#SYM Thomas

[saintsarefake]

John: Time sensitive question how to flirt with boys

Peter: Throw rocks at he.

Thomas: Hot dog.

Jacob: Kill him.

John: Thanks guys.

[faith3i3]

[orator95]

ARTISTS I LIKE*

Ana Mendieta. William H. Johnson. Deborah Roberts. Amy Sherald. Lynette-Yiadom Boakye. Toyin Ojihi Odutola. Delphine Desane. Mickalene Thomas. Faith Ringold. Lorna Simpson. Kerry Mae Weems. Martine Syms. Kerry James Marshall. Henry Taylor. Henry Matisse. Juan Gris. Pablo Picasso. Sol Lewitt. Jackson Pollock. Geral Richter, Clyfford Still. Olga Abizu. Fritz Scholder. Joy Mitchell. Andy Warhol. Cy Twombly. Frida Kahlo. Elaine De Kooning, Roy Litchenstein. Henri Rosseau. Georgia O’Keefe. Diego Riviera. Marina Abromovic. Joe Colombo. Günter Ferdinand Ris. Pierre Paulin. Verner Panton. Olafur Eliasson

[cocajimmycola]

🎵🎵 nene AND dirk's playlist

Nene and I actually decided to do each others songs for this.

🎵 Song to Neos ... Nene's Playlist Edition

Song: There's Something Happening by Jack Stauber

Names: Peppy, Pippy, Scratch, Chorus, Medi, Molly, Thomas, Tom, Star, Love, Wed, Brook, Mary, Dear, Charm, Key, Glare

Pronouns: Some/Thing/Thingself, Pill/Pills/Pillself, Star/Stars/Starself, Sy/Sym/Symself, Bea/Beau/Beautiself, Wed/Weds/Wedself, Ring/Rings/Ringself, Time/Times/Timself, Note/Notes/Noteself, Key/Keys/Keyself, Ruin/Ruins/Ruinself

Dirk has such... A fascinating array of songs on his playlist.

🎵 Song to Neos ... Dirk's Playlist Edition

Song ;; Don't Cha by The Pussycat Dolls

Names

Doll, Lady, Sis, Sizzie, Sizzle, Belle, Fare, Pop, Poppy, Summer, Diamond, Gem

Pronouns

Doll/Dolls/Dollself, Hot/Hots/Hotself, Gir/Girl/Girlself, Pop/Pops/Popself, Dance/Dances/Danceself, Lov/Love/Loveself, Ha/Hapi/Happyself, Spot/Spots/Spotself, Wish/Wishes/Wishself, Fli/Flir/Flirtself

Titles

The Lover, The Yearning, The one who Yearns, The Jealous One, The Wishing One, The Pretty Girl, The Doll who is Pretty, The Summertime Girl

[wankerwatch]

Commons Vote

On: Finance (No. 2) Bill: Third Reading

Ayes: 215 (98.6% Con, 0.9% Ind, 0.5% DUP) Noes: 19 (94.7% SNP, 5.3% PC) Absent: ~416

Likely Referenced Bill: Finance (No. 2) Act 2010

Description: A Bill to grant certain duties, to alter other duties, and to amend the law relating to the National Debt and the Public Revenue, and to make further provision in connection with finance.

Originating house: Commons Current house: Unassigned Bill Stage: Royal Assent

Individual Votes:

Ayes

Conservative (211 votes)

Aaron Bell Alan Mak Alberto Costa Alec Shelbrooke Alex Burghart Alex Chalk Alicia Kearns Alok Sharma Amanda Milling Andrew Griffith Andrew Jones Andrew Lewer Andrew Murrison Andrew Percy Andrew Selous Andy Carter Angela Richardson Anna Firth Anne Marie Morris Anne-Marie Trevelyan Anthony Browne Antony Higginbotham Ben Everitt Ben Spencer Ben Wallace Bernard Jenkin Bill Wiggin Bim Afolami Bob Blackman Bob Seely Brandon Lewis Caroline Ansell Caroline Nokes Charles Walker Cherilyn Mackrory Chris Clarkson Chris Grayling Chris Green Chris Philp Conor Burns Craig Tracey Craig Williams Damian Hinds Daniel Kawczynski Danny Kruger David Davis David Duguid David Jones David Rutley David Simmonds Dean Russell Dehenna Davison Derek Thomas Desmond Swayne Duncan Baker Edward Argar Edward Leigh Elizabeth Truss Elliot Colburn Esther McVey Felicity Buchan Fiona Bruce Gagan Mohindra Gareth Bacon Gareth Davies Gareth Johnson Gary Sambrook Gavin Williamson Geoffrey Clifton-Brown Gillian Keegan Graham Brady Graham Stuart Greg Hands Greg Smith Guy Opperman Harriett Baldwin Heather Wheeler Helen Whately Holly Mumby-Croft Huw Merriman Iain Duncan Smith Iain Stewart Jack Brereton Jack Lopresti Jackie Doyle-Price Jacob Rees-Mogg Jacob Young James Cartlidge James Cleverly James Davies James Duddridge James Sunderland James Wild Jane Hunt Jane Stevenson Jeremy Quin Jerome Mayhew Jo Churchill John Glen John Howell John Lamont Jonathan Djanogly Jonathan Gullis Julia Lopez Julian Lewis Julian Smith Julian Sturdy Justin Tomlinson Katherine Fletcher Kelly Tolhurst Kemi Badenoch Kevin Hollinrake Kieran Mullan Kit Malthouse Laura Farris Laura Trott Lee Rowley Leo Docherty Lia Nici Liam Fox Lisa Cameron Louie French Lucy Frazer Luke Hall Marcus Jones Mark Fletcher Mark Francois Mark Garnier Mark Logan Martin Vickers Matt Hancock Matt Warman Matthew Offord Mel Stride Michael Ellis Michael Fabricant Michael Gove Michael Tomlinson Mike Freer Mike Wood Mims Davies Neil O'Brien Nick Fletcher Nick Gibb Nicola Richards Nigel Huddleston Paul Beresford Paul Holmes Paul Howell Pauline Latham Penny Mordaunt Peter Aldous Peter Bottomley Philip Dunne Philip Hollobone Priti Patel Ranil Jayawardena Rebecca Harris Rebecca Pow Rehman Chishti Richard Bacon Richard Drax Richard Fuller Rob Butler Robbie Moore Robert Buckland Robert Courts Robert Goodwill Robert Halfon Robert Largan Robert Syms Robin Millar Robin Walker Royston Smith Sajid Javid Sally-Ann Hart Saqib Bhatti Sara Britcliffe Sarah Dines Scott Mann Selaine Saxby Shailesh Vara Sheryll Murray Simon Baynes Simon Clarke Simon Fell Simon Hart Simon Hoare Simon Jupp Stephen Metcalfe Steve Baker Steve Brine Steve Tuckwell Stuart Andrew Suzanne Webb Theo Clarke Theresa May Theresa Villiers Thérèse Coffey Tobias Ellwood Tom Hunt Tom Pursglove Tom Randall Tom Tugendhat Tracey Crouch Vicky Ford Victoria Atkins Victoria Prentis Wendy Morton Will Quince William Cash

Independent (2 votes)

Mark Menzies William Wragg

Democratic Unionist Party (1 vote)

Jim Shannon

Noes

Scottish National Party (18 votes)

Allan Dorans Amy Callaghan Angela Crawley Anne McLaughlin Brendan O'Hara Chris Law Chris Stephens David Linden Deidre Brock Joanna Cherry John Nicolson Kirsty Blackman Marion Fellows Owen Thompson Peter Grant Philippa Whitford Richard Thomson Stewart Malcolm McDonald

Plaid Cymru (1 vote)

Hywel Williams

[branded-perceptions]

The PSYCHOLOGICAL tension between the motivations of Nicolas Tesla and Thomas Edison

(AC / DC)

metaphorically embody the by fantasizing conspiracy theories coded and by Karl Friston explored psychological "free energy principle" regarding Rene Girards mimetic meanings of reputation managing "deCOHERENCE" of each-other contrasting 🔍Freud about repressions 📚shadow work by Carl Jung:

Most scientific innovation and functionality of collective management is inhibited by us attaching our subjective identity and aspirations to via mimetic in-group & out-group emotions polarising sense-making symbols🎅 of reductionistic explanatory constructs or preferences

that thus tend to loose touch with that statistically most efficient solutions tend to be a synthesis of "contrasting" symbolic constructs (thesis vs antithesis)

as seen via similar pattern of

A) symbiotic use of AC vs DC electricity / democracy

B) ideological reputation managing contrast of hydrogen vs electro engines whose most efficient use seems not "current" "tesla" but a for evolving circumstances optimising combination (synthesis) of both

C) out of via vain err in-group 📚"propaganda edward bernays" bra(i)nde(a)d social imbalances (as explored by Galbraith just geopolitically) arising conflicts like agrarian🍞☣️🥖 Ukraine 🇺🇦 & its for electric vehicles needed (& similar like via Africa's bloodmines in our devalued attention shadow of group-narcissism grabbed) Lithium in Donetsk: 🔍shell make the future vaynerMedia ...via "shell"ling? 🎶Shchedryk Carol of Bells

D) metaphorical "Schroedinger cat experiment" of C-19 vaccine side-effects blurring with long-covid as both sym are embedded in same biological mechanisms (spike proteins) with same remedies (like Nattikonase)

and their attention booty🍑 (blind spots) of with the our mind- and motivations-distorting fictional status mimetically charged reductionistic "deCOHERENCE"🌜🛐🐑💤🐑 of meaning-makings' interpretational metaphorical "quantum world" causal🌞 ambiguity of our linguistic and numeric symbolic🎅 convergerted🧭❤️🧭 "sense"-making mind constructs🌜 of Queen's western culture

🎶You shook me all night🌜🛐🐑💤🐑 long - AC/DC

🎵Ben you took me

[ozu-teapot]

The Big Job | Gerald Thomas | 1965

Edina Ronay, Sylvia Syms

[imjustheretoseetheprivateblogs]

My Ideal Crew for a Hellboy Animated Series (for adults)

Executive Producer: Mitch Watson

Composer: Jeremy Zuckerman

Head Writer: Darrick Bachman

Voice Director: Jack Fletcher

Head Character Designer: Thomas Perkins

Supervising Director: David Hartman

[billy-jeans23]

PLEASE VIDEO EDITORS COULD ONE OF YOU DO ME A FAVOR AND CREATE A LOOP OF DECEITS “WOOOOO”PLEASEI LOVE YOU THANKS

[saintsarefake]

Jesus: How long did it take for you guys to start liking me?

Buddha: Couple weeks.

Thomas: Six months.

Lucifer: Jury's still out.

[letterboxd-loggd]

The Big Job (1965) Gerald Thomas

March 28th 2021

[kwebtv]

The Jury -  ITV  -  February 17, 2002 - March 18, 2002

Legal Drama (11 episodes)

Running Time:  60 minutes

Stars:  (Season 1)

Gerard Butler as Johnnie Donne, Juror #1

Helen McCrory as Rose Davies, Juror #2

Michael Maloney as Peter Segal, Juror #3

Nina Sosanya as Marcia Thomas, Juror #4

Nicholas Farrell as Jeremy Crawford, Juror #5

Sylvia Syms as Elsie Beamish, Juror #6

Paul Reynolds as Warren Murphy, Juror #7

Stuart Bunce as Charles Gore, Juror #8

Gillian Barge as Eva Prohaska, Juror #9

William Hoyland as Hector, Juror #10

Connor McIntyre as Derek Batey, Juror #11

Sarah-Louise Young as Jessica Garland, Juror #12

Antony Sher as Gerald Lewis, Q.C. Counsel for the Prosecution

Sonnell Dadral as Duvinder Singh, the Accused

Derek Jacobi as George Cording, Q.C. Counsel for the Defence

Supporting cast

John Duttine as Mark Waters

Steven Emrys as Mr. De Jersey

Fiona Gillies as Fiona Crawford

James Hayes as Father Gervase

Tim Healy as Eddie Fannon

Tiana Paige Johnson as Joy Thomas

Claire Neilson as Eleanor Colchester

Joanne Pierce as Marion Segal

Billy Scott as John Maher

Shaughan Seymour as the Judge

Jack Shepherd as Ron Maher

Mark Strong as Len Davies

Steve Sweeney as Thomas Haines

Ellen Thomas as Ruby Thomas

Peter Vaughan as Michael Colchester

[wqp88888]

Nickname

Abbreviation

Proper Name

Abe

Abrm

Abel, Abraham, Absalom

Abner

Abraham

Addy, Atty

Adam

Al

Albert, Allan, Allen, Alfred

Alec, Alex, Alick, Ally

Alexander

Alf

Alfred

Andy, Andie

Andrew, Alexander

Archie

Archibald

Arnie

Arnold

Art

Arthur

Baldie

Archibald

Barnie, Barney

Barnabas

Bart

Bartholomew

Ben

Benjn

Benedict, Benjamin, Ebenezer

Benezer

Ebenezer

Bern, Bernie

Bernard

Bert, Bertie

Albert, Bertram, Cuthbert, Egbert, Halbert, Herbert, Hubert, Lambert, Osbert

Bill, Billie

Wm

William

Bob

Robt

Robert

Bram, Bramley

Abraham

Cal

Caleb

Charlie, Chuck (American)

Chas

Charles

Chris

Xian, Xopher

Christian, Christopher

Clem

Clement

Cliff

Clifford

Colin

Nicholas

Cuddie, Cuddy

Cuthbert

Cy

Cyprian, Cyril, Cyrus

Dai, Dave, Davie

David

Dan, Danny

Danl

Daniel

Dand, Dandie

Andrew

Daniel

Donald

Derick

Frederick

Des

Desmond

Dewi

David

Dick

Ricd

Richard

Dixon

Benedict

Dobb

Robert

Dod, Doddy

George

Dodge

Roger

Dom

Dominick

Don, Donnie

Dond

Donald

Donald

Daniel

Doug

Douglas

Drew

Andrew

Dump

Humphrey

Duke

Marmaduke

Eben

Ebenezer

Ed, Eddie

Edgar, Edwin

Ed, Eddie

Edwd

Edward

Ed, Eddie

Edmd

Edmund

Eli

Elliot, Elias, Elijah

Elmo

Erasmus

Eph

Ephraim

Erik

Frederick

Ern

Ernt

Ernest

Ewen

Owen

Frank, Frankie

Fras

Francis

Fred

Fredk

Alfred, Frederick

Gabe, Gaby

Gabriel

Gary, Garret, Garth

Gareth, Gerard

Ged

Jedidiah

Gene

Eugene

Geoff, Giff

Geoffrey, Jeffrey

Geo

George

Gerard

Jarrett

Gerry

Gerald, Gerard

Gervase

Jarvis, Jervise

Gib

Gilbert

Gord

Gordon

Gorry

Godfrey

Greg

Gregory

Guido

Guy

Gus

Angus, Augustus, Gustav

Hab

Herbert, Robert, Halbert

Hal

Harold, Henry

Hank (American)

Henry

Hank (English)

Hankin

Harry

Harold, Henry

Heck

Hector

Henery, Henrie

Hy

Henry

Hez

Hezekiah

Hick, Hitch

Richard

Hodge

Roger

Hobb, Hop, Hopkin

Robert

Hy (American)

Hy

Henry

Ike

Isaac

Izzy

Isadore

Jabe

Jabez

Jack

Jno

John

Jake (American)

Jacob

Jamie, Jim

Jas

James

Jarrett

Gerard

Jarvis

Gervase, Jervise

Jed

Jedidiah

Jeff

Jeffrey, Geoffrey

Jerry

Jerh

Jeremiah

Jerry

Jery

Jeremy

Jerry

Jere

Jerome

Jon

Jonn

Jonathan

Joe, Joey

Josh

Joseph, Josiah

Jock

John, or any Scotsman

Josh

Joseph, Joshua, Josiah

Ken

Kenneth

Kit

Christopher

Larry

Laurence, Lawrence

Lem

Lemuel

Len

Leonard

Leo

Leopold

Les

Leslie

Lew, Lou

Lewis, Louis

Mac

Malcolm

Manny

Emanuel, Immanuel, Manuel

Matt

Matthew

Max

Maximilian, Maxwell

Mickey, Mike, Miles

Michl

Michael

Monty

Montague

Morie

Maurice, Morris

Nab

Abel, Abraham

Nat, Nate

Nathl

Nathan, Nathaniel

Ned, Neddy

Edward

Nick

Nichs

Dominick, Nicholas

Nobb

Robert

Noll

Oliver

Norm

Norman

Numps

Humphrey

Nye

Aneurin

Owen

Ewen

Oz, Ozzie

Oswald, Oscar, Osbert, Osmund

Paddy, Pat

Patrick, or any Irishman

Perce, Percy

Percival

Perrin

Peter

Perry

Peregrine

Pete

Peter

Phil

Philip, Theophilus

Phippin, Pip

Philip

Rab, Rabbie

Robert

Rafe, Ralf, Rauf

Ralph

Randy

Randell, Randolph

Ray

Raymond

Reg, Reggie, Rex

Reginald

Rich, Rick

Rd, Ricd

Richard

Rob, Robin

Robt

Robert

Rod

Broderick, Roderick, Rodney

Rolf

Ralph

Rolley

Roland, Rowland

Ron, Ronnie

Ronald

Rory

Roderick

Rube

Reuben

Rudy

Rudolph

Russ, Rusty

Russell

Sam, Sammy

Saml

Samson, Samuel

Sacha, Sandy

Alexander

Seb

Sebastian

Sepp

Joseph

Si, Sy

Josiah

Sid, Syd

Sidney, Sydney

Sim, Sym

Simon, Symeon

Solly

Solomon

Stan

Stanley

Steve

Stephen, Steven

Stew, Stu

Stewart, Stuart

Taddy

Adam

Taffy

David, or any Welshman

Ted, Teddy

Edward, Theodore

Terry

Terence

Thad

Thadeus

Theo

Theodore

Tim, Timmy

Timothy

Toby

Tobias

Tolly

Bartholomew

Tom, Tommy Thos Thomas

Tony Anty Anthony

Val

Valentine

Vic

Victor

Vince

Vincent

Vib

Vivian

Waldo

Oswald

Wally

Wallace, Walter

Walt, Wat

Walter

Wes

Wesley

Wido

Guy

Wilf

Wilfred

Will, Willie, Wilkin Wm, Willm William, Wilbur

Zac, Zach, Zack

Isaac, Zachary

Zac, Zach, Zack Zachh, Zachs Zachariah, Zacharias

Zeb

Zebulon, Zebediah, Zebedee

Zeke

Ezakiah, Ezekiel

[wankerwatch]

Commons Vote

On: Holocaust Memorial Bill Committee: New Clause 1

Ayes: 11 (100.0% Con) Noes: 182 (98.4% Con, 0.5% DUP, 0.5% Ind, 0.5% LD) Absent: ~457

Likely Referenced Bill: Holocaust Memorial Bill

Description: A Bill to make provision for expenditure by the Secretary of State and the removal of restrictions in respect of certain land for or in connection with the construction of a Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre.

Originating house: Commons Current house: Lords Bill Stage: 1st reading

Individual Votes:

Ayes

Conservative (11 votes)

Bernard Jenkin Charles Walker Geoffrey Clifton-Brown Henry Smith Jacob Rees-Mogg John Stevenson Karl McCartney Lia Nici Peter Bottomley Richard Graham Tom Randall

Noes

Conservative (179 votes)

Aaron Bell Alan Mak Alberto Costa Alex Burghart Alicia Kearns Alok Sharma Amanda Milling Amanda Solloway Andrew Lewer Andrew Murrison Andrew Percy Andrew Rosindell Andrew Stephenson Andy Carter Anna Firth Anne-Marie Trevelyan Anthony Browne Antony Higginbotham Ben Everitt Ben Spencer Bill Wiggin Bob Blackman Bob Seely Brandon Lewis Brendan Clarke-Smith Caroline Ansell Caroline Dinenage Caroline Johnson Caroline Nokes Cherilyn Mackrory Chris Clarkson Chris Grayling Chris Green Chris Loder Chris Philp Craig Tracey Craig Williams Damian Collins Damian Green Damian Hinds Danny Kruger David Duguid David Jones David Simmonds Dean Russell Dehenna Davison Derek Thomas Duncan Baker Eddie Hughes Edward Argar Edward Timpson Fay Jones Felicity Buchan Fiona Bruce Gagan Mohindra Gareth Bacon Gareth Davies Gary Sambrook George Eustice Gordon Henderson Graham Stuart Greg Smith Guy Opperman Heather Wheeler Helen Grant Helen Whately Holly Mumby-Croft Huw Merriman Iain Duncan Smith Iain Stewart Jack Brereton Jackie Doyle-Price Jacob Young James Davies James Grundy James Morris James Wild Jamie Wallis Jane Hunt Jeremy Quin Jeremy Wright Jerome Mayhew Jesse Norman John Hayes John Howell John Lamont John Whittingdale Jonathan Djanogly Julian Lewis Julian Sturdy Julie Marson Justin Tomlinson Karen Bradley Katherine Fletcher Kelly Tolhurst Kevin Foster Kevin Hollinrake Kieran Mullan Laura Farris Laurence Robertson Leo Docherty Lisa Cameron Louie French Luke Hall Maggie Throup Marcus Jones Maria Caulfield Mark Fletcher Mark Logan Mark Spencer Martin Vickers Mary Robinson Matt Warman Matthew Offord Michael Ellis Michael Fabricant Mike Freer Mike Wood Mims Davies Miriam Cates Nadhim Zahawi Neil Hudson Neil O'Brien Nick Fletcher Nicola Richards Nigel Huddleston Nigel Mills Paul Holmes Paul Howell Paul Scully Penny Mordaunt Peter Aldous Philip Dunne Philip Hollobone Priti Patel Rebecca Harris Rebecca Pow Richard Drax Richard Fuller Robbie Moore Robert Courts Robert Halfon Robert Largan Robert Neill Robert Syms Robin Millar Robin Walker Ruth Edwards Sally-Ann Hart Saqib Bhatti Sara Britcliffe Sarah Dines Scott Mann Selaine Saxby Shailesh Vara Shaun Bailey Sheryll Murray Simon Baynes Simon Clarke Simon Fell Simon Hart Simon Hoare Simon Jupp Stephen Metcalfe Steve Baker Steve Brine Steve Double Steve Tuckwell Stuart Anderson Stuart Andrew Theo Clarke Theresa Villiers Tobias Ellwood Tom Hunt Tom Pursglove Tracey Crouch Trudy Harrison Will Quince William Cash

Democratic Unionist Party (1 vote)

Ian Paisley

Independent (1 vote)

William Wragg

Liberal Democrat (1 vote)

Wera Hobhouse

[dollsome-does-tumblr]

rebecca (2020) thoughts:

so, i was sort of like, “okay, that wasn’t spectacular, but it was better than i expected,” but then that last scene happened, and i just hated it so much that it definitely soured the whole experience for me. no! no!!!!!! THAT AIN’T IT. they’re supposed to be pining after manderley forever and being LOSERS! ugh. When Men Tell Stories In Ways They Think Are Empowering For Women, in a nutshell. :| give me the au where they were sitting at a boring breakfast table listening to their english radio and reading their english papers and, like, that folksy bop version of let no man steal your thyme pops up again while mrs. dw2 stares at her husband in listless boredom that she cannot quite allow herself to admit, because he was WORTH IT! he was WORTH IT, wasn’t he?? (no.) i know her love for him remains pretty constant (yikes, girl), but i feel like there needed to be more of a tinge of sort of pitiful bittersweetness to where they and she wound up.

although, having just seen a gif from that scene: i wonder if it was specifically trying to imply that mrs. dw2 had finally reached the state where, like, she IS rebecca and glorying in her rebecca-style power? the hedonistic way she smokes the cigarette and Takes Her Man just feels like SUCH a different character beat for her that it genuinely feels like she is kind of possessed by rebecca, or finally got what she has REALLY longed and lusted for, which isn’t maxim so much as ... being rebecca, and all the power that comes with it. i don’t think the voiceover does anything to feed into this, though. but i’m gonna believe it, for my own peace of mind.

i enjoyed lily james’s performance -- i think she captured the all-consuming anxiety of the narrator better than i expected a performer as sunny as she usually is to -- and kristin scott thomas was pretty entrancing, and i thought their scenes together were probably the highlight for me. i really liked how they very occasionally had those weird flickers of affinity (BECAUSE THEY ARE SAME! see a few bullets below), and the almost romantic meet-cute energy of the first time they saw each other was real striking. just, like, a lot of good weird vibes that i would’ve liked to see dug into even more.

oh! and ann dowd was very fun too! somebody write me the au where a disgraced danvers has to go be mrs. van hopper’s new companion. i think they would be an enemies-to-lovers otp for the ages.

i had this moment of, like, “damn, this really is such a horror story from danvers’ point of view, where maxim straight up got away with murdering rebecca and she can just never see him answer for it because he’s a rich man with a new wife who’s basically his own danvers who will do anything for him.” that sucks!!!!!!!

also, i JUST made the connection that the narrator is basically maxim’s danvers (i.e. a ride-or-die beeyatch to the point where it’s frankly disturbing and could use some serious therapy). just now! right now! so at least i guess this movie gave me something.

i kinda liked how rebecca’s rooms were all done up in that seafoam blue; it was a really unusual design choice, but i thought it was pretty striking, and tied into rebecca and mrs. danvers both winding up in the sea.

during that scene where jack confronted maxim about rebecca at manderley, i was like, “damn! i would have loved for sam riley to play maxim!” i think he really could’ve conveyed that frosty very english inaccessible quality with flashes of charm, and i just think that actor is neat generally and i’m happy whenever he pops up in something. (ppz darcy forevs!) having maxim as a dashing g.i. joe-lookin’ dude was just weird. like, he was okay i guess, and maxim isn’t really that interesting in this story in general, but something felt so off about him being such an american-looking hunk of human man?? i think it works a little better when it’s not even really clearly apparent why the narrator is so hung up on him, apart from the fact that he symbolizes this life that would otherwise be totally inaccessible to her, and HE’S PAYING ATTENTION TO HER.

LOUISA DURRELL WAS THERE AND I WAS SO HAPPY TO GAZE UPON HER JOY-BRINGING LOUISA DURRELL-Y FACE!!!!!!!!! i know keeley hawes is an actress with many credits to her name, but i’m going to need to see her solely as louisa durrell for about the next five years at least, just for personal happiness reasons. oh my god, i need to watch the durrells again.

and i guess that’s my ultimate takeaway from this movie.

i will forever pine for the version of it that was directed by a woman. ALAS! i just feel like women Get this story in a primal way, and i would love to see the way it would be depicted from a female gaze perspective. maybe in another 30-40 years??????? D:

[weavingthetapestry]

Epiphany 1540 - The Linlithgow ‘Interlude’ Is Performed

(John Slezer’s engraving of Linlithgow Palace, c.1693. Reproduced under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence, with the permission of the National Libraries of Scotland)

On Epiphany 1540, a play known only as the ‘Interlude’ was performed before King James V of Scotland in Linlithgow. This play, which at the time was perhaps little more than another festive court treat, has since been of great interest to both historians of Scottish theatre and the Protestant Reformation. The king’s alleged reaction to this performance, as reported in a letter from the English Warden of the East March to Thomas Cromwell, has fuelled speculation over his religious views. Meanwhile the description of the play itself, preserved in some ‘notes’ which accompanied the letter, has led many critics to argue that the Linlithgow Interlude was an early version of ‘Ane Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis’, the most famous work of the Scots makar and herald Sir David Lindsay of the Mount.

James and his pregnant queen Mary of Guise spent Yuletide 1539 in the lochside palace of Linlithgow, newly refurbished in the latest Renaissance style. With the Yule celebrations over and the New Year’s gifts dispersed, the festive season usually closed with the feast of Epiphany or ‘Uphalyday’ on 5th/6th January. Uphalyday itself was an important occasion, marked by solemn religious services alongside more boisterous entertainment like guising and the ‘Feast of the Bean’. This year the court tailor was especially busy making costumes of red, yellow, and purple, because a play was to be performed before the king, queen, and entire council ‘spiritual and temporal’.*

An account of the proceedings was sent by Sir William Eure, an English March Warden, to Henry VIII’s ubiquitous chief minister Thomas Cromwell on 26th January 1540. Eure had recently been at Coldstream, meeting commissioners sent by the Scottish king, and had fallen into conversation with one. This was Master Thomas Bellenden, ‘a man (…) of gentle and sage conversation, especially touching the stay of the spirituality in Scotland’. Bellenden was actually the Lord Justice Clerk, and director of the royal chancery. He also had close court connections beyond his official duties- his mother had been the king’s nurse while his younger sister Katherine worked in the royal wardrobe (and her third husband was Oliver Sinclair) and his brother John’s literary works were patronised by the king. However, Thomas Bellenden would also become known as a Protestant sympathiser and even in 1540 he was sufficiently reform-minded for Eure to describe him as ‘a man inclined to the sort used in our Sovereign’s Realm of England’…

(King James V and his second wife Mary of Guise. Source- wikimedia commons)

Taking him for a like-minded fellow, Eure discreetly questioned Bellenden about James V’s attitude towards Protestantism. Bellenden gave the rather ambiguous answer that James and his secular counsellors intended to reform the ‘misdemeanours’ committed by churchmen in Scotland. He then informed Eure about an “Interlude” performed for the king on Uphalyday, ‘the whole matter whereof concluded upon the declaration of the naughtiness in Religion, the presumption of Bishops, the collusion of the spiritual Courts, called the Consistory Court in Scotland, and misusing of priests.’ Even more interesting was the king’s alleged reaction to this reformist drama. Bellenden supposedly told Eure that, when the play finished, James turned to the bishops present and threatened to send six of them to his uncle Henry VIII if they did not reform their lives. Gavin Dunbar, archbishop of Glasgow and the king’s chancellor** answered carefully that the bishops would obey even a single word from the king, to which James angrily replied that he, ‘would gladly bestow any words of his mouth that could amend them.’ Bellenden also claimed that the king intended to remove all churchmen from government posts and that James studied every day, looking for a way to prevent clerics holding Crown offices. Bellenden then asked Eure to assist him by having a description of the acts that had been passed in England ‘touching the suppression of religion’ sent to the king of Scots.

One nineteenth century editor of Eure’s letter considered it ‘unquestionable proof’ that James V was planning a Scottish Reformation in 1540. In fact, things were rather more complicated. A full exploration of James V’s religious policies and personal beliefs would take far too long to go into here, but a couple of brief points may be made. Firstly, whether or not James actively sought to remove all churchmen from government as Bellenden is supposed to have claimed, this was never accomplished during his reign, nor did he ever make good on his alleged threat to send some bishops to England when they didn’t clean up their act. Secondly James V benefited greatly from the desire of both the papacy and the Scottish clergy to ensure that he did not break with Rome. Papal indults allowed him to wield a great deal of influence in church appointments, while the Scottish church contributed thousands of pounds to the Crown. James may have publicly flirted with the idea of a Reformation after the manner of Henry VIII but he was already doing quite well under the current system, and never made any real attempt to alter this during his personal reign. Possibly Eure’s letter should be viewed as an indication of the hopes which reformist councillors like Bellenden might have had of their king. Alternatively, perhaps it merely reflected an image which Scottish reformers or English diplomats, or indeed the king of Scots himself, wished to present to Henry VIII’s government down in Westminster. Thus although Eure’s report is intriguing, any conclusions about James V’s spiritual policy which rest solely on the authority of a secondhand report of an isolated remark made on Uphalyday, must be limited.

However the Linlithgow ‘interlude’ clearly made an impact. Eure was so impressed by its reported effect that he procured a synopsis of the play from a Scot ‘of our sort’ and attached it to his letter. The play opened with the antics of a character named Solace, ‘whose part was but to make merry, sing ballads with his fellows, and drink at the interlude of the play.’ Following this harmless comic section, the play took a more serious turn when another actor entered, dressed as a king. The role of this ‘king’ was largely confined to ratifying the other characters’ decisions, but his presence is intriguing- was he supposed to reflect the real monarch sitting in the audience?

(Bare and roofless, the Great Hall at Linlithgow Palace on a dreich day sadly doesn’t give a great impression of its former opulence. But please try to imagine a sixteenth century court celebrating Yule with a roof over their heads, hangings on the wall, and a fire in the grate).

The king was followed on stage by his flattering courtiers Placebo, Pikthanke, and Flaterye, who fawn over him at great length. Then four more characters enter. The first three are an armed man, a bishop, and a burgess, corresponding loosely to the mediaval concept of the three estates- those who fight, those who pray, and those who work. This also reflects the division of the Scottish parliament, often referred to as the “Three Estates”. But these three characters were also accompanied by a character named Experience, who was dressed like a ‘doctor’ (in the university, not the medical sense- presumably an expert in theology or law). When these characters had assembled on the dais beneath the king, the action was driven by the entry of one last character- a Poor Man, who lamented as he walked up and down between the audience and the noble characters on the raised scaffold. He complained that he was reduced to beggary by the demands of the courtiers, and could not get redress because he did not know the comptroller or the treasurer, who controlled petitioners’ access to the king.*** Asking for the king, he was pointed towards the actor dressed as the king on the dais. The Poor Man was apparently unconvinced by this figure and launched into a rant, stating that, ‘he was no King for there was but one King, which made all and governs all, who is eternal, to whom he and all earthly Kings are but officers, of the which they must make reckoning.’

Although this speech seems very bold for an actor to deliver in front of the real king, its sentiment was by no means without precedent in the court literature of James V’s reign. But the Poor Man did at least rein in his dismissal of all earthly kings. Taking another careful look at the king in the play he concluded that the actor could not be the king of Scots, ‘for there was another King in Scotland that hanged John Armstrong with his fellows, and Sym the laird, and many other more, which had staunched theft’. This (somewhat simplistic) account of James V’s attempts to restore justice allowed the Poor Man to segue into a lament for the one thing which this true king of Scotland had not achieved- the reform of abuses committed by the Church. The Poor Man claimed that these included the harrying of the poor through the Consistory Courts; the theft of men’s wives and daughters; maintaining their illegitimate children whom they married to the sons of the nobility; the levying of high rents on the secular lands which had been granted to the Church; and the sexual immorality of cloistered monks and nuns. Early in his speech the character of the bishop tried to shout him down, but the Man of Arms rose to defend the Poor Man and told him to carry on. The Poor Man’s argument was then ‘proved’ by the character of Experience. Their evidence convinced the Man of Arms and the Burgess, who decided that it should be also approved by parliament. When the Bishop attempted to protest, the other two told him bluntly that, ‘they were two and he but one, wherefore their voice should have most effect.’ The play then ended with the king approving and ratifying all the foregoing arguments.

It is a bit difficult to gain a real sense of the dramatic effect of this play from such an abbreviated description of its plot. However it is immediately obvious why Eure was so interested in the Linlithgow Interlude’s content, since it seems to have espoused a blatantly reformist programme, if not necessarily ‘Protestant’, in the modern sense. But the ‘notes’ describing the play are of interest to historians for another reason, since they also reveal close similarities between the Interlude, and one of the most famous early examples of Scottish drama- David Lindsay’s ‘Ane Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis’.

(The fountain in the courtyard of Linlithgow Palace was constructed in 1538 on the orders of James V)

Sir David Lindsay of the Mount was a prominent figure at James V’s court. He had been close to the king since James’ infancy, beginning as an usher in the royal household. Although he was removed from the king’s household during the ascendancy of the Earl of Angus, he was restored to favour when James began his personal rule. The king later appointed him Snowdon herald and then Lyon King of Arms, a position he held until his death in 1555. Aside from his heraldic duties, he was a poet of great skill and several of his works demonstrate his close, quasi-paternal relationship with the king. Indeed, this may have allowed him to carefully criticise the king, exhorting James to amend both his personal life and the abuses in his kingdom. Lindsay was also claimed as a proto-Protestant by some following the Reformation but it is debatable how far he was sympathetic to what we would now call Protestantism. However his views on the state of the realm are most famously addressed in his play ‘Ane Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis’, probably his best-known work. This chiefly survives in two versions: an abbreviated text in the Bannatyne MS, and a more complete version printed in 1602. It was staged at least twice during Lindsay’s lifetime- once in 1552, on the playfield of Cupar in the author’s home county of Fife, and then in 1554 in Edinburgh, when it was again attended by Mary of Guise, now ruling in Scotland as queen regent for her daughter Mary I. The play has also been performed several times in the modern era, since its revival for the second Edinburgh Fringe in 1948.

The early performances of the ‘Satyre’ took place in a very different context to that of the Linlithgow ‘Interlude’. There was no king in the audience and, despite the queen regent’s best efforts, religious discontent was growing in the 1550s (especially in Fife). Meanwhile the open-air playfields of Cupar and Edinburgh, with their audiences of burgesses, local lairds, craftsmen, farmers, and others further down the social scale, were very different to the intimate and elite surroundings of Linlithgow Palace. But the framework of the Interlude does seem to resemble that of the Satyre very closely. The ‘Satyre’ opens with a short speech by a character named Diligence before a king (‘Rex Humanitas’) enters in the company of his flattering courtiers Wantonness and Placebo. These last two are more overtly malevolent than the courtiers described in Eure’s ‘notes’ and they are hanged at the end of the play, which is not a feature of the Interlude. Although flattering courtiers were a common target in sixteenth century literature, their behaviour in both plays is otherwise very similar. Rex Humanitas and his courtiers are joined by a character named Solace, a drunk who is also capable of singing ballads. His appearance coincides with the first jokes about the sexual immorality of the clergy, and this is a major theme throughout the ‘Satyre’, couched in very similar terms to those of the ‘Interlude’. 

An eighteenth century depiction of Sir David Lindsay of the Mount. Reproduced under the Creative Commons Attribution licence by permission of the British Museum)

As in the ‘Interlude’, much of the action in the ‘Satyre’ is also driven by the complaint of a Poor Man (accompanied by another character named John Commonweal) who bemoans the abuses of the clergy and the nobility. There is no learned doctor named Experience to support the Poor Man’s argument in the Satyre, but there are characters such as Good Counsall and Correction, the latter of whom convinces Rex Humanitas to call a parliament. The second half of the play therefore deals with the meeting of the ‘Thrie Estaitis’ who are explicitly identified as ‘Temporalitie’ (the nobility or the equivalent of the Armed Man in the ‘Interlude’, though less explicitly warlike), ‘Merchant’ (equivalent to the Burgess in the ‘Interlude’) and ‘Spiritualitie’ (the clergy). Temporalitie and Spiritualitie are harangued for their sins, the latter getting the worst of it, and although Spiritualitie attempts to argue, he is eventually forced to accept correction. The play ends with the execution of the king’s evil counsellors.

The similarities between the overall structures of the ‘Satyre’ and the ‘Interlude’ is clear, and there are numerous minor details which both plays share. Little wonder then that the 1540 ‘Interlude’ has also been attributed to Lindsay and viewed as an early version of the ‘Satyre’. However, it must be acknowledged that there is no explicit evidence which confirms Lindsay as the earlier play’s author. Many of the themes shared by the ‘Interlude’ and the ‘Satyre’ are also found in other Scots literature of the period, and there are important elements of the ‘Satyre’ which are never mentioned in the ‘notes’ about the ‘Interlude’. For example, there are no female characters mentioned in the description of the ‘Interlude’, whereas in the ‘Satyre’ characters such as ‘Chastity’ and ‘Lady Sensualitie’ play important roles. It must be remembered though that Eure’s contact may not have recorded every detail of the Linlithgow ‘Interlude’, especially if they weren’t relevant to his religious and political aims.**** And overall, despite some academics rightly urging caution, there does appear to be a general consensus that the ‘Interlude’ and the ‘Satyre’ were in some way connected. The survival of an account of the Linlithgow ‘Interlude’ is thus of great significance for the study of Scots literature and sixteenth century court culture.

The Yuletide festivities drew to a close and by early February the court had moved to Edinburgh in advance of the queen’s coronation. The long-term impact of the little interlude at Linlithgow on James V and his council cannot be ascertained, if indeed it had any real impact at all, beyond its entertainment value. Nonetheless, the frustrations and ideals which informed the play would fester for the next twenty years or more and, eventually, a reformation would indeed be effected in Scotland, though it was destined to take a very different form to anything James V, Henry VIII, or even David Lindsay might have imagined. And in any case, even if areas such as James V’s religious policy and the play’s authorship must remain something of a mystery, the survival of a description of the performance at Linlithgow offers a rare insight into court entertainments in sixteenth century Scotland.

Notes:

*’The whole council spiritual and temporal’ is a bit of a vague phrase but presumably included at least to the king’s closest, privy councillors, who might be loosely associated with the small group who witnessed most royal charters at this time. Two of these men- the chancellor Gavin Dunbar and the justice clerk Thomas Bellenden- we already know were in attendance. It is perhaps not too much of a stretch to guess that some of the others were in the audience- men like the bishop of Whithorn, the earl of Moray (the king’s older half-brother), the earl of Argyll, the chamberlain Lord Fleming, the secretary Thomas Erskine of Brechin and the clerk register James Foulis of Colinton. Perhaps some of the queen’s ladies were also in attendance, or even some of his illegitimate children who were likely at Linlithgow at the time, but this must remain speculative.

** Gavin Dunbar had also been one of the king’s tutors and, known for his ‘cursing’, he was not usually at a loss for words.

*** Interestingly the treasurer of the day was James Kirkcaldy of Grange, who might have been in the audience. Kirkcaldy obtained a reputation in later literature for his defence of persecuted Protestants.

**** And in the case of ‘Lady Sensualitie’ in particular, I do have to wonder how popular an account of how consorting with concubines allegedly impeded the cause of reform would have been with an English ambassador during the reign of Henry VIII.

Selected Bibliography:

- Printed copy of Sir William Eure’s original letter can be found in Sir Henry Ellis’ “Original Letters Illustrative of English History”, series 3 vol. 3 and is also calendared in the Letters and Papers of Henry VIII here.

- “Accounts of the Lord High Treasurer”, vol. 7, ed. Sir James Balfour Paul

- “Ane Plesand Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis”, by Sir David Lindsay of the Mount- I used both this printed copy of the 1602 version and the modern ‘standard’ edition by Roderick Lyall, and of course the notes associated with this (link to publisher’s website here)

- “The Linlithgow Interlude of 1540 and Lyndsay’s Satire of the Thrie Estaitis”, by Greg Walker in Medieval English Theatre vol. 37 “The Best Pairt of Our Play: Essays Presented to John J. McGavin”

- “Versions of Lindsay’s Satire of the Three Estates”, by Raymond A. Houk in PMLA vol. 55, No. 2 (June 1940).

And others.