History
Dame Vera Lynn
07/04/10 08:50 Filed in: Announcement
Last week, as part of preparation for Warbirds Over Wanaka I had the honour and privilege of interviewing Dame Vera Lynn in London.
Sprightly at 93, she was an absolute joy to talk to.
As well as discussing her time in London during the Blitz I asker her my burning question.
“How does it feel after so many years to hear We’ll Meet Again. Is it as relevant today as it was when you first sang it”?
This was her response..........
Podcast
Sprightly at 93, she was an absolute joy to talk to.
As well as discussing her time in London during the Blitz I asker her my burning question.
“How does it feel after so many years to hear We’ll Meet Again. Is it as relevant today as it was when you first sang it”?
This was her response..........
Podcast
0 Comments
Happy New Year
01/01/10 12:12 Filed in: Garden | Photography
As 2010 dawns I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of you a very Happy New Year. May it bring you all that you wish and dream. I start the New Year with some of my favourite verse from my favourite poet, Sir John Betjeman. I think it fits nicely with the image below.
Verses Turned...
Across the wet November night
The church is bright with candlelight
And waiting Evensong.
A single bell with plaintive strokes
Pleads louder than the stirring oaks
The leafless lanes along.
It calls the choirboys from their tea
And villagers, the two or three,
Damp down the kitchen fire,
Let out the cat, and up the lane
Go paddling through the gentle rain
Of misty Oxfordshire.
How warm the many candles shine
Of Samuel Dowbiggin's design
For this interior neat,
These high box pews of Georgian days
Which screen us from the public gaze
When we make answer meet;
How gracefully their shadow falls
On bold pilasters down the walls
And on the pulpit high.
The chandeliers would twinkle gold
As pre-Tractarian sermons roll'd
Doctrinal, sound and dry.
From that west gallery no doubt
The viol and serpent tooted out
The Tallis tune to Ken,
And firmly at the end of prayers
The clerk below the pulpit stairs
Would thunder out "Amen."
But every wand'ring thought will cease
Before the noble altarpiece
With carven swags array'd,
For there in letters all may read
The Lord's Commandments, Prayer and Creed,
And decently display'd.
On country mornings sharp and clear
The penitent in faith draw near
And kneeling here below
Partake the heavenly banquet spread
Of sacramental Wine and Bread
And Jesus' presence know.
And must that plaintive bell in vain
Plead loud along the dripping lane?
And must the building fall?
Not while we love the church and live
And of our charity will give
Verses Turned...
Across the wet November night
The church is bright with candlelight
And waiting Evensong.
A single bell with plaintive strokes
Pleads louder than the stirring oaks
The leafless lanes along.
It calls the choirboys from their tea
And villagers, the two or three,
Damp down the kitchen fire,
Let out the cat, and up the lane
Go paddling through the gentle rain
Of misty Oxfordshire.
How warm the many candles shine
Of Samuel Dowbiggin's design
For this interior neat,
These high box pews of Georgian days
Which screen us from the public gaze
When we make answer meet;
How gracefully their shadow falls
On bold pilasters down the walls
And on the pulpit high.
The chandeliers would twinkle gold
As pre-Tractarian sermons roll'd
Doctrinal, sound and dry.
From that west gallery no doubt
The viol and serpent tooted out
The Tallis tune to Ken,
And firmly at the end of prayers
The clerk below the pulpit stairs
Would thunder out "Amen."
But every wand'ring thought will cease
Before the noble altarpiece
With carven swags array'd,
For there in letters all may read
The Lord's Commandments, Prayer and Creed,
And decently display'd.
On country mornings sharp and clear
The penitent in faith draw near
And kneeling here below
Partake the heavenly banquet spread
Of sacramental Wine and Bread
And Jesus' presence know.
And must that plaintive bell in vain
Plead loud along the dripping lane?
And must the building fall?
Not while we love the church and live
And of our charity will give
ANZAC Day
23/04/09 21:02 Filed in: New Zealand
The 25th April is a milestone date for New Zealand and Australia. It was on this day in 1915 that the combined forces of these two countries stormed the beaches of Gallipoli to achieve a victory that was strategically impossible but created in this maelstrom of war a day to remember - a terrible day that would serve to commemorate many terrible days that would follow.
The 25th April is the day that we as a country pause and remember all of those young men and woman, a lost generation, flesh and blood, that fought for a cause that they had the courage to stand up for.
In my day job I have had the honour and privilege to know some of these people and it is a memory that will stay with me for the rest of my life. It is a privilege - there is no better way to say it.
Yesterday I co-hosted the TV-3 ANZAC Day programme with Oliver Driver. Oliver and I had fun- we talked - we discussed - we listened. Listen is the only important word.
Lest We Forget.
Gentlemen - thank you - our heroes.
Watch this Saturday the 25th April on TV-3 at 7-00am.
The 25th April is the day that we as a country pause and remember all of those young men and woman, a lost generation, flesh and blood, that fought for a cause that they had the courage to stand up for.
In my day job I have had the honour and privilege to know some of these people and it is a memory that will stay with me for the rest of my life. It is a privilege - there is no better way to say it.
Yesterday I co-hosted the TV-3 ANZAC Day programme with Oliver Driver. Oliver and I had fun- we talked - we discussed - we listened. Listen is the only important word.
Lest We Forget.
Gentlemen - thank you - our heroes.
Watch this Saturday the 25th April on TV-3 at 7-00am.
Pubs with Personality
To be released later this month is a wonderful guidebook to some special places in New Zealand.
Entitled “Pubs with Personality”, the guide features 150 pubs in New Zealand that have that little bit extra, with a good personality and a welcoming ale.
One of the authors is my friend Peter Janssen, retired Managing Director of Reed Publishing in New Zealand. Peter started me off with the Warbirds Over Wanaka book series in 1998 and he has been a great supporter. A very witty, eloquent person - this book also reflects his great personality.
The book will be available in all good book stores. A great guide with something special for me - the cover is one of my images of “Formally The Blackball Hilton” at Blackball on the West Coast of the South Island.
Entitled “Pubs with Personality”, the guide features 150 pubs in New Zealand that have that little bit extra, with a good personality and a welcoming ale.
One of the authors is my friend Peter Janssen, retired Managing Director of Reed Publishing in New Zealand. Peter started me off with the Warbirds Over Wanaka book series in 1998 and he has been a great supporter. A very witty, eloquent person - this book also reflects his great personality.
The book will be available in all good book stores. A great guide with something special for me - the cover is one of my images of “Formally The Blackball Hilton” at Blackball on the West Coast of the South Island.
Rievaulx Abbey
28/08/08 10:31 Filed in: Travel | Photography
Rievaulx Abbey is a former Cistercian abbey, headed by the Abbot of Rievaulx, located in the small village of Rievaulx (pronounced 'Ree-voh'), near Helmsley in North Yorkshire, England.
When Rievaulx Abbey was founded in 1132 by twelve monks from Clairvaux Abbey as a mission centre for the colonisation of the north of England and Scotland, it was the first Cistercian abbey in the north. With time it became one of the great Cistercian abbeys of Yorkshire, second only to Fountains Abbey in fame.
Image processed with Photomatix Pro and Lightroom 2.
When Rievaulx Abbey was founded in 1132 by twelve monks from Clairvaux Abbey as a mission centre for the colonisation of the north of England and Scotland, it was the first Cistercian abbey in the north. With time it became one of the great Cistercian abbeys of Yorkshire, second only to Fountains Abbey in fame.
Image processed with Photomatix Pro and Lightroom 2.
A Proud Tradition
17/06/08 14:48 Filed in: Travel
A brief update. We return to New Zealand today but I just had to post these two images taken at the wonderful Kemble Air Day last Sunday.
One of the highlights of this trip has been commentating the amazing Typhoon which is now in service with the RAF. The aeroplane is special in itself but what makes it amazing is the display pilot this year. Flight Lieutenant Charlie Matthews is from Wanaka, New Zealand. This is cool as well but the really special thing is that Charlie is the nephew of my closest friend Tom Middleton.
Tom was sadly killed in a tragic accident in Wanaka. He would have been so proud of Charlie but as I commentated I could feel Tom standing beside me with one of his favourite quotes - this is fantastic matey.
What a magical moment to see Charlie carrying on the proud tradition of his family and aeroplanes and the proud tradition of New Zealanders flying with the RAF.
What a wonderful time it has been. More updates when I get back to NZ.
One of the highlights of this trip has been commentating the amazing Typhoon which is now in service with the RAF. The aeroplane is special in itself but what makes it amazing is the display pilot this year. Flight Lieutenant Charlie Matthews is from Wanaka, New Zealand. This is cool as well but the really special thing is that Charlie is the nephew of my closest friend Tom Middleton.
Tom was sadly killed in a tragic accident in Wanaka. He would have been so proud of Charlie but as I commentated I could feel Tom standing beside me with one of his favourite quotes - this is fantastic matey.
What a magical moment to see Charlie carrying on the proud tradition of his family and aeroplanes and the proud tradition of New Zealanders flying with the RAF.
What a wonderful time it has been. More updates when I get back to NZ.
The Best Beer in the World
12/06/08 04:53 Filed in: Travel
There are a lot of things I really like about England. One of my real favourites though is the beer. None of this Fosters or other imports for me - give me real English ale. Yesterday we visited Hook Norton; a beautiful village in the Cotswolds that has the added advantage of having a real ale brewery. Hook Norton produce a number of different brews and it was a real treat to see where they are made. A fine old building steeped in history and a great little pub around the corner. What more could you ask for.
