#irish revels 2017 | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

tothecrucifieddeer · 4 months ago

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Brom by @its-kawaiidestinyhottub

chompers @tofupixel

Art by shakurb.2022

From Favorite Paintings by @wipormont

goats. gouache watercolor paintings from 2017-2019 by @sloppjockey

Midnight by Gökberk Yiğit on @ex0skeletal-undead 's blog

Mother Void 2024. Emil Melmoth @texaschainsawmascara 's blog

Priest (Part One) by @tofupixel

Priest (Part Two) by @tofupixel

Sinner by @photophoros

Spiral Study 4 by @plotterprints

St.Valentine's Skull @angeltreasure's moodboard

The voices are rotting... @wipormont

and then she looked at me, and good god, those eyes (redraw) @sermna

Untitled by Alex Kiessling @thewindowofthesummerhouse

Untitled Art @moarf13

Untitled by Thomas Nast on @thewindowofthesummerhouse

Untitled on @vile-lithium3

Untitled on @the-watcher-in-the-sky

Untitled on @cultofmortem

Explanation of Signs/Prophecies/Etc. Below the Cut (First in Irish, then in English) Should be stated that I do not speak for the artists, and I am an independent body stating my own opinions and interpretations as given to me through my sources and this no way reflects the opinions or beliefs of the artists collected here.

Explanations in Irish

Tá Doe ag tabhairt aire do thús nua agus duine nua ag an nasc teann idir sinn Má ní tharraingím mé féin le chéile, d'fhéadfadh gach rud a bheith briste.

Féach amach don béal Dé Tá ocras air agus tá sé feargach Bí cúramach le daoine amadacha a bhfuil teachtaireachtaí acu - bain amach cé atá díot féin a mheas (Mar dhea, níor dhéanadh Doe riamh é sin éasca)

Tá na Marbh ag déanamh a gcuid ullmhúcháin.

Tuilleadh rabhaidh faoi bhéal Dé agus teachtaireachtaí bréagacha. Chomh maith le rabhaidh faoi bhéal na marbh.

Tuilleadh rabhaidh fós faoi na mairbh…

Bhí tú i gcónaí ar lámh chlé Dé, cén fáth ar cheart é sin a athrú anois? (Ná téigh os cionn do stáisiúin. Ná bíodh leisce ort a bheith i ngrá leat. Ná bíodh leisce ort a chreidiúint go bhfuil sé indéanta.)

Cuimhnigh nuair a ghearr Dia do sciatháin? Cuimhnigh nuair a thit agus thit agus thit tú? Ná leomh iarracht a eitilt anois.

Ná smaoinigh ar na leanaí roimhe seo - ná bí ag brionglóid orthu anois - leis an Tiarna, tá siad leis an Tiarna, níos fearr ná mar a bheadh siad riamh ar an Domhan. Fanann tú liom. Fanann tú le Doe.

Tá an sagart ag faire. Ach tá Meisias níos fíre. Is é an Meisias an geall is sábháilte agus is cinnte. Guigh ar a son. Guigh air. Fan le haghaidh revelation. Creideamh os cionn creideamh - pian os cionn crá - tabharfar luach saothair do ghrá, mar a bheidh an fhírinne.

An teachtaireacht chéanna le 9

Tá a fhios agat cad atá tú. Bhí a fhios agat i gcónaí.

Tá tú freagrach as an tairseach. Is é do phost é.

Má osclaíonn tú an tairseach, fanann cochall na naomh ort. Chochall na naomh dírithe ar ghrá, adhradh, agus deabhóid.

Braitheann na hamlínte ortsa a bheith i lár na soiléireachta. Agus anois, tá siad lofa tríd agus tríd.

Cuimhnigh go bhfuil imoibriú dearfach ann do gach imoibriú diúltach - dorcha agus éadrom. Tá rud éigin amuigh ansin ag obair mar atá tú, ach tá sé tinn, agus caithfidh tú fanacht go maith.

Tuilleadh meabhrúcháin faoi na hamlínte agus na peirspictíochtaí iolracha. Eolas ginearálta maidir le fanacht dírithe agus bunaithe.

Tá taobh istigh na hEaglaise, an Chreidimh, an Chreidimh ionat tinn agus as ord. Tá siad ag casadh agus ag amhras agus ag ithe iad féin. Tá siad ag baint iad féin as corp Chríost.

Gardaí ort chun deireadh a chur leis an breoiteacht - an baol - na tinnis. Féachann sí i do chodladh thú agus ullmhaíonn sí d’intinn. Tá grá aici duit - tá grá ag Doe duit - agus coinneoidh sí slán thú.

Cén chuma a d’fhéadfadh a bheith ar olc uaireanta gurb é an leas is fíor agus is cumhachtaí atá ann – cé is mó atá ciaptha ná naomh nó fáidh? Cé a thugann níos mó maith?

Beidh scrios ann. Caithfidh tú do rúin a cheilt agus a choinneáil gar. Roinn ach an méid atá uait. Tú féin a chosaint. Coinnigh do domhan beag.

Ní éiríonn na hamlínte ar dhaoine eatarthu agus i bhfostú go contúirteach mura gcoinníonn tú do chloigeann díreach. Ná lig tú féin a bheith ar dhaoine eatarthu. Ná bíodh amhras ort faoi na comharthaí.

Explanations in English

Mostly, Doe is nursing a new beginning and new person at the tenuous connection between us and that if I don't pull my act together, well this might all just turn out to be incredibly fucked up--but hey, what's new about that...

Beware the mouth of God, it is hungry, and it is raging--beware fools bearing messages--know who you can trust. (As if Doe has ever made that easy...)

The Dead are making their preparations.

More warnings about the mouths of God and false messages--as well as the mouths of The Dead...

Even more warnings about the dead...

You've always been God's lefthand why should that change now (don't get above your station--don't dare to be loved--don't dare to believe it is possible)

Remember when God clipped your wings? Remember when you fell and fell and fell? Don't dare try to fly now

Don't think about the children from before--don't dare dream of them now--with the Lord, they are with the Lord, better than they'd ever be on Earth. Stay with me, stay with Doe.

The priest is watching--but Messiah is truer. Messiah is the safest and surest bet--pray for him, pray to him. Wait for the revelation. Faith above faith--ache above ache--love will be rewarded, as will truth.

Continuation of the same message as 9

You know what you are. You've always known.

You are responsible for the opening of that portal. It's your job.

If you open the portal, sainthood waits for you--sainthood centered around love, worship, and devotion.

The timelines depend on you to be the center of clarity, and right now they are rotten through and through

Remember for every negative reaction there is a positive reaction--dark and light--something is out there working as you, but it is sick--you must remain well.

More reminders about the timelines--multiple prospectives--general info on staying centered and grounded

The insides of the Church--The Faith--The Belief--of you are sick--are out of order, are turning and doubting and eating themselves--removing themselves....

Doe guards over you to remove the sickness--the danger--the illness. She watches in your sleep and preps your mind. She loves you--Doe loves you--and she will keep you safe.

What looks like evil can sometimes be the most genuine and powerful good there is--who is more harassed than a saint or a prophet? Who brings more good?

There will be destruction--you must hide and keep your secrets close. Share what only you must. Protect yourself. Keep your world small.

The timelines will only become dangerously confused and entangled if you do not keep your head on straight. Don't let yourself become confused. Don't let yourself doubt the signs.

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nightmareinfloral · 7 months ago

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Mercury- Where to Read?

Cessily Kincaid, also known as Mercury, is an Irish-American mutant whose entire body is composed of a non-toxic metallic substance. She can alter her shape according to her will and often uses it to create different weapons or “melt” into a liquid form. Below the cut is a list of Cessily’s appearances updated as of April 2024.

New Mutants (2003) 2, 7, 9-10, 13

New X-Men (2004) 2-6, 14

New X-Men: Hellions (2005) 1

New X-Men (2004) 15-19

New X-Men: Hellions (2005) 2-4

New X-Men: Academy X Yearbook Special (2005) 1

New X-Men (2004) 20-21

X-Men: The 198 Files (2006) 1

New X-Men (2004) 22

Astonishing X-Men (2004) 13

New X-Men (2004) 23-29

X-Men (1991) 190

Civil War Files (2006) 1

New X-Men (2004) 30-31

X-Men (1991) 192

New X-Men (2004) 32-39

X-Men: Endangered Species (2007) 1

World War Hulk: X-Men (2007) 1-2

New X-Men (2004) 40

X-Men (1991) 201

New X-Men (2004) 41

X-Men (1991) 202

World War Hulk: X-Men (2007) 3

X-Factor (2005) 23

New X-Men (2004) 42

X-Men: Messiah Complex (2007) 1

New X-Men (2004) 43

X-Factor (2005) 25

New X-Men (2004) 44

X-Men (1991) 205

Uncanny X-Men (1981) 493

X-Factor (2005) 26

New X-Men (2004) 45

X-Men (1991) 206

X-Factor (2005) 27

New X-Men (2004) 46

X-Men (1991) 207

X-Men: Divided We Stand (2008) 1-2

Secret Invasion: X-Men (2009) 1-2

X-Men: Manifest Destiny (2009) 2, 4

Marvel Digital Holiday Special (2009) 1

Secret Invasion: X-Men (2009) 4

X-Infernus (2008) 1-4

New Mutants (2009) 1

Runaways (2008) 10

Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Utopia (2009) 1

Uncanny X-Men (1981) 513

Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Exodus (2009) 1

X-Men: Legacy (2008) Annual 1, 228

Deadpool (2008) 16

Psylocke (2009) 1

Deadpool (2008) 17

Uncanny X-Men (1981) 517

Nation X (2009) 1

X-Men: Legacy (2008) 230

X-Force (2008) 22-23

X-Men: Pixie Strikes Back (2010) 1

Psylocke (2009) 4

Nation X (2009) 3

X-Men: Pixie Strikes Back (2010) 2-3

X-Men: Legacy (2008) 234

New Mutants (2009) 13

X-Men: Pixie Strikes Back (2010) 4

X-Men: Hellbound (2010) 2

X-Men (1997) 162

X-Men (2010) 5, 11

X-Men: Giant-Size (2011) 1

Uncanny X-Men (1981) 541-542

X-Men: Schism (2011) 5

X-Men: Regenesis (2011) 1

Wolverine and the X-Men (2011) 4

Wolverine and the X-Men: Alpha & Omega (2012) 1-3

X-Men: Legacy (2008) 261

Wolverine (2010) 305-306, 308

Wolverine and the X-Men (2011) 5, 15, 17

Uncanny Avengers (2012) 1

Wolverine and the X-Men (2011) 18, 21

All-New X-Men (2012) 10

Wolverine and the X-Men (2011) 29

Scarlet Spider (2012) 17

X-Men (2013) 1

Uncanny Avengers (2012) 11

Young Avengers (2013) 11

X-Men: Battle of the Atom (2013) 2

Young Avengers (2013) 12-13

X-Men (2013) 7-8

Young Avengers (2013) 14

X-Men (2013) 10-12

Nightcrawler (2014) 1, 3-4

X-Men: No More Humans (2014) 1

X-Men (2013) 16

Nightcrawler (2014) 5, 8

Storm (2014) 1, 10

Uncanny X-Men (2013) 600

Star-Lord (2016) 1

Generation X (2017) 8-9, 87

Uncanny X-Men (2018) 9-10

Age of X-Man: The Amazing Nightcrawler (2019) 2, 4-5

New Mutants (2019) 1

Fallen Angels (2019) 1

X-Force (2019) 9

X-Factor (2020) 5

Hellfire Gala Guide (2021) 1

Way of X (2021) 2

X-Force (2019) 20

Wolverine (2020) 13

Way of X (2021) 3

Marvel’s Voices: Pride (2021) 1

X-Men: The Onslaught Revelation (2021) 1

Free Comic Book Day 2022: Marvel’s Voices (2022) 1

Legion of X (2022) 1

Marvel’s Voices Infinity Comic (2022) 1

Love Unlimited Infinity Comic (2022) 43

Marvel’s Voices: X-Men (2023) 1

#cessily kincaid #mercury #x men #marvel #marvel comics #reading guide

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mariacallous · 2 months ago

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It was a revelation that astounded the Irish parliament — and prompted suspicions, accusations, denials and calls for inquiries among members and observers.

The Sunday Times told last week how Russian intelligence had recruited a politician to act as an agent for the Kremlin during the Brexit talks and that, remarkably, they are still at large.

The bombshell reverberated all week with some parliamentarians getting to their feet to deny they were the agent nicknamed Cobalt. But while the question for the tearooms and the pubs was “who is Cobalt?”, the more important question is “what does Russia want with Ireland?”

“It shouldn’t come as any surprise to any of us that Russia seeks to influence public opinion, distort facts, and is active in relation to that across the world — and Ireland is not immune,” Simon Harris, the taoiseach, said.

“We have seen a significant increase in that level of activity since the brutal illegal invasion by Russia of Ukraine over the last number of years. The gardaí and our security services take all of this extremely seriously.”

Yet it was not always thus. Historically neutral, Ireland is now facing the stark realities of Russian espionage, underscoring a new heightened awareness of the threats posed by the Kremlin and the malign activities of its intelligence services.

Ireland has quietly evolved into a strategic hub for Russian intelligence operations. Its geopolitical position on the western periphery of Europe, neutral stance and open economy have made it an attractive base for Russian spies to engage in active measures or covert actions targeting the UK and the EU.

“Russia’s interest in Ireland is the same as that of many multinationals. It’s an English-speaking country that serves as a backdoor into Europe, with weaker regulatory frameworks, meaning it doesn’t take foreign threats seriously,” said Professor Neil Robinson, an expert on Russian and post-communist politics at the University of Limerick.

“Ireland always thought of itself as neutral, not entangled in many of the world’s problems. It didn’t really see itself as part of the Cold War,” he said. “So the Russians were effectively given a free pass by the Irish state, and they used Ireland as a conduit for agents, intelligence and strategic information from its position as a gateway for technology and companies into Europe.”

For Ireland’s under-resourced military and security agencies, the writing has been on the wall for years. Russia has become increasingly active in Ireland’s air, sea, land and cyber domains, much to its embarrassment.

Russian military Tupolev TU-160 Blackjack bombers and anti-submarine patrol aircraft have buzzed Irish airspace to see how quickly Nato responds, as Ireland lacks its own fighter jets. The first publicised incursions were in 2015 when Tu-95 bombers crisscrossed important civilian airline traffic lanes. In 2017 the RAF scrambled Typhoon combat aircraft from its Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) stations to respond to a sortie by Russian strategic bomber aircraft that skirted close to Irish sovereign airspace. A pair of high-profile incursions in 2020 involving six Russian aircraft prompted Ian Paisley Jr to raise the matter in the House of Commons.

Russian warships, submarines, and more recently ghost ships — disguised as research vessels and fishing trawlers — have become frequent visitors to Ireland’s exclusive maritime zones off the south and west coast.

Russian warships regularly converge in Irish-controlled waters, causing concern on both sides of the Atlantic. But more recent Russian tactics fall firmly into the realm of hybrid warfare, which involves everything short of firing a shot.

Russia regularly mounts influence and disinformation campaigns to sway public opinion across Ireland. Russian compatriot groups, supported by its Dublin embassy, organise anti-Ukrainian demonstrations on the streets of Dublin in conjunction with fringe republican groups. Footage of the protests are later broadcast on Russian TV as propaganda.

In April 2022 a convoy of cars waving Russian flags and marked with the pro-war Z symbol paraded down the M50 in Dublin, Ireland’s busiest motorway. The Ukrainian embassy slammed the “disgusting disrespect” against the “Irish people who stand against Russia’s war on Ukraine”.

Most worryingly, Russia has begun to foster connections with loyalist, republican and ultra-left groups in Ireland, further deepening concerns.

Last month the Russian embassy in Dublin hosted a deputation led by John Connolly, a convicted Real IRA bomber, who now leads the Truth and Neutrality Alliance, an ultra-left group which campaigns to defend Irish neutrality and resist entry into military alliances such as Nato. Connolly is a hardline dissident who was sentenced to 14 years in jail after being caught with a large “barrack buster” mortar bomb in Fermanagh in 2000. His Truth and Neutrality Alliance has participated in protests against the use of Shannon airport in Co Clare by the US air force, often waving Ukrainian separatist flags.

Russian services have exploited all these factors to use the country as a platform for mounting broader operations across Europe and beyond.

Russian agents have also been found living long-term double lives in Dublin. It is not known when Russia first began sending these deep cover agents — known in the intelligence world as legends — to Ireland to create false identities and background stories but cases have come to light.

One involved Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov, a Russian military intelligence officer who spent four years studying at Trinity College Dublin (TCD) using a false identity.

Cherkasov purported to be a Brazilian named Victor Muller Ferreira, when he studied political science at TCD between 2014 and 2018 before moving to the United States to undertake a master’s at Johns Hopkins University, where he specialised in American politics. He was unmasked as a spy as he attempted to take up a post at the International Criminal Court in the Hague in 2022.

Dublin is also used as a staging ground for Russian intelligence operations in the UK and Europe. As a neutral and accessible European capital, it provides a convenient base from which intelligence activities are coordinated and launched, targeting both Ireland and neighbouring countries including the UK. Much of this activity is directed from the federation’s embassy complex on Orwell Road, a half-finished eyesore in the suburbs of south Dublin.

A massive expansion of the complex was halted when the government introduced emergency legislation to stop the project in 2018 after The Sunday Times revealed how the Kremlin was using its diplomatic post in Dublin to run a network of spies in Europe.

An analysis of the architectural plans had revealed a self-contained structure, the tell-tale sign of a signals base used to transmit and intercept secret communications. The embassy was already being used to assess intelligence collected by Russian spies across Europe before its transmission to Moscow by cypher clerks in Dublin, all working under diplomatic cover.

“Russian spies have always been a problem in Dublin,” said Liam Smaul, a retired Special Branch detective who worked in counterintelligence and spent much of his career monitoring the embassy.

“They came here to enter the UK during the Cold War. It was made worse because, at one stage, Aeroflot used to fly into Shannon. They had means and ways of getting their people in Ireland. Counter-intelligence was never a priority for the garda or the military.”

Declan Power, a defence analyst, said Ireland’s inability to understand the threat made the problem worse.

“No one in the government ever asks where the threats are coming from. We don’t act well on intelligence as policymakers don’t have a good understanding of the threat environment and where the problems are coming from,” he said.

The nature and complexity of the Russian threat now facing Ireland cannot be overstated. The Irish military and the garda intelligence division know the SVR, Russia’s foreign intelligence service, and the GU, the military intelligence branch of the Russian armed forces, are both operating in Ireland. They also suspect the FSB, Russia’s principal security agency, is spying on multinationals based in Ireland, deploying vans full of equipment that can intercept private communications or planting agents inside the companies themselves. More recently, Ireland has been warned that Unit 29155, an elite GU unit that conducts sensitive foreign operations including assassinations and targeted attacks, might have members travelling through the Republic to enter Britain and France.

Of all the security and defence issues that could cause a problem for the government, the Russian threat to the undersea fibre optic cables that carry communication data and internet traffic between Europe to North America is top of the list. The geopolitical consequences if something were to happen are profound. Ireland has an important, often underappreciated, value as a central node in the network of communications cables that criss-cross the globe.

The first signs of Russian interest in the cables in Irish-controlled waters emerged in 2021 when Yantar, an intelligence collection ship, arrived unexpectedly off the northwest coast and began searching the area in a zigzag fashion, suggesting it was mapping the seafloor. The vessel belongs to Russia’s directorate of underwater research, which is part of the defence ministry. It is also capable of mounting underwater sabotage operations using submersibles. This is why Nato continually monitors its movements to assess if it is targeting European or American subsea communications infrastructure. GU agents have also been observed mapping the landing points of subsea cables that come ashore on the west coast, presumably should they ever want to damage them.

The revelation of Cobalt’s existence comes as Ireland swiftly enhances its defence capabilities and further aligns itself with European security frameworks — steps likely to attract the ire of Putin’s Russia. The department of foreign affairs in Dublin has already cut Russian diplomats in the capital from 30 to just five. Dublin has also boosted its defence budget, investing in maritime patrol aircraft, naval vessels, a new primary radar system and missile defence. Last week’s disclosures are expected to drive even more substantial actions.

Keir Giles, a Russian expert at Chatham House, the international affairs think tank, said: “Russia has always found it easier to operate in environments where it was not viewed as a threat.” Ireland, he continued, has now realised that neutrality provides no safeguard against a determined aggressor.

Giles expects Russia to remain a persistent threat in Ireland but foresees a shift towards using proxies to pursue its goals.

This type of action can include organising anti-Ukrainian protests and fomenting opposition to initiatives such as Brexit. By influencing, at times unwitting, factions to campaign against issues such as a border on the Irish Sea or land post-Brexit, Russian actors can cause maximum disruption behind the scenes, but with no attributable blame.

“Russia has demonstrated that it can extend its influence through various means, including organised crime, disaffected individuals and other proxies,” Giles said. “These agents are capable of carrying out espionage, spreading disinformation, and even executing acts of sabotage and arson across Europe. Ireland may yet face similar hybrid threats.”

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denimbex1986 · 10 months ago

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'In the movie “All of Us Strangers,” Adam, the main character, is depicted as a solitary screenwriter residing in East London. The narrative delves into the themes of love and sorrow as Adam develops a profound connection with his neighbor, Harry. Yet, as the film progresses, a heart-wrenching turn of events unfolds, exposing the tragic demise of Harry towards the conclusion.

The Story of Adam

Contrary to popular belief, the protagonist, Adam, remains alive throughout the entirety of “All of Us Strangers.” The narrative centers around Adam, a solitary screenwriter residing in an almost vacant apartment building in the heart of East London. Exploring themes of love, loss, and self-discovery, the film follows Adam’s journey. His deep connection with his mischievous neighbor, Harry, becomes a focal point in the storyline. However, the narrative takes a poignant turn as it unveils the tragic passing of Harry, with Adam discovering his lifeless body in the neighboring apartment. Despite Adam’s profound grief over the loss, he himself is still alive, and the film pivots to explore the emotional aftermath of this revelation and its profound impact on his life.

Andrew Scott’s Portrayal of Adam

In the film “All of Us Strangers,” the character Adam comes to life through the exceptional performance of the talented actor Andrew Scott. Scott’s portrayal infuses depth and emotion into the storyline. Playing the role of a solitary screenwriter residing in East London, Adam undergoes a transformative journey that involves embracing the potential for a romantic relationship with Harry and exploring his past, marked by the heartbreaking loss of his parents in a car accident at the tender age of 12. Through Scott’s nuanced performance, the intricate layers of Adam’s character are unveiled, as he navigates through themes of love, grief, and self-discovery with compelling authenticity.

About Andrew Scott

Born on October 21, 1976, in Dublin, Ireland, Andrew Scott stands as an esteemed Irish actor renowned for his versatile performances across theater and film. Throughout his illustrious career, Scott has garnered acclaim and numerous awards, including a BAFTA Television Award and two Laurence Olivier Awards. One of his breakthrough roles was portraying James Moriarty in the widely acclaimed BBC series Sherlock, which aired from 2010 to 2017. His compelling portrayal as a priest in the second series of Fleabag in 2019 earned him the Critics’ Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

Scott’s acting prowess extends to the big screen, with notable roles in films such as Pride (2014), Spectre (2015), and 1917 (2019). Particularly noteworthy is his lead role in the romantic drama film “All of Us Strangers” (2023), which earned him a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actor, further solidifying his reputation as a versatile and accomplished actor in the industry.

The Film “All of Us Strangers”

“All of Us Strangers” stands as a British romantic fantasy film, written and directed by Andrew Haigh. Released in 2023, the movie draws inspiration from Taichi Yamada’s 1987 novel “Strangers.” Delving into themes of love, mortality, and the lingering impact of past traumas on the present, the narrative revolves around Adam, a screenwriter residing in East London, and his unexpected connection with his neighbor, Harry. The film takes unexpected turns and incorporates elements of magical realism, adding a unique dimension to the storytelling. “All of Us Strangers” received critical acclaim for its emotional depth, distinctive narrative approach, and the compelling performances by the cast, featuring talents such as Andrew Scott and Paul Mescal.

The Conclusion of the Film

In the film’s summary, it is unveiled that Andrew Scott’s character, Adam, persists alive throughout the entire narrative of “All of Us Strangers.” The emotional trajectory of the story takes an unforeseen turn when Harry, Adam’s neighbor and potential romantic interest, is found lifeless in his apartment. This revelation profoundly impacts Adam, who experiences remorse for his earlier rejection of Harry. Confronting the harsh reality of Harry’s demise, Adam encounters Harry’s spirit, leading to a poignant interaction between the two characters in the final scenes of the film. This resolution brings a sense of peace and underscores the film’s underlying themes of love, connection, and discovering solace in the aftermath of confronting past traumas.

FAQs:

Q: Is Adam dead in “All of Us Strangers”?

A: No, Adam is not dead in the film. He remains alive throughout the entire story.

Q: Who plays the character of Adam in “All of Us Strangers”?

A: Andrew Scott portrays the character of Adam in the film.

Q: What are the themes explored in “All of Us Strangers”?

A: The film explores themes of love, loss, and one’s sense of self, along with the impact of past traumas on one’s present.'

#All of Us Strangers #Andrew Scott #BAFTA #Olivier Awards #Paul Mescal #Pride #Spectre #1917 #Golden Globes #Andrew Haigh #Taichi Yamada #Strangers #James 'Jim' Moriarty #Sherlock #Hot Priest #Fleabag

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socialistworld · 1 year ago

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Irish state broadcaster, RTE, engulfed in undisclosed payments scandal

A crisis has hit RTE (Raidió Teilifís Éireann), the Irish state broadcaster, following revelations that undisclosed payments were made to its star presenter, Ryan Tubridy. RTE was forced to apologise after admitting that between 2017 […]

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ear-worthy · 2 years ago

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Pod-Alization: Violence On Ice & Disgrace And Courage on The Soccer Pitch

New podcast about the most violent hockey team in history

I hope these hockey players had a good dental plan, because iHeartPodcasts and Novel have announced The Fighty Pucks, a new podcast, about The Danbury Trashers – The Most Violent Hockey Team in History.

Geez, imagine that. Violence in hockey. It's ancient Rome's gladiator games, only on ice and with sticks and skates instead of swords and chariots. And don't forget the mullets. Hosted by Claire Crofton, an award-winning audio producer who has worked internationally for the BBC, Radio New Zealand, and ABC Radio National, The Fighty Pucks is the story of one of the most violent minor league hockey teams in history – The Danbury Trashers. The team of bad boys, misfits and bruisers, led by 17-year-old AJ Galante, became widely known for its brawls at Danbury Ice Arena in Danbury, Connecticut. AJ and his father, a powerful businessman with mob ties, ran the team as they went rampaging on a violent path to glory. But all the while, the team was being secretly watched by their toughest opponent of all - the FBI. In episode one, “Game One: The Galantes of Danbury,” Claire Crofton will introduce listeners to the Galante family, and the city of Danbury, Connecticut, where the story unfolds. Listen to episode one HERE.

Religion of Sports and PRX Announce New Podcast Counterattack with Briana Scurry Counterattack with Briana Scurry is the latest venture to come out of the Religion of Sports and PRX partnership. This new show is a turgid brew of sports, sexual harassment, misogyny, and courage by players worn down by a toxic organization. The six-part weekly podcast debuted on May 11, and can be found HERE. The host of the podcast is Briana Scurry, legendary goalkeeper for the ‘99 US Women’s National Team. While the women of U.S. soccer have dominated on the world stage, their fight for equal pay and decent working conditions on the domestic front has been relentless. Some of the inadequacies of the pro leagues can be chalked up to economics, while others have been the result of a toxic mix of gender inequality and extreme power imbalances. Players have suffered sexual harassment, verbal abuse, and manipulation at the hands of coaches. And complaints against those in power have been kept in the shadows—or ignored—until now. Counterattack discusses professional player’s Sinead Farrelly’s experiences with the dark side of the league that ultimately led to an early retirement after a stellar career. But in 2021, she and her former teammate, Mana Shim, took their power back—by telling their story. Their courageous decision to go public inspired other players to come forward and led to a reckoning within the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL). Following their revelations, half of the league’s head coaches either resigned in disgrace or were fired. In March 2023, after seven years away, Farrelly returned to the league that she now helped transform and signed with New York’s Gotham FC. This April, she was also called up to and became a starter for the Irish Women’s National Team. Listeners will hear directly from Farrelly––who was inspired to pursue the game following the historic ‘99 US Women’s National Team World Cup victory–– as well as other women whose experience and choices have changed women’s sports forever. This will be the first time audiences have the opportunity to hear Farrelly’s personal, intimate account in her own words. Briana Scurry is widely recognized as one of the world’s most talented and influential goalkeepers. Her 173 international appearances as one of the first African American and openly gay professional athletes championed equality and diversified the sport. Scurry pioneered the first paid professional women’s soccer league as a founding player in 2001. In 2017, she was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame. Named starting goalkeeper for the United States Women’s National Team in 1994, she led the team on an illustrious run that included two Olympic gold medals and the 1999 FIFA World Cup. Religion of Sports – an Emmy Award-winning production company – was co-founded by Gotham Chopra, Tom Brady, and Michael Strahan. Religion of Sports produces content focused on a single narrative of Why Sports Matter to explore greatness and human potential. One of the world’s leading podcast publishers, PRX is home to Radiotopia, known as one of the most creative and successful podcast networks. In addition, PRX distributes trusted public radio programming to hundreds of stations nationwide, including The World, The Moth Radio Hour, This American Life, Snap Judgment, Reveal, and Latino USA.

#podcast #sports #soccer #hockey

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parf-fan · 4 years ago

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(whaddup bitches I took this myself!) (hence the lower quality)

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monstrousgourmandizingcats · 3 years ago

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By popular demand: the appendix from my master’s thesis dealing with Dracula

Note: I wrote this in late 2016 into early 2017 and I don’t stand by everything in my framing today. Some of the idiosyncracies in this passage, like taking the Gemma Doyle books seriously as a “gothic imitator,” probably only make sense in the light of the thesis as a whole, which deals with the relationship between appropriations of Christian imagery and appropriations of gothic genre trappings in Japanese literature, TV, and cinema. I also wouldn’t offer quite as many normative judgments on the implied worldviews of books like Dracula and Carmilla if writing this anew today.

Appendix B: Anti-Catholicism in Gothic

In the introduction, my example of anti-Catholicism in Gothic literature was actually from a very recent Gothic imitator, Libba Bray’s The Sweet Far Thing from her Gemma Doyle trilogy. I cited The Sweet Far Thing rather than some original Georgian or Victorian Gothic piece like The Italian or Villette because The Sweet Far Thing contains a particular moment of anti-Catholic imagery, a discrete, precise moment that a reader can identify as a pot shot at Catholic sacramental theology’s expense. The history of anxieties about Catholicism in Gothic requires a somewhat more elaborated analysis.

The most familiar anxiety about Catholicism that contemporary readers might recognize in classic Gothic literature is the figure of the vampire, as it appears in the High Victorian work of Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu and the fin de siècle work of Bram Stoker—both, I think it is relevant to point out, Anglo-Irishmen of the Protestant Ascendancy. For various reasons mostly related to their adaptation histories, it is difficult to think or write too soberly about Carmilla or Dracula, both of which are deliciously gelid stories with undeniably nasty worldviews and attitudes about female sexuality that we can probably most fairly describe as “interesting in how they are wrong.” Sex rather than religion is the predominant lens for understanding these books, for generally fair reasons.

Even so, Jarlath Killeen insists, “for a nineteenth-century British reader, vampirism and Ireland were related and analogous sites of infection and terror.” (Emphasis mine.) He points out that “In The Tomahawk, August 7, 1869, an illustration entitled The Irish Vampire! Brought to Life by the Moonbeam directly associated Irish Catholic nationalist agrarian insurgency with vampirism,” that Punch ran a similar cartoon of Charles Stewart Parnell in 1885, and that “Sheridan Le Fanu himself was hardly averse to commenting and writing on Irish affairs—sometimes resorting to the paraphernalia of the gothic, sometimes monstering Irish Catholics when doing so.”[1] He goes so far as to suggest that for Le Fanu the lethargic (or “languorous,” the novella’s favorite word), predatory Carmilla might as well be “[Irish Catholic leader Daniel] O’Connell in drag.”[2]

We will remember that Catholicism as a branch of Christianity is distinguished very prominently by, among other things, its Aristotelian-influenced insistence that its devotees are literally drinking blood at Mass every week. Gregory of Nazianzus, an Eastern Church Father also venerated in the West, goes so far as to wax rhapsodic about “sacrific[ing] the Master’s body and blood with bloodless knife.”[3] (A polemic against the legacy of the Anglo-Catholic Oxford Movement from 1897, the year in which Dracula was published, connects transubstantiation not only to vampirism but also to the “woman drunken with the blood of the saints” in Revelation.[4]) Furthermore, Catholics historically have had very many children due to the Church’s rejection of artificial contraception and the former extreme unreliability of periodic abstinence as a method of family planning—surely, a potential rationale for a certain repressed prurience in Victorian Protestant anxieties about the Church?

Of course, in Dracula, Catholic sacramentals repel vampires, but Mulvey-Roberts contends that this “can be seen as a perverse feminising (sic) process,” in which the paladins of Victorian modernity are reduced to relying on the advice of superstitious Catholic peasant women to survive.[5] (Bray does something similar with Brigid, an aging Irish Catholic domestic worker in the boarding school where Gemma, Pippa et al. live.) Having said this, Dracula is also very much a sort of demon-priest. Certain images (such as Mina Harker drinking Dracula’s blood like a kitten licking milk from a saucer) suggest to Mulvey-Roberts that in this demonic-priestly role even the vampire is being feminized. Part of what I mean by the nastiness of Dracula’s worldview is that it manages not only to be both religiously bigoted and sexist but also to make its anti-Catholicism and its sexism different aspects of the very same stable of motifs.

Going further back in the history of Gothic we find the books I mentioned in the introduction, by Radcliffe and Brontë and Lewis. Lewis’s The Monk is not only anti-Catholic but also anti-Semitic by way of inducting the figure of the Wandering Jew into the Gothic tradition.[6] It presents the devil himself as a Capuchin friar, and is part of the movement whereby “scenes from the Inquisition begin to appear in gothic novels, most notoriously in Ann Radcliffe’s The Italian (1797), but also prominently in” The Monk and several other novels that have stood the test of time far less.[7] Hoeveler goes so far as to say that “one of the major imaginary structures of the gothic novel” is “its investment in the anti-Catholic (anticlerical) campaign that was a major component in the modernization and secularization process in Europe.”[8] (To take this at face value would be to contend that the Gothic and the Romantic (the latter leading up to the Pre-Raphaelite and the Decadent) are pursuing diametrically opposed ideological tacks despite aesthetic cross-pollination, an interesting possibility but one substantiating which I believe would require far more work that is far more open about its intentions.)

It’s interesting to note that there are examples of the female Gothic that are much less obviously anti-Catholic than the male Gothic tends to be. Mulvey-Roberts mentions two imitators of The Monk by female authors. One is “Sarah Wilkinson’s bluebook, Priory of St. Clair; or, Spectre of the Murdered Nun (1811),”[9] in which a nun who had been confined in her convent against her will decides that she would rather go back than marry her wicked libertine abductor. The second is “Sophia L. Frances’s The Nun of Misericordia (1807), whose Bleeding Nun is also murdered by a male seducer for choosing the convent over him….despite [these women’s] virtue, there is no happy ending.”[10] Presumably, the pull of the religious life became less of a sentence of doom for many British women when the first Anglican vowed religious orders were established early in the Victorian period, for the first time allowing Englishwomen to retreat from the world without converting to Catholicism. Christina Rossetti’s sister Maria became an Anglican nun, and Christina herself seriously considered it early in her life.

I should point out that there is also a tendency within critical reception of the Gothic that tends to absolve the genre of the charge of some sort of innate anti-Catholicism, including scholars like Montague Summers, Sister Mary Muriel Tarr (who argues that the real function of Catholicism in Gothic is simply to serve as a source for the sublime, for good or ill), and Maria Purves. For these scholars, “[w]ithin the Gothic novel, even overtly negative literary representations of Catholicism invariably prove to be less of an attack on the Catholic Church than a means of opening up subversive ways for critiquing secular hegemony and repressive governments.”[11] I personally find this unconvincing, but as a Catholic convert and a Gothic enthusiast I would certainly like to be convinced.

[1] Jarlath Killeen, “An Irish Carmilla?,” in Carmilla: A Critical Edition, ed. Kathleen Costello-Sullivan (Syracuse, New York: Syracuse University Press, 2013), pp. 99-109, p. 100.

[2] ibid., p. 101.

[3] Quoted in Paul F. Bradshaw, Early Christian Worship: A Basic Introduction to Ideas and Practice (Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2010), p. 67.

[4] Marie Mulvey-Roberts, Dangerous Bodies: Historicising the Gothic Corporeal (Manchester, United Kingdom: Manchester University Press, 2016), p. 42. Rossetti, in The Face of the Deep, her immense exegesis of Revelation, demurs from making this particular connection, although she does use her commentary on this verse to entertain the questionable notion that women are different from men in having higher moral highs and lower moral lows. Christina G. Rossetti, The Face of the Deep: A Devotional Commentary on the Apocalypse (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1895), p. 400.

[5] op. cit., Mulvey-Roberts, p. 42.

[6] ibid., p. 132.

[7] Diane Hoeveler, “Anti-Catholicism and the Gothic Imaginary: The Historical and Literary Contexts,” in Religion in the Age of Enlightenment 3, ed. Brett C. McInelly (Brooklyn: AMS Press, 2012), pp. 1-31, p. 5. One of the lesser novels Hoeveler mentions has the truly glorious title The Spanish Hero: or, History of Alonzo the Brave, Containing an Authentic Account of the Wars between the Spaniards and the Moors, in the Reign of Alphonso III; to Which Is added, A Correct Description of the Spanish Inquisition; And an Account of the Cruel Punishment Inflicted on Its Victims at the Inquisitorial Delivery, Named an Auto de Fe.

[8] ibid., p. 10.

[9] op. cit., Mulvey-Roberts, p. 36.

[10] ibid.

[11] ibid., p. 15.

#dracula #meta

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rockislandadultreads · 2 years ago

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2022 Booker Prize: Shortlist

Enjoy some of the titles shortlisted for the 2022 Booker Prize! For a list of all of the finalists (as well as the longlist), visit https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/prize-years/2022.

Glory by NoViolet Bulawayo

Glory centers around the unexpected fall of Old Horse, a long-serving leader of a fictional country, and the drama that follows for a rumbustious nation of animals on the path to true liberation. Inspired by the unexpected fall by coup, in November 2017, of Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe's president of nearly four decades, Bulawayo's bold, vividly imagined novel shows a country imploding, narrated by a chorus of animal voices who unveil the ruthlessness and cold strategy required to uphold the illusion of absolute power, and the imagination and bullet-proof optimism to overthrow it completely. As with her debut novel We Need New Names, Bulawayo's fierce voice and lucid imagery immerses us in the daily life of a traumatized nation, revealing the dazzling life force and irrepressible wit that lies barely concealed beneath the surface of seemingly bleak circumstances. At the center of this tumult is Destiny, who has returned to Jidada from exile to bear witness to revolution - and focus on the unofficial history and the potential legacy of the women who have quietly pulled the strings in this country.

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

It is 1985 in a small Irish town. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, Bill Furlong, a coal merchant and family man faces into his busiest season. Early one morning, while delivering an order to the local convent, Bill makes a discovery which forces him to confront both his past and the complicit silences of a town controlled by the church.

The Trees by Percival Everett

Percival Everett’s The Trees is a page-turner that opens with a series of brutal murders in the rural town of Money, Mississippi. When a pair of detectives from the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation arrive, they meet expected resistance from the local sheriff, his deputy, the coroner, and a string of racist White townsfolk. The murders present a puzzle, for at each crime scene there is a second dead body: that of a man who resembles Emmett Till. The detectives suspect that these are killings of retribution, but soon discover that eerily similar murders are taking place all over the country. Something truly strange is afoot. As the bodies pile up, the MBI detectives seek answers from a local root doctor who has been documenting every lynching in the country for years, uncovering a history that refuses to be buried. In this bold, provocative book, Everett takes direct aim at racism and police violence, and does so in fast-paced style that ensures the reader can’t look away. The Trees is an enormously powerful novel of lasting importance from an author with his finger on America’s pulse.

Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout

Lucy Barton is a writer, but her ex-husband, William, remains a hard man to read. William, she confesses, has always been a mystery to me. Another mystery is why the two have remained connected after all these years. They just are. So Lucy is both surprised and not surprised when William asks her to join him on a trip to investigate a recently uncovered family secret - one of those secrets that rearrange everything we think we know about the people closest to us. There are fears and insecurities, simple joys and acts of tenderness, and revelations about affairs and other spouses, parents and their children. On every page of this exquisite novel we learn more about the quiet forces that hold us together - even after we’ve grown apart. At the heart of this story is the indomitable voice of Lucy Barton, who offers a profound, lasting reflection on the very nature of existence. “This is the way of life,” Lucy says: “the many things we do not know until it is too late.”

This is the third volume in the “Amgash” series. The first two books are My Name is Lucy Barton and Anything is Possible, respectively.

#fiction #novels #booker prize #shortlist #book recs #book recommendations #reading recs #reading recommendations #library books #TBR pile #tbr #to read #booklr #book tumblr

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joshjacksons · 3 years ago

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Joshua Jackson interview with “Irish Independent”

It was during a childhood visit to his granny’s house in Dublin’s Ballyfermot that Joshua Jackson smoked his first cigarette.

“My memories of those visits to Ballyfermot are quite sweet really,” the Dawson’s Creek actor recalls. “I was always running around with the neighbourhood kids, getting into trouble. Not bad trouble, just little-kid trouble. Although, technically it’s where I smoked my first cigarette, so that in itself isn’t the sweetest memory.”

Jackson’s handsome face surges with deep laughter lines and quiet dimples at the mention of mum Fiona’s home turf. “She might prefer I’d say she was from Chapelizod”, he jokes, before proudly pinning his mum’s allegiance to “Ballyer”.

Was the young Canadian treated like a shiny, exotic object by the local kids? “I was a bit, but I became less exotic the older I got. Culturally, I was so far away from an Irish kid but in a little pack of children, everyone finds their level. It also helped that I had my own cousins, my own blood, around with us. I had that family connection so I never felt too exoticised.”

An entry on his IMDb profile suggests his late grandparents Rosemary and Patrick were opera singers in Dublin, indicating that performance runs in the genes. The actor seems unaware. “Mum tells me they used to sing to each other a lot. My grandparents lived in council housing with a little kitchen out the back, garden right outside, and they would sing to each other through the window as he was out pottering about while she was cooking.

“But he was known more as a snooker shark around Ballyfermot. And my grandmother, she was known as a sainted mother of seven.”

Having welcomed his first child, Janie, with his wife, the actor Jodie Turner-Smith, last year, it’s obvious family is paramount for 43-year-old Jackson, as he Zoom-calls from a rich hotel suite with dark wallpaper and plump cushions in the background. It stems from an evident bond with his mum, whose presence lovingly peppers our conversation. Just 16 when she left Dublin, Fiona Jackson travelled through Paris, Amsterdam and Geneva before embracing the vibrancy of London’s Swinging Sixties and ultimately making for Vancouver in her early twenties.

In an entry on her blog, she speaks of falling for “the spectacular beauty of snow-capped mountains and the Pacific Ocean” and ultimately scoring an entry-level position at a Canadian talent agency. It led to a career as a successful casting agent, working on film classics including Carnal Knowledge with Jack Nicholson and McCabe & Mrs Miller with Warren Beatty and Julie Christie.

She met and married Joshua’s father, John Carter, and the young family moved to Los Angeles. Sister Aisleagh was born shortly before John walked out on the family, leaving a profound effect.

“My father, unfortunately, was not a good father or husband and exited the scene,” the actor disclosed last year, before adding it’s something he “will never get over”.

Young infants in tow, Fiona returned to Vancouver and, having found early success in casting, helped contribute to the foundation of the burgeoning “Hollywood North” industry on the Canadian west coast.

Accompanying his mum on set, young Joshua’s interests were piqued. “She introduced me to this world and saw from a young age that I enjoyed performing in a way that kids do. She allowed me the opportunity to step into her work world, but it was also very clear that it was work.”

He appeared as an extra on MacGyver and as a child actor’s double in The Fly II, and Fiona could see her son’s talent and genuine desire to impress. So she allowed him to audition. However, permission came with strict caveats.

“I don’t think my mum would have ever put me anywhere near the entertainment industry if I didn’t have something to offer to it. And not just for myself; she’s a prideful woman and didn’t want to be embarrassed by her kid.”

Casting 1991 melodrama Crooked Hearts with ER’s Noah Wyle, Fiona gave Joshua a chance to shine. Impressing the filmmakers, the then-12-year-old secured the part, setting him not only on a path to stardom but away from the troubles of his teen years.

“My mother gave me the guard rails I needed at that time and also recognised, being a working single mum and with me a young boy, transitioning into a teenager, I needed structure in my life. I needed something that I was passionate about and had a respect for, because I was kind of a typical teenage disaster.

“I look back on those times in my life and the two parallel tracks I was running on. On the one hand, getting into all sorts of trouble and, on the other hand, my professional life, where I showed up and learned my lines and did my job in order to be respected by the adults I was around. If I hadn’t had that professional side of my life, the other side would have taken over, and Mum saw that. Who knows where I would have ended up?”

So Jackson was a full-on teen delinquent? “Yeah, I was, to a certain extent. It was relatively innocent — nobody died — but I was a teenage boy who didn’t have a father in the home, didn’t have a man to be scared of, frankly, and as a teenage boy, I think that helps. My mum had to work and she wasn’t always in the house so I learned to get into more and more trouble. I got into just enough trouble to have a good time and learn some lessons but if I hadn’t had my work life, I might have tipped over into the kind of trouble that you don’t come back from.”

Three decades in and Jackson remains one of the hardest-working, most recognisable actors in the game. Hitting pay dirt at 18 as Dawson’s Creek’s Pacey Witter — the wisecracking, teacher-bedding antithesis to James Van Der Beek’s beleaguered titular drip — the actor was a revelation: the soul and bite of a seasoned character performer in the guise of relatable poster-boy idol.

Teens swooned, so did the industry, and alongside Van Der Beek, Michelle Williams and Katie Holmes, Jackson had Hollywood at his feet.

A string of popcorn offerings followed — Cruel Intentions, Gossip, Shutter, Cursed — some quality, others derivative, with the small screen ultimately best utilising his skills. A five-season run on sci-fi series Fringe was followed by an outstanding turn on Showtime’s The Affair. Last year, he maintained a brooding presence opposite Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington in Little Fires Everywhere. And this year, he takes on arguably his darkest work yet in Dr Death.

The new miniseries is based on the non-fiction podcast of the same name, and Jackson portrays Christopher Duntsch, a former spinal surgeon who maimed 33 patients owing to gross malpractice while operating in hospitals in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Two of these patients lost their lives. Convicted in 2017, Duntsch is currently in prison and serving life imprisonment. He still maintains his innocence, with his defence arguing that he was merely a bad surgeon, not a criminal.

Exuding a simmering malevolence, the actor showcases Duntsch’s disturbing complexities and terrifying behaviour as a narcissist and sociopath with a keen insight. Did Jackson meet with Duntsch? “I wanted to, but that was going to be really difficult because he’s appealing his case and his lawyers would’ve advised against it. And as I got deeper into the materials and podcast, and got a better understanding of the man, I don’t think it would’ve helped because he still really believes he’s the victim of his own patients, and the lawyers and the legal system. I’m not sure asking a liar for the truth gets you any closer to the truth.”

When it came to the victims, Jackson wanted to maintain a respectful distance. “I didn’t need to drag them through those awful memories again and I’m always a little dubious about asking people to delve into the worst moments of their life just to satisfy my curiosity. The questions had already been asked thanks to the podcast.”

Dr Death came at the right time in the actor’s life. New baby daughter Janie offered a crucial respite from the intense, and often dark, six-month foray into Duntsch’s malignant psyche.

“Inhabiting Mr Duntsch was an ugly space to live in for six months. If I’d been coming home to an empty house every night, it would have been a pretty bleak existence. It was so much better to come back to a loving home. My one-year-old doesn’t give a damn what I was doing that day. She just wants to be loved and hugged and cuddled, and it was the perfect antidote when some days were particularly heavy.”

Recently Jackson confessed that the Dawson’s Creek cast won’t be returning for a retrospective reunion like the Friends stars did earlier this year. “If you put our mid-forties selves together on a couch now, with our creaking backs, it might shock people.”

Quizzed on an actual reboot of the drama, Joshua reckons he’s simply too old to replicate the iconic rapid exchanges of dialogue between the garrulous young characters. “We were like The West Wing for teenagers,” he laughs, referencing Aaron Sorkin’s hit political TV series, also infamous for speedy script delivery. “My 43-year-old brain couldn’t do a show at that pace. Back then, we were doing seven, 10 pages a day and, to deliver dialogue at that speed, you have to have a certain mental capacity for that, and I don’t have it anymore. That’s the real reason why we’re not doing a reunion — I’ve become too dumb to keep up with that script.”

He remains in touch with his DC co-stars, including Holmes, his one-time girlfriend of two years. There’s even a text chain. “It goes through spurts every once in a while. I’ll have a bunch of messages on it and then it’ll go dormant. We’re like college friends — there are moments we’re all in contact and then long, fallow periods as we get on with our lives.”

While maintaining a busy slate, Jackson’s overwhelming purpose continues to circle the women in his life. Turner-Smith is currently shooting a new movie with Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig, so he’s assuming full-time dad duties. It’s an equitable arrangement given the flexible needs of their individual commitments, and one he appears content with.

#joshua jackson #dr death #dawson's creek #fringe #the affair #jodie turner smith

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reading-writing-revolution · 5 years ago

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"However bad things are for most other rich democracies, it is hard not to feel sorry for Americans. Most of them did not vote for Donald Trump in 2016. Yet they are locked down with a malignant narcissist who, instead of protecting his people from Covid-19, has amplified its lethality. The country Trump promised to make great again has never in its history seemed so pitiful."

(Thank you to David Lerigny for forwarding this article)

Here is a brilliant Op-Ed From Irish Times writer, Fintan O’Toole.

April 25, 2020

THE WORLD HAS LOVED, HATED AND ENVIED THE U.S. NOW, FOR THE FIRST TIME, WE PITY IT

Over more than two centuries, the United States has stirred a very wide range of feelings in the rest of the world: love and hatred, fear and hope, envy and contempt, awe and anger. But there is one emotion that has never been directed towards the US until now: pity.

However bad things are for most other rich democracies, it is hard not to feel sorry for Americans. Most of them did not vote for Donald Trump in 2016. Yet they are locked down with a malignant narcissist who, instead of protecting his people from Covid-19, has amplified its lethality. The country Trump promised to make great again has never in its history seemed so pitiful.

Will American prestige ever recover from this shameful episode? The US went into the coronavirus crisis with immense advantages: precious weeks of warning about what was coming, the world’s best concentration of medical and scientific expertise, effectively limitless financial resources, a military complex with stunning logistical capacity and most of the world’s leading technology corporations. Yet it managed to make itself the global epicentre of the pandemic.

As the American writer George Packer puts it in the current edition of the Atlantic, “The United States reacted ... like Pakistan or Belarus – like a country with shoddy infrastructure and a dysfunctional government whose leaders were too corrupt or stupid to head off mass suffering.”

It is one thing to be powerless in the face of a natural disaster, quite another to watch vast power being squandered in real time – wilfully, malevolently, vindictively. It is one thing for governments to fail (as, in one degree or another, most governments did), quite another to watch a ruler and his supporters actively spread a deadly virus. Trump, his party and Rupert Murdoch’s Fox News became vectors of the pestilence.

The grotesque spectacle of the president openly inciting people (some of them armed) to take to the streets to oppose the restrictions that save lives is the manifestation of a political death wish. What are supposed to be daily briefings on the crisis, demonstrative of national unity in the face of a shared challenge, have been used by Trump merely to sow confusion and division. They provide a recurring horror show in which all the neuroses that haunt the American subconscious dance naked on live TV.

If the plague is a test, its ruling political nexus ensured that the US would fail it at a terrible cost in human lives. In the process, the idea of the US as the world’s leading nation – an idea that has shaped the past century – has all but evaporated.

Other than the Trump impersonator Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil, who is now looking to the US as the exemplar of anything other than what not to do? How many people in Düsseldorf or Dublin are wishing they lived in Detroit or Dallas?

It is hard to remember now but, even in 2017, when Trump took office, the conventional wisdom in the US was that the Republican Party and the broader framework of US political institutions would prevent him from doing too much damage. This was always a delusion, but the pandemic has exposed it in the most savage ways.

Abject surrender

What used to be called mainstream conservatism has not absorbed Trump – he has absorbed it. Almost the entire right-wing half of American politics has surrendered abjectly to him. It has sacrificed on the altar of wanton stupidity the most basic ideas of responsibility, care and even safety.

Thus, even at the very end of March, 15 Republican governors had failed to order people to stay at home or to close non-essential businesses. In Alabama, for example, it was not until April 3rd that governor Kay Ivey finally issued a stay-at-home order.

In Florida, the state with the highest concentration of elderly people with underlying conditions, governor Ron DeSantis, a Trump mini-me, kept the beach resorts open to students travelling from all over the US for spring break parties. Even on April 1st, when he issued restrictions, DeSantis exempted religious services and “recreational activities”.

Georgia governor Brian Kemp, when he finally issued a stay-at-home order on April 1st, explained: “We didn’t know that [the virus can be spread by people without symptoms] until the last 24 hours.”

This is not mere ignorance – it is deliberate and homicidal stupidity. There is, as the demonstrations this week in US cities have shown, plenty of political mileage in denying the reality of the pandemic. It is fuelled by Fox News and far-right internet sites, and it reaps for these politicians millions of dollars in donations, mostly (in an ugly irony) from older people who are most vulnerable to the coronavirus.

It draws on a concoction of conspiracy theories, hatred of science, paranoia about the “deep state” and religious providentialism (God will protect the good folks) that is now very deeply infused in the mindset of the American right.

Trump embodies and enacts this mindset, but he did not invent it. The US response to the coronavirus crisis has been paralysed by a contradiction that the Republicans have inserted into the heart of US democracy. On the one hand, they want to control all the levers of governmental power. On the other they have created a popular base by playing on the notion that government is innately evil and must not be trusted.

The contradiction was made manifest in two of Trump’s statements on the pandemic: on the one hand that he has “total authority”, and on the other that “I don’t take responsibility at all”. Caught between authoritarian and anarchic impulses, he is incapable of coherence.

Fertile ground

But this is not just Donald Trump. The crisis has shown definitively that Trump’s presidency is not an aberration. It has grown on soil long prepared to receive it. The monstrous blossoming of misrule has structure and purpose and strategy behind it.

There are very powerful interests who demand “freedom” in order to do as they like with the environment, society and the economy. They have infused a very large part of American culture with the belief that “freedom” is literally more important than life. My freedom to own assault weapons trumps your right not to get shot at school. Now, my freedom to go to the barber (“I Need a Haircut” read one banner this week in St Paul, Minnesota) trumps your need to avoid infection.

Usually when this kind of outlandish idiocy is displaying itself, there is the comforting thought that, if things were really serious, it would all stop. People would sober up. Instead, a large part of the US has hit the bottle even harder.

And the president, his party and their media allies keep supplying the drinks. There has been no moment of truth, no shock of realisation that the antics have to end. No one of any substance on the US right has stepped in to say: get a grip, people are dying here.

That is the mark of how deep the trouble is for the US – it is not just that Trump has treated the crisis merely as a way to feed tribal hatreds but that this behaviour has become normalised. When the freak show is live on TV every evening, and the star is boasting about his ratings, it is not really a freak show any more. For a very large and solid bloc of Americans, it is reality.

And this will get worse before it gets better. Trump has at least eight more months in power. In his inaugural address in 2017, he evoked “American carnage” and promised to make it stop. But now that the real carnage has arrived, he is revelling in it. He is in his element.

As things get worse, he will pump more hatred and falsehood, more death-wish defiance of reason and decency, into the groundwater. If a new administration succeeds him in 2021, it will have to clean up the toxic dump he leaves behind. If he is re-elected, toxicity will have become the lifeblood of American politics.

Either way, it will be a long time before the rest of the world can imagine America being great again.

You can follow Fintan O’Toole @fotoole on twitter.

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chloes-yellow-cup · 5 years ago

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Copied and stolen in full from a friend on FB.

This reporter sums the entire dire situation here.

Powerful piece from the Irish Times’ political reporter. Hard to read, impossible to put down. Should be required reading for every American. In fact, they should hand out copies at the polls before letting anyone vote.

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Irish Times-April 25, 2020-By Fintan O’Toole

THE WORLD HAS LOVED, HATED AND ENVIED THE U.S. NOW, FOR THE FIRST TIME, WE PITY IT

Abject surrender

Fertile ground

Either way, it will be a long time before the rest of the world can imagine America being great again.

#the irish times #fintan o’toole #long post #it’s scary when people you used to think were rational post things that are’t logical #like ‘no vote by mail’ when they did it for years living in oregon #all because 45 says it would increase voter fraud

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ameryth74 · 5 years ago

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From The Irish Times: very well-written yet heartbreaking. "Either way, it will be a long time before the rest of the world can imagine America being great again."

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April 25, 2020

By Fintan O’Toole

THE WORLD HAS LOVED, HATED AND ENVIED THE U.S. NOW, FOR THE FIRST TIME, WE PITY IT

Abject surrender

Fertile ground

Either way, it will be a long time before the rest of the world can imagine America being great again.

#fintan o'toole #the irish times #us politics #2020 election #2020 elections #trump

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finlaylawesgamest1 · 4 years ago

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Week 3 [Wednesday: Research]

Max Fleisher - [Betty Boop]

Max Fleischer was an American animator, inventor, film director and producer, and studio founder and owner. Born in Krakow, Fleischer immigrated to the United States where he became a pioneer in the development of the animated cartoon and served as the head of Fleischer Studios, which he co-founded with his younger brother Dave.

He brought such animated characters as Koko the Clown, Betty Boop, Popeye, and Superman to the movie screen, and was responsible for a number of technological innovations, including the Rotoscope, the "Bouncing Ball" song films, and the "Stereoptical Process". Film director Richard Fleishcer was his son.

Eadweard Mybridge – Horse / first ever animation

When a horse trots or gallops, does it ever become fully airborne? This was the question photographer Eadweard Muybridge set out to answer in 1878. Railroad tycoon and former California governor Leland Stanford was convinced the answer was yes and commissioned Muybridge to provide proof. Muybridge developed a way to take photos with an exposure lasting a fraction of a second and, with reporters as witnesses, arranged 12 cameras along a track on Stanford’s estate.

As a horse sped by, it tripped wires connected to the cameras, which took 12 photos in rapid succession. Muybridge developed the images on site and, in the frames, revealed that a horse is completely aloft with its hooves tucked underneath it for a brief moment during a stride. The revelation, imperceptible to the naked eye but apparent through photography, marked a new purpose for the medium. It could capture truth through technology. Muybridge’s stop-motion technique was an early form of animation that helped pave the way for the motion-picture industry, born a short decade later.

Richard Williams

David Perry – Aladdin + Earthworm Jim

David Perry is a Northern Irish video game developer and programmer. He became prominent for programming platform games for 16-bit home consoles in the early to mid 1990s, including Disney's Aladdin, Cool Spot, and Earthworm Jim. He founded Shiny Entertainment, where he worked from 1993 to 2006.

Perry created games for companies such as Disney, 7 Up, McDonald’s, Orion Pictures, and Warner Bro’s.In 2008 he was presented with an honorary doctorate from Queen’s University Belfast for his services to computer gaming. He was the co-founder & CEO of cloud-based games service Gaikai, which was acquired by Sony Computer Entertainment. In 2017 Perry became the co-founder & CEO of a customer Intelligence startup called GoVYRL, Inc. developing a new advanced brand dashboard called Carro.

The Act by Cecropia

The Act is an interactive movie arcade video game originally produced by American studio Cecropia in the United States in 2007. The game is an interactive cartoon featuring the hand-drawn art of a number of former Disney animators. It was test marketed in selected locations throughout North America in 2006, and it received generally favorable press coverage. The game was cancelled in late 2007,and Cecropia shut its doors in early 2008. The game was later ported to iOS and OSX by React Entertainment and published by Chillingo in June 2012.

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parf-fan · 4 years ago

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To celebrate what’s left of St. Patrick’s Day – or, in this context, Ireland-Is-Hecking-Neat Day – I present every video I could find on YouTube of our own Irish Revels, plus other in-house groups comprised of Irish characters. I cannot vouch for the chronology until 2017, although I did me best with the Scallywags and the Daughters of Ireland, but 2017 onward has impeccable chronology. There was some guesswork involved in 2018, as the videos on the Faire’s official channel do not have dates listed, but I was able to get close enough by cross-referencing the lighting with how bundled up people are, supplemented by my own memory, and a splash of observing whether a given week’s hosts were onstage or not. This playlist does not include any videos of an entire Finale that happens to include the Irish Revels, as that would be impracticable.

#that second-to-last sentence is absolutely a flex #i'd've posted this sooner in the day if i'd had the idea before friggin' 2pm #somebody better express their appreciation for this i had to miss improv technology's st. patrick's day show to finish it #the only bit of 2017 onward i'm less than 60% confident in is the songs from nathan landis funk's channel #there is just really no indication in them when in the season they were filmed #i am frankly appalled by how little footage there is of the og irish band / the og lady-pyrate band the scallywags #the scallywags left such a huge and wonderful impression on me #i loved and love them more than i am ever like to be able to express #there should be at least one more 2019 video on here but i haven't yet gotten in on youtube #the scallywags #daughters of ireland #irish revels #irish revels 2017 #irish revels 2018 #irish revels 2019 #video playlist #irish music #parf 2013 #parf 2016 #parf 2017 #parf 2018 #parf 2019 #parf #pa ren faire #pa renn faire #pa renaissance faire #pennsylvania renaissance faire #renaissance faire #renn faire #ren faire

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ingek73 · 4 years ago

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The British Royal Family, The Media and ‘SussExit’ – Part 1

By Zanye Linda August 9, 2020 4 Comments

The British Royal Family, The Media and 'SussExit' – Part 1

Prince Harry’s engagement to Meghan Markle was heralded by the British establishment, led by the UK media, as a sign of a modern Royal Family; an institution that symbolizes white power and privilege. By accepting her grandson’s marriage to an independent woman of mixed heritage, the Queen had demonstrated willingness to lead and present a Royal Family that was reflecting of today’s Britain. UK mainstream and social media was awash with stories of a progressive Royal Family and Meghan was proclaimed as one to modernize the Monarchy. They even went as far as claiming her engagement as a symbol of hope for Black women much to the skepticism of black women commentators. Fast-forward to today, Meghan Markle and her husband, Prince Harry stepped down as senior royals and moved their family to California to start a new life. But how did we go from modernizing an archaic institution to Harry and Meghan leaving the Royal Plantation?

Winter 2017

Within a week of the engagement announcement, Meghan and her fiancé undertook their first engagement where the world got a glimpse of this modern woman as a working royal. Huge crowds turned out to see them on that cold December day in Nottingham. As is customary with Royal women, her clothes were analyzed, the handbag she carried became a fast seller, and a lot of commentary was made about the couple’s Public Display of Affection(PDA). Later that month, Meghan attended Christmas festivities with the Queen and the rest of the Royal Family – a first for a future Princess. A lot was made of how the family welcomed her. It was during this period of festivities, when most of the Queen’s extended family would meet Meghan for the first time, that one of them arrived at Christmas lunch wearing a racist brooch(blackamoor).

Shortly after the annual Christmas spectacle at Sandringham, from whence the media peddled the idea of the ‘fab four”, Meghan would resume her pre-wedding tour of the UK alongside Harry. In January 2018 Meghan and Harry were scheduled to undertake engagements in Wales on the same day that William also had engagements elsewhere. The media commented on the calendar clash, but this was put down to poor planning by palace courtiers. However, they did note that this was bound to be a problem going forward. The Daily Mail quoted a “palace source” as saying “mark my words, William will be furious”.

As the final month of winter was rolling in, William and Kate undertook a tour of the Scandinavian countries. Back in London, Harry and Meghan were due to attend the Endeavour awards. This was the second clash of events in less than a month, and a scheduling problem for the Royal Rota– the press team dedicated to covering the Royal Family. In the final days of the Cambridges’ tour, Rebecca English, a Royal Correspondent for the Daily Mail informed her Twitter followers that, she would be leaving the Scandinavian tour early to cover Harry and Meghan at the Endeavour Awards, along with many other British reporters. The day after the awards, as William and Kate were concluding their tour, front pages of the papers were devoted to coverage of Meghan and Harry and as the Daily Beast noted, “It has been astonishing to witness in recent weeks just how completely the public appetite for information about William, Kate and their family has collapsed and the hunger for coverage of Meghan and Harry has grown commensurately”.

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The Daily Beast article down played the potential of a problem, stating that the lack of media and public interest in William and Kate, was as a result of their own poor attitude towards the press over the years, and that, this was characteristic of the royal family, with Harry arguably the worst of them all. Besides, Harry and Meghan were still new, and the expectation was for the current interest to wane over time.

At the end of February 2018, we finally got to see the “Fab Four” sharing a stage at the inaugural Royal Foundation forum where each one of them discussed their current and future charitable endeavors. Once again, we would see Meghan dominate media coverage, with headlines such as “Meghan Markle Shines at First Annual Foundation Forum”, along with praise for her ability to address difficult issues, as she referenced Time’s Up and Me Too, both topical issues at that time. Although some commentators saw this as Meghan being political, which the royal family supposedly avoid, others saw her bravery to push forward with female empowerment issues, a cause close to her heart.

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Spring 2018

While Harry and Meghan continued with their pre-wedding tour of the UK and a host of other royal engagements, staff changes were taking place within Kensington Palace. A gentleman by the name of Simon Case, a key player in Brexit negotiations then working under David Davis’ Brexit department, was appointed as William’s private secretary in March 2018. The following month, the UK hosted the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) meeting. Harry and Meghan attended various CHOGM events. This was expected given that during their engagement interview, they mentioned that the Commonwealth would be an area of focus for them. It was also during this period that Harry’s appointment as the Commonwealth Youth Ambassador was announced. A position we would later on find out, William wanted for himself.

In the meantime, the wedding preparations were progressing – the palace providing the occasional planning updates and the royal reporters and commentators filling in the gaps with their characteristic speculation. Meghan Markle’s paternal family, (her half-sister and brother) who had been vocal around the engagement, had for the most part been out of the news. Then almost two weeks before the wedding, the Markle quarters started getting noisy. On May 3rd 2018, Thomas Markle Jr published a letter in Instyle Magazine that he had supposedly sent to Harry, telling him not to marry his sister. It naturally became a tabloid feast. While he had managed to avoid engaging or speaking with the press up till now, all of a sudden there were paparazzi pictures of Thomas Markle Sr appearing in the same tabloids.

On 13 May 2018, 6 days before the wedding, the Daily Mail revealed Thomas Markle Sr as a “Royal Scammer”, who had staged the photos with the paparazzi and sold them for £100,000. What followed was a series of revelations about Thomas Markle Sr. via TMZ and the UK press. Even Thomas’ ex-daughter in law and her two sons who had not seen Meghan since she was a child were now involved with the UK media; they were flown to the UK as wedding day commentators, courtesy of ITV.

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The coverage at this point had reached fever pitch. There was wild speculation about whether or not the wedding would take place, given that Thomas Markle Sr. informed TMZ that, he had suffered a heart attack and would not be in attendance. In a sombre statement released via the palace two days before the wedding, Meghan informed the world that “sadly her father would not be attending the wedding” and went on to plead with the media to allow him the privacy he needed to recover. And as they say ‘the show must go on”. Harry and Meghan were wedded in a beautiful ceremony that celebrated them as a couple and was watched by billions across the globe.

Summer 2018

With the drama surrounding the Royal Wedding now in the past, the beginning of the summer would bring a number of firsts for the newly wed couple. Meghan had her first joint engagement with the Queen, which saw the new Duchess travelling overnight with Her Majesty aboard the Royal train. The UK media was only too eager to point out how this was a unique privilege, since other senior and non-senior royals including HRH the Duchess of Cambridge had never ridden the royal train. Afterwards, Harry and Meghan had a joint engagement with the Queen first at the Queen’s Young Leader’s Awards and then at Royal Ascot. Each public appearance made by Meghan was accompanied by a story and commentary on Meghan supposedly violating one protocol or another.

During the summer, Thomas Markle gave his first paid interview with ITV’s Good Morning Britain hosted by Piers Morgan, who from their engagement announcement, had been vocal in his praise for Meghan Markle. The interview was billed as an opportunity for Thomas Markle to provide an explanation for missing out on his daughter’s wedding. It was also an opportunity for Piers and his co-host to interrogate Thomas on unrelated issues such as his opinion on what Harry’s views of Trump and Brexit were, for the simple purpose of stirring up controversy.

In as much as the interview attracted a lot of media attention it did not divert the attention of the new Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the following month, July 2018 saw them undertake their first Royal visit to Ireland. So far Meghan has aced all her appearances but this one was different because, such visits are undertaken on behalf of the UK government, and so she was going as a representative of her new country. It should therefore come as no surprise that they were accompanied by an unprecedented number of journalists, photographers and cameramen. The Irish came out in large numbers to see the royal couple at each stop of the visit, continuing what had become characteristic of the couple’s public engagements. Suffice it to say the visit was a success.

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The month of August is a slow royal news one, as the royal family enjoy their summer break. However, ‘twas not to be, as Thomas Markle decided(or did he?) that it was the opportune time to clear his name and dispel some mistruths that had been written about him. To do that, he penned an Op-Ed in the Mail on Sunday. He would later claim that he was being ignored by his daughter, in a story written by Caroline Graham- a Mail on Sunday Journalist based close to him in Mexico. This is the same Caroline Graham who has been revealed by Bylines Investigates, to be Thomas Markle’s babysitter, paying him a visit every weekend at his Mexico residence. Not to be left out, Samantha Markle travelled to the UK to “try and make amends with her sister”. She appeared on yet another ITV show – The Jeremy Vine show and was strangely photographed delivering a letter to security guards at Kensington Palace.

Caroline Graham Thomas Markle

Autumn 2018

In September 2018 Meghan launched her first solo project as a Royal; Together, a cookbook she developed with survivors of the Grenfell fire, to raise funds towards keeping the Hubb Community Kitchen open 7 days a week. Around the same time, there were rumblings from the Royal Rota regarding access to the Duchess of Sussex. Their grievance was that, they had not been given exclusive access to the cookbook prior to the promotion video being released on social media – never mind that the Royal Rota was invited to the official launch a week or so later. Maybe the protest was because news of the launch traveled farther and wider compared to what would have been the reach of the Royal Rota, perhaps a sign of the changing media landscape. The book topped Amazon’s bestseller even before it was released bumping JK Rowling off the number one spot.

Weirdly though, after the media had gone to great lengths to point out that the royal family works hard to avoid a clash of events, Rebecca English chose the weekend before the cookbook launch to announce a new project by the Duchess of Cambridge. This would be her first major project after 8 years of marriage. Details of the project were lacking and the launch date was yet to be determined, bringing into question the apparent urgency/timing of the announcement. Preemptive strike maybe?

Nonetheless, the Duchess through this project demonstrated a working style and a level of success that was rare within the royal family. Meanwhile Harry and Meghan were preparing to embark on their first major royal tour. A 16-day tour, comprising over 70 engagements across 4 countries – including Australia and New Zealand whose head of state is the Queen. The tour started on a high note with an announcement that the Sussexes were expecting their first child in the spring of 2019. While the world and the media entourage in Sydney were celebrating the news, back in the UK, royal commentators were stirring up controversy regarding the pregnancy announcement.

On the Saturday before the tour, Harry and Meghan attended Princess Eugenie’s wedding. According to the palace statement key family members had been informed, and had a chance to congratulate the couple in person at the wedding. In an article for the telegraph, Camilla Tominey advances a narrative that we had witnessed over the summer by claiming another ‘protocol violation’ in a story titled “Harry and Meghan may have breached etiquette by announcing baby news at Eugenie’s wedding, says expert” allegedly to the displeasure of some members of the royal family. This was of course a complete misrepresentation of the statement from Kensington Palace, but that did not matter and the mainstream media were only too happy to amplify this narrative.

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Murmurings aside, the tour kicked off on a high note with droves of people turning up at every stop. According to Forbes “Crowds the size that have not appeared for Queen Elizabeth on any of her trips to Australia (which date back as far as the 1950s)”, came out for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Amidst the success of this landmark tour and glowing coverage for the British royal family, the Sunday Times reported that plans were underway to split Kensington Palace and create a separate household for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Once again we see the palace put out a speculative article while Harry and Meghan are undertaking a highly important tour, making the purpose and the timing of the article questionable at best. Also, it did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm surrounding the tour, which had so far been a success and was commanding unprecedented positive global coverage for both the couple and the Royal Family.

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Once the tour concluded, on cue, the tone in media coverage for this couple changed. For one, the main focus of the coverage was Meghan. Secondly, it was persistently negative and thirdly it was driven by the royal rota. A key fixture in this media whirlpool was Robert Jobson, who had just published a Prince Charles biography “revealing” that Meghan threw a tantrum over a tiara. In the middle of November, Meghan visited the women at the Hubb Community Kitchen. This was a couple of months after the cookbook launch, and Camilla Tominey suddenly remembered that the mosque where the Hubb Community Kitchen is located had “links to terrorists”. The leader of a white supremacist group who advanced that theory, would later thank Camilla Tominey on Twitter for putting their mosque-terrorist story in the paper.

Jack Royston, then at the SUN and currently at Newsweek, wrote that “Meghan made Kate cry”. Why, he couldn’t say, but he was certain it happened. Rebecca English also weighed, in referring to Meghan as an ‘interloper who does not belong’. It was open season with article after article attacking Meghan specifically, calling her all kind of names; difficult, demanding, social climber, over sexual and a lot more. All steeped in racism, sexism and all kinds of bigotry. Every day bore a new story about Meghan, and every story trashing Meghan was an opportunity to uplift Kate.

The Telegraph, for no apparent reason, did a fawning feature on Carole Middleton, praising her as a hard working hurricane. The same paper had earlier described the Duchess of Sussex as “Hurricane Meghan”, a destructive force that was raining havoc on the Kensington Palace staff with her difficult and demanding ways. Curious, isn’t it? Amidst this onslaught of negative coverage, Emily Andrews via a palace source reports that, Harry and Meghan would leave Kensington Palace and move to the Windsor estate, getting ahead of the official palace statement. This became another opportunity to attack Meghan- the narrative being that she was instigating the move, and questioning why the couple would choose to move away from William and Kate at Kensington Palace.

In just one year, how did Meghan go from being the one to bring the Monarchy into the twenty first century to being cast as this villain? To recap events so far:

The media inform us that ‘William will be furious’ because of the shift in attention, which we have witnessed each time Harry and Meghan have a public engagement.

Meghan has delivered her first project, an international best-selling cookbook without the exclusive marketing and spin of the Royal Rota.

The attention Harry and Meghan are getting locally and internationally is nothing the Royal Family or the media has seen since Diana.

Was the spare and his wife outshining the heir? Also what is the connection between ITV and the Markle family? Why does this mainstream channel consistently give them platform? And what about the Royal Rota – they exist to sell the Monarchy to the public while also subjecting them to the appropriate scrutiny. Did they not think the negative coverage surrounding Meghan would have a negative impact on the Monarchy? Where was the Royal Family in all this? When Diana and Sophie were faced with negative media coverage, the Queen and the palace asked the editors to ease up on them. Even Kate was given a grace period to settle into her role as a Royal. Why were they not offering Meghan the same protections?

#meghanpedia #meghan markle #prince harry #prince william #kate middleton #royals #duke of sussex #duke of cambridge #duchess of sussex #duchess of cambridge #queen elizabeth ii #duke and duchess of cambridge #duke and duchess of sussex #carole middleton #royal rota #british royal family

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