OneGuyFromBarlick

I usually enjoy watching Who Do You Think You Are but have just switched off in disgust at Kate Winslet's histrionics at finding the child of an ancestor died at 5 years old in the early 19th century. Wow, that was unusual.

I'd saved it to watch tonight Wendy. Not often you get upset like that so I have to watch it!

Wendyf wrote: ↑12 Aug 2019, 20:42 Kate Winslet's histrionics at finding the child of an ancestor died at 5 years old in the early 19th century. Wow, that was unusual.

Once talked to a elderly lady who said she had had 9 children. God got 5 and I got 4. As a child I remember my pals mother losing her baby at a very early age. The coffin was set near the front room window so that neighbours could pay their respect without having to go into the house.

Wendyf wrote: ↑12 Aug 2019, 20:42 I usually enjoy watching Who Do You Think You Are but have just switched off in disgust at Kate Winslet's histrionics at finding the child of an ancestor died at 5 years old in the early 19th century. Wow, that was unusual.

I stuck with it, but I thought she went way over the top. Some of the actors always seem to have to over act.

It's the history relating to slavery and POW camps that upset me. Sometimes it makes it still feel so close.

Such things affect me still Cathy.
I watched Winslett and thought that her reactions indicated that a) She was over acting all the time and b) That she has no reference for what she was hearing apart from her own self-interest. She had no concept of frame of reference and judged everything by her own standards. I switched her off also, it was all about her and her feelings and not the ancestors.
Inside the Factory was good on croissants.....

There's a lot of fuss being made recently about a drama called 'Peaky Blinders' .
I haven't watched it but I understand it's about a gang in early 20th century, in the Small Heath area of Birmingham who have as their trademark, razor blades sewn into the peaks of their flat caps in order to use them as a weapon and blind people. Sounds a lot of fun.

I found this about Small Heath as it is today. Perhaps in a hundred years there will be another drama about these drugs and stabbing gangs.

I do try not to be too po faced and sanctimonious, but I won't be watching.

These Jim Al-Kalili programmes are fun and Stanley will probably enjoy No.2, The Car, which starts from scratch (think huskies) and goes via steam engines to the car. Revolutions: The Ideas that Changed the World

I watched part of one of the early episodes of Peaky Blinders David and it didn't float my boat. In my days in the army and on the tramp I mixed with the real thing and they were nothing like the TV portrayal.
I'll have a search for that Tiz. Thanks for the tip.

We have a friend who has nattered us to death to watch Peaky Blinders, we have since watched all the episodes, and love it. I think it's a marmite thing though, you either love it or hate it.

I haven't watched it because the main actor just makes me cringe, I can't watch him in anything and have to avert my eyes from photos. No idea why, there is just something about his features which ring alarm bells in my brain!

We are with Gloria on Peaky Blinders, looking forward to the next series start this weekend.

Any drama with Cillian Murphy and Tom Hardy, (who is excellent as Alfie the Jew), is he dead or not? has to be good. We have watched it from the first episode and is not just about the fighting. WWI PTSD damaged brothers, Mr Churchill driving an Irish policeman to chase a missing armament shipment (Tommy has it), undercover female operatives, fingers in many pies included controlling betting and fixing horse races, the gypsy in Tommy and his extended family all help here. Ripping yarns and some pretty good acting along the way, what is not to like. You can get the whole lot on catch up. Marmite worth watching.

I just read this - Not sure I still fully believe it, but it makes it all a little bit better. Still won't watch it.

"The popular story is that their name came from the razor blades in their caps. Historian Carl Chinn (via Birmingham Mail) suggested that this is most likely a myth. Razor blades were only starting to be used in the 1890s and so were prohibitively expensive at the time. It's much more likely their name came from the peaks of their caps and the fact that 'blinder' was slang for their well-dressed appearance."

The favourites in the 1950s were the Gillette double sided blades. The holes in the middle were just right for sewing them in. On the docks they had their sack hooks hung in their coat collars at the back of their neck. They came in handy as well.



This example is blunt, to be useful they had needle sharp points on the hooks. I lost mine years ago, very handy for saving your finger ends when you were loading stuff in sacks.

This radio 4 programme is worth a listen. It's not only lots of funny impressions but has a serious side too.
`Archive on 4: Losing My Voice' LINK
`Jan Ravens has been "doing" Theresa May for five years - until, in July, she was succeeded by Boris Johnson. Inspired by this, Jan takes a personal look at the connection between an impersonator and their subjects, and what happens when their signature character retires form public life. The archive includes material from Mike Yarwood, Spitting Image and Dead Ringers, and there are new interviews with Rory Bremner and star of Comedy Central's The President Show, Anthony Atamanuik.'

I'm watching the Edinburgh Military Tattoo. I had fond memories of taking the kids to Earls Court to see the English version. That was a long time ago, and even then was a stonking bargain at £3 for an unreserved seat.

Lots of unexpected smoke and bangs, Royal Marines abseiling from the roof to rescue hostages, Motor bike display teams , the Household Cavalry Musical Ride, horses pulling gun carriages at breakneck speed, the Royal Navy gun carriage race - result sent to every RN ship in the world immediately, - we all still sometimes shout 'come on Pompey'.

Now tonight I've seen - a Nigerian marching band with 'cultural display, the Trinidad and Tobago marching steel band with flaming limbo dancer , a childrens' choir, hundreds of folk dancers, the Bundeswehr singing about hunting, and the Beijing Wind Band and cultural display . (Doing a recce?).

All a wonderful spectacle, but 'Military'? Do me a favour.

I admit to being a queer fish. Demonstrations of military prowess depress me, a bit too Jingoistic.

Wendyf wrote: ↑12 Aug 2019, 20:42 I usually enjoy watching Who Do You Think You Are but have just switched off in disgust at Kate Winslet's histrionics at finding the child of an ancestor died at 5 years old in the early 19th century. Wow, that was unusual.

Paul Merton's on tonight. Interesting story only really going back a few (well 150 odd) years. Partly to my ancestral area of Waterford, the Power (or De Poer) family were a mix of landed ex-normans if you follow them back with many in local adminisitration, but such a wide family that the agricultural labourers were also from the same roots too, not mentioned as such in the program. ( I am not from the Power family, but one was in business c1775 with one of my ancestors in Waterford City)

Last night's programme on Paul Merton restored my faith in Who Do You Think You Are, it was interesting and understated with no histrionics, even when a workhouse was mentioned!

I have saved it for tonight as usual..... I'm falling asleep by 21:00.

I agree Wendy. I watched it and thought it was a good one.

Wendy, we'll be watching the Paul Merton programme tonight, he's one of my favourites and it'll be interesting to know more about him and his ancestors. Mrs Tiz said she agreed with you about the Kate Winslet programme.

Here's a fascinating programme worth watching. LINK It's entertaining, the filming is great and it's unusual in being home-based instead of in a laboratory.
`The Octopus in My House' (Natural World, BBC2)
`A professor develops an extraordinary relationship with an octopus when he invites it to live in his home. The octopus, called Heidi, unravels puzzles, recognises individual humans and even watches TV with the family. The episode also shows remarkable behaviour from around the world - from the day octopus, which can change colour and texture in a split second, to the coconut octopus, which carries around its own coconut shell to hide in. But most fascinating of all is seeing how Professor David Scheel and his daughter Laurel bond with an animal that has nine brains, three hearts and blue blood running through its veins.'

Something at the back of my one brain is telling me about an octopus that foretold football results. Or am I dreaming....

Tizer wrote: ↑30 Aug 2019, 09:02 and blue blood running through its veins

It's spooky time again.

One of the questions on Tipping Point yesterday was What colour is octopus blood?

The predicting octopus was Paul the predicting Octopus

That was it David....
Belgian Grand Prix at Spa will be interesting today....