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Richard

@vicdon.bsky.social
548 followers 2.7K following 2.4K posts

Not Vic (but I lived there), not Don (but I am one). Will write for money, or just for the hell of it. richardwatt.ca bairnsotherevolution.substack.com

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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Midweek #Bairns features a mixed night in Europe, a wild journey to Orient, a flood, a riot and a collapsing pound. You get your money's worth here: bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/heroes-and...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Heroes and Villains
European glory, survival, and abject failure. All on the same night.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I'm nearing the end of #BBCTelevisionShakespeare, but the quality remains high with a gripping #Coriolanus, all sweaty homoerotic closeups and off-centre framing. Great performances all round, but most enjoyably from Valentine Dyall's inimitable voice letterboxd.com/film/the-tra...
letterboxd.com
The Tragedy of Coriolanus (1984)
A banished hero of Rome allies with a sworn enemy to take his revenge on the city.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
For some reason, I woke up with the notion that it was time for a rebrand on the Bairns site. I’m sure I could have done it in AI in about five minutes, but I used to be part of a collective who published a fanzine, so it was time to get out the virtual Letraset and go fully DIY.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Things I've missed since the World Cup ended: overexcited commentators yelling about "Yamine Lamal". Also, I remember teaching ten-year-olds never to turn into trouble. Doesn't apply at this level, apparently. #ENGESP
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
This week in #Bairns - I start a campaign to bring fractions back, Scottish teams pay large sums to referees and something close to normal service is resumed. Oh, and we're still not good at being racially sensitive. In 1976, to be clear. bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/home-again...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Home Again, ‘Cross The Sea
Entirely funded by Scottish football clubs.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I'm as excited as ever by #ScottishFootball from 50 years ago, but a lot of fans seem to have drifted away, partly because they bought a car which was the wrong colour. Also, tactics and coaching are ruining the game. bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/giving-up?...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Giving Up
Is there too much football? Surely not.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
#CriterionChallenge 38 involved a random letter generator, which delivered the letter X. Exactly one film was available - the extraordinary 1975 Senegalese satire, Xala. Utterly fascinating, genuinely funny in places and a cameo from Youssou N'Dour. Recommended. letterboxd.com/film/xala/
letterboxd.com
Xala (1975)
A rich businessman in Senegal is cursed with crippling erectile dysfunction upon the day of his marriage to his third wife; the only cure is brutal public humiliation.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
#BBCTelevisionShakespeare 31 was a valiant attempt at #2GentlemenOfVerona. Not entirely successful, mainly because of the source material, to be fair. Made in 1983, so Proteus and Valentine are basically George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, but both are solid, unlike/ letterboxd.com/film/the-two...
letterboxd.com
The Two Gentlemen of Verona (1983)
Two great friends leave Verona for Milan, Valentine with great enthusiasm and Proteus unwillingly, as he will have to leave his recently-betrothed Julia. Valentine soon falls in love with Silvia,…
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Weekend #Bairns examines the way Scotland had different rules for substitutes in 1976 than the rest of the country. Also, inflation is back out of control, and a quarter of the global population standing at attention. Oh, and #Clydebank! bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/a-manager-...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
A Manager Mister Told Me I Got What It Takes
But only off the bench for the last ten minutes
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
50 years ago, Scottish teams exploded into European action. No, not 'exploded', 'collapsed'. This week featuring dubious quality video evidence. Midweek #Bairns also discovers that I once saw #Orient play football. bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/like-a-sad...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Like A Sad Song
That sound? It’s the air coming out of our European dreams
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
#CriterionChallenge 75 was another 'choose from this list' one - list to follow in thread. From a pretty comprehensive list, I did the less obvious thing, and went with 'Head', because how many of us can say they've actually sat down and watched it? Well, I have now. letterboxd.com//film/head/
letterboxd.com
Head (1968)
In this surrealistic and free-form follow-up to the Monkees' television show, the band frolic their way through a series of musical set pieces and vignettes containing humor and anti-establishment…
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Long overdue light relief to all the history and tragedy of recent weeks, today's #BBCTelevisionShakespeare was a frothy yet expertly crafted #ComedyOfErrors Both sets of twins doubled by Michael Kitchen and a startlingly effective Roger Daltrey, this had me/ letterboxd.com/film/the-com...
letterboxd.com
The Comedy of Errors (1983)
Aegeon of Syracuse has come to Ephesus to seek his son, who went in search of his missing twin and mother months ago. Too bad that Ephesus has just declared war on Syracuse, and will instantly put to…
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
As I was still running a little behind on the #CriterionChallenge, I added in one from the next topic: Glorious Restorations (full list in next post). Quite unlike anything I've ever seen before, this is a mesmerising Kazakh historical drama: letterboxd.com/film/the-fal...
letterboxd.com
The Fall of Otrar (1991)
A staggering historical epic about the intrigue and turmoil of the East Asian civilization of Otrar, before its systematic destruction at the hands of Genghis Khan.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
The news headlines from 1976 are horrific, but three of this weekend's fixtures are happening for the third time in five weeks, so that's a nice distraction. Also, someone took a Super 8 camera to #SomersetPark, so this weekend's #Bairns has video! bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/cant-get-b...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Can’t Get By Without You
Well, hello again; you look familiar.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
This week's #BBCTelevisionShakespeare was the long-awaited #Macbeth, which did not disappoint; Nicol Williamson and Jane Lapotaire giving intense and idiosyncratic interpretations which shone new light on a well-known text. The set was cold and dark, as it should be. letterboxd.com/film/macbeth...
letterboxd.com
Macbeth (1983)
Macbeth and his wife murder Duncan in order to gain his crown, but the bloodbath doesn't stop there, and things supernatural combine to bring the Macbeths down.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Midweek #Bairns is all about the fun #Scotland had thrashing their amateur opponents - featuring a couple of familiar names. Not everyone was thrilled, sadly, but when were the Scottish papers ever happy? In other news, strikes and dangerous sport bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/fun-fun-fu...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Fun, Fun, Fun
Until the PM calls the navy in
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
#CriterionChallenge 35 was 1950s. Following a conversation about it a few weeks ago, I chose the magnificent 4K restoration of The Wages of Fear. Everything you've heard about it is true - never has there been a more tense 2.5 hours. Magnifique. letterboxd.com/film/the-wag...
letterboxd.com
The Wages of Fear (1953)
In a run-down South American town, four men are paid to drive trucks loaded with nitroglycerin into the jungle through to the oil field. Friendships are tested and rivalries develop as they embark…
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
The #BeeGees usher in the 1976-77 season in inimitable style; there's video evidence of hilariously bad defending, Joe Harper has a new nickname, and we still appear to objectify women. Sigh. It's 1976 in full colour, with Muppets: bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/you-should...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
You Should Be Dancing
The new season is finally here!
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Just been cleaning my great-grandfather’s WW1 medals:
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
#BBCTelevisionShakespeare 28 was #Cymbeline. Allowing for the fact that it's essentially bonkers, and the production (unusually for these) hacked about with the script, I thought it more or less stuck the various endings. / letterboxd.com/film/cymbeli...
letterboxd.com
Cymbeline (1983)
Cymbeline, the King of Britain, is angry that his daughter Imogen has chosen a poor (but worthy) man for her husband. So he banishes Posthumus, who goes to fight for Rome. Imogen (dressed as a boy)…
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
This week's midweek #Bairns celebrates the end of the phony war and anticipates some actual football breaking out. There's a SHOCK TRANSFER, a mysterious quarter-final draw, and the world's going to hell in a handbasket, but what else is new? bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/the-boys-a...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
The Boys Are Back
Well, almost - roll on Saturday.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
#CriterionChallenge 34 was "2010s", which turned out not to be a huge list, given I want them to be first watch and available on the Criterion Channel. I went with Noah Baumbach, because of course I did. I think I'll like it more in retrospect, but/ letterboxd.com/film/frances...
letterboxd.com
Frances Ha (2012)
An aspiring dancer moves to New York City and becomes caught up in a whirlwind of flighty fair-weather friends, diminishing fortunes and career setbacks.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Now here’s a blast from my past. Not sure how #Hanuta makes its way to our little island pharmacy, but I had to buy one for old times sake. No #Tronky, though. #Ferrero
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
This week, the shame of Scottish Football 1976 style. And I don't mean St. Johnstone. Well, not entirely. Read about the Battle of Brechin alongside all the usual nonsense in this week's #Bairns bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/shame-sham...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Shame, Shame, Shame
H-O-T or not? You decide.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Completing the Wars of the Roses quadralogy, this week's #BBCTelevisionShakespeare was Richard III. As with the three Henry VI plays, this was highly stylised, but the four parts work as a magnificent whole, with barely a line cut in these huge difficult plays letterboxd.com/film/the-tra...
letterboxd.com
The Tragedy of Richard III (1983)
Richard Duke of Gloucester, youngest brother of King Edward IV, will stop at nothing to get the crown. He first convinces the ailing King that the Duke of Clarence, his elder brother, is a threat to…
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Midweek #Bairns answers the question on everyone's lips - what does the top-flight Scottish football manager drive to work every day? Also, St. Johnstone fans may be in for another long season. Meanwhile, a Minister for Drought: bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/tonights-t...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Tonight’s The Night
... when we crash out of the League Cup. Probably.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
I've missed several weeks, but #CriterionChallenge no. 33 was simply 'War'. Avoiding the more obvious conflicts, I went for Bruce Beresford's unflinching "'Breaker' Morant". Tremendous performances all round, especially Edward Woodward and Bryan Brown. letterboxd.com/film/breaker...
letterboxd.com
Breaker Morant (1980)
During the Boer War, three Australian lieutenants are on trial for shooting Boer prisoners. Though they acted under orders, they are being used as scapegoats by the General Staff, who hopes to…
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Weekend #Bairns, in which we discover that half the teams in Scotland are already concentrating on the league, potatoes are going up, and attendances going down. Also, not one but two pieces of music. bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/you-dont-h...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
You Don’t Have To Go
In fact, I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Must have driven down Foothills on average a couple of times a day for ten years; somewhat surreal to see it make the national news: www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
cbc.ca
1 dead after plane makes emergency landing on Prince George road, crashes into vehicle | CBC News
Prince George RCMP have confirmed that a person has died after a plane made an emergency landing Thursday on Foothills Boulevard, about 1.5 kilometres north of North Nechako Road.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Midweek #Bairns asks just how early in a #ScottishFootball season is it reasonable to panic? Also, I try to explain the US election process as well as the overwhelming popularity of a Greek bloke in a kaftan. bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/lost-in-a-...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Lost in a Dream
Or, if you’re Motherwell, a nightmare.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
Weekend #Bairns investigates the second (of three) start to the 1976 #ScottishFootball season - this time with alarming new kits, not enough fans or goals, and a warning about the new craze which is going to kill your children bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/someones-k...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Someone's Knocking At The Door
Is it the new season?
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
The first midweek #Bairns of the new season has even taken me by surprise; I thought I'd ease in to this gently, but #ScottishFootball waits for no man, so here we are with silverware, early exits, rebel players and #RoxyMusic: bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/a-little-b...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
A Little Bit More
... before we can actually start this thing properly.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
It's August 1976; football is back(ish), #AstonVilla stole a player, I make a contentious (but true) statement about away goals, and an MP went to prison. What more could you want? #Bairns is back! bairnsotherevolution.substack.com/p/now-is-the...
bairnsotherevolution.substack.com
Now Is The Time
Sort of.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Some time ago, my website died for reasons I couldn't fathom. "I'll fix that once I'm retired", I thought. Well, it's taken nearly a year to get round to it, but I'm back,back,back! www.richardwatt.ca
richardwatt.ca
Richard Watt
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
New post, in which I decide that maybe I do like fantasy after all, and discover why it's so difficult to adapt for television. May include references to Game of Thrones, but that's not what it's actually about. Also, books and Shakespeare. open.substack.com/pub/saltydon...
open.substack.com
Is This A Fantasy?
Another essay about adapting things for television, I'm afraid.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
It's finally here - a new "season" of football in 1976; we look forward to resuming hostilities in the actual season. Some friendlies played, one team regretted a decision, and the papers finally had something to talk about. Plus, Mrs Thatcher tried to kill 3 MPs. open.substack.com/pub/bairnsot...
open.substack.com
Not A Moment Too Soon
Nobody Told Us, 'Cause Nobody Showed Us
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Unexpected musical treat this evening- a delightful al fresco rendition of Terry Riley’s “In C” with a group of excellent local musicians and occasional floatplanes ofsoundminds.ca
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
#CriterionChallenge is a few weeks behind now, but doubling up through the fall will hardly be a chore. Prompt 27 was simply "1960s". A huge selection to choose from, so I pretty much stuck a pin in the list and came up with: letterboxd.com/watty80_99/f... Not for everyone, but...
letterboxd.com
A ★★★★ diary entry for Diary of a Shinjuku Thief (1969)
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
I have been remiss, not keeping either my #CriterionChallenge or my #BBCShakespeare posts up to date. To be fair, the World Cup had both of them on hold for a while, but to resume from where I am now:
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
This week, I come out as a #ProgRock fan, and - eventually - get around to reviewing last week's #BBCProm. Spoiler: it was exactly the kind of thing I love. open.substack.com/pub/saltydon...
open.substack.com
Progress
When the music which dared not speak its name took over the Albert Hall
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
It's been a whole year; surely it's time for another revolution in #ScottishFootball? No? Well, at least we tried. In other news, East European athletes at the #MontrealOlympics may have been cheating, but we know how to beat them. open.substack.com/pub/bairnsot...
open.substack.com
Let's Not Go Round Again
And let's get working on those press-ups while we're about it.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
This week; I have been watching something which perplexed me mightily, but I think I know what's wrong with it. Also, multiple Shakespeare productions! open.substack.com/pub/saltydon...
open.substack.com
That's Some Catch
But is it still the best there is?
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
This week in 1976: Time for another Scottish league reconstruction! The player banned from training! A Royal Princess' underwear! The Olympics are shrinking! All in a breathless #Bairns: open.substack.com/pub/bairnsot...
open.substack.com
Let's Go Round Again
Also, Royal underwear.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
I went to the grocery store, the pharmacy and a coffee shop this morning. In all three places they were playing music by #PaulSimon, which gave me The Fear. Turns out it's just part of living on #SaltSpring - you're never more than a couple of feet from an ageing hippie
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Out of this world - how a slim #BeckyChambers novel helped me understand why I didn't like a critical darling. Also, I hope you've been noticing my pop culture headlines; I can't help showing my age... saltydon.substack.com/publish/post...
saltydon.substack.com
Another Planet
I think I'm on another world with you
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
July 1976, and everything's on fire. A world leader is a dangerously unstable lunatic, and Scottish teams have discovered who'll be knocking them out of Europe later. How unlike today... open.substack.com/pub/bairnsot...
open.substack.com
Trans-Europe Express
Something to look forward to, at least.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Weekly thoughts , in which I have a national identity crisis. It's complicated... open.substack.com/pub/saltydon...
open.substack.com
On belonging
It's not just about football.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
#Bairns has no actual football to talk about, but that's never stopped me. The SFA are cracking down on playing football, we're all playing on Christmas day, and the weather's turned a bit warm. Plenty to get your teeth into: open.substack.com/pub/bairnsot...
open.substack.com
I Wish It Could Be...
Looking forward to Christmas? Already?
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
I'm back with a tale of how I was an unbearable smartarse during my one and only appearance on TV #GrampianTV. I also get to use the "joke" about how many are chosen, but few are Pict. If you're looking for eccentric history teachers, I have you covered open.substack.com/pub/saltydon...
open.substack.com
Alternative Television
That time I went on TV for some reason.
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Richard @vicdon.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
When do the #Japan fans get given page 2 of their songbook? You have to admire the relentlessness of it, but even the England band play something else every now and then. Badly, but you can't have everything. #BRAJPN
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