The Moonlight Ingénue (A Short Story)

The Moonlight Ingénue

Tonight, we lost another major star of the stage…

Eloise walked gently up the pathway.  The flowers to either side of her entranced her, communicating something that only she could hear and feel.  She subtly moved her fingertips to her lips (the lips that had been her trademark, her motif during her working hours).  She amazed herself that the white foundation remained intact on her face.  A protective mask for the other colours that she applied or were forced upon her face by haggard hands, not her own hands which she kept covered when not on stage.  Her make-up artist who smoked roll ups and often apologised as she coughed in unison with the twittering of her associates who made up for the future silence by spewing forth their nocturnal activities, their indiscreet fumblings with minor celebrities and businessmen.  Their eyes on a lifetime of luxury, once the audience tired of the performers and their lithe and piquant movements across the stage.  Eloise reached up towards the moon with one hand and gently caressed her shoulders with the other hand.  She bent forward and her blue velvet dress followed her motion like an eager suitor.

Larry the Lost sat at his dressing table and pondered when he could leave.  One more set tonight.  He gazed at the waxy gunk on his face.  His face and body, a roadmap of endurance, prat falls and careless slaps (they were supposed to miss but Pogo always hit him with force.  Maybe, he was slowing down?)  Eloise and the Miraculous Mimes had completed their set.  He put on his oversized red shoes and ugly red nose.  The green wig and bowler hat were fine accessories for a wasted life.  He threw himself onto the stage and faced Pogo.  Pogo dressed in a fine suit but still wearing the clichéd accessories of clown wear, big brown shoes and a stupid red nose.  Their routine was now a complex critique of the class structure with the odd barbed comment thrown out at the audience, ‘You pay to watch a poor old clown get hurt by a rich man, what does that make you?  Ha ha’.  When his set was finished, Larry the Lost left the stage and promptly removed his make-up but left on his costume.  He left the theatre and entered the park outside.  From a distance, he saw Eloise…

Eloise turned around and saw Larry the Lost, the sad looking clown who she had secretly admired for some time.  The sheer physicality of his performance had enthralled her on more than one occasion.  Her own routine, a mimed interpretation of Goldilocks and the Three Bears or any number of other fairy tales, although well received by the audience were essentially mild titillation for older men with a liking for virgins.  She had tried her best to make them more than this but her outfits undermined her best intentions and the emphasis upon her luscious red lips in the promotional material for her shows left her feeling objectified.  She longed to star in something more substantial.  She no longer talked as she had nothing worthwhile to say and her publicist felt that unnecessary communication would fracture the public image of the ‘Silent Ingénue’.  She turned back to the pathway and headed towards the stairs.

Larry the Lost walked clumsily forward and called out, ‘Eloise, stop a minute, I need to talk to you’.  She stopped half way up a staircase and looked back, tilting her head down towards him.  A chain of light fleeing from the moon above flowed down the concrete steps that held her firmly to the ground.  She longed to float up towards the moon.  To be a particle of the vibrant portal to the heavens above.  Larry the Lost reached the stairs, clambered up a dozen of them and sweat fell profusely from his face.  He grabbed desperately for Eloise.  As he fell backwards, Eloise mouthed ‘I love you’.  The path broke his fall and his heart now out of control, beat away to the end of his life.  A drumroll for a fallen clown.  Eloise silently screamed and as the tears flowed from her eyes, the moon continued to gaze down as she joined Larry the Lost.  She removed his nose and wondered why he had kept his costume on yet removed his make-up?  She kissed him and put on his large red nose.  Pogo would have a new partner, only she would wear the suit.

We are proud to announce the birth of a major new talent…

Barry Watt – Monday 15^th February 2021.      

A Choice (A Short Story)

A Choice

David awoke and saw the bars of his confine.  He had lived here all of his life.  The sounds from outside were his only reminder that something better awaited him if only he prayed hard enough or wished in the direction of the universe.

Each day, a gentleman called Sidney entered his cage and sat cross-legged, staring at him, not maliciously but with a look of sympathy.

On a day much like any other, Sydney after entering the cage approached David and asked him gently, ‘Why are you here?’

David felt shocked as Sydney had never spoken to him before.  Also he had never seen a way out of the monotonous horror of his life and now this enigmatic stranger offered hope of something indefinable if only he answered correctly.  ‘I have always been here,’ David opined feeling his heart sink.  Sydney gave him a key and led David to the cage door.  David in a state of surprise and bemusement unlocked the door and began to leave the prison.  Sydney anxiously thrust his hand out and said ‘Lock the door and take the key!’

David did as advised and walked off wondering why Sydney wanted to be locked away?

A year later, David returned to the prison and put an enveloped note through the cage as Sydney slept on the ground.  The note read, ‘You can leave if you want to’ and the key lay dormant in the envelope.  David left.

Sydney awoke the next morning, opened the envelope, read the note and wept.

                                                                                               Barry Watt – 23^rd August 2020.

This was a short story I wrote last year.  It still means something to me.  It was inspired by a friend.  She was right.  The choice to remain where you are is still a decision.  Inertia is always a choice.  I would really like for people to comment on this story in any way they choose, if it means anything to them.

                                                                                                          BW - 24th January 2021.

Definitely not the Morrissey of comics - An Interview with Steve Marchant from the Cartoon Museum

I have known Steve Marchant since the 90s when I used to frequent Quality Comics in New Cross before it transmogrified and moved down the road to Lewisham, newly spawned as Skinny Melink’s Comics & Books.  Comics provided an enduring and indeed, sometimes vital life for a slightly shy, insecure kid who has grown into a slightly shy, insecure yet knowing adult (i.e. me).  The comic community, those devotees who pop into their local comic shops once a week around delivery day to obtain their bounty of inspirational, mythical fare are still a source of fond memory for me.  The endless recommendations of all forms of culture from fellow collectors.  I may have been considered a ‘geek’ in current parlance but to be a ‘geek’ in the company of friends was worth the price of admission alone.

Anyhow, enough of my digression, Steve Marchant has had a long and varied career within the comic industry and educational sector.  Now also working within the Cartoon Museum as Learning Officer/Comic Art Consultant.  So where to begin?

Steve, please can you tell me when your love of comics and sequential art began?  Do you remember the first comic you bought or that was bought for you?

When I was about 2-3 years old, my dad bought me various nursery comics every week, Playhour, Bimbo, Pippin and suchlike. A bit later I started getting TV Comic, and TV21 – being more expensive – was an occasional treat. Around that time, the Batman TV series began and I loved it. Dad bought me some Batman comics for my birthday and that led me onto US comics. You know, the hard stuff.

As to why I liked comics so much, without intensive psychiatric analysis I can’t really tell you.

What do you remember of your time either as a customer or as a member of staff at Quality Comics?  What can you tell me about your memories of Quality Communications too (publishers of ‘Warrior’ magazine that introduced the world to the likes of ‘V for Vendetta’)?  Was it based in Quality Comics?

After I left art college I moved to London in autumn 1986, living with a friend on Kirby Estate in Bermondsey (Alan Moore: “Does everyone walk around with their legs 4 feet apart?”). Quality Comics was nearby so I began going there fairly regularly. Dez Skinn was gone by then, having sold the shop to an American guy called Bruce Paley – lovely bloke. We’d always chat, and after a year or so he offered me a part-time job. There was nothing left from the Warrior days except an Alan Moore V script on the wall priced £40. Stupidly, I never bought it.

So yeah, I stayed there through the move to Lewisham. Bruce sold up sometime in the mid-90s, to the mother of one of his customers, and I left not long after that.

Bruce was a great raconteur, he told me a lot of funny stories of his days in New York; eventually he put some of them together in a graphic novel with his partner Carol Swain. It’s called Giraffes In My Hair, a great read.

When did you begin to create your own comics?  What was your motivation for creating them?  I have read ‘Fantastic Life’ and ‘Stupidface’.  Were these semi-autobiographical explorations of events and feelings that you were experiencing within your own life?  Also which artists and movements have influenced your work and/or style?

The first comic I ever did was a 3 issue, 4 page giveaway featuring The Bad Dream Chasers. In summer 1986, between leaving college and moving to London, I worked with some friends in a performance art group in Sheffield on a street theatre thing that toured all areas of the city, and the comic was given away to onlookers. I made us into Marvel-style characters for the comic, chasing bad dreams that had escaped into our reality. Drugs were not involved, I assure you.

When I moved to London I was unemployed for a few months and I didn’t have a TV, so to while away the time I began doing random 1 or 2 page Stupidface strips that I’d just show to friends. Some of them were pretty autobiographical, some less so. I’d just take a memory and twist it around to make it funny, with my character the butt of the joke. Anyway, people began asking me for photocopies to stick on their fridge or whatever so I thought ‘why not put them together in a small-press comic?’ By then I was a youth worker so I used to print them on the office photocopier while no-one was looking. And there my soar-away career in comics began.

Influence-wise, at that time it was mainly Eddie Campbell’s Alec strips, Robert Crumb’s autobiographical stuff, and The Smiths. I suppose I wanted to be the Morrissey of comics, but looking at the way he behaves these days I’m glad that that didn’t quite pan out. Style-wise, no artist in particular, I’ve never tried to ape anyone’s style. Perhaps I should have, some of those early strips of mine look terrible. 

Please can you talk to me a bit about your educational work (your teaching work and your classes showing students how to produce comics) over the years?

The teaching came out of youth work where I mostly worked with special needs kids, assisting with Life Skills classes – catching the bus, cooking, etc – and eventually I got to teach my own classes at Lewisham College. Nothing comic-y though, it was a whole separate part of my life at that time.

I suppose my big break was getting a job at the London Cartoon Centre in late 1991. It was a training school for aspiring comic artists, and I’d been going to evening classes there for a few years. Me and the director, Eve Stickler, had always got on really well so when her assistant left she offered me the job. About 3 months later Eve got moved to a different department in the parent company and I was running it by myself. As well as doing tedious admin I used to sit in on classes of all different types: action, humour, colouring, writing, etc. I learned a lot, not just in terms of art skills but also different teaching methods. That meant that if a tutor couldn’t make it, I could step in and kind of bluff my way through. Eventually I developed my own classes and also began teaching in libraries and schools and City University, where I taught for 16 years. When the London Cartoon Centre closed down in 1995 I sold my services to what is now The Cartoon Museum. And here we are…

Also I remember once that you told me that you had interviewed the comic creator and author, Alan Moore.  Was this for your own publication or for some other purpose?  Have you met many of the creators that you admire?  Also linked to this please can you tell me how you became involved in the ‘Worm’ project and tell people a little bit more about it (I bought the graphic novel collection the other day and look forward to reading it)?

I’ve met Alan a few times. I can’t say we’re mates but we’ve always got on, he’s a really nice, really funny bloke. In 1986 I had a friend that worked on Sanity, the CND magazine, and he asked me to interview him. So at the big London convention that year I had a brief chat with Alan and he gave me his address, and I went round a couple of weeks later. We talked for hours, he was very generous with his time. I transcribed almost every word from the tape, but annoyingly Sanity only ran a small part. Dunno what happened to the transcript, which is annoying; I still have the tape but I’ve got nothing to play it on these days. The last time I saw Alan was about six years ago, we both ran some workshops with ne’er-do-well teenagers in Northampton Library.

As to other favourite creators, I’ve met quite a few. If I tried to name them all I’d sound like Mr Namedrop, but I’m pleased that some have wound up being proper friends.

The Worm was initiated by David Lloyd to raise money for the London Cartoon Centre in 1991. The idea was to create the longest comic strip in the world, 250 feet if I remember right, a bit similar to the Bayeux Tapestry. Alan Moore plotted it, Garth Ennis and others scripted each chapter, and David designed The Worm – a kind of eternal cartoonist appearing in various points in history. 125 artists – big names and up-and-comers (including me) - were given two 12” square panels to work on at a live event in central London. After it was finished it was exhibited at a posh gallery and visitors’ admission fees were donated to the Cartoon Centre. Then we got a grant to release The Worm as a fund-raising book but by the time it was ready for publication the plug was pulled on the LCC, so we decided to partner with the Cartoon Art Trust – which had recently set up what would eventually become the Cartoon Museum. Funds from the book went toward running classes through them.

You are currently working at the Cartoon Museum in London.  I have visited the museum twice, once in its previous location and more recently in Wells Street.  Please can you tell me more about the museum and your work as Learning Officer/Comic Art Consultant?

The Cartoon Museum is run by a charity, the Cartoon Art Trust, which is comprised of cartoon enthusiasts and creators. The museum gradually evolved from a series of limited-lease galleries in office block foyers and empty shops to its first ‘proper’ site in Little Russell St, near the British Museum, in 2006. That was when it really took off, and with 3 separate galleries it could finally show a wider selection of the artwork the trustees had amassed. Plus, the museum began borrowing artwork from artists, publishers and collectors for temporary exhibitions devoted to a specific artist, title, or theme. Highlights for me from that time are the exhibitions of Ronald Searle, Ralph Steadman, Viz, The Beano, and 2000 AD. The thing is though that the museum’s increasing success didn’t escape the attention of the landlords, who pushed up the rent year by year, by eye-watering amounts. By 2018 staying in the building became financially untenable so the trustees decided to look elsewhere. By wonderful serendipity we discovered there was a major redevelopment going on in Wells St that required the owners to offer a significant amount of space to a charitable cause, for minimal rent. So that’s where we are now.

I should use this opportunity to clear something up: I am not, nor have ever been, the Curator of the museum, which I’ve seen reported several times. Paul Gravett was its first curator, from around 1993 to 1999; Anita O’Brien was curator from 2001 to 2018, and since January 2020 our curator has been Emma Stirling-Middleton – heroes all. My work there has mostly been coordinating the educational visits from schools and teaching children how to draw badly. However, for the duration of our National Lottery funded Comic Creators Project – when the museum received a grant of £100,000 to buy comic art – I was the Project Curator – which we changed to Comic Art Curator as the other title was meaningless out of context. In that role I bought comic art from online auctions, collectors, and artists, and chose what to put on display. Basically, if you bought a lottery ticket and didn’t win, I got your money.

I believe that you also still teach within the museum.  What have you learnt from the students that you have imparted your love of comics and skills to?

It’s mostly kids that I teach there, and I learn from them what comics are currently popular with the 5-16 age group. The Beano, Asterix, and Tintin are always popular, as are DC and Marvel comics – increasingly so with all the TV shows and movies that have come out over the last 20 years. And manga, that’s very popular now, but not the stuff I like – gritty social realism by people like Tatsumi – being children, all they’re into is unicorns and kids with big fucking eyes.

To return to the subject of comic reading and collecting, are you still a collector and if so, which titles do you most enjoy and why?

Until 2017 I had a massive comic collection, it practically filled a whole room in our flat. Marvels, DCs, independents, undergrounds, UK titles and loads of magazines and books about the history of comics. To cut a very long and horrible story short, I was forced to move to a much smaller place and had to dispose of about 80% of my collection. I donated 600+ comic history books, graphic novels, etc to Staffordshire University, and sold roughly 2000 comics and magazines for peanuts to a friend’s comic shop. I discovered that the back issue business is on its arse due to people’s ongoing financial woes and the availability of reprint volumes these days. Nowadays I rarely buy comics, I haven’t the heart, or the space to keep them.

The Coronavirus pandemic has changed many people’s worldviews.  Rather inappropriately, I am constantly reminded of Dogwelder from DC Comics, ‘Hitman’ comic every time I see a visor.  But seriously, although the pandemic has been catastrophic, do you feel that on a personal level, it has taught you anything about yourself and others?  How has the situation influenced your work?

Our various periods of lockdown have taught me that I can actually drink far more than I ever knew. And in terms of other people, I think it has brought out the best in some. We’ve all seen heart-warming stories on the news about folks delivering groceries to pensioners or working at food banks, and my hat is off to them, it really is. And the owner of my local off license has done me some very good deals on nice bottles of wine. He’s a star.

But we’ve also been assaulted by ‘inspirational’ shit on TV, sponsored by banks and suchlike, where people are all having a laugh during lockdown in their big houses and gardens – really rubbing it in for people like me and my partner squashed into a tiny studio flat, or even worse, for people locked-in alone. All of that has really annoyed me.

Work-wise, obviously the Cartoon Museum’s been closed off and on which has meant I haven’t done much there, and I was furloughed for most of 2020 so technically I’m not supposed to be working although I have been compiling reports and stuff that’ll be useful one day. As for my personal work, if I was living in my old place where we had four rooms then I could have got loads done but now I’m in a 15 foot-square box, with my girlfriend working by phone six feet away from my left and/or watching TV six feet away from my right, it’s a non-starter. I need peace and quiet to craft comic stories that no-one will like.

On a lighter note and because it is customary in talks and interviews within the comic industry to broach such pressing issues, who would win in a fight between Groo the Wanderer and Superman?  Also what are your future plans?  Any projects in the pipeline?

Groo v Superman? Superman. Future plans and projects? I’m not sure at this time of writing (Dec 2020) that anyone can make future plans, although having said that I am looking forward to the bottle of Merlot that I bought earlier. At a very reasonable price.

Thanks for letting me interview you, Steve and I hope that the Cartoon Museum continues to flourish.

                                                                                                Barry Watt - 3rd January 2021.

Afterword.

All of the intellectual properties above are copyright to their respective owners.  I can list them all if you want but I recommend everything and suggest never mixing Merlot with Superman.  I will however promote 'Giraffes In My Hair', 'V For Vendetta', 'Hitman' and 'Groo The Wanderer' because they are good reads:

'Giraffes In My Hair: A Rock 'N' Roll Life' by Bruce Paley and Carol Swain is published by Fantagraphics and a quick look on the internet reveals that it is available from lots of lovely bookshops etc:

https://blog.fantagraphics.com/now-in-stock-giraffes-in-my-hair-a-rock-n-roll-life-by-bruce-paley-carol-swain/

'V For Vendetta' is a classic read published by DC Comics (originally published in the 'Warrior' magazine by Quality Communications in installments.  Alan Moore and David Lloyd really pulled out all the stops for this one.  The fact that it has entered myriad subcultures and protest movements proves the point that regardless of the form, if the message is there, it will prevail:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V_for_Vendetta

'Hitman' was created by Garth Ennis and John McCrea.  It's just a bleeding good laugh at times.  It was an ongoing series that span out of a DC annual crossover event called 'Bloodlines'.  Dogwelder appeared in this series (and also in various spin-off series) and is possibly one of the craziest characters you will ever encounter in mainstream comics.  Please see the second link for an article based on Dogwelder and what would have been a truly memorable appearance in the 'Suicide Squad' film:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hitman_(DC_Comics)

https://www.cbr.com/dogwelder-suicide-squad-reject-explained/

'Groo the Wanderer' was created by Sergio Aragones and is basically a version of Cerventes' 'Don Quixote' in comic form.  Also a take on the numerous fantasy, sword and sorcery sagas.  The character has been published by most publishers over the years except DC Comics (I guess he lacks a cape and cowl):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groo_the_Wanderer

The Cartoon Museum is an excellent place to visit.  They have a website you can check out whilst they are temporarily closed.  Support them and any museums that take your fancy when they reopen!  Don't let your local museums go the way of the dinosaurs and many much lamented libraries!

https://www.cartoonmuseum.org/

                                                                                                                                    BW

Photographs and Steve's work (Kindly provided by Steve Marchant.  Copyright to him and to anyone who commissioned his work at the time)

Steve Marchant

A page from 'Stupidface'

Road Safety Strip - Remember Kids, Be Seen!

'Teenage Kicks' - Cover of an advice comic for teenagers

The Cartoon Museum.

                                                                                                            

                                                                                                       BW

'This Too Shall Pass' - An Adage and an Opening.

I attended Juliette Burton's online gig the other day and she mentioned how important, the adage 'This too shall pass' is to her in her daily life.  The adage has resonated with me for years too and I cannot remember the context in which I first encountered it.  It may have been on one of the occasions, I have been undergoing therapy as it is a very useful philosophy to adopt when things seem utterly bleak and despairing.  Having said that, it is not a wishy washy concept as for me it implies impermanence and change.  As we all know change isn't always positive but it tends to be temporary, so what you are experiencing at this moment is not likely to be the same emotion that you may be exploring in an hour's time.

As I sit typing, I am looking out of the window gazing at the rising sun and listening to squirrels communicating in the distance.  Both aspects of nature are relevant to me now and I guess at a very profound level that I am overly simplifying, I am part of the same natural order.  The aeroplane that just disrupted my thoughts and melodic internal symphony is also part of that order, but only because humanity has created the metal tube with artificial wings to become like the birds.  To travel beyond the realms of possibility and experience the sensation of elevation, at the expense of the beautiful symmetry and coherence that birds adhere to.  They have their flight patterns, tactile needs and paths to follow but don't need packaged food and hot towels.

Oddly, I have never chosen to explore where the adage, 'This too shall pass' came from before today.  It is a statement of intent that remains mystical, profound and inspiring to me.  Also it feels intrinsically spiritual.  Using Google, the modern equivalent of those archaic repositories of knowledge that have largely been closed down, i.e. libraries, I am able to find lots of sources, articles and possible origins for the phrase.  The American president, Abraham Lincoln once mentioned it in a speech:

“It is said an Eastern monarch once charged his wise men to invent him a sentence to be ever in view, and which should be true and appropriate in all times and situations. They presented him the words, "And this too, shall pass away." How much it expresses! How chastening in the hour of pride! How consoling in the depths of affliction!”

Abraham Lincoln - Address before the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society - 30th September 1859

There are other variations of the story but as there is no definitive origin, it is empowering to think of how universal this phrase is and how much it has influenced and continues to influence people.  

Conceptually, this has sent my mind off on a tangent, the sentiment imbued within the phrase is similar to the lyrics to the song, 'Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is A Season)', which was written by Pete Seeger and probably more popularly known as a song by The Byrds, the so-called 'folk rock' band consisting of Jim (Roger) McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby, Chris Hillman and Michael Clarke at the time the song was recorded.  Importantly, the song basically uses sections from the Book of Ecclesiastes from the Old Testament of the Bible.  I am not particularly religious.  I would define myself as agnostic.  I am searching for something but I remain disillusioned by the regularly overtly patriarchal doctrines espoused by various churches.  But every so often, if you read a section of the Bible, it offers a uniquely clarifying view of the world even if you choose to neuter the references to an unknowable and at times, quite frankly, sadistic God (I offer these opinions as my own and respect everyone's religious beliefs).  The Book of Ecclesiastes is one such place of moral comfort:

The Book of Ecclesiastes 

3 For everything its season, and for every activity under heaven its time:

 a time to be born and a time to die;

a time to plant and a time to uproot;

a time to kill and a time to heal;

a time to pull down and a time to build up;

a time to weep and a time to laugh;

a time for mourning and a time for dancing;

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them;

a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;

a time to seek and a time to lose;

a time to keep and a time to throw away;

a time to tear and a time to mend;

a time for silence and a time for speech;

a time to love and a time to hate;

a time for war and a time for peace.

(Ecclesiastes 3 - The New English Bible (University Press, Oxford 1974))

The song, 'Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is A Season')' uses the chorus (which also effectively forms the first verse):

To everything turn, turn, turn

There is a season turn, turn, turn

And a time to every purpose

Under Heaven.

(Pete Seeger)

The only other new line, which is not derived from the original Biblical text is the final line of the song:

I swear it's not too late.

(Pete Seeger)

This follows the line 'a time for peace'.

Within the song's historical context; it was written in the 60s when the Cold War was escalating, the Vietnam War was still going on and the threat of nuclear war permeated the lives of people of all ages, it becomes blatantly apparent why Pete Seeger chose to write the final line.  He was scared of the possibility of imminent destruction.  But to return to the subject of the blog, both Ecclesiastes 3 and the song powerfully personify the sentiment behind the adage 'this too shall pass'.  Nothing is permanent.  Good and bad things are transient.  You may love at one instance and hate on other occasions.  I think from the perspective of someone who suffers from depression at times and feels a bit alienated from the world on other occasions (i.e. me and lots of other people too), it also goes some way to removing the fear attached to the concept of change.

Change has always terrified me.  Giving things up, moving on, changing jobs, seeing relationships fade and/or disappear.  But ultimately, if our control over such matters is limited, surely, our focus should be on the day to day matters that confront us.  We can look forward to things or fear them but either way, they will come and go as will we.  At the moment, I am typing this blog, which will ultimately be read by a group of people who will choose to read it or not depending on their plans and inclinations,  I write during a pandemic with one of several vaccines, potentially available in the near future.  This time last year, people were looking forward to a new decade.  Now, most people are happy to be done with 2020 with the loss of loved ones, serious illness and a gradually reducing faith in the rules and leaders who guide us.

Maybe, it's time to appreciate the moment more, to love those around us but importantly, it's a time to stand up and to be heard.  Everyone matters and wherever you are now, 'This too shall pass'. 

                                                                                  Barry Watt - 5th December 2020

Afterword.

'This Too Shall Pass' is the adage that keeps on giving.  A phrase out of any discernable time period:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_too_shall_pass

Juliette Burton gets a salute here from me as she is very inspirational to the people around her.  Please take a look at her website and work:

https://www.julietteburton.co.uk/

Google is basically a multinational company that provides a search engine you may find it hard to ignore if you are online (Also Google helps me to access and write my blogs, so thanks to them for that!)

https://www.google.co.uk/

Abraham Lincoln's entire speech to the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society on 30th September 1859 can be read on the following website:

http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/fair.htm#:~:text=It%20is%20said%20an%20Eastern,.%22%20How%20much%20it%20expresses!

The Byrds were an American band that were formed in 1964.  You can spot a Byrds' song from a mile away, thanks to the distinctive sound of McGuinn's Rickenbacker 12 string guitar.  Probably best known for their cover of Bob Dylan's 'Mr Tambourine Man'.  Below is a fan site for the band:

http://www.thebyrds.com/

'Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is A Season)' was written by Pete Seeger and has been covered by many artists including the folk singer Judy Collins and also as you have read, The Byrds.  The below Wikipedia entry gives you a fairly comprehensive overview of the song and its use of the Book of Ecclesiastes:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turn!_Turn!_Turn!

The Book of Ecclesiastes appears in the Old Testament of the Bible.  I have quoted from Ecclesiastes 3 - The New English Bible (Page 493) (University Press, Oxford, 1974).

I have used the quotations without the express permission of the copyright holders to illustrate my blog and recommend that you all listen to versions of the song and read bits from the Bible if you so choose.

'Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is A Season' should be the Christmas Number One in my opinion, so get downloading and recommend it to your friends, family and loved ones!

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Photograph.

Like plants and shadows, change is inevitable.
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Late Night Musings on a Day Glo Zoom Through the World of Juliette Burton (A Review of Types)

It's 2am.  I have awoken abruptly which is normally a key indicator that I either want to do something creative or read.  Both activities is almost guaranteed to induce sleep.

Some hours ago, I was sitting in front of my laptop awaiting entry to East Riding Theatre's presentation of Juliette Burton's '(Re)Defined' show.  It was the first time outside of the odd work meeting where I have used Zoom for pleasure and initially, I had a horrible feeling it wouldn't work.

The structure of the show was similar to the Greenwich Theatre production that I attended in person but with the added bonus of getting to see people.  The Zoom format seems an absolute boon for creative people who wish to share their wares.  The 2020 equivalent of a one person show in a small venue where the audience are all given equal attention if they wish it.

After I realised that I was initially invisible (Juliette mentioned that she couldn't see many people or I may have imagined that), I somehow managed to work out how to turn my webcam on.

In a show about definitions and how we choose to perceive ourselves in the light of our characteristics, conditions or mental status etc.  I think I have always defined myself by my sense of distance.  I am the guy on the periphery, not exactly a voyeur or wallflower.  More of an observer, trying to understand where I fit in.  I certainly don't like looking at myself on screen but it felt right on Zoom and in the context of this show, I let myself come out of hiding.

It was also nice to see people I had been in the company of at the Greenwich Theatre show.

Juliette Burton took centre stage, beguiling the audience and making us laugh or cringe as she offered snippets from her life and the videos that she has clearly worked hard on with her various collaborators including Robert (co-star and joint writer of the lovely film about socially distanced dating).

The brilliant aspect of Zoom that in theatrical or comedic terms could probably be defined as heckling or simply talking non-stop over the performers was the chat that went on throughout the show.  The audience could and were encouraged to interject.  As Juliette described, it must be really hard performing in an environment where you can't hear the laughter of the audience or experience the vibrations of positivity that come from a happy audience.  You have to pick up the mood from random comments in the chat and emojis.

Emojis are probably the nearest a performer can get to an audience member emitting a belly laugh from the centre of a venue.

Juliette was also very gracious with her time and allowed a question and answer session afterwards.  The amusing thing about question and answer sessions is the fact that they always divide audiences,  I have seen mass exoduses prior to q and a's in the theatre for a variety of reasons but when you are at home and a performer has shared her hard work with you, it's only fair that you stick around (although, you are forgiven for not sticking around if you need the loo etc ;-) )

Juliette kindly answered my questions about the artwork on the wall behind her and about the glitter design on her face.

I was fascinated to learn that the act of applying the glitter and make-up is self-empowering.  I guess it shouldn't surprise me because make-up is a powerful signifier in some cultures (an assertion of individualism and position).  Also a way of standing out and making yourself noticed or noticable.  Also I kept thinking of clowns (sorry, Juliette) and how their unique make-up helps to define their performance style.  Historically, professional clowns also trademark their facial designs.

Again, as with my previous blog entry, I won't spoil the show as there is one more performance available online in a couple of weeks and to focus too heavily on certain features of the show may spoil it slightly.

Needless to say, having seen myself on screen, I still feel a bit like a moth drawn to the light.  But my respect and admiration goes out to Juliette.  She can hold an audience entranced for a ninety minute period even when her image freezes momentarily through technological dropouts (didn't lose any of the content when this happened and it enabled a greater reflection on the importance of the glitter!  Tee hee!)

Online, she performs to a row of boxes.  Onstage, she performs to rows of stalls.  But in essense, she performs to the hearts of the audience, however they are framed.  She gives out positivity in an era of uncertainty.

She doesn't like Digestive biscuits but hey, she can be forgiven that transgression.

Juliette, keep shining and reflecting and please remember that when things are horrible, you have empowered and offered comfort blankets to your audience.  They may be metaphorical blankets, but no less warm and reassuring to their recipients.

Keep glittering, Juliette.  The world needs more positivity.

                                                                               Barry Watt - 21st November 2020.   

Afterword.

Juliette Burton has a website where you can learn more about her work and see lots of great stuff.  Also there is a link to a future online show provided by the Museum of Comedy in London:

https://www.julietteburton.co.uk/#top

Heck, here's the link to the show on 3rd December 2020:

https://museumofcomedy.ticketsolve.com/shows/873613171

Zoom is an online platform allowing lots of frustrated workers to keep in touch with each other and to discuss the relative value of biscuits during a pandemic.  Also it allows performers and creatives to keep in touch with audiences:

https://zoom.us/

East Riding Theatre who kindly hosted the performance last night have a website and they have future virtual performances available:

https://www.eastridingtheatre.co.uk/

The Greenwich Theatre have a great website too and future productions coming up.  Please support your local venues:

https://greenwichtheatre.org.uk/

Digestive biscuits are of course the staple ingredient of any healthy diet (Juliette, I humbly apologise for my comment that you could be a spokesperson for the biscuit ;-)):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digestive_biscuit

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Photos

Juliette Burton - A Day Glo representation of a kind performer 

Juliette Burton and Robert - An image from the wonderful film about dating circa 2020

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Prosecco is a State of Mind - An Evening with Juliette Burton

After a wonderfully awkward bus journey and pretty long walk that led me from New Cross to Lewisham, where I passed my first place of paid employment, sadly no longer in existence (it was a comic shop that suffered and benefited from leaks, rodents and lots of brilliant customers).  The shop still stands but I don't know what it is any more.  Then I walked to Greenwich.  A short(ish) walk past the pub that has been converted into flats and the bookshop that has now become a barbers.  I am sure that analogies can be made between the act of page turning and hair removal.  Both require temporary loss that leads to momentary gain.

Anyhow, I got to the Greenwich Theatre at about 7pm.  I was met by a nice usher who examined my confirmation printout (I still can't get used to displaying e-tickets on my phone.  Am I the only one who is nostalgic for the feel of card in their hands?).  She wore the now customary 2020 accessories of visor and mask.  She explained the new methodology of the theatre scene these days, which can be defined quite simply as social distancing whilst desperately trying to retain the sense of togetherness that the theatre instills.  The bar experience was a case in point.  Two tables with cash card readers were placed in front of the bar and I was advised to sit at one.  I was then served and paid on the card reader before taking a seat on one of a handful of tables laid out in a sensible and respectful manner.

Of course, the tables filled up really quickly and one of the ushers let us know that the auditorium was open so to go in as quickly as possible as the seating was unreserved.  In a manner that I can only describe as slightly out of character, I ended up necking a glass or more correctly, plastic beaker of red wine in about five minutes.  It took me a little while to realise that actually it made sense to get the audience into the auditorium to allow late comers to use the bar.

In the spirit of open disclosure, I frequented the toilets and the urinals were alternately out of use to allow for social distancing (having said that it is a curious fact that most men seem pretty uncomfortable urinating next to each other anyway).  I then headed into the main auditorium.

The seats where the audience were permitted to sit were scattered throughout the auditorium.  On stage, a screen prompted the audience to define themselves and their town in five words or less.  I had done this earlier in the day after reading an email from the Greenwich Theatre with the request from Juliette Burton.

A mysterious female hand moved random combinations of words across the screen.  A polymorphous collection of fears, aspirations and hopes.  The strengths we embrace and those characteristics that restrain us.

Over the public announcement system, the owner of the mysterious hand of fate advised us the show was due to start about ten minutes late due to latecomers and that we should go and get drinks etc and that she was drinking prosecco (which we were asked to bring back and leave on the stage).

Juliette Burton came on stage and beguiled the audience with her honesty, humour and short videos.  I also ended up involved as she read out my definitions from earlier in the day and the question that I had asked her.  I stated that my town was defined by 'a walrus and apocryphal stories' (anyone who knows my home town will be familiar with the walrus (one of the older exhibits in Horniman Museum who went on a bit of a tour several years ago).  Also the apocryphal stories refer to the alleged plague pits that are apparently located opposite the Horniman Museum (maybe under a kids' paddling pool and playground?) and the so-called Honor Oak (the oak tree where Queen Elizabeth the First rested on a trip to Lewisham located on One Tree Hill).  Also the witches' altar that I remember my fellow pupils telling me about when I went to primary school.  This too is located on One Tree Hill.  I assume it refers to a concrete block but I have never been sure.

More touchingly, at one point in the show, Juliette asked me to help to define the mental health conditions that she has dealt with and explored over the years and I felt as though it was not my place to judge her and I offered that opinion through my mask.  I also then felt in a safe place to offer that I had and do suffer from OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) and depression from time to time.  This admittance seems more important than ever these days.  I feel that if I can be honest with the people around me, they will hopefully open up if they feel they need to with me.  Growth and understanding are only possible when mental health issues are no longer stigmatised.  As Juliette wisely said, people who suffer (or who have suffered) from mental health issues are often more empathetic (and also she added, 'better in bed' but I wouldn't know about that).

I am not going into lots of details about the jokes as that would spoil your experience if you haven't seen Juliette yet.

I found Juliette engaging, charming, funny and fundamentally honest.  Her costume changes subtly allowed subliminal messages to flow through the air and into the psyches of the audience about her qualities as a human being and her desire to shine (also her belief in the human race).  As her last t-shirt may have read (my eyesight is not brilliant), 'Redefining beauty'.  This summed up how I felt about the show.

You may be interested to hear that although my journey home was wet and awkward, my mood was elevated and reflective.  Thank you, Juliette and Greenwich Theatre.

                                                                                                 Barry Watt - 3rd October 2020

Afterword.

Juliette Burton has an excellent website that it is worth looking at:

https://www.julietteburton.co.uk/

Greenwich Theatre has a website and I strongly recommend that you support the theatres that you care about if this pandemic has taught us nothing, it has certainly revealed that nothing lasts forever:

https://greenwichtheatre.org.uk/

Horniman Museum and Gardens is a lovely museum in Forest Hill.  They also have a great website:

https://www.horniman.ac.uk/

For more on the lovely walrus, please check the below link:

https://www.horniman.ac.uk/object/NH.H.44

More information about One Tree Hill can be read below:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Tree_Hill,_Honor_Oak

If needed, mental health services are still available.  If you need to talk to someone urgently, The Samaritans are one option:

https://www.samaritans.org/

Additionally, the charity Mind offers lots of useful information:

https://www.mind.org.uk/

Promotional Image.

Promotional poster for Juliette Burton's show, 'Redefined' which I strongly recommend.

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Caught in the Light of the Moment - An Interview with Emily Hamilton, Wedding Photographer and Volunteer.

I have had the pleasure of working with Emily Hamilton in her capacity as a volunteer within the hospital I work in for some time now.  She exhibits an intelligence, high levels of empathy and has a good sense of humour.  Now I have written her reference for her, she has kindly consented to allowing me to interview her.  Emily owns her own business, Emily Rose Photography and has been rightly flagged up as one of the best wedding photographers by Cosmopolitan magazine.  I have been particularly interested in learning about her creative endeavours and professional work, so without further delay... 

When did you become interested in photography?

I can’t remember exactly when it became an interest of mine. It’s always run in the family
- my Dad was never without his film camera when I was growing up, so I spent a lot of
time in front of a camera and we, as a result, now have albums full of our family
memories which has become incredibly special to me. I suppose this ties in with what I
love so much about what I do - capturing memories. I had little compact cameras from a
young age and then got my first DSLR camera when I was 16 and from that point, I was
completely hooked.

Who are your influences?

The first photographer that inspired me was Tim Walker - I created some quite ethereal
styled shoots when I was studying. Now, I find inspiration from photographers such as
Benjamin Wheeler, The Ferros, James Frost, Chris & Ruth and The Kitcheners.

When did you decide to start your own business, Emily Rose Photography and what
inspired you to become a wedding photographer?

I started my business in 2013, when I was 19 years old. It was a year after I finished
studying at college. I had a Photographer tutor there who was just incredible - he gave me
so much support and really believed in me pursuing photography as a career. When I left
college, I was accepted to study it at University, but at the last minute, I deferred my
place as a challenge. I wanted to give myself a year to see if I could get into the industry
without a degree. I completed some internships and did a few different projects. It was
that next summer that my tutor contacted me and told me he had a couple looking for a
student photographer to capture their wedding. I was extremely against it - at this point, I
was wanting to get into fashion photography and had never even been to a wedding. My
tutor pushed me to do it and I eventually agreed. Turns out I actually really enjoyed it and
managed to book more in!

Do you feel that in a photographic composition regardless of your original
intention, occasionally the physical space becomes the focal point? Are there any
buildings or places that you feel have had a ‘genius loci’ (a strong sense of
atmosphere rather than an occupying spiritual presence, although I guess that too
could apply)?

Absolutely - I really love some venues in particular that have so much character and just
on their own are beautiful to capture, but I always find it even more powerful when you
then add the couple in and play them together to create a certain atmosphere in the
photo. I also try to look for symmetry - I love big windows, pillars, clean open spaces,
quirky doors etc and placing the couple in the centre. There’s one venue: the Asylum
Chapel in Peckham and it’s got this eerie feel to it with its derelict, peeling walls, but it
can so easily become a cosy den when filled with candles and flowers.

What for you are the important characteristics of photos of a wedding day? Do you
find that couples prefer spontaneous shots or more structured shots? Do you spend
lots of time with the couples in order to identify and develop their photographic
needs? Personally, I prefer more spontaneous shots where the subject is not
always aware that they are being photographed.

I personally aim to mainly capture natural shots of the day as it unfolds and try to blend
into the background as much as I can. When you look at a photograph of people looking
straight at a camera, smiling against one of people looking at each other and laughing, you
will most likely feel so much more emotion from the second. I always do a mix of the more
‘posed’ shots of different family members together so that the couple have the two
different sides (especially as some guests personally do want those group photos to frame
etc).

Most of the couples that book me express how important it is for them to have natural
shots of the day and usually say that they feel awkward having their photo taken. I’ll
always try and figure out their ‘vibe’ and how they are together - if they’re quite silly, I’ll
aim to capture that side of them in their couple photos, sometimes they’re a bit more
serious and I can then get them being a bit more romantic and emotive.

During the current Coronavirus crisis, what have you been doing?

I have been volunteering in a hospital in London alongside you! I’ve been absolutely loving
working in the staff well being hubs and helping to put a smile on people’s faces. I’ve also
been focusing on a plan for next year and getting weddings booked in to look forward to.
I’ve managed to use some time to update my website and share my work from last year, as
well as other random jobs - I’ve been designing a marketing brochure for a local business
which has been good fun! I’ve also been focusing a lot on looking after myself.

When you are not working professionally, what do you like to photograph?

Landscapes - in particular mountains, forests and cities. I really love buildings, so tend to
wander through London streets and capture the town houses. I adore golden hour sunlight,
of course, and my favourite time of year to photograph is Autumn/Winter - a huge goal of
mine is to get to somewhere like Norway or Lapland and just spend a week taking photos
of snowy forests and the night sky.

Historically, photography is usually seen as the medium through which to capture
the moment. It is interesting to look at older images taken by family members on
film and how the film stock has degraded over time (faded colours and
pigmentation). What do you believe are the main differences between shooting on
film and using a digital camera? Do you feel that some experimentation or indeed,
the occasional ‘mistake’ that generates something unique and memorable could be
being ignored or deleted in favour of the perfect shot? Have we become more
utilitarian and less creative as a result of being able to take hundreds of shots using
our cameras rather than 24 shots on a manual camera using film stock?

I think using digital definitely forces us to have to be more creative, because you have to
almost make the more experimental shots happen, rather than it being a mistake as made
by film. I do love the less technically perfect shots - they usually do convey more emotion
and are unique. There are elements of film that I do feel is missing from digital, for
example light leaks and I love accidental double exposures - these are of course able to be
achieved in digital, but there’s something really special about them when they’re a pure
accident. Film also just has something magical about what it produces and I think it’s very
very hard to match that in digital.

I’m also definitely guilty of being trigger happy with my camera - on a wedding day I’ll
take around 3-4,000 photos and I do wonder whether it would be beneficial for me to one
day spend some time going back to basics, using film and being more aware and thoughtful
in how I compose my images. One technique that’s become quite popular within wedding
photography is purposefully capturing slightly blurred images, particularly in black and
white. And something I especially love to do during the dancing part of the evening is to
‘drag the shutter’ where you end up with cool light trails from a slow shutter speed, but
the flash freezes the people in the photo so that they’re in focus and for me, it creates so
much more energy and almost makes you feel like you’re there in the party.
I’m definitely grateful for digital however - I love knowing that I am able to have the
confidence I’m going to be able to get those technically ‘perfect’ shots, but also be able
to experiment and get some unique ones also - I’m not sure I’d be able to comfortably
photograph a wedding solely on film and would probably spend the entire time living in
anxiety of how they’re going to come out!!

I really do not like having my photo taken unless I am ‘acting up for the camera’, I
trust the photographer wholeheartedly or my photo is taken surreptiously. Do you
like to be photographed? Why do you think that so many people are adverse to
their photographs being taken? Could it be partially due to self-esteem issues? I
know that some tribal groups feel that the act of photography takes away their
souls. Do you find that generally people are happier to have their photos taken in
a group situation rather than alone?

This is a really tough one that yes, probably does go quite deep. I personally am
completely mixed on the prospect of having my photo taken. If I am with other people, I
will happily have it taken and feel relaxed. If I’m on my own, I really do struggle. I feel
awkward and uncomfortable, unless as you say, it’s someone I know very well. For me, I
think it used to be a self esteem issue, which I have now more or less grown out of, but I
think the thoughts around having my photo taken are naturally still there. Maybe that can
be a new goal of mine!

But I think this is why I find my job so important - I know how horrible it can feel not
wanting to have your photo taken, so it’s why I try so hard to put my clients at ease and
show them my weird and silly side so that it doesn’t feel too serious or scary. People
always photograph beautifully when they’re showing natural emotions, so I’ll always try
and provoke some giggles with a ridiculous joke or story. A lot of people definitely prefer
to have their photo taken in a group, however there’s a large number who love acting up
for the camera, which I absolutely love!

Please can you share a selection of your favourite photographs with me and
talk a little bit about how and where you shot the photographs and what they mean
to you (on an emotional level etc)?

Bekki & Joe - I took this photograph the day that Lockdown was announced. This couple
were meant to get married the following weekend which of course was cancelled, so they
decided that day to go ahead with a ceremony with a handful of family with a live stream
set up so their guests could watch online. Joe’s Dad conducted the ceremony and during a
reading, Joe & Bekki were suddenly struck by this stream of light that isolated them both
from the rest of the room and it gave me shivers!

James & Ruth - this was my first wedding of 2020 and it was a venue I’ve adored for a long
time. I had been so excited to get to this day after a quiet winter off and it was a wedding
that will stick in my mind for years to come. James & Ruth were just the coolest, most
chilled couple that really made sure their day was all about what is most important to
them - their friends and family and all being together.

This was such an amazing day for me. Kew Gardens has always been a venue I’ve wanted
to photograph and last year I had the opportunity to work alongside a photographer that
I’ve admired for a long time and it truly was one of the most magical weddings I’ve had
the honour of being a part of. The team we worked with were incredible and every part of
the day wowed me - the couple had this gorgeous willow tree installation at the top of
their alter and light tunnels that housed their guests dining tables inside the Temperate
House.

I spontaneously booked onto a workshop in the Canary Islands last year and spent a week with a bunch of other photographers on a tiny island. The trip didn’t start off so well - I nearly missed my flight because I left my laptop in security (not like me AT all!!) but I think I cried every single day while I was there because I was just so happy. I took this photo on our first day - we went out with a really talented photographer called James Frost and explored our surroundings during sunset and it was just magical and the first time a while where I truly felt proud of what I had produced photo-wise.

Emily & Andy - These are my pals! We went on a ski trip in France and being the biggest lover of snow and mountains, there was no way I was not getting some photo’s while we were there. So Emily & Andy stepped up and let me capture them messing around outside our chalet and when I look at them, it takes me back to one of the most fulfilling weeks of my life.

What are your future plans?

I want to continue with my career as a wedding photographer for as long as possible. I’ll be looking to incorporate video at some stage. I’m also planning to set up a co-working club for freelancers as working alone is the one part of my job I struggle with. I am now also looking into continuing with the hospital and keeping my involvement going for the foreseeable future if I can.

Many thanks for allowing me to interview you, Emily and good luck with your future endeavours!

Afterword.

Emily has a very well designed website where you can see further examples of her work and contact her:

http://emilyrosephotography.co.uk/

The Cosmopolitan article by Abigail Malbon listing Emily as one of the fifteen best wedding photographers is below:

https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/worklife/g31678960/wedding-photographers/

Many hospitals offer people the opportunity to do voluntary work for them.  This takes a variety of forms.  If you are interested, please see a selection of the below links or check out a hospital near you:

https://www.kch.nhs.uk/about/get-involved/volunteering

https://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/careers/other-types-of-work/volunteering/volunteering.aspx

https://slam.nhs.uk/about-us/get-involved/volunteering-and-other-opportunities/

https://www.lewishamandgreenwich.nhs.uk/vounteering-roles/

Emily has kindly allowed me to use her photographs and they are copyright to her.  If any of the subjects of her photos would like me to remove the photographs, please contact me.  I am using the images to illustrate Emily's work.  The images in the Additional Images section below are respectively copyright to Emily, me and to the photographer who took her portrait.

Additional Images.

Emily Hamilton

My portrait of Emily Hamilton.  Would you believe that Emily laughed at this perfect representation of her character?  Hours of revision and the finest work I have ever completed on cardboard.

One of Emily's finest creations, a happy bird heading off to a post Lockdown party.

This is not a flower, it is a fridge.  I think Emily agrees with me now.  This is Emily's drawing.  It's amazing how versatile she is with a blue pen and a head full of ideas.

                                                                         Barry Watt - 19th June 2020.