CHRISTMAS 2022

 

Our December Snow

Winter snow in London in December must be a rarity. So like many others around town

I dashed over to Hampstead Heath on Monday morning to capture a few images after

Sunday night's snowfall.

HALLOWEEN!

A few indoor pictures from this weekend's Halloween.

Burt Reynolds as Sharky

I wonder why certain great films never seem to show up on tv.  So I was pleased to find

online a new blu-ray release of 'Sharky's Machine' starring Burt Reynolds. It was made

in 1981 and was filmed in and around the City of Atlanta.

In the movie plot Sharky (Burt Reynolds) is demoted to the seedy world of the Vice Squad

after a bust up goes horribly wrong. And in his first case in Vice, his team lead by Charles

Durning, just happen to stumble across a mob murder tied to prostitution and government.

Vittorio Gassman is the mobster that's pulling all the strings in the City, even pocketing a local

politician (Earl Holliman) who is running as Governor, while orchestrating his campaign for

his own ends.

Gassman's top hitman 'The Screaming Assassin' is played brilliantly by actor Henry Silva.

And in the bloody climax of the movie he becomes almost ghost like.

In the Youtube clip above we get one of those quiet moments in the middle of the film. I'm not sure

what they call these quieter segments in the movie industry but my guess is that it allows the cinema

goers in the theatre a chance to get their breath back again. And it's in this top scene that Sharky

is on a stake-out keeping an eye on the beautiful Rachel Ward. And not surprisingly it's a favourite

scene for fans of this movie. It also features that classic Hart & Rogers song 'My Funny Valentine'

as a jazz score.

The film was also Directed by Burt Reynolds.

( Video kindly uploaded to Youtube by Jan Shaw )

The Flying Scotsman Returns to London For it's Centenary

This past weekend saw the iconic Steam Train the Flying Scotsman return to London's

Kings Cross Station for a weekend of celebrations to mark it's centenary.

The all ticket event on Platform 8 was sold out but the rest of the public were able to view

the Steam locomotive from the Station's concourse as well as from the adjoining platform.

So I was happy to get a few pictures from just a few feet away having missed out on a ticket.

The lucky few with tickets were allowed close up access and some even took advantage

by having their pictures taken up in the train drivers cab. There was also quite a bit of activity  

on the main Station concourse with several stalls set up selling Flying Scotsman

merchandise. And the whole event was organized by The National Railway Museum.

And yet it's easy to see how loved this iconic train is when you observe all the enthusiasts

that were there on Saturday morning. Perhaps we're all nostalgists at heart. And with

all the changes we've seen in Britain, one thing we do still have is our beloved Flying Scotsman.

And so 2023 is going to be a busy year for this steam legend as a busy itinerary has been

planned with many stops and Flying Scotsman journeys that are to take place around the U.K

next year.

The weekend's event coincided with the 170th Birthday of Kings Cross Station when

it first opened it's doors to rail passengers on the 14th of October in 1852.

EXPLORE THE FLYING SCOTSMAN'S

CENTENARY PROGRAMME HERE

THE NATIONAL RAILWAY MUSEUM HOME PAGE

Above is the statue of Railway Engineer Sir Nigel Gresley who designed the Flying Scotsman

as well as the famous Mallard. It can be found on the main Kings Cross concourse.

Below is just one of the merchandise stalls selling Flying Scotsman memorabilia as part of

the weekend's celebrations. 

Above:  I was quite taken with this new Flying Scotsman Christmas card, but unfortunately

none of the merchandise stalls had any. So I might have to send off for one.

Above is the model railway that is on display in the new family hospitality room, as sort of 

waiting room to keep the kids occupied while waiting for their train departures.

Below; Quite a crowd of Harry Potter fans was building up for a chance to have their photo

taken by the nine and three quarter Platform sign. The sign is right next to the Harry Potter

merchandise shop.

Above is St Pancras Station.

Below is the spectacular Gothic Victorian architecture of St Pancras and the iconic St Pancras

Renaissance Hotel which first opened in 1873 and was designed by George Gilbert Scott, 

although it was originally called The Midland Grand.