My new play is lumbering to be born: #Expensive. About Nimbyism, protest, art, jade eggs and wee. And saving the planet. Or not.

There is a dirty, funny, wild thing in the cauldron, splattering all over the walls. Now it’s climbing out onto the page.

Wordpress just did the “memory thing”, sharing this 9-year old post about housework, focus and discipline. For everyone who has distractions, this is for us: I’m doing The Artist’s Way all over again, straight after completing the 1st go-round. And now, just reading The Artist’s Way for Parents, I’ve had … Tales From The Midden

Your leisure choices matter.

Got a bit of a shock when I opened Facebook this morning. Saw this.... It's a cutting from The Guardian Guide...

Disappointment’s bitter slap really took me by surprise…

The pair co-star in this world premiere stage production

What’s a freak? It’s anyone or anything worth talking about, and peering at, for its exposed so-called ‘weirdness’. Those best friends in Central Perk cafe are freaks (and that’s before the Meat Trifle). That Lear bloke who cast out his loving youngest daughter for not being a toady.  Dracula, well - obviously. Madame Bovary - a monster, and delicious. Horror doesn’t have the monopoly on freaks and that, friends, is very helpful indeed. 

The pair co-star in this world premiere stage production

What’s a freak? It’s anyone or anything worth talking about, and peering at, for its exposed so-called ‘weirdness’. Those best friends in Central Perk cafe are freaks (and that’s before the Meat Trifle). That Lear bloke who cast out his loving youngest daughter for not being a toady.  Dracula, well - obviously. Madame Bovary - a monster, and delicious. Horror doesn’t have the monopoly on freaks and that, friends, is very helpful indeed. 

I’m sitting on a late night train out of Bristol - my other-home since I moved to Bath from London in the economically adventurous summer of 2007. The plan was to be here for just one year, then return. But both Bath and Bristol were too creatively welcoming for me to be able to resist. Creativity demands headspace (in Norwegian, “krever” - akin to “craves”).

….and if you do this, you are paying heed to that gorgeous, complex, frustrating-as-hell, magnificent universe that is you. That’s all.

“ONE TIME, IT WENT LIKE THIS. “Time of death, twelve twenty-three.” He looks again at the head wound. Why can’t he make it make sense? He did not, could not, he still cannot find that bloody bullet. Entry wound, but no exit. Now she’s finally dead, it’s tempting to get stuck in. But he’s been here before. The pen-pushers dislike a messy body. But it must be there. Sod it. The woman is dead….”

“ONE TIME, IT WENT LIKE THIS. “Time of death, twelve twenty-three.” He looks again at the head wound. Why can’t he make it make sense? He did not, could not, he still cannot find that bloody bullet. Entry wound, but no exit. Now she’s finally dead, it’s tempting to get stuck in. But he’s been here before. The pen-pushers dislike a messy body. But it must be there. Sod it. The woman is dead….”

Following the video of the other day, some sound. Short. Sweet.

Fewer words; more feeling.

Tips and resources to get the energy going when it’s time to rewrite…

Tips and resources to get the energy going when it’s time to rewrite…

Tips and resources to get the energy going when it’s time to rewrite…

Give me 4 minutes of your time by completing a survey for me, and I will reward you with 6 minutes of free, super-sizzling storytelling. That’s gotta be a win, right?

‘the increase of 71 is the settlement of a colony of Highlanders, who had been forced to emigrate from Strathnaver, where their farms were converted into sheep pasture.’ – The Sta…

Give me 4 minutes of your time by completing a survey for me, and I will reward you with 6 minutes of free, super-sizzling storytelling. That's gotta be a win, right?

Give me 4 minutes of your time by completing a survey for me, and I will reward you with 6 minutes of free, super-sizzling storytelling. That's gotta be a win, right?

I’ve been floored by a lurgy – the culmination of a couple of weeks sliding grimly under the weather. The b*gger of it is that it’s a big work week with family obligations. But as…

YouTube video by Tom Bates

YouTube video by The Tom Lehrer Wisdom Channel

Tell me something that drives you mad when people do it. Not a crime. Not cruelty. Just one of those small social laws we all obey without thinking. Talking during a play? Not having your ticket re…

Tell me something that drives you mad when people do it. Not a crime. Not cruelty. Just one of those small social laws we all obey without thinking. Talking during a play? Not having your ticket re…

From Bagpuss to The Owl Service, BEN FINLAY celebrates the odder corners of old-school kids’ TV.