the orphan who runs away to the streets of London to find fame and fortune, but all he finds is? Well you know the story.
The score does much to add a greater sense of drama to the proceedings and makes a good movie a classic one. Again, there is a sense of pride and also an air of the regal within the score, strings play a major part within the work, supported by ample use of the brass section and thundering and ominous sounding percussion. Bax was born on November 8th 1883, in Streatham London, his family was wealthy and he was always encouraged to pursue a career in music. Because he was already wealthy it meant that he could follow the career path that he wanted to and write music that he wanted to also. Whilst still studying at the Royal College of Music Bax became fascinated to the point of obsessed by the Ireland and the Celtic culture. During the years leading up to the First World War he lived in Ireland and whilst there became a member of the Dublin literary circle, writing fiction and verse under the alias of Dermot O’ Byrne, later he developed a keen interest in Nordic culture and this interest remain till well after the end of WW l.
In 1942, Bax was appointed the Master of the Kings Music, but it is ironic that he wrote very little music whilst in the position, during the late 1940’s and early 1950’s many regarded his music as being old fashioned, and it was rarely heard in concert, but after his death in Ireland from heart failure in 1953, it seemed to enjoy a resurgence in popularity. Bax, was not that active or prolific when it came to writing music for film, and his two other scores MALTA G.C. and JOURNEY INTO HISTORY are both for short films.
Sir Arthur Bliss is another composer who is linked with cinema in Britain. His most well-known score being for the Alexander Korda movie THINGS TO COME from 1936. The film focuses upon a period of war that has lasted for many years and the story of one forward thinking and coherent State that decides to rebuild the infrastructure and the ethics of civilization whilst eventually making strident steps to attempt space travel. The score for THINGS TO COME, is itself a ground-breaking work. Bliss was a composer associated with the composition of symphonies, choral works and Ballets as opposed to the writing of musical scores for films, but in the 1930’s many producers of movies sought out established names within the classical or serious music arena maybe to bring sort of credibility to film music in those early days of both sound pictures and music as in original scores for motion pictures.
Bliss trained under Ralph Vaughan Williams and Gustav Holst, and began his career writing Avant garde pieces, however as his career progressed and the 1940’s began the composer turned to a more conservative or conventional fashion of composition. In 1950, the composer was Knighted and three years later in 1953, he was invited to become the Master of the Queens music. Like Sir Arnold Bax, Bliss concentrated more upon music for the concert hall, and only occasionally ventured into the world of writing scores for film. Bliss was born in London on August 2nd 1891, his film credits include, THINGS TO COME (1936), SEVEN WAVES AWAY (1957) and AN AGE OF KINGS (1960). He died on March 28th, 1975 in London England. The composers music for THINGS TO COME was something of contentious subject with the author of the story H.G.Wells. Wells, admitted himself that he had no real understanding of the way music worked in the context of film, but despite this expressed specific ideas as to how he thought that the score should be utilised within the movie. Wells, insisted that Bliss write the score, a work which he had completed in the early part of 1935, and then sent copies of it to Sir Henry Wood who started to work on arranging it into a seven movement work.
One section of the score entitled IDYLL was not used in the film which was due to the sequence being dropped from the production as Korda was experiencing financial difficulties, eventually because of the financial limitations and a looming deadline Korda decided to called in another arranger Lionel Slater and also asked Muir Mathieson to conduct the score. When the movie was released it received a very mixed reaction, but the music was applauded. Some of the score which had been recorded onto discs sold well, which was a first for music from a film.
Alec Guinness, Cecil Parker, Herbert Lom, Peter Sellers, Danny Green, Jack Warner, Frankie Howerd, Katie Johnson and Philip Stainton. An impressive cast list would you not agree? Yes, nowadays this would be called an all-star cast, but in 1955, this was normal for a cast in an Ealing production. THE LADYKILLERS is one of the most watched and discussed comedy thrillers to come out of a British studio during that period. The music for this iconic movie was the work of Tristram Cary, Born in Oxford England on May 14th, 1925, Tristram Ogilvie Cary was the third child of the novelist Joyce Cary and Gertrude Margaret Cary (nee Ogilvie). He was educated at the Dragon School, Oxford and Westminster School, London. He served in the Royal Navy between 1943 and 1946, which interrupted his education, whilst in the Navy; Cary developed independently the idea that was to eventually become tape music.
Upon his demob from the service, Cary took a BA at Oxford and then headed for London, where he studied composition, piano, horn, conducting and viola. The composer died in 2008, aged 82. I was fortunate enough to talk to the composer some years ago whilst interviewing composers who had scored Hammer films, I also asked the composer how he became involved with THE LADYKILLERS as it was the composers first foray into scoring a feature film.
“I had by this time already done some work for the BBC, the director of THE LADYKILLERS, Sandy Mackendrick had been listening to some of my music for BBC plays etc, consequently, he thought that my style of writing would be well suited to the black comedy that was THE LADYKILLERS. I went to Ealing and had some discussions, pretending that I was very experienced in the art of scoring movies, (which of course was not the case), and they knew that. Any way, they asked me to submit a couple of test sections, which I did.
These two sections were recorded at the end of another recording session which turned out to be a John Addison score. Anyway, they laid these tracks to the film and they seemed to like them, because the very next day, they offered me the job. I was good friends with Sandy afterwards, and I last saw him a few years before his death in Los Angeles”.
Cary went on to score numerous British movies, plus he also worked on TV shows such as DR.WHO for the BBC. As his career progressed, he moved more into the world of electronic music, and was one of the pioneers who was responsible for creating and perfecting this type of musical content in movies. He started an association with Hammer films in the 1960’s as he recalled.
“I did Quatermass and the Pit in 1967, and then in 1972 I returned to Hammer to work on the music for Blood from the Mummy’s Tomb. I cannot remember how I got involved with Hammer, 1967 was a frantically busy year for me, I am sure that it was Phil Martell who called me asking me to write the score for Quatermass. I have to be honest and say that I was not keen on the idea of doing the score, there was a lot of work to do, they wanted masses of electronic music plus a great deal of orchestral music also, but I had three kids to feed all of whom were in fee-paying schools and I needed every penny I could get, so of course I said yes”.
A composer who was active in the scoring of British movies during the 1950.s was John Veale. Born John Douglas Louis Veale in Bromley Kent on June 15th,1922, composer John Veale, is again one of the driving and original forces within British concert hall and film music that is at times sadly overlooked. Veale attended the Dragon School in Oxford from 1930 through to 1936, and then later went to Repton school which was in Derbyshire from 1936 up until 1940. After this Veale attended The Corpus Christi College in Oxford until 1942 where he studied History. Even when he was a young child Veale took a keen interest in music, which was something of a surprise as none of his family as in his parents or siblings were musically inclined, although his Father did like to listen to Gilbert and Sullivan. It was the arrival of his new music teacher in 1939, John Gardener who opened the young composers mind to other composers and widened his appreciation of the classical music world, in the form of Sibelius and Shostakovich that really fired up Veale’s interest in composition. It was Gardener who also introduced Veale to the work of William Walton via a performance of Walton’s first symphony.
Veale also became interested in the music of Bartok, Bax, Ravel, Vaughn Williams, Rawsthorne and Barber. All of which made a lasting impression upon him and shaped the way in which he fashioned his own music in the following years. During the second world war, Veale spent his war service in the Education Corps, and during this time he continued to study music unofficially with Egon Wellesz and had lessons from Sir Thomas Armstrong in harmony and counterpoint. After the war he began to write incidental music for the theatre, and it was a piece of music from one such production LOVES LABOURS LOST (1947) that began Veale’s involvement in writing for films, the composer sent a copy of his score for the production to Muir Mathieson, who after seeing it asked Veale to write music for The Crown Film Unit, it was via this assignment that Veale met conductor John Hollingsworth, who was assistant to Sir Malcolm Sargent. Veale then became friends and moved in musical circles with many of the most respected composers of that period, Elizabeth Lutyens, William Walton, Humphrey Searle, Constant Lambert, Alan Rawsthorne plus poets and writers such as Dylan Thomas, Philip Larkin and Kingsley Amis.
It was around 1954 that Veale returned to writing music for film, John Hollingsworth attended a performance of the composer’s clarinet concerto and had heard that Muir Mathieson was looking for a composer to write the score for THE PURPLE PLAIN which was a movie that starred American actor Gregory Peck. After hearing Veale’s clarinet concerto Hollingsworth spoke with Mathieson, who agreed that Veale would be right for the film. The score was a great success for the composer and this led to other film scoring assignments that included, WAR IN THE AIR which was a documentary for television and the feature films, PORTRAIT OF ALISON-aka POSTMARK FOR DANGER (1955) and THE SPANISH GARDENER (1956) which starred the then British heart throb Dirk Bogarde. John Veale may not have written the scores to that many movies, but the few he did write were impressive and filled with rich thematic material. He battled prostate cancer for many years and had to leave Oxford and return to Bromley where he resided in a care home, he died on November 16th, 2006.
Edwin Astley is a composer that we normally associate with Television themes and scores, but he also wrote for the cinema, one movie that stands out probably because it was such an oddball comedy is THE MOUSE THAT ROARED (1959). Edwin Thomas Astley was born in Warrington in 1922. His father was a manual worker mostly working on building sites. Astley left school before he was sixteen and started work at the age of 14 working in an office where ovens were made. He was always attracted to music and took a keen interest in all things musical. He was given a violin by a relative and decided that he wanted to make music a career. He joined the R.A.S.C. band when he was still a teenager and took up the clarinet and saxophone, by the time he had reached his 18th birthday Astley was not only performing music but was arranging it for the band. In 1945 he won a cash prize for a song that he had co-written and was lucky enough to have it recorded by Dame Vera Lynn no less. It was also at this time that he met and married Hazel Balbirnie. After leaving the army Astley joined the Peter Pease dance band and soon had become accomplished enough to lead his own band, he re-located to London and was given a job at the music publishers Francis, Day and Hunter where he acted as an arranger for various vocalists. During the late 1950, s Astley moved into writing music for television, one of his first being ROBIN HOOD which became a popular series with adults and children alike. Another early TV series that he worked on was THE BUCCANEERS which led to him becoming involved on THE SAINT and DANGER MAN. In later years he worked on RANDALL AND HOPKIRK DECEASED and also provided some of the scores for THE PERSUADERS. He also worked on movies from as early as 1959, the aforementioned THE MOUSE THAT ROARED for example and in 1962, composed the score for Hammer films version of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, which included an original operatic composition and in 1973 wrote a serviceable soundtrack for DIGBY:THE BIGGEST DOG IN THE WORLD.
During the late 1970,s Astley went into semi-retirement, and moved to the countryside, but even there he could not stay away from music, he constructed a recording studio at his home and installed a number of synthesisers and started to work on building a music library. He died in Goring, Oxfordshire on May 19th, 1998.
The Boulting Brothers also contributed much to pre war and post war British cinema, one film I remember is SEVEN DAYS TO NOON, the score was the debut work of composer John Addison, released in 1950, it starred Barry Jones and was directed by John Boulting and produced by his Brother Roy. It is a tense thriller, that interestingly was written by Paul Dehn and James Bernard, yes, the same James Bernard who would later compose the ominous sounding DRACULA theme for Hammer films. He recalled his involvement with this in interview with me back in the 1990’s.
“Basically, Paul and I concocted this story and Paul wrote it down,” recalled the composer, “We then sold it to Boulting Brothers, and to our surprise got Oscars for our trouble. The ceremony that we had was quite different from all the glittering razzmatazz that we see nowadays, in fact it was not a ceremony at all. We did not get to go and receive our awards in America; we found out that we had won via an article in one of the London evening papers. A few weeks later a representative from The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences arrived at our home in Chelsea, with him he had a cardboard box, which contained our Oscars. It was a case of one quick drink, a handshake and, well, that was it really, no fanfares and certainly no lengthy acceptance speeches”.
A composer who contributed much to British cinema productions and is very rarely mentioned is Francis Chagrin. Born Alexander Paucker on November 15th 1905 in Bucharest Romania Chagrin’s Jewish parents insisted that he should pursue a career in Engineering, so whilst studying for a degree in engineering Chagrin unbeknown to his parents was also studying music at The Zurich music conservatory. He graduated from the conservatory in 1928, but soon left home and moved to Paris because his family refused to support him in his musical career. It is at this time he changed his name so that it sounded more French. Whilst in the French capital the young musician earned a living and further funded his musical ambitions by performing in some of the many nightclubs and cafes, and also turning his hand to composing songs that became popular. He was also doing further studies at this time with Paul Dukas and Nadia Boulanger, in 1936 Chagrin decided to leave France and relocate to England, where he settled. In 1940 and throughout the war years he was appointed the composer in charge of music for the French service and in particular the programme, Les Francais Parlent Aux Francais. He scored his first movie in 1939, which was a British production entitled THE SILENT BATTLE which starred Rex Harrison.
The composer worked on wide variety of movies from 1939 through to 1963, with titles such as THE COLDITZ STORY, THE BEACHCOMBER, SIMBA, LAW AND DISORDER, THE INTRUDER and GREYFRIARS BOBBY being his better known works, the composer also worked for Hammer films in 1958, providing the score for THE SNORKEL. In 1959 he composed the stirring theme and the dramatic background scores for the TV series FOUR JUST MEN, which starred Dan Daley, Vittorio De Sica, Jack Hawkins and Richard Conte. He died on November 10th 1972. His rich melodies and vibrant dramatic compositions served each project well and the composer left a luxurious sounding musical legacy which should be cherished and applauded.
A common link between many of the scores for British films was the musical director that studios often looked to for securing the services of composers that were suitable for each picture. The names of Muir Mathieson, John Hollingsworth, Phillip Martell etc are often displayed on the credits for movies, and it is true to say that without these MD.s or conductors, musical supervisors, many scores for British movies would have probably sounded very different.
They encouraged new talent and enlisted the help of established concert hall/classical composers such as Walton, Vaughn Williams, Richard Rodney Bennet, James Bernard and their like, and in essence they helped to shape and create a sound and a style that is now synonymous with the golden age of British cinema which for me was from the mid 1930’s through to the late 1950’s. Paving the way for the composers of the 1960’s to build upon the strong foundations that had been put in place. There are so many UNSUNG heroes of British film music, whos music also established the style that is now associated with British productions, Douglas Gamley, John Ireland, Brian Easdale, Charles Williams, Bruce Montgomery and Temple Abady. Then there were the composers who were active in the 1950.s and continued to work through to the 1970’s and beyond. John Addison, Stanley Myers, Malcolm Arnold etc.
Associated British Picture Corporation, Ealing Studios, Renown Films, British Lion, Hammer Films, Tigon, London Film are all names that are synonymous with British cinema and if I have omitted to mention any others I apologise. Each had their own role in contributing to the great British cinema, each were different but all of them produced films that had entertaining storylines, convincing acting performances and polished direction, cinematography, and production. They also boasted some of the most inspiring and memorable film music scores that have been written for Cinema.


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The European Union’s General Court last week annulled the European Central Bank’s framework requiring central counterparties to be located in the Eurozone.
The ECB published its Eurosystem Oversight Policy Framework in July 2011, for its supervision of payment, clearing, and settlement systems according to the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (FEU Treaty). The policy referred to risks that infrastructures located outside the euro area could pose to payment systems within the Eurozone, and concluded that infrastructures settling euro-denominated transactions should be based within the euro area. The ECB said that location policy applied to central counterparties (CCPs) with an average daily net credit exposure of more than €5 billion in one of the major euro-denominated categories.
The United Kingdom challenged the policy in September 2011, arguing the bank supervisor did not have the authority to implement a location requirement for CCPs. The U.K. also argued it would affect CCPs in EU Member States that are not part of the eurosystem, according to court documents.
The General Court sided with the U.K., annulling the framework on the grounds that the ECB “lacks the competence necessary to regulate the activity of securities clearing systems” because its competence is limited to payment systems alone under the FEU Treaty, the court ruled.
“The General Court then rejects the ECB’s line of argument to the effect that the task entrusted to it by the FEU Treaty of promoting the sound operation of payment systems means that it necessarily has the power to regulate the activity of securities clearing infrastructures,” the court ruling stated. The court went on to advise that if the ECB really feels it necessary to regulate that segment, it should ask the EU legislature to amend the law and add a specific reference to securities clearing systems.
The ECB has two months to decide whether to appeal the ruling on points of law only rather than merits of its argument to the European Court of Justice.
In response, the ECB issued a statement that promised to review the judgment carefully and decide on what, if any, action to take. The ECB’s defense of the framework included the contention that the framework was confirmatory in nature and simply restated a pre-existing – and unchallenged -- location policy. Spain and France had backed the central bank’s position.
“CCPs have become more and more critical to the functioning of financial markets, facilitating trading in the derivatives and equities markets and providing efficiency and stability to the financial system,” the ECB said in its statement. “The ECB remains convinced of the importance of effective oversight of CCPs to safeguard financial stability and of the need to strengthen international cooperation in this field.”
Both the ECB and the Bank of England pledged to work cooperatively to ensure the “smooth functioning” of financial market systems.
The Bank of England said in a statement following the court ruling that it recognized the ECB has an interest in the soundness of CCPs, and noted that the ECB is a member of the supervisory colleges for all four U.K. CCPs and a voting member for three. It also pointed to EU regulations barring restrictions on CCPs in one Member State from clearing a product denominated in the currency of another Member State, as well as rules preventing discrimination against Member States as a venue for clearing services.
“It is important for the safety and soundness of CCPs that they have access to liquidity arrangements in the currencies they clear. This is first and foremost the responsibility of the private operators,” the Bank of England stated. “In addition, access to central bank liquidity can provide a backstop arrangement. The most efficient ultimate source of this backstop liquidity in the event of major market disruption is provided by the network of central bank swap-lines. This is already the case for a number of major foreign currencies.”
Sweden supported the U.K. in its challenge of the framework.

domain: politics


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MPs including Gravesham's Adam Holloway and Sittingbourne and Sheppey's Gordon Henderson have revealed they have been approached by Ukip asking if they want to "do the same as Douglas Carswell" - the Clacton MP who joined last week.
The MPs have been presented with polling data from their constituencies indicating a move to Ukip would be popular with the electorate.
Despite the moves, the MPs are standing firm, and Mr Henderson said: "I'm not interested in party political manoeuvring.
"I'm simply not in that game. I'm not someone who is going to change because of the political winds at the time.
"I am a Conservative because the Conservative Party reflects many of my core principles."
Mr Carswell gave Ukip a huge boost last week when he announced he was defecting from the Tories, and is on course to be the party's first elected MP on October 9.
Polling in Clacton suggests Mr Carswell currently has a more than 30 point lead over the Conservatives, with the Tory candidate yet to be selected.
If Mr Carswell wins the seat comfortably, Ukip hope other Tories will start taking the prospect of defecting more seriously
If Mr Carswell wins the seat comfortably, Ukip hope other Tories will start taking the prospect of defecting more seriously.
Nigel Farage's party have stepped up its campaign to persuade more Tory MPs and local councillors to join Ukip.
Tory party chiefs are trying to quell any unrest, and earlier this week Chief Whip Michael Gove was seen having lunch with one of Mr Carswell's closest political friends, Mark Reckless.
The Tory MP for Rochester and Strood is a fellow eurosceptic, and a polling company has begun surveying his constituency to find out if people would be more likely to vote for him if he stood for Ukip.
Ukip are also contacting Labour MPs to sound them out over defecting.
Analysis of Ukip support shows it is growing in traditional Labour heartlands, as many working-class voters who feel "left behind" by Westminster politics are backing Mr Farage.

domain: news


Rain delays third day’s play in Bangladesh-Pakistan Test
DHAKA: Rain triggered by a weakened cyclone delayed the start of the third day’s play in the second Test between Bangladesh and Pakistan in Dhaka on Monday.
Only 63.2 overs of play were possible over the first two days with Pakistan reaching 188-2 in their first innings, with skipper Babar Azam batting on 71 not out alongside Azhar Ali, 52 not out.
Taijul Islam picked both wickets to fall at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.
Pakistan lead the two-Test series 1-0 after winning the first Test in Chittagong by eight wickets.


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NEW YORK (AP) — A majority of small business owners support changing federal laws to prohibit employment discrimination against gay and transgender people, according to a survey released Tuesday.
The survey released by the advocacy group Small Business Majority found that 67 percent of owners say federal law should prohibit discrimination against gay and transgender workers and job applicants. The survey, conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, questioned more than 1,000 business owners nationwide in April.
But 81 percent of the participants didn't know that under current federal law, it is legal to fire or refuse to hire someone because they are gay or transgender. It is also legal in 29 states, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. The survey found that 70 percent of owners residing in those states believe their states should also have laws prohibiting gay and transgender discrimination.
Half the owners surveyed said federal laws like the Family and Medical Leave Act should be changed to give gay and lesbian employees the same unpaid leave that heterosexual workers receive to care for sick or injured spouses.
Nearly 60 percent of the owners surveyed said laws that protect against discrimination are good for business, because they help companies attract the best and brightest employees, no matter whether an employee is gay or transgender.
Nearly 40 percent of the owners said they have a policy protecting gay and transgender employees. Among those owners, 37 percent said the policies make it easier for them to attract and retain talented employees. Eighty percent say they have such policies because they believe all employees should be treated fairly and equally.


text: James Cromwell is an American actor born in 1940 in Los Angeles, California. Crowell is well known for his appearances in movies such as The Green Mile, Babe, Space Cowboys, W., The Sum of All Fears, and The Artist. He has also been featured in television shows such as Six Feet Under, American Horror Story: Asylum, and 24. Cromwell won a Canadian Screen Award for Best Actor and a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie in 2013. He was formerly married to actress Julie Cobb and has three children.

domain: artistic


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Syncopate Font is a sleek and stylish sans-serif typeface that was created in 2010 specifically for use in headlines and display text. Its modern and contemporary design was inspired by the many trendy sans serif fonts that are commonly used today.
One of the defining characteristics of Syncopate is its wide body, which gives it a sense of elegance and sophistication.
At the same time, its unicase approach, which combines uppercase and lowercase letterforms, gives it a lively and fresh look that sets it apart from other fonts in its class.
This typeface comes in two unique styles which contain 370 glyphs and 3290 binary stored kerning pairs. Thus, it is a versatile typeface that works well in a variety of contexts, including branding, advertising, and editorial design.
|Font Name:||Syncopate Font Family|
|Style:||Sans Serif, Display, Typeface|
|License:||Free For Commercial Use|
Character Map Image
Its wide body and unicase approach give it a sense of elegance and liveliness, respectively, making it a great choice for designers looking for a fresh take on the classic sans serif style.
You can use this awesome typeface for various purposes. For example, creating video titles, designing logos, and headlines, printing on t-shirts, advertisements, brochure layouts, titles, website layouts, templates, printing on business cards, etc.
Syncopate Font supports 94 languages.
And if you’re looking forward to it, you can also use it for your ongoing projects. After downloading it simply click on the download button below.
To get more sans-serif display fonts take a look below here we are providing some free font families.

domain: design


HB 2658 – OregonStatus: Enacted
Year Introduced: 2019
Year Enacted: 2019
Requires manufacturer of prescription drugs to report to Department of Consumer and Business Services planned increase in price of certain prescription drugs at least 60 days before date of increase. Provides exceptions.
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© 2018- The SLIHCQ Database. Initial funding for this project was provided by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Foundation.


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Excitement and anxiety
Excitement and anxiety
Searching for a new road bike should be a period of high excitement – but concern about selecting the right size frame can make it a period of high anxiety.
With that in mind, we will set out to alleviate any fears by not only checking out the fundamental aspects of selecting the correct size bike, but just as importantly, whether you are the right person for that style of machine.
You’ve been trawling the internet and finding endless excuses to pop out to all your local bike shops and check out all the shiny new road bikes. They’re all over the TV and press too: from the Tour de France to the Tour Down Under you just can’t get enough ‘bike’ moments. Inspirational stuff, indeed, but those bikes in the pro peloton are designed to do one thing, that’s to help enable the world’s top riders get from the départ to the finish line in the quickest time possible.
But how do you ride? This is possibly the first and most important question you should be asking yourself before that newly-found overdraft burns a gaping hole in your pocket. It’s also a question which will inform any decision about what size machine you need.
Horses for courses
The thing is – and you’ve hopefully discovered for yourself while researching your new bike – not all road bikes are created equal. There’s the stretched out, pure-bred race machines like we see in the WorldTour, where the likes of Mark Cavendish and Sir Bradley Wiggins are found doubled over the toptube like a contortionist.
There’s the ‘standard’ road bike with its wider appeal to club riders and racers looking for a more rounded ride, but still with a competitive edge, and then there are ‘endurance’ machines that fill the car parks of sportives across the country, with a relaxed geometry, shorter toptubes, taller headtubes and compact gearing. Throw audax/touring bikes, cyclo-cross bikes and ‘gravel’ bikes into the mix and things start to get confusing. Make an honest appraisal of your riding style, goals, experience and flexibility to narrow down what bike is right for you.
Each ‘style’ of bike will have its geometrical intricacies, whether that’s the low-and-long position of an aggressive race machine, or the more upright ‘comfort’ position of an ‘endurance’ bike, while within each category, geometry will change from one model to another. Just because you take a 56cm frame from one manufacturer, doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll need a 56cm frame from another.
Add to all that the different sizing conventions that bike manufacturers employ (most are measured according to the length of the toptube, some refer to the length of the seattube, and use ‘small’, ‘medium’, ‘large’ and so on) and you’ll soon discover it is difficult to directly compare bikes against one another unless you can throw your leg over your narrowed down selection in one swoop.
Many bike manufacturers and online retailers supply a geometry table on their websites that give an early indication of what bike size you may fit, often based on height. Your height can be a useful indicator in determining frame size (most guides, as an example, will point a rider who is 5’11” tall to a bike with a 56cm toptube) but it’s not the only figure you need to take into account. Two riders of the same height can have very different dimensions, and knowing your height doesn’t necessarily mean you need the same frame size across the board, regardless of manufacturer or model.
Now we’re getting near the crux of the matter: inside leg measurement along with standover height and reach, are all equally as important in finding your correct size bike. How do those three crucial measurements affect the fit of your bike? Click the Next arrow for more.

domain: sports


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Back to drawing board for BlitzBokke
Back to drawing board for BlitzBokkeSHARE
South Africa finished a disappointing Wellington campaign with a 15-21 defeat against Australia in the Plate semi-finals on Saturday, prompting coach Paul Treu to say his team will have to go back to the drawing board.
South Africa collected 10 points for their efforts and are joint fourth on the IRB Sevens World Series log with 51 points – a tally they share with Fiji and France.
New Zealand, who finished third in Wellington, still leads the standings on 77 points, followed by Kenya (56) and Samoa (54).
A disappointed Paul Treu, the Springbok coach, said afterwards their inability to be consistent cost the squad dearly in Wellington.
"We did not start the tournament on a good note on Friday and finished in poor fashion today [Saturday]," Treu said.
"With so much experience missing, the team learnt a harsh lesson that you've got to be consistent and to maintain that consistency if you want to advance in this very competitive World Series.
"So again, back to the drawing board and hopefully we can bounce back and deliver a much better performance next week in Las Vegas,” explained Treu.
Branco du Preez will join the Springbok Sevens on Monday in Las Vegas as replacement for debutant Justin Geduld, who broke his hand on Friday against Canada.
Du Preez has now recovered from his niggling hamstring injury which has kept him on the sidelines for three tournaments.


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IGN reported a couple weeks ago that Sony Online Entertainment's Star Wars Galaxies is shutting down this December. Since then, via The Escapist, SOE's President has spoken openly about the reasoning behind the decision to close the long-standing MMO.
Other games whose subscriber populations have dwindled in recent years have turned to the free-to-play model, but for SOE the problem is not so much a matter of subscribers as a matter of licensing. According to Smedley, SOE's License with Lucasfilm is due to expire next year. Then there's also the matter of a certain competitor for the Star Wars MMO market. ""It was time to turn it off," Smedley said. "We have a contractual relationship that's ending in 2012, The Old Republic launching, a bunch of other business things with LucasArts."
Smedley acknowledged that a large portion of the SWG audience was likely to shift to BioWare's hotly anticipated MMO. "…You look at the odds of a pretty large portion of the audience moving to TOR, which looks like a terrific game. I think that's going to be really well-received by the population."
The shutdown has naturally been met with disappointment and anger by the Star Wars Galaxy community, with some players, according to VentureBeat, going so far as filing a class-action lawsuit. Would you rather see Star Wars Galaxies die a dignified death in December or switch to the free-to-play model and struggle against BioWare's Star Wars: The Old Republic? Sound off in the comments below.


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NFIB Optimism Index Declined to 95.0 in January
Washington, DC, February 9, 2021-The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index declined in January to 95.0, down 0.9 from December and three points below the 47-year average of 98. Owners expecting better business conditions over the next six months declined seven points to a net negative 23%, the lowest level since November 2013. The net percent of owners expecting better business conditions has fallen 55 points over the past four months.
“As Congress debates another stimulus package, small employers welcome any additional relief that will provide a powerful fiscal boost as their expectations for the future are uncertain,” said NFIB chief economist Bill Dunkelberg. “The COVID-19 pandemic continues to dictate how small businesses operate and owners are worried about future business conditions and sales.”
Four of the ten Index components declined, two improved, and four were unchanged.
The NFIB Uncertainty Index decreased two points to 80.
Sales expectations for the next three months declined two points to a net negative 6%.
Earnings trends over the past three months declined two points to a net negative 16% reporting higher earnings compared to the prior period.
NFIB’s monthly jobs report showed job growth continued in January. Firms increased employment by 0.36 workers per firm on average over the past few months, up from 0.30 in December, a strong 2-month performance. However, the hiring remains uneven geographically and by industry.
Fifty-one percent of owners reported hiring or trying to hire in January, unchanged from December. Owners have plans to fill open positions, with a seasonally adjusted net 17% planning to create new jobs in the next three months.

domain: finance


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Job vacancy: Forest Planner North England Forest District.
Forestry Commission England are looking for a Forest Planner to join their team in the North England Forest District. The location is flexible but with a strong preference to be located in Grizedale.
Salary: £30,140 - £33,303
Key work areas:
Review and renew forest plans for North England Forest District
Assist with wider planning and environment function.
For more details and an application form visit our website and enter job reference 1616268.
3rd February 2019

domain: geography


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Little hut, little hut, turn your back to the forest, your front to me! Rep Baba Yaga’s chicken hut with this mug – sized perfectly to sip the blood of your enemies.
.: White ceramic
.: 11 oz (0.33 l)
Shop Now Open! Patreon gets 20% off art prints and $5 off signed books (plus extra swag and personalized inscriptions) Dismiss


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Jeffrey Lyons is an American television and film critic based in the New York metropolitan area.
|Born:||November 5, 1944, Manhattan, New York City, United States|
|Occupation:||Author, Journalist, Film historian, Film critic|
|IMDb:||Jeffrey Lyons's IMDb|
About Jeffrey Lyons
A longtime film and television critic who hosted PBS network's Sneak Previews.
He started out as a local film critic for New York's Channel 11, WPIX.
He published several popular books, not only on movies but on baseball trivia and his father's broadway journalism.
Ernest Hemingway was a friend of his and arranged for him to spend a summer learning bullfighting in Spain.
Information related to Jeffrey Lyons
- American film critics
- American television journalists


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### Fully hardy, blossoms may need frost protection ## Can survive in mild regions/sheltered sites J Protect from frost
Easy to grow in a sunny sheltered spot or on a windowsill. Large-leaved is perfect for pesto; smaller and purpleleaved types are ideal for garnish. Also grows well with tomatoes.
Care: Sow indoors, then place outside in pots when risk of frost is over.
J t e
Distinctive flavor. Can grow quite tall, but regular harvesting will keep plants in check. Leave some to flower and set seed—they can also be used in cooking.
Care: Sow seeds direct in growing position at intervals. Protect later crops from harsher weather.
o t e
A perennial. The whole plant is edible. Leaves and seeds have stronger aniseed flavor than the root. Tall and graceful. Blends well with ornamental plants.
Care: Cut back plants in fall or remove heads after flowering to prevent too much self-seeding.
### t e
Comes in a multitude of interesting flavors, with apple mint recommended for mint jelly and sauce. Some have variegated leaves and look ornamental.
Care: Can be very invasive; grow separately in a pot, or plant in a pot within another arrangement.
### t – y e
Attractive, aromatic evergreen shrub. Looks good in a flower border as well as a herb area. Green, purple, and variegated varieties add further interest. Leaves suit a wide variety of dishes.
Care: Choose well-drained soil mix for containers. Harvest leaves all year round.
### t e
Pretty, low-growing plant—ornamental as well as edible. There are many different varieties and all have lovely flowers. Leaf stalks dry well for cooking.
Care: Choose a warm, dry, sunny site. Cut back hard after flowering to maintain shape.
### t e
Also try… Aniseed, Chervil, Lovage, Oregano, Parsley, Sage, Sweet Marjoram, Tarragon

domain: agronomy


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Helena Magdalena is the brainchild of brother and sister duo, Paul and Helena Pasquier. The progeny of a grandmother who helped established illustrious French lingerie brand, Aubade, fashion quite literally runs in their veins. A perfect example of fraternal symbiosis, each carries the other with their own strengths.
Helena, the creative visionary: for her, each design is to be an object of her own desire before it can inspire others.
Paul, a rational counterpart to Helena’s freewheeling creativity, is the hand that moves and structures time and materials into a gorgeous reality.
Since their childhood, Helena and Paul dreamed of running their own business together: Helena would make the clothes, Paul would sell them. This dream would need a friendly catalyst if it was to become a reality. The years would find Helena living in New York, far from her French upbringing, and far from Paul, whose interest in visiting the States would lead him to scope out New York for an opportunity.
Encouraged by his sister’s irrepressible creativity and recognizing her genius in creating her own fabulous wardrobe, Paul would push to combine forces to create a brand. Despite an ocean between them, the wind was in their sails and they continue to make their journey together to bring their own beauty into the world.
Our desire at Helena Magdalena is to celebrate your own kind of limitless, audacious femininity. By sourcing and repurposing vintage fabrics (only producing our own fabric when the market cannot satisfy our mind’s eye) we utilize a production process that is pragmatically and truly sustainable, as free and gentle as you are.
Friends by choice, but with the appraising eye that siblings have for the other, one continues to sharpen the other’s skill and determination.
Just as her grandmother, a woman, helped to create garments that would (literally) support other women, Helena Magdalena chooses to indulge one’s femininity with fearless designs that celebrate your own free spirit. Raised under the stylish influence of her mother and grandmother in the South of France, fashion was bred and nurtured into her life as an extension of her personality. Her journey to aesthetic perfection would bring her to Studio Berçot, the bête-noire of Parisian fashion schools, where her vision was solidified; then honed and sharpened by the tough streets of New York, and finally polished in the gleaming deserts of Morocco. Truly a woman who designs for other women, Helena’s cosmopolitan life only serves to better inform her about the real desires and needs of women worldwide.
Entrepreneurial by nature; altruistic by choice. Under the tutelage of his grandfathers, one of whom worked for L’Oréal and the other the co-founder of Aubade, Paul specialized in business administration with the desire to create the ideal work environment where all involved can feel respected and necessary. Driven by the desire to challenge traditional business models that do more harm than good, his studies would take him from France to Russia, all the while brainstorming a perfect business model into existence. With his sister’s creative outlet in New York needing a commercial outlet, he seized the opportunity to put into action his vision for sustainability and ethical treatment of the world around.


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In a candid interview, actress Nargis Fakhri revealed that the constant glare of the Bollywood limelight took a toll on her mental and physical health. The actor, who made her debut with Imtiaz Ali’s film ‘Rockstar’, acted in a handful of movies before she went on a hiatus to be with her parents in the USA.
Speaking in an interview recently, she said she became unwell and had gone through much mental and physical stress. “I had a lot of physical ailments that were interfering with my daily life. It was very difficult to ignore these problems. My body, in a way, was telling me that it’s not being able to handle it. I knew it in my mind that I had to take a break because I wasn’t the happiest person.”
Comparing the industry to a hamster wheel, she added that it felt like a rat race with “endless meetings and endorsements”. She said, “It never ends. The pressure and the mental stress that you go through is heavy even though that depends on the kind of films or characters you’re doing. You’ve to invest your soul when you’re acting. Actors need more than a few days of break to get in touch with themselves again.”
However, Nargis said she kept pushing through, even though her “mind felt disconnected” from her body. Finally, she decided to take a break even though the agency told her ‘out of sight, out of mind”. She said, “They told me not to do that and cautioned me that if I go out of sight, I would be out of people’s mind. I can’t deny their fears, there’s definitely some truth to that. But what was important was the answer to the question, ‘Why would someone choose to go out of sight and how much do they want to be out there anymore?”
On the work front, Nargis was last seen in ‘Torbaaz’ and has the Telugu film ‘Hai Hara Veera Mallu’ in the pipeline.


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The Fall Race Meet at the Rocky Mountain Turf Club is upon us. The Fall Meet runs Sept. 3-5 and each three-day weekend (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) through Oct. 15-16 – the exception being Oct. 7-10. Post time through the Fall on Fridays is 6 p.m. while Saturday, Sunday and Monday the ponies go to the gate at 1:15 p.m.
There’ll be 21 days of racing, featuring the leading horsemen, riders and horses that thrilled race-goers during the Spring Meet.
“Our opening weekend this Saturday, Sunday and Monday features seven races Saturday and six races the following two days. Quarter horse followers always look forward to the Fall Meet,” says RMTC CEO Max Gibb. “The meet starts off with trials for the AQHRA’s Canada Cup Futurity and Derby. The Derby trials are set for Sunday and the Futurity trials will be held Saturday.
“On the Thoroughbred side of things, the first big mile and a sixteenth race takes place opening weekend with the Starter Allowance, 1st Leg. It’s set for Monday and features six good Thoroughbreds, three year olds and up. Trainer Laurie Ferguson has a pair of horses in here while Andrew Schmidt, Robert Gwilliam, Nolan Little Bear, and Daniel Oberholtzer all have horses to round out the field.
“As well, during the Fall Meet we’ll spotlight the Alberta Bred Derby and the All Canadian Derby, along with other key races.
“We’ll also have a great Alberta-Bred race card as well as the B Cup races, giving RMTC race fans a full Fall program. As well there will be numerous Stakes and Memorial races this Fall.”
The Quarter Horse trials this Saturday and Sunday include the fastest sprint horses on the Whoop-Up grounds.
The Derby trials Saturday feature three races over 400 yards, with 19 horses fighting it out for the eight spots in the finals. Sunday’s Futurity trials also cover 400 yards, with 19 two-year-olds racing for the top eight spots in the finals.
“Present horseman, and potential horse owners, will also want to make plans to attend the AQHRA’s Sport of Speed Sale, Oct. 1st at Exhibition Park, beginning at 7 p.m.” says Gibb. “It’s not too early to get a catalogue and start looking for a horse that fits your needs.”
Along with the live racing there are satellite screens throughout the RMTC grandstand, in Bullys, in the main wagering area, and on the fifth floor and the plush Champion’s Room on the third floor. All screens feature the top race tracks throughout North America.
Bullys offers 98 Vegas-style slots as well as food and beverages. There’s also a children’s petting zoo, a candy toss each day and a playground for the youngsters.
As well, race fans can enjoy the live music of the Rocky Mountain Dixieland Jazz Band.


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Exploring Washington - October 11 - 17, 2021
We are excited to announce that we have space available on our Washington State trip this October. We are going to explore Washington State from Seattle to Spokane. We have heard about the Washington State Quilters quilt show that is in Spokane every autumn and decided it was time for a visit. There are a lot of other areas to explore so we will be traveling across the state via motor coach from Seattle to Leavenworth to Spokane.
Please contact Lynn at firstname.lastname@example.org for more details or call her at 760-408-3545.


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Amy Tan’s novel, The Joy Luck Club explores a variety of mother-daughter relationships between the characters, and at some level, relationships between friends, lovers, and even enemies. The mother-daughter relationships are most likely the different aspects of Amy Tan’s relationship with her mother, and perhaps, some parts are entirely figments of her imagination. Therefore, Amy Tan believes that ramification of cultures and tradition between a family can be burdensome and cause the family tree to fall apart.
From the beginning of the novel, we hear Suyuan Woo tell the story of “The Joy Luck Club,” a group started by some Chinese women during World War II. June explains while remembering the memories of her mother, ” ‘We feasted, we laughed, we played games, lost and won, we told the best stories…we could hope to be lucky. That hope was our only joy,’ ” (12). The mothers grew up during perilous times in China. They were raised to never forget an important outlook of their life, which was, “to desire nothing, to swallow other people’s misery, to eat [their] own bitterness” (241). For many years, the mother did not tell their daughters their stories until they were sure that their fractious offspring would listen. By then, it is almost too late to make them understand their heritage that their mother left behind in China. It seems that their family’s legacy cannot seize their imaginations after years, decades, and centuries of blissfulness and sorrow.
Through the eyes of the daughters, we can also see the continuation of the mother’s stories, how they learned to cope in America. With this, Amy Tan touches on an obscure, little discussed issue, which is the divergence of Chinese culture through American children born of Chinese immigrant parents. The Chinese-American daughters try their best to become “Americanized,” at the same time, casting off their heritage while their mothers watch in dismay. For example, after the piano talent show fiasco, a quarrel breaks out between June and Suyuan. June does not have the blind obedience “to desire nothing…to eat [her] own bitterness.” She says to herself, ” ‘I didn’t have to do what my mother said anymore. I wasn’t her slave. This wasn’t China’ ” (152). Unbeknownst to June, Suyuan only hopes and wants the best for her daughter. She explains, ” ‘Only one kind of daughter can live in this house.
Free Things They Carried Essays: Another World
Another World Portrayed in The Things They Carried
In several stories from The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien deals with the way that American soldiers of the Vietnam War related to being “in country,” or out of their own country and halfway across the world. O’Brien creates the concept that Vietnam and the war there is “another world” throughout the stories. None of the soldiers he writes about feel at home in Vietnam, and none of them successfully adapt emotionally to being so far from home.
O’Brien subtly introduces the concept of “another world” in the title story of the book. In describing how easy it would be for a soldier to give in to the pressures of war and just collapse on the trail, thereby getting sent home or to a hospital, the narrator says that “the chopper… would… carry you off to the world [italics added]” (21-22). The careful reader will pick up on O’Brien’s subtlety and realize that if the soldiers – for the narrator does speak for the soldiers as a collective – feel as if Vietnam is not in the world, then they must feel as if they are in “another world.”
This exact phrase is used later in the same story. When Lieutenant Cross is thinking about his girlfriend Martha, he chastizes himself for his useless fantasies. He thinks to himself that Vietnam is “not Mount Sebastian, it [is] another world” (24). Then in “How To Tell A True War Story,” O’Brien reiteraties the concept. The soldiers of the story are hearing music coming from afar, and the narrator describes it as “all very civilized, except this isn’t civilization. This is Nam” (74). This blunt statement captures the soldiers’ feelings that they are in “another world.” To them, Vietnam is a world without civilization; it is a world so different than the one they are accustomed to that they cannot function.
O’Brien returns to the “another world” idea once more in “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong.” As the narrator is describing the loss of Mary Anne’s feminitiy, O’Brien writes that “Cleveland Heights now seemed very far away” (98). Mary Anne has joined the world of Vietnam, the world of the war, and lost contact with the “real world.” This is the same thing that happened to O’Brien’s soldiers. Being in another world caused them to lose their ability to relate to their own world, and this manifested itself in veterans as soon as they came back from the war.

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- Celtic Connections
The Celtic Connections festival started in 1994 in
Glasgow, Scotland, and has since been held every January. Featuring over 300 concerts, ceilidhs, talks, free events, late night sessions and workshops, the festival focuses on the roots of traditional Scottish music and also features international folk, roots and world music artists. The festival is produced and promoted by Glasgow’s Concert Halls.
The Celtic Connections festival was founded by Colin Hynd in 1994 to fill a scheduling gap in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall's normally quiet post-Christmas period. The first festival took place in just one venue attracting around 32,000 people to attend.
In February 2004, Celtic Connections was presented with The Good Tradition Award at the
BBC Radio 2 Folk Awardsin recognition of its exceptional contribution to traditional music and culture. The festival also recently picked up a Nordoff Robbins Tartan Clef Award.
In its 13th year (2006), over 100,000 people filled 10 venues seeing hundreds of artists brought to Glasgow from every part of the globe.
The festival today
In 2008, Celtic Connections celebrated its 15th birthday, with festival attendances reaching 120,000 and events taking place across 14 venues throughout Glasgow over 19 days. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7226142.stm]
Celtic Connections brings in visitors from throughout the world and is an integral and vibrant part of cultural life in Glasgow, with the economic impact on the city reaching £5.8 million in 2007. The festival actively promotes artistic links and cultural exchange across countries, reinforced by Showcase Scotland which brought 200 music industry delegates from 35 different countries to Scotland looking to book Scottish bands for festivals abroad in 2008.
At the core of the festival is the Education Programme, which sees thousands of school children attend free morning concerts experiencing live music ranging from Burns to spiritual and blues. Celtic Connections also continues to foster new and young talent through its Young Tradition and New Voices series of concerts, and through the Danny Kyle Open Stage competition.
Every night of the festival, once the concerts are over, the late-night Celtic Connections Festival Club runs through to the small hours of the morning. No programme is announced in advance, and the club is renowned for one-off collaborations between musicians appearing at the festival.
Celtic Music Radiobroadcasts in the Glasgow area on 1530 kHz and on http://www.celticmusicradio.net, and is based in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall during the festival. Celtic Music Radio broadcasts around 7 hours of live material from the venue every day. This includes interviews with performers, reviews and previews of gigs, and live coverage of concerts, including every act on the Danny Kyle Open Stage.
The 2008 festival opened with the Common Ground concert where many of the artists taking part in the event performed together. Donald Shaw, artistic director of the festival, spoke about the future of Celtic Connections as well as the 1,000+ acts and 300+ events taking place in 2008 exclusively online. [http://www.scotlandontv.tv/scotland_on_tv/video.html?vxSiteId=60fdd544-9c52-4e17-be7e-57a2a2d76992&vxChannel=Exp%20Events&vxClipId=1380_SMG1690&vxBitrate=300]
Celtic Connections 2009 will run from Wednesday 14th January – Sunday 1st February.
Artists who have appeared at the festival in the past include include
Joan Baez, Bob Geldof, Clannad, Capercaillie, Kate Rusby, Sinéad O'Connor, Alison Krauss, Shane MacGowan, Runrig, Eddi Reader, Evelyn Glennie, Carlos Núñez, James Grant, Dougie MacLean, Billy Bragg, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Mariza, Seth Lakeman, The Clan Gregor Society Pipe Band, k.d. lang, Steve Earle, Idlewild, Teenage Fanclub, Snow Patrol, Bert Janschand Bernard Butler, and many more.
The focal point of the festival is the
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, where performances take place in every space, from workshops in the foyers, to performances by world-class artists in the Main Auditorium. The Old Fruitmarket, City Halls, ABC, The Tron, The Piping Centre, The Classic Grand and The Tall Ship also regularly host Celtic Connections concerts.
* [http://www.celticconnections.com/ Official site]
Culture in Glasgow
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
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The Robe of the Vipers was thought to be a mythical item; one of legends and stories. Any aspiring young mage will have heard of it, and most adventuring types will have come across the tales at some point in their journeys.
Long ago, an extremely talented young wizard named Crowley was studying at the university. He was advanced in all of his subjects and training, and was offered a position in the research lab among the finest professors upon his graduation. The governing wizards had high hopes for this young man, for not only were his physical abilities amazing, so was his sharp mind and his thirst for knowledge. He was eager to begin his researching and experiments and spent the majority of his waking moments in the library and archives looking for something that would present him with an opportunity to make his mark on history. For not only did he have a passion for his work, but also a taste for the spotlight and the perks it afforded. He had grown accostomed to the special treatment by his professors and the authorities granted him over some of the other students.
One day in the library, he came across some aged writings on an ancient species of exltremely large, highly intellegent vipers rumored to posess mystical powers. The blood of these evolved snakes was supposed to contain a high concentration of hormone which would essentially act as a catalyst/accelerator to most magical spells. In other words, if used properly, this blood could heighten the effectiveness and power of virtually any magic.
Equally as interesting to young wizard were the qualities of their venom. It was thought to be the most potent venom known to man. It effected the nervous system and the heart almost immediately, bringing on a state of complete paralysis while the heartrate accelerated to bursting. Interestingly enough, the only known antidote is the blood of the snake itself.
Though scholars had been searching for these snakes for centuries, Crowley vowed to find them and use their resources for his own gain. He had a small advantage that those before him did not: the compilation of all of the notes from everyone else, and a vastly improved mapping system of the realm. He studied for weeks that turned into months until he was sure that he had pinpointed the last known region of these ancient creatures. He was sure that even if they were extinct and he found only remains, he would still be able to extract what he needed to cultivate and harvest their “natural resources.”
To make a long journey short…Crowley *was* able to track down their ancient civilization deep in the heart of a barely accessable jungle. They resembled giant Hooded Cobras with shimmering gold sclaes. Upon finding the giant snakes, he discovered that they were willing to protect there existance at any cost. (Threre were just a few of them left.)
Crowley attacked that which he presumed to be the leader, the largest of the tribe with the greatest hood. It proved to be a long and grueling duel with magic flying everywhere. Finally, Crowley was able to best the creature, thrusting his dagger deep into the belly of the beast. As it fell, one of it’s fangs pierced Crowleys arm, rendering him helpless. The only thing that saved him was that the snake fell on him, it blood drenching him and some of it finding his rigid lips. Crowley survived, though from that moment on, the venom of the viper coursed through his veins.
Crowley then skinned his opponent and fashioned himself a robe that covered his entire body. The great head of the beast served as Crowley’s hood, the opening of it’s mouth being the place that allowed him to see.
When Crowley finally returned home, he seemed very different indeed. There was a look in his eye that the others had not before…at least not this intense. He bacame ever more conceited and arrogant. Wanting more and more authority in the school. He wore his Robe more and more often, proclaiming “Listen to me; I have mastered the great ancient race.” His appearance began to change as well. He took on many snake-like features and developed quite the lisp. Eventually he became so out of control that the other wizards were forced to subdue him. He lived a short time in the psychiatric institution, and there he died. Fearing that the Robe had something to do with his madness, and rightfully so, the council decided to destroy it rather than continue Crowley’s research and work with it. And so it was forever destroyed…or was it?
The Robe of the Vipers is a magical robe that bestows some of the powers of the ancient snakes unto its wearer.
**Wearer is able to understand and communicate with other snakes.
**If the wearer closes his eyes in the dark, he is able to see through the ruby colored eyes on the hood, although it is completely in shades of red.
**The fangs still produce a small amount of venom each day, and the wearer may attack with them and inject the venom into his victim once per day.
**The scales are thick and provide some natural armor to the wearer (at DM’s descretion); this is particularly useful to wizards as this robe does not in any way hender spell casting. In fact, due to the quality of the creature’s blood, mages might see a slight increase in their magical abilities (also at DM’s discretion).
The Robe also has a few long term effects that prove to be it’s downside.
**The more often the person wears the robe, the more he begins to physically take on snake-like qualities. His eyes will narrow; his nose will flatten, eventually becoming slits; his skin will dry out and begin to resemble scales, and it will take on a faint reptillian hue; his tongue will begin to fork, and his speech will contain drawn out S’s similar to a lisp.
**If worn for extended periods of time, the weared will eventually begin to go mad. This is due to the fact that when killed, the ancient creature was able to seal a small piece of his consciousness into his body. The longer the Robe is worn, the stronger his will gets, drawing off of the power of the wearer. Though he never audibly speaks, the wearer will begin to feel a presence and it is constantly tugging at him. At first he is able to brush it off, but eventually it overtakes him and he goes mad as he loses himself to the Robe.


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The 2009 Commission on Narcotic Drugs and its High Level Segment (HLS) marked the end of the 2-year process of the 10-year review of the 1998 United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on the World Drug Problem. The event was marked by the call of the President of Bolivia, Evo Morales, to remove the coca leaf from the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, which represented the first ever truly open challenge by any nation state to the structure of the international drug control system. The HLS adopted a new Political Declaration and Plan of Action. A dissenting Interpretative Statement by 26 countries on harm reduction, not mentioned in the Political Declaration, marked a clear divide in drug control approaches.
Ketamine is an essential medicine used for anaesthesia. It is the only available anaesthetic for essential surgery in most rural areas of developing countries, home to more than 2 billion of the world’s people. Scheduling ketamine will leave these populations with no alternative anaesthesia for essential surgery, and will further deepen the already acute crisis of global surgery.
Martin Jelsma, from the Transnational Institute, prepared an analysis for theLatin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy, explaining the drug policy situation in the European Union and the current state of debate in the United Nations agenda. The commission is an initiative born of former presidents Fernando Henrique Cardoso, from Brazil, César Gaviria, from Colombia and Ernesto Zedillo, from Mexico, to respond to concerns related to the problems of drug consumption and traffic in Latin America. The idea to constitute a commission capable of consolidating a debate concerning this problematic also responds to the necessity of reviewing the world drug policies in the scope of the United Nations, which began in March 2008.
Numerous UN conferences and summits have been devoted to negotiating a harmonized global approach to illicit drugs. Yet more and more cracks are beginning to appear in the supposedly universal model which is based on a highly fragile consensus. The failure to counter the ever-growing problems related to the use of illicit drugs has led countries to question current policies and to experiment with approaches less driven by the US-inspired ideology of "zero tolerance" and more rooted in pragmatism. This has led to increasing acceptance of the concept of harm reduction for consumers, where drug use is treated as a public health rather than a law enforcement problem. On the production side, discussion centers on the need to secure alternative livelihoods for involved farmer communities and how to most effectively promote alternative development.
Meetings of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) are no forum for debate and change. The author, a former senior officer of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP), shows how CND meetings are manipulated in the interests of 17 developed countries that largely fund UNDCP – the CND’s ‘civil service’. However, these major donors are not united on policy or on how to apply the UN drug Conventions, so CND decisions reflect the lowest level of disagreement, with major splits on policy ignored.
The Transnational Institute (TNI) attended the 59th session of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs in Vienna from the 14-22nd March. The CND negotiated the outcome document to be approved at the 2016 UNGASS on the world drug problem, to be held on April 19-21 in New York.
Reflections upon this year’s CND are mixed. On the one hand, some states went further than ever before in openly challenging the current regime on the grounds that, after a century, it needs modernising. That the government of Uruguay is currently considering a domestic policy on cannabis that would put it in breach of the Single Convention shows that, in one instance at least, we have moved beyond rhetoric and posturing.
Political representatives from over 130 countries gathered at a United Nations high level meeting in Vienna on March 11-12, 2009, to conclude a 2-year long review of progress achieved within the global drug control system. Despite calls from other UN agencies and international civil society urging the CND to affirm its support for harm reduction measures, and to rebalance the drug control system towards a public health and human rights approach, the new Political Declaration simply reaffirms the commitments of the 1998 UNGASS - repeating illusionary pledges for a society 'free of drug abuse' and setting another 10-year target date to eliminate or reduce significantly the illicit cultivation of opium poppy, coca bush and cannabis plant. This briefing paper examines the procedural and institutional factors that we believe have contributed to such a weak and incoherent outcome.
Scheduling ketamine would restrict its availability worldwide, which would lead to harmful impact on animal health and welfare, as well on public health. The World Medical Association is urging its 111 member associations to lobby their governments to oppose scheduling the anaesthetic agent Ketamine as a controlled drug.
The Transnational Institute (TNI) attends the 59th session of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs in Vienna from the 14-22nd March. This storify features tweets, blogs and news from the event. Our team in Vienna includes Martin Jelsma, Pien Metaal and Tom Blickman.
A useful overview of UN endorsement of harm reduction measures; the legality of harm reduction services under the Drug Conventions; the obligation in human rights law to ensure access to harm reduction services and the global state of harm reduction, listing 82 countries and territories worldwide that presently support or tolerate harm reduction.
The international drug control regime is facing the most profound challenge of its existence. Member states have for some time been experimenting with new responses to the ‘world drug problem’; however, the advent of legally regulated cannabis markets has resulted in a ratcheting up of these challenges to expose the system to new levels of strain. With the 2016 UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on the world drug problem fast approaching, how will the international community make use of the opportunity it provides for a free and open debate?
The year 2012 marks the centenary of the international drug control system and the first instance of a state being moved to denounce formally any of the UN drug control treaties. The 55th session of the Commission on Narcotics Drugs (CND), held in Vienna between 12th and 16th March, therefore looked set to be a fascinating event and did not disappoint. As expected, member states favouring the current regime praised its virtues and ongoing relevance 100 years since The Hague Opium Convention; behaviour that found support in the statements and positions of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB or Board).
The UN Commission considers to bring ketamine under the control of the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances contrary to WHO recommendations. The 58th Session of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) in March 2015 has been asked to consider a Chinese proposal to place ketamine – an essential medicine used for anaesthesia – in Schedule I of the 1971 Convention (E/CN.7/2015/7 and E/CN.7/2015/81). Ketamine is the only available anaesthetic for essential surgery in most rural areas of developing countries, home to more than 2 billion of the world’s people. Scheduling ketamine under any of the 1971 treaty schedules will reduce its availability and further deepen the already acute crisis of global surgery.
Major divisions over the global "war on drugs" have been revealed in a leaked draft of a UN document setting out the organisation's long-term strategy. The draft, written in September shows there are serious divisions over the longstanding US-led policy promoting prohibition as an solution to the problem. Instead, a number of countries are pushing for the "war on drugs" to be seen in a different light, placing greater emphasis on treating drug consumption as a public health problem, rather than a criminal justice matter. (See also: Drug control policies are changing: Why? And why has it taken so long?)
In March 2014, country delegations will gather at the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) to review progress and challenges in international drug control since the agreement of a Political Declaration on drugs in 2009. Given that the Political Declaration aims to “eliminate or reduce significantly” the use, supply and demand of controlled drugs by 2019, this meeting represents an important opportunity for honest evaluation and an acknowledgement that these targets are not being achieved. With a United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on drugs just two years away, this is an important time for international drug control policy.
The Hungarian Civil Liberties Union (HCLU) made some interesting video news items on the Commission on Narcotic Drugs. In this one leading civils society spokespersons comment Mr. Costa, the UNODC Executive Director, opening speech. Costa's opening speech was somewhat surprising in that he coincided on some points that have been raised by civil society groups over the past years. He stressed that too many people in prison, and too few in health services; that there are too few resources for prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation; and that there is too much eradication of drug crops, and not enough eradication of poverty.
Our worries about a possible censorship of Mr. Costa's Conference Room Paper "Making drug control 'fit for purpose': Building on the UNGASS decade" are unfounded. It is now available at the UNODC website.
Allan Clear of the Harm Reduction Coalition made an urgent appeal on the Obama White House to intervene in the current negotiations about the Political Declaration on the 1998 UNGASS review that has to be adopted in March 2009 at the High Level Segment of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND). For more than two million people living with HIV, mainly in Africa, hopes are high for a change in Obama's foreign policy.


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The impressive rocks between the streets Helsinginkatu and Josafatinkatu border a popular park for sunbathing and picnics that is connected to Tauno Palo Park. According to the city plan of 1901, the area was zoned for buildings, but nothing happened for decades. Instead, the rocks were used by local children for playing, as well as by local residents for drying clothes. In the early 1900s, working class women could earn extra income by washing clothes for the upper and middle classes.
The statue “The Worker Mother” on the corner of Sturenkatu and Läntinen Brahenkatu honours these women. Designed by Panu Patomäki (1949–), the bronze statue was unveiled on Mothers’ Day, 12 May 1996.
The rocks were in danger of being blasted when new apartment buildings were planned in the 1970s, but locals organised themselves to oppose the plans. A memorial plaque to this movement can be seen on the side of a rock next to Helsinginkatu.
The valley along which Helsinginkatu now runs was originally known as the “Valley of Jehoshaphat” (Josafatinlaakso) and gave its name to the street Josafatinkatu and the rocks. Biblical names were used frequently in the remote areas to the north of the city centre in the 1800s. According to Joel 3:2, the Valley of Jehosaphat is where the God of Israel will gather all nations for judgment.
The splendid rocks in the park are enhanced by plants. Groups of trees, such as cherry trees, have been planted in the corners of the park. At the intersection of Helsinginkatu and Kirstinkatu is a low wall that separates the park from the streets. On top of the cliff a small pond was built around which perennials grow. A small relaxation area can be found at the end of the stream that flows out of the pond.
The park has a playground, as well as a small stage and performance space that were built on the adjacent slope. Between the rocks are small lawns for recreation. A small play area with sand can be found at the eastern end of the park.

domain: travel