POEM OF THE WEEK : Lightning Strike by John Clegg

 

Within the culture section of the Guardian there is a poem of the week published with a commentary and analysis. This poem, The Lightning Tree by John Clegg was published in The Guardian on the 9th January and reviewed by  Carol Rumen. 

 

Lightning Strikes School Tree

No-one saw it but me and I had my eyes shut:

I’d given the class their Thomas Hardy worksheets,

the bell had gone off, hinging our double period,

everybody was scraping their chairs about,

there was an agreed low level of laugh and chat

and doubtless some thought was authentically

bent to the poem, some to the fizzy striplight,

some to the weight of the next forty minutes and some

to the far field out of the window

where – as I say – with my eyes shut

I saw not the flash but the mid-distance lime tree

pulled flat like the loop in a seam

at the fact of a needle: and then when I blinked

I could still see the needle, and I had my eyes shut.

I read the poem. So many issues about teaching and learning immediately came to mind. 

There are lots of things about teachers, teaching, being a learner or pupil and the whole process of learning that just leaps out from this poem. A tree, lightning striking, teaching and learning have so many close interconnections.

The main symbol is a tree. It grows and develops slowly giving out branches, new shoots, buds and fresh leaves in the Spring. It is a habitat and an ecosystem to a multitude of  life and provides sustenance to all living things, including us. A  classroom is the setting of this poem. A classroom where over a year, the personal development and growth of the minds and the development of the pupils tis supposed to take place. A place to nurture lives, just like a tree.

What the teacher intends for the lesson is obviously not happening. The forty minutes are a waste of time. A study of a Thomas Hardy’s poem or rather filling in a work sheet, a tick box exercise, after presumably having read the poem.  Hardy was a rural writer of novels and poems imbued in nature. He would have appreciated the event of a tree being struck by lightning, the visceral moment. He too, like the teacher and students in this poem would have been affected to the core of his being. These pupils in this classroom are not that interested in Hardys poem, presented the way it is being presented, an object, a set of thoughts given to them , apparently,without any context. The teacher has already set the tone of the class, scraping chairs, low laughter and chat are permitted.  That agreement does not include the learning process. Some will focus on the strip lighting flickering on the ceiling, some on the long forty minutes of time, some the lightning struck lime tree falling to the ground. Some may give a thought to Hardys poem but I get a sense that that is a far off lost aim in this lesson.

For the teacher the lightning strike is what truly really affects them and the class. Even with their eyes shut the image of the strike has struck home, through the  retina  along the optic nerve, deep into the  brain. Something they will remember all their lives.

Inspiration can be just like that, a lightning strike that affects a teacher or pupil deeply and everlastingly and change them in some profound way. However being a human or being a tree, change is usually slow and may have its stops, starts and reversals. The illumination of a lightning strike either on a tree or in  personal development happens seldom. We have to grow into change, slowly. I remember reading with my own children when they were at a very young age. We sat cuddled up to each other when they were,  one year of age. Comfort, the pleasure of looking at pictures, talking, listening to the sounds of words I read to them. Often the sounds of the repetition of words and phrases was enjoyable. They have all, in their adulthood, become lovers of reading books. Something about reading to young children is the start of a journey, a long process, not a sudden ,"lightening strike,"of inspiration and change.Providing a pleasurable learning experience is the best we can aim for. The lightning strike might happen once in a lifetime.

 Perhaps the teacher in the poem needs to start a conversation with his or her students about what they themselves are interested in and what has inspired them and  from that discussion, design their  lessons around that approach. Make the lesson fit the pupil and not the other way round.

Maria Montessori had a similar idea about education. She built her theory through her observations on the principles of individual growth and development.  She believed in creating an atmosphere of freedom, interaction with the environment and giving her students a choice. 

If all lessons could provide a pleasurable exploration of the world deep change for each individual would gradually develop. A lightning strike would be nice. We can hope.

The Guardian link: 

Poem of the week: Lightning Strikes School Tree by John Clegg

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/jan/09/poem-of-the-week-lightning-strikes-school-tree-by-john-clegg?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

A WALK ALONG THE WEY NAVIGATION from Pyrford Lock to Newark Lock and Ripley Village

 

Tony Brown and I beside The Wey Navigation.

Thursday 6^th October 2022. Tony and I went for a walk. We go walking together often, along with John Lodge. John couldn’t make it this time so Tony and I decided that we would walk the canalised part of the River Wey from near Wisley. There was no thought of a given distance. We merely wanted a pleasant walk and a pub lunch in  whatever establishment we came across.

Walking; it is what our  bodies are made for. When we don’t move, we become sedentary. We can lose our full potential. I love walking , the feel of  movement through a place.

Tony drove to  my house in West Barnes Lane and came in for a cup of tea and a chat with Marilyn and I. When we were ready , Tony did the driving. We drove down the A3. Once past The Kingston bypass and the Ace of Spades roundabout we got  out of Greater London.

“Is this where the fifty mile an hour speed limit finishes? “asked Tony.

“Yes.”

And so we accelerated up to seventy miles per hour.

I like this drive. It’s not just a long black tongue of road leading for seventy miles down to Portsmouth. The sense of forest and wilderness surrounding the road appeals to something primal inside all of us.

We turned off for Wisley, coming off the slip road on the left and passed under the A3 and drove up the opposite side for a mile until we came to the partly hidden Wisley turn off  shielded behind trees and shrubs. 

The Wisley Road to Pyrford Lock on The River Wey passes the entrance to the RHS Wisley Gardens on the left. It is a winding road tree lined with some depth of woodland in places but also with fields visible through the gaps in the trees followed by open areas of fields. The road has no pavements. It is just wide enough for two cars to pass.  We passed Wisley Church and thought it would be a good idea to visit the church on our way back. It is a small stone built church mostly from the 12^th century. We wound our careful way to the Pyrford Lock where The Anchor Pub is located right on the side of the canal. There is a car park next to the river  on the right but we drove into the larger car park on the left across the road from The Anchor.

The Wey Navigation.

We set out   We discussed the idea that we would walk along the river and canal for a while and then turn back to have a pub lunch at The Anchor.  A lock gate leaking water to the lower level was next to the bridge crossing the river here. A pathway wends its way towards Guildford on the left bank so we started our walk in that direction. Trees still green with leaves, a few turning autumn yellow. The river full to the top of the banks after recent rains, glassy smooth, reflecting the trees and shrubs. It is amazing how walking promotes talking.

“Is the river flowing?” Tony wondered. It looked so still and glassy.

We stopped for a moment and observed the surface. We could see the river moving north to our right almost imperceptibly. It was flowing in the direction of the Thames which it feeds at Shepperton Lock near D’Oyly Carte Island.We noticed masses of what at first looked like large clumps of watercress growing profusely on both sides of the river. Again we stopped to look more carefully. We decided that it wasn’t watercress but what appeared to be small lily pads but probably something else entirely. 

The banks of the Wey changed as we walked along. Sometimes the banks were those of a river, winding and curving. At other times, especially where there were locks the river was straight, sometimes with stone and brick built sides and sometimes with turf sides. I have never seen a turf sided canal before.

Lock gate near Pyrford.

The Wey River Navigation  is one of the oldest types of canal in the country. A turf canal was  first constructed along The River Wey between 1618 and 1619 by Sir Richard Weston an owner of the land stretching either side of the river.He built a three mile cut through his land in 1618. The Guildford Corporation petitioned the King to extend the canalisation so that boats could reach Guildford from the Thames.The work was completed in November 1653. This new canal, the idea for which came from visits to the Netherlands, improved the economy of Guildford and mid Surrey well before the Industrial Revolution and the northern canal systems. Wood to rebuild London after the Great Fire of 1666 came from Surrey via The Wey Navigation. Stone from quarries near Guildford was moved along the canal and was used for building of St Paul’s Cathedral. Timber, corn, flour, wood and gunpowder moved north along the canal and then down the Thames to London. By linking Guildford and hence mid Surrey to The Thames, exports from Europe  by the Hanseatic League, ( a commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns growing from a group of north German towns in the late 12^th century) provided wood, tar, cereals, fish, salt and many other items. Wines from Italy and Spain and many other links could be accessed from the trading highway The Thames provided and could be transported to Guildford.  From the 18^th century the,” triangular trade,” created by The Royal Africa Company involved enslaved Africans from the West Coast of Africa. The slaves were used on the plantations to grow sugar cane and the sugar created great wealth for Britain. Products such as sugar  reached Guildford along the canal.

Nowadays our present government is critical of any emphasise placed on the effects that 18^th century slavery still plays today. We have systemic racism in most large organisations, denied by our Conservative Government, and racist acts and attitudes are still prevalent in our society. This can  be directly linked to our attitudes and beliefs derived from our past trade in slaves. Emphasising the roll of slavery in Britain is very important.  We have to be aware of that to be able to address the issues that occur now. By knowing our history and accepting its consequences  we can begin to solve racist problems today. Change only comes  through knowledge.

The path beside The Wey Navigation.

The Pathway wending its way along the side of the Wey Navigation is cared for by The National Trust. The Trust members these days are divided along  political and social factions because of the different attitudes to historical interpretation, some of which is linked to our slave trade past and some attributed to how we differ on our views about land management and attitudes to the countryside as a whole. I am a member of The National Trust. It’s houses, landscapes and gardens are without doubt national treasures and absolutely amazing to be able to visit.The National Trust allows all of us to experience, historic houses and their treasures including the  historic landscapes that Capability Brown designed, also gardens, forests, moors and mountains. The trust  also has to pay regard to current issues about sustainability, the environment, interpretation of our past history and also take into account the effects our past has on our present such as the legacy of colonialism and slavery.  Some members think there is too much emphasis on the legacy of slavery. They must be Conservatives. Slavery created the wealth for building many of The Trusts properties and lands. Therefore the  role of slavery surely must be part of the interpretation of those properties ?

With regards to the landscape and the grounds of many of The Trust properties, some think The National Trust should only be involved in keeping the landscapes as they always were. As long as this does not damage our environment they can do that I think. However, members are divided.  The National Trust by its very name has to take into account national issues. It can’t be divorced from the real world. The management of our environment helps us all. The historic landscapes the trust oversees were developed to meet the needs of past times. Many trust members think that aspects of them should develop in line with the needs of today. 

It appeared to Tony and I that the fields around The Wey are affected by some of these issues. Fields near us were in a wild and unkempt state. Tony and I talked about food production in Britain. There we were surrounded by fields and marshes much of which  did not appear to be farmed.One weedy and overgrown field had a single cow in it. I wondered if this was part of the rewilding happening on some National Trust properties. Some think rewilding is wrong. Tony made the point that Britain needs to grow as much food as it can and be more self sufficient than we are at present. I think both arguments are right . We need to produce food as a country but we also need to nurture and care for nature. Some might think that is sentimental . However, I know this from exploring habitats in school even with young children, that the smallest habitats interrelate by way of ecosystems and there is a reliance on  each part for all parts to thrive. Plants rely on the soil and climate,insects rely on plants,  birds and dormice rely on insects, larger preditors rely  on the small animals and so the chain goes on. There are those among us who wonder what all this means for us humans. Healthy habitats and the larger ecosytems  affect the air we breath, the water we drink, the standards of  food we eat. All of life is connected. If ecosystems are destroyed then in the long run we do indeed destroy ourselves. Rewilding has a very important purpose in sustaining the ecosystms we need to survive, creating those important environmental chains. 

As  humans we need to connect with nature, as Tony and I were doing on our walk, helping us to become stronger physically and mentally. Breathing fresh air and the beauties of nature are good for us in many ways. It makes you feel good and a healthy environment does you good.

Brightly painted canal boats.

As we walked along the river, various locks and sluices have been added and developed over the centuries. One sluice gate near Ripley had a late 19^th century date on it . So it is obvious the canal has not remained exactly as it was when first made in the 17^th century. The canal has had a history that continues and develops up to the present day. One final point about The Wey path being cared for by the National Trust.As Tony and I walked along there were many pristine and shiny house boats , some anchored at the side of the canal, one or two chugging along gracefully in mid stream.  The very use of the canal,not only being used by Tony and myself as a very pleasant walk but the canal also being used in ways that are appropriate to nowadays. Those arguing for nothing to change have lost out already.

 

One of the things I always enjoy on a walk is passing other people.Two ladies of our age , probably in the retirement category like Tony and I walked past us going the opposite way. We naturally moved to make way for each other and none of us broke step. A nod of acknowledgement, a smile, a word or two overheard. It was a fleeting human connection. We have never met them before and they have never met us. We will never see each other again.It is a few seconds of all our lives. Strange to think of our life’s journey and obviously their life’s journey leading to those fleeting seconds. It’s good to acknowledge other humans , a glance, a smile. That is all it takes.I suppose you know you are not alone on this planet.

The lodge where Jonne Donne lived. (1600-1604 )

John Donne lived near Ripley for a short part of his life. As we walked along we came across some large houses partly hidden behind trees and lush lawns. These  homes had their own riverside quays to tie up  boats . Next to the river on the opposite side we saw a two storey brick built building with a strange, what appeared to be an oriental style roof. Tony thought it looked like a Dutch design. I noticed the brickwork looked weathered and the individual bricks were narrow and wide. From visits to Hampton Court, as a comparison, they  looked like Tudor brickwork. The windows, top and bottom were lead latticed in a diamond formation which also leant this building an ancient feel and look. I noticed a plaque on the side of the building. It read,

 “John Donne lived here. 1600-1604”

Jonne Donne the poet and Deane of St Pauls Cathedral in the City of London, suffered financial problems at one time in his life and he stayed here as cheap  alternative accomodation. This riverside building had been part of a larger complex, no longer in existence. It belonged to his wife’s (Anne More) family. I wonder if he felt inspired to write any of his poetry here?

Perhaps he complained about the sun waking him in the morning?

THE SUN RISING

Busy old fool, unruly sun,
Why dost thou thus,
Through windows, and through curtains call on us?
Must to thy motions lovers’ seasons run?
Saucy pedantic wretch, go chide
Late school boys and sour prentices,
Go tell court huntsmen that the king will ride,
Call country ants to harvest offices,
Love, all alike, no season knows nor clime,
Nor hours, days, months, which are the rags of time …

 

Newark Priory set on an island next to The Wey.

Further on we caught sight of Newark Priory, set in an expansive meadow across the river from us. It was established in 1189 but redeveloped in 1312.The priory is set on a large island and cannot be easily reached. It is not open to the public because it is  privately owned. A service is held once a year in its ruins lead by the Bishop of Guildford. It stands alone.The parts that remain are a steeply pitched end wall of what was once a great hall or perhaps the church that once stood here. Other ruined walls of  buildings and rooms are clustered there. When you see a ruined place like this thoughts go to what life was like in a place like that when it was a vibrant religious establishment. Tony suggested the priory made its living from mills on the river. The meadows surrounding it could have been used for sheep farming. I read on Wikipedia that the priory also owned land and property in the city of London from which it could exact rents.

After observing the priory Tony and I reached Newark Lock. We stood for a while listening to the sound of rushing water and observing two swans gliding by gracefully. A sign post nearby pointed us in the direction of Ripley Village. I have never been to Ripley before. It has a wide main street. Tudor timber frame buildings are interspersed with white Georgian fronts and Victorian brick built structures. Standing in the centre of the village  we could see at least three pubs . The names of the pubs in Ripley all have nautical names. Ripley was on the main route from London to Portsmouth, so many sailors passed this way in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Just outside of Ripley Village.

The Ship Inn looked inviting but when we arrived at the door it was closed. Further west down the High Street we could see the sign for The Anchor. When we reached it it too was a timber frame  building. I noticed a small round Michelin sticker on one window as we passed  but didn’t give it a lot of thought. We walked into a low beamed room and walked to the counter in front of us. A young lady came to enquire our needs. As I approached her I suddenly staggered to the left. A steep slope in the floor from one level to  another caught me unawares. A little embarrassing. Jokingly I said to the girl that the restaurant wanted to keep people off balance. She didn’t take it as a joke and pointed out a warning sign below the desk she stood at. The sign was indeed a warning about the slope but it wasn’t at eye level. I think the restaurant was at fault but I laughed it off. Another young lady showed us to a table and gave us each a menu. Looking around it could be seen that  different rooms from different connected buildings had been made into one space by demolishing dividing walls. There were lots  of nooks and crannies which gave it an old comfortable ambience. We decided we liked it.

 The menus were a little,” eye watering.” They were pricey. I remembered the Michelin sticker in the window and asked the manageress about this. The restaurant had been awarded a Michelin approved status. It did not have a Michelin star but the manageress explained that they were obliged to produce food  of a Michelin star standard. Having  Michelin recognition without the star allowed them to be more experimental and not keep to the narrow menu a Michelin star might require. Then Tony and I focussed more on  the prices of the individual dishes, took a deep breath and decided, after a pause and a bit of muttering between us, that we would order food, consoling each other that we didn’t do this sort of thing often. The pricing was double what we would have normally expected to pay , but hey, anyway.

We ordered two pints of the  Rebellion IPA brewed at the local Ripley brewery. Local breweries are producing some excellent beers these days and this particular IPA had a lovely light flowery flavour and at 3.7% it wasn’t too strong. We had a return journey along the Wey Navigation to achieve yet.

We both ordered from the A La Carte menu. I ordered a starter of ,”Hand divided Scallops with a raisin and caper vinaigrette.” My main course was  ,”Seed crusted venison with a butternut puree pickled blackberries and roast shallots.” Ok I know what you are thinking. “Blimey.” Well, I can report the food was delicious. It appeared on square white china plates. The food was laid out on our plates like works of artwork that Picasso would have been proud of. It looked fantastic, but, disappointingly, the portions were tiny. For my starter the waitress presented me with the plate of scallops and then in a dramatic manner posing like an actress dribbled the vinaigrette sauce in a swirling flourish over the scallops. Of course when you order ,”posh,” food this is what you have  to expect. We took our time sipping our pints of IPA. We also took our time eating the food, not wanting to eat it too quickly, reassuring each other how good it tasted.  I would love to eat the scallops and the seed crusted venison again but a lot more of it and at half the price. I think we need these sort of experiences  even if only once. The waitress who served us and the restaurant manager were both very friendly and helpful and they made for an overall enjoyable, warm, relaxed experience. We ate and drank and then payed the bill trying not to think about the cost.

From Ripley Village we retraced our steps to the weir on The Wey passing an apple tree that overhung the pavement from a field nearby. Perhaps the remnants of an orchard that once grew in this field. Who knows?  We tried an apple each. They were sweet and crunchy. A free dessert!

We reached the Wey Navigation and wended our way back along the tow path to Pyrford Lock. The  pub at Pyrford Lock, also called The Anchor, has an amazing coffee machine. Chrome levers with a chrome trim encircling the whole machine, catching the light. Hissing and steaming , the coffee machine provided for all the senses. We sat by the river and drank a coffee and ate a scone each. There was a noticeable difference between , The Anchor at Ripley and the The Anchor here at Pyrford Lock. The food at Pyrford Lock is cheap, fish and chips and pie and mash. Perfectly good tasty food but not Michelin style of course. There is nothing wrong with that. It was  the atmosphere created by the staff at the Pyrford Lock Anchor pub that was noticeable. The restaurant manager and waitress at The Anchor in Ripley were friendly, warm  and smiled, a lot . You could sense they their friendliness and they made us feel good.  The Anchor at Pyrford Lock had a stern bar manager who seemed to create anxiety among the two  staff behind the bar.   The staff seemed to be ruled by fear. Maybe a little of an exaggeration but the difference in the two establishments was certainly stark. The Anchor at Pyrford could learn from The Anchor at Ripley.

Wisley Church.

On the way back, driving along Wisley Lane we remembered to stop at Wisley Church. It is a small church, almost a chapel ,set back from the road behind some farm buildings. It is an ancient church first built in the 12^th century and like most village churches added to over the centuries. Although, as Wisley church is a very small church   very few parts have been built on in later centuries . A wooden north porch was added in the 17^th century and the church itself was refurbished in 1872 quite recently in the broad scheme of things. The font looked as though it might have been part of the original 12^th century church. An original tiled reredos behind the altar was uncovered in the refurbishment of 1872. The thick whitewashed walls of the interior look and feel ancient too. Walking into a country church like this,  one of the first things you notice is the stillness and the quiet. The interior feels cool. Any light and warmth from the sun can only penetrate through the beautiful stained glass windows. Being inside a  church like this encourages contemplation and thought.

Tony and I spent sometime looking at the various stained glass windows and artefacts inside the church.

Then back into the car and home.

As I have described we walked through and past  a number of historic landscapes. . It is reasonably easy to find out historical facts about these places. Why were they built? Who used  them? We can find artefacts in museums locally  and read historical analysis based on documents, What we can’t do is know what it was like to actually live at the time these places were constructed and first in use.

 

 

REGENTS CANAL WALK CONTINUED. Part 2 (Kings Cross to Kingsland Road.) Part 3 (Kingsland Road to Limehouse.)

 

Tony and John with the statue of Sir John Betjamin in St Pancras Station.

Part 2  KINGS CROSS TO THE KINGSLAND ROAD HACKNEY

 On Thursday 24^th February John and myself joined by Tony Brown, continued the Regents Canal Walk.

John and I had finished the first part of the walk at The British Library and Kings Cross Station, so it was from there we continued walking the canal path.

We had a wander around St Pancras Station, opened in October 1868 and designed by William Henry Barlow looking at the immense iron and glass arched roofs and the wonderful Victorian brickwork all around, archways and pillars, brickwork, windows and doors. A masterpiece of Victorian Gothic. A ,"cathedral," in its own right. St Pancras is now the Eurostar station and the gateway to Europe from London. Two long sleek Euro Star trains were in the station while we were there.. The tall giant bronze statue of a couple embracing, the plinth of which is surrounded by bronze plaques depicting events connected with the station.

We found the statue to Sir John Betjamin and posed for photographs with him. Betjamin, star of TV documentaries and accessible poetry, his poetry always striking me with the depth of its meaning within the simple imagery and rhythms he created.  In many ways he is the poet of  the mid 20^th century landscape  and buildings of Britain. Apart from his poems he is known as the saviour of many a Victorian building that might have been demolished,including St Pancras Station itself. That is why his statue is here.However he was too late to save the amazing façade of Euston Station  a mile down the road from St Pancras.

“Revival ran along the hedge

and made my spirit whole

When steam was on the window panes

And Glory in my soul"

 By Sir John Betjamin

The age of steam, the Industrial Revolution, the glories of the Victorian age, the rural landscape and practices of the past were what inspired John Betjamin. I don’t remember, when watching his documentaries as a youth, whether he ever delved into the detrimental aspects of all that, and may well have condoned them as necessary; the class system underpinned by poverty, the coal polluting practices of the Victorian era and so forth. So, in many ways, the popular poet maybe is not so popular now. 

Inside The Betjamin Arms set within The Midlands Hotel.

Britain is , on the whole, quite good at keeping the best examples of our past buildings. We have The National Trust and also English Heritage which are devoted to keeping many examples of  the great country houses of the Georgian period,  Medieval Castles,Roman Forts, including more modern examples of architecture and in some cases buildings kept just because of who lived there. I am thinking here of John Lennon's Aunty Mamies house in Menlove Avenue Liverpool,an ordinary 1930s semi. The National Trust has also preserved   the council house in Forthlin Road Liverpool where Paul McCartney lived as a child and as a teenager wrote, along with John Lennon some of their early hit songs. Houses like those are justly kept. However, our city and town council planning departments have not been so good at retaining unique examples of architecture within their city and town boroughs. “Concrete Brutalist,” buildings , housing estates from the 60s and 70s , often well designed and unique examples of our built heritage in their own right have been the target of demolition. Renovation and repurposing are not in many town planning departments vocabulary, which is a great shame. It begs the important questions, what is valuable? what should be kept? what can be repurposed or renovated? The canal walk provides examples of a whole range of architecture, old and new , some has been repurposed and some developed in new ways, and also places where buildings have been demolished and new masterpieces erected. 

The three of us had a coffee and a chat about this and that, as you do,  in the Betjamin Arms bar and tea room set within the structure of the magnificent Midland Hotel which fronts St Pancras  and overlooks the Euston Road. We could also look back into the station concourse with those Eurostar trains waiting. The interior of the bar displays all the Victorian Gothic features Betjamin was so proud of.

From here we walked out of the front of the station passing the front of The Midland Hotel marvelling at its magnificence.

We reached the canal again just north of St Pancras and Kings Cross.

 We  turned right beside the British Library next door  and headed north towards the canal. We passed

under the vast concrete underpass over which the railway lines from the station pass and then took a turn left up to the canal at Granary Square where indeed the old Victorian buildings that were used as granaries are located. There was also a coal depot here, an old  fading sign on the side of a brick building informs us so. Our walk continued along the north side of the canal going east.

There is a whole mixture of things the canal is about. It has its history of horse drawn boats moving goods about the country and helping in boosting the Industrial Revolution. Iron, sugar, tea, tin, explosives, oil, wool, items from the West Indies , the coal and the granaries at Granary Wharf all part of the diverse trade that the canal enabled.There is much left to show us about its origins. The tow paths are stone edged. Brick sides drop vertically into the water and there is the  complexity of lock gates, at intervals, moving boats from one level to another. Often the lock keeper’s cottages still remain. Wide basins that extend off the canal to the north and south of the canal include City Road Basin, Battlebridge Basin where the London Canal Museum is now located, St Pancras Basin where we began the second part of our canal walk and  others. These must have been locations for industries that required their own quays and piers for loading and offloading goods produced locally making items for trade with other parts of the country via the canal system. Some of the old warehouses still remain converted into flats , offices and workshops. Along the route of the canal there is also a  cross section of society, social housing, small businesses, elegant architectural builds, modern executive flats, businesses secreted under old brick archways beside the canal, boating clubs and of course a multitude of canal boats. Sometimes you can smell the wood burners on some of these canal boats from a distance as you approach. Often the spaces on the roofs of the canal boats are a collection of flower pots, washing lines, stove chimneys, bicycles lying on their sides and the clutter of canal living.

 

Untidy canal life.

As we walked, often  joggers went past. Cyclists, sometimes, but not often, warned us of their approach by ringing their bell but sometimes provided no warning at all. Mums with buggies and as the day proceeded, teenagers making their way home from school. Once in a while we see the owners and inhabitants of the canal boats, through the open entrance to their boat or perhaps as they emerge on to the pathway. We have spoken to some, passing the time of day. I remember seeing one lady ensconced in the cabin of her boast brewing tea in a cramped area. I looked down at her and she looked up. I felt a little guilty, perhaps impinging on her privacy. But I am sure she is used to this with her lifestyle.

As we approached Islington the canal enters a tunnel and goes underground for 960 meters just short of a kilometre. It was opened in 1818 and designed by the engineer James Morgan. There is no towpath here so we had to walk above the tunnel following the signs to where the tunnel once again emerged further along.. We walked along Chapel Street where Chapel Street market is located . It is a  multicultural area, Italian coffee shops, Indian restaurants and fruit and veg stalls, and clothing stalls. A little reminiscent of Albert Square in Eastenders.. At the end of Chapel market, near The Angel Islington we went into The Islington Town House public house for a beer and something to eat. We later rejoined the canal towpath at Duncan Street and Colebrook Row.

What is prevalent everywhere is the graffiti and tags. Tags are signature names. Graffitti is more complex and often makes a political or social commentary.Much of the tags look untidy because the artists have created their signs and pictures, one on top of another. You can make out most of their tags though. TAGS are primarily a set of initials sometimes just scrawled swiftly with a can of spray paint, sometimes intricately formed giving the initials a three dimensional effect and carefully painted in two or more colours. D.E.X, MUNS, CHUP, PUAN, MOEX and the tags multiplied as we walked along. The ZERZ tag was done on a number of locations along the canal, meticulously formed in silver and sometimes green but always  in a three dimensional form. Why would somebody want to leave a mark like that? This form of street art has been carried out for thousands of years. I remember visiting Pompeii in the Bay of Naples a few years ago and seeing Ancient Roman tags in the streets of the ancient city. A particular gladiator had his fan following in one street in Pompeii. It makes me and other onlookers notice. We read it. We wonder at the nerve of somebody to do that. A connection is made with the tag artist. They have made their mark and we have been  affected by it.  A message saying, I exist, is conveyed. I find graffiti really interesting. Some people think its an act of vandalism but surely vandalism is about making  a comment, sending a message from the heart and mind and not always destructively. Graffitti and TAGS are often positive things..  Banksy is one of the most famous and sophisticated of the graffiti artist known all over the world. There is a famous Banksy in Shoreditch just south of the canal. Shoreditch has its famous stick people logos by an artist called Stix. Many advertising companies use his graffiti  art work. Often the graffiti  around Shoreditch carries importance to the local community and all of us who see it. Sitting on the top of the 243 bus from Hoxton to Waterloo the other day I passed a  fence, fencing off a building site that has a recent mural depicting urban bombing in the Ukraine. A child with a teddy bear melts into a skeletal form half flesh and half skull. I saw the mural for a passing moment but feel its emotional impact even now when I think about it. Walls, roofs, a collection of disused underground trains stacked on top of a building, bridges and shop fronts are all a canvas for the graffiti artist.

Graffiti along the canal side.

Just before we reached the bridge over the canal at Kingsland Road in Shoreditch we saw some elegant modern flats with balconies overlooking the canal labelled the ,"Gainsborough Studio Flats." This modern block is the northern canal side of the complex. On the south side overlooking Shoreditch Park in Poole Street is an old Victorian industrial building. It was originally a coal fired power station for the Great Northern and City Railway. A small white surround art nouveau doorway is located at the right this façade and a blue plaque on the wall near this entrance provides further information about this buildings later use. After its first life as a power station it was repurposed as the famous Gainsborough Film Studios.

Gainsborough Studios was active between 1924 and 1951. Other films were made at Lime Grove and Pinewood Studios. This former film studios was converted into flats in 2004.The studio is best remembered for the Gainsborough melodramas it produced in the1940s.

Gainsborough Studios, apartments.

Gainsborough Studios, produced some of Britain’s best-known early films, such as The Lady Vanishes (1938), The Man in Grey (1943) and Fanny by Gaslight (1944), as well as launching the careers of the many of the country’s cinema stars. Above all, one of the world’s greatest film directors learned his trade at the studios, east London-born Alfred Hitchcock (1899-1980).  

We climbed the stone steps from the canal side at Kingsland Road and finished our second leg of the walk near the mosque on Kingsland Road and got the bus back to Waterloo Station.

Part 3  THE KINGSLAND ROAD TO LIMEHOUSE

We continued our walk on the final stretch from the Kingsland Road bridge over the canal  on the 16th March.  After passing more graffiti on walls, a set of lock gates  and the expected cyclists and joggers eventually we arrived at Victoria Park, with its Chinese Pagoda and boating lakes. Victoria Park opened in 1845 and was created to beautify the East End, provide recreational space and improve public health. The consultant planner was Sir James Pennethorne. The park is located in Tower Hamlets. It is bordered by Hackney, Bethnal Green and Stratford, where the 2012 Olympic Park is located. We didn’t venture over to the Olympic stadiums because we kept to the canal footpaths.

The Chinese pagoda in Victoria Park.

While we were in the park, John had a word with a couple of police officers patrolling the park. We had had a few near misses with cyclists speeding past us along the canal towpath. None of them had rung their bells as they approached us. Tony and I  walked on and only observed from a distance. The police officers looked suitably concerned and noted John’s complaint it appeared.

 Victoria Park must have witnessed the recreation of so many ,”East Enders.” It is a beautiful park. All of us from whatever section of society, deserve to experience the beauty of nature. London is blessed with not only the famous parks, Hyde Park and Regents Park which our canal walk has taken us past, set in central London but a multitude of local parks in every London borough , often each borough has a number of wonderful parks not just one, across London. Londoners are very lucky to have this legacy from as early as  Victorian times and from the early twentieth century to enjoy , to be able to exercise, taking part in football, cricket, bowling, tennis, paddling pools and children’s playgrounds. The parks are a resource that improves the populations health and well being. Local people love their parks and defend their existence vehemently at times. My own local park created in the1930s by a local politician Sir Joseph Hood,is the beating communal heart of my neighbourhood. Childrens’ sports teams, adult sports teams, a playschool open everyday of the week for toddlers and a place to just stroll, relax, listen to bird song    and in one case, I have witnessed, to practice your skills at tai chi.

The entrance to Victoria Park, Tower Hamlets.

As we approached the Limehouse Basin, where the Regents Canal actually begins,  at the heart of docklands, we were passing some blocks of flats on the opposite side of the canal. We heard an angry voice shouting abuse at a neighbour. We could not work out what the gentleman’s anger was about. He was very upset and very angry. And he didn’t stop his tirade. It continued certainly after we had moved on into the distance. We could hear the other person trying to reply but not getting a word in edgeways.

Flats beside the canal.

Limehouse Basin is a large area of water surrounded by quays where luxury yachts amd motor launches are moored. It is worth taking a moment to recall what was here before. In the 19^th century this basin would have been surrounded by multi-storey brick built warehouses. Doorways high in the structures would have had cranes with rope winches to haul bales and crates of products to the upper levels. Steam ships puffing out coal dust, the splash and rumble of paddle steamers. Thames barges that traded all along the Kent coast with large brown and red sails would have proliferated . The shouts and calls of stevedores, the clip clopping of horses pulling canal barges alongside some of the quays and ships at anchor ready to take on-board produce from all over the Empire and transport it up the canal system to Birmingham , the Midlands and the north. It was all here;a hive of activity.

Arriving at Limehouse Basin.

Now nearly all the buildings are modern, apartments, offices and small businesses. Very few examples of the 19^th century infrastructure remain. The brick chimney of a pump house can be glimpsed behind the Docklands Light Railway Railway viaduct. The bridge archways that support the viaduct that arch over the final part of the canal as it joins the basin  are part of the old canal and basin infrastructure. It is apt to remember that most of the old docklands were destroyed during the Blitz, the docklands in the east end being a prime target. We walked around the pathways that lead over pedestrian bridges across narrow inlets that lead to smaller basins off Limehouse  and around the quay side. A sign post indicated the direction of The Grapes public house. At the end of our walk we were looking forward to a pint and some grub.

A Victorian pump house chimney protruding above the Docklands Light Railway viaduct at Limehouse.

The Grapes pub is situated in, Narrow Street, backing on to the Thames with Docklands stretching east of it. The back of the pub has a balcony over the Thames itself.  Narrow Street appears to be a misnomer. It is not narrow. What there is today is a wide thoroughfare with  wide green verges and a small park. Referring to the history of Limehouse however, Narrow Street was indeed narrow with originally, the row of houses where The Grapes is situated almost within touching distance of the  houses and buildings opposite it.

Other streets in the area, Ropemakers Fields, East India Dock Road, Basin Approach, Shoulder of Mutton Alley all give indications about the local history.

Entering The Grapes in Limehouse. (The Six Jolly Fellowship- Porters)

We walked through the door of the Grapes into a narrow passage to the right with dark brown varnished  wood panelled walls giving a gloomy feeling to the place. Old black and white photographs hung on the walls showing dockworkers from , I presume, the 1930s  sitting in a row each supping a pint of beer. There was a small bar to the left with a smiling welcoming barmaid and landlady standing behind the counter. We walked on through to the back of the pub which had three or four beer barrels turned on end as tables and wooden benches. Another bar opened on to this part of the pub. The windows at the back looked out onto the Thames. It was obvious the back of the pub was lapped by the river. Some steps inside the back of the pub lead to a balcony outside overlooking the Thames. We sat down and perused the menu on the table in front of us. I noticed the walls were covered in pictures of Charles Dickens and  some his characters. I didn’t at first give these pictures much attention. The thought that always occurs when you walk into an old pub anywhere in London and see Dickens on the walls is that once Dickens came in here. Dickens walked all over London, finding inspiration. I was certainly not wrong about, The Grapes.

However the first thing I asked the genial smiling landlady was , jokingly ,”that’s a big shillelagh you have behind the bar.”A large brown varnished knobbly stick with a gnarled end was on display.  “Oh no, that’s not a shillelagh ,” she said. “What do you think it might be?”  I don’t know why but I immediately said, tongue in cheek, “It’s Gandalphs staff.” “ Yes it is. Sir Ian McKellen is a part owner of The Grapes.” I was gobsmacked. I then noticed, near us at the back of the pub, was a miniature statue of Gandalf the Wizard wielding his staff. 

Gandalph is behind me.

Then of course I asked about The Dickens connection. Both the landlady and the barmaid came together , all smiles and enthusiasm and related to us about the Dicken’s link. The Grapes is ,”The Six Jolly Fellowship- Porters,” that features especially in the first book of Our Mutual Friend. Here Gaffer Hexam fell out of favour  with Miss Abby Potterson, the landlady in the novel. Here too the soaked and presumed drowned body of Rogue Riderhood was dragged from the Thames and laid out on a table in the pub and eventually revived to live on. Here Lizzie Hexam pleaded with Abby Potterson for clemency for her ,as it turns out, falsly accused father over being too successful at finding and recovering dead bodies from the Thames. Suspicions had been set going by Rogue Riderhood.  Miss Abby Potterson was a wise and intelligent warm hearted woman who everybody respected in the area and who laid down the law and looked after her customers wellbeing, knowing their wives and families intimately. The present day landlady, I never got to know her name, is just like Dicken’s description of Miss Abby Potterson, it occurred to me, warm, personable, in charge. So much happens around this pub in Dicken’s novel and we were sitting there in the bar where a lot of the early action takes place. Locations like this in London are exciting  to be in and a real privilege. The three of us had a couple of pints of the local brew and ate a plate of fish and chips, with  napkins and all the condiments provided. We went out on to the balcony at the back of The Grapes to look over the Thames and Docklands to the east. There, standing out of the water facing docklands is an Anthony Gormley iron cast figure, calm, implacable, gazing straight at the international banking area of Docklands. Perhaps, like Miss Abby Potterson, holding her customers  to account, this Gormley figure, above the lapping waves, is holding docklands and its financial commerce to account.

Antony Gormley's figure contemplating Docklands. (From the balcony at the back of The Grapes.)

Chapter VI Book One Our Mutual Friend

“ The Six Jolly Fellowship Porters already mentioned as a tavern of dropsical appearance, had long settled down into a state of hale infirmity. In its whole constitution it had not a straight floor , and hardly a straight line; but it had outlasted, and clearly would yet outlast, many a better a trimmed building, many a sprucer public house. Externally it was a narrow lopsided wooden jumble of corpulent windows heaped one upon another as you might heap as many toppling oranges, with a crazy wooden verandah impending over the water; indeed the whole house, inclusive of the complaining flagstaff on the roof , impended over the water, but seemed to have got into the condition of a fainthearted diver who has paused so longon the brink  that he will nevre go in.”

Yes, that is definitely The Grapes. After leaving The Grapes we walked along the Thames Path  to the Thames Clipper pier nearby. We got a ferry back to Westminster where we embarked walking a short distance to Waterloo Station and got our trains home.

As an afterthought, if John, Tony and myself created our own graffiti tags what might they be?

Here you are. Have a guess whose TAG is whose.

 

 

References:

Stik graffitti artists: http://stik.org/

Gainsborough Studios: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gainsborough_Pictures

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

Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens Penguin Classics  (first published 1865) 1997

Victoria Park: https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgnl/leisure_and_culture/parks_and_open_spaces/victoria_park/victoria_park.asp

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria_Park,_London

 The Regents Canal: https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/canal-and-river-network/regents-canal

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regent%27s_Canal

 

John Betjamin: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/john-betjeman

Canal Boat art: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roses_and_Castles

Antony Gormley: https://www.antonygormley.com/

The London Canal Museum: https://www.canalmuseum.org.uk/

 

 

 

 

PERSUASION (an adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel by Jeff James and James Yeatman) at The Rose Theatre Kingston upon Thames.

 

Marilyn and I went to see Persuasion performed at The Rose on Tuesday 8^th March. It maybe strange but  for somebody who professes to know a little bit about Jane Austen it is a long time since I had actually read the novel. I have delved deep into Austen’s novels over the years for quotes and to reference her possible thoughts  and ideas about life and love,  but I have failed to read the whole of the novels since I first read them all  years ago.  I have lost sight. I think, of what Jane actually wrote. So I read Persuasion again and it wowed me. It is a novel that explores the shifting of society  in the early 19^th century when much was changing, not just how relationships developed, but the class sytem was adapting and it was the time of the  Industrial Revolution. It seems apposite that at the moment when the world order is actually changing that The Rose Theatre chose Persuasion to dramatise.  

The cast.

I know that good novels, as you read them again over time and  as your own experience of life develops,  reveal  different levels of understanding. So what did I get from reading Austen’s Persuasion this time round before seeing the performance?  The word ,persuasion, is used at times during the novel, but not often. The actual consequences of being persuaded however are felt throughout and drive the novel itself. Anne Elliot was persuaded , eight years previously, by  her father to refuse a  marriage proposal to Captain Wentworth who she really loved. Also Lady Russell the family friend and Anne’s particular friend persuaded her against the match too.  

I find Ann   annoyingly  neurotic. Is that because she has always been pressured by others to go against her own wishes? Does she feel  she has no control over her life?.   Things happen to Anne. She isn't allowed to make things happen for herself. She analyses every situation, almost every word and look to an intense degree. She  always comes out worst. In this novel and in the play she eventually learns to decide for herself. So a major theme has to be how we use people’s advice and how much we should be persuaded when making life decisions for ourselves.

Anne played by Sasha Frost.

Another issue  also, in  terms of Jane Austen’s own experience  are the  relationships she describes. How a woman who never married and who as far as we can tell from the little evidence remaining in her letters, never had a long term and deep relationship, write about relationships that are so real?  Trust, understanding, empathy, a deep love,  passion, lust and sex, how can she possible know? How can she create and explore characters that have deep emotional relationships, that develop over time? How  did she know all this?  Reading Persuasion again and seeing this stage production makes me wonder even more. I suppose we all learn more from failure than success. Maybe it was Jane’s failures in love that informed her at such a deep level?

Captain Wentworth played by Fred Fergus and Louisa played by Matilda Bailes

A novel written in the early 19^th century  translated into  a play set in the 21^st century, surely, it can’t be done? They are two worlds far apart. How can they possibly come together and meet? There are the wise among us that say Austen is universal in her treatment of relationships. This is true when you drill down to what happens in a  relationship  but all those 18^th century rules get in the way to a  translation across centuries, surely? Class status, wealth,  attitudes to money and  the patriarchy  and what seems to us blatant misogyny but wasn’t understood as such in the 18^th century, how does it all get transferred to the 21^st century? When I read Persuasion again finishing the day before we saw the stage adaptation I couldn’t see anyway that it was possible to achieve that transfer from the 18^th century to the 21^st century.

Charles played by Dorian Simpson and Mary played by Caroline Moroney.

Think about science fiction, worlds which are created and can’t exist in reality. This play creates a hybrid world  that is half 18^th century and half 21^st century. Of course there has to be Sir Walter Elliot,  class riven thinking about his baronetcy and getting into debt. Elizabeth too is the,” perfect,” 18^th century catch, schooled in all the propriety of 18^th century family and filial traditions. Which self respecting 18^th century country gentleman or member of the aristocracy couldn’t fail to want her as his accomplished bride? She awaits in agonising suspension both in Persuasion the novel and this staged version. I almost feel sorry for her . She is totally unfulfilled.  We have the predatory Mrs Clay, named  Penelope in this play and the equally  predatory, nephew and cousin, Mr William Elliot. Kellynch Hall is rented to Admiral and Mrs Croft. Admiral and Mrs Croft are as loveable as they are in the novel and as clueless about who will marry whom. What transfers easily are the many misunderstandings of who is going to marry whom. Its almost like A Midsummers Night’s Dream in its mistaken who loves who scenarios. The Musgroves, Charles and Mary, Louisa and Henrietta are the upwardly mobile types and perhaps represent a 21^st century married couple in embryo.  Mr and Mrs Musgrove, their older parents represent the past. The Musgroves as a whole family represent a changing society. Lady Russel, a family friend and near neighbour to Sir Walter is as likeable as she is in the novel. She is Annes true friend. She makes mistakes and get things wrong in her advice to Anne  but you always feel her heart is in the right place and she is willing to adapt her views.

The first scene is when Sir Walter decides to rent Kellynch Hall and go to live in Bath. Anne ,who really doesn’t like Bath delays the inevitable by going to stay with her sister Mary at Marys home three miles away at Uppercross. Things like dates and distances are highlighted in this production in a comical way,making fun of what was significant in the 18^th century and really is not now.

Mary can’t cope with anything, her unruly children, her disaffected husband Charles and she generally sinks into a sort of hypochondria always feeling ill and suffering stress.  Only one of Marys children features in this production  . He is named ,Samuel, although the children in the novel are merely called, “the  children.” Samule has an accident and damages his collar bone. Anne is the only one able  to cope of course. Mary tries to escape the action whenever she can. So, all true to the novel so far. Certain things work in both centuries.

 We are informed that Captain Wentworth is of course the younger brother of Mrs Croft and is coming to live with them at Kellynch. The news makes Anne even more neurotic her emotions and thoughts  going into hyperdrive. I have always thought Captain Wentworth disappoints in the novel. He takes so long to realise he still loves Anne.  Anne for her part has never been able to get Captain Wentworth out of her mind. Although statements by Captain Wentworth such as ,”true love lasts forever,” in both the play and the novel suggest otherwise about him. He simply appears to not be self aware, while Anne agonises and interprets her thoughts and feelings and observations in both the novel and in the play ad finitum.

Anne observing Charles and Mary dancing at Uppercross. Charles compliments Anne on her playing the harpsichord. (I don't think so!)

There is plenty of music and suggestions of balls and dancing in the book. At Uppercross,Louisa and Harriet have impromptu balls. Often breaking into, dance. Anne of course does not like to dance in the novel and in this production too. Ann is known to play the harpsichord. During one music session at Uppercross the Musgroves home, Mr Musgrove  says. “Well played Anne,” after a piece of electronica drum and base played through speakers set around the stage. Of course Anne hasn’t played anything, she has  merely been standing,  a spectator. The audience have a little giggle. Charles Musgrove rather disturbingly performs a robotic dance.Think Ricky Gervais’s David Brent in the English version of The Office

The stage set is interesting. It consists of two enormous white oblong blocks laid one on top of the other like chunks of iceberg. The back drop is a shiny vertically corrugated vinyl blue curtain , representing the sea, an ever present reference in the play and the book.The great ice berg blocks shift and turn and slide over each other to represent changes of  location and mood. For the visit to Lyme the stage blocks shift and the top most block of ice  sticks out like a cantilever bridge towards the audience.

Now this is where the true Janeite might think things get really silly or even worse, wrong, in a very bad way.

 

Captain Wentworth doing some great dance moves with Louisa and Henrietta.

We get to Lyme. Bubbles pour down in a great bubble waterfall from the,” gods,” and party time begins. Captain Wentworth boogies in a rather disturbing energetic fashion to  Dua Lupa in nothing but a pair of tiny ,”budgy smugglers,” (see the end of this review for a definition). Louisa, scantily dressed in a shiny gold bikini  writhes to the music  getting up very close to Captain Wentworth. Captain Benwick is there looking disconsolate and trying to enjoy himself mooning over his dead finance Fanny Harville. I should mention, some characters from the novel do not appear in this stage adaptation. Captain and Mrs Harville do not. They are alluded to by mention of the dead Fanny Harville.   Mary Musgrove is still moaning about her children and her husband. She seems more stressed out mother now than a hypochondriac. Although she is an annoying character, she is the most modern of Austen’s creations in this novel. She is a mother, not a very good one , but she also wants to have a social life and is interested in things outside the confines of her home. Mary and her husband Charles  try to enjoy themselves, with difficulty and dance rather disturbingly. (Do not try any of these dances at home)Charles becomes a sweating gyrating mess.

   The scene set in  Lyme is reminiscent of the present day twenty four hour partying on Ibiza. Suddenly from nowhere strides a tall Adonis, in a pair of brief swimming trunks and magisterially and  manfully strides through the middle of the party from one side of the stage to the other and disappears. He gives a hard meaningful glare at Anne, who is to one side. Anne is dressed in jeans and striped shirt by the way, which she has been wearing. throughout the play and takes no part in the hedonism. She merely   observes the mayhem, looking somewhat stunned as indeed do most of the audience. This stranger is  Mr Elliot their cousin unknown to them at this moment, who is to inherit Kellynch Hall and the baronetcy. He is almost naked as he strides across the stage, causing a few embarrassed giggles  in the audience.. An  Adonis more like Fred Flintstone than Arnold Schwarzenegger.  

Songs by  Frank Ocean, Dua Lupa and Cardi B tracks provide the music. Some of the lyrics are ,"ripe," to say the least. I am tempted to quote some Cardi B lyrics here so you can imagine the scene but I will get banned forever from posting my reviews if I did. (Please see the link at the end of this review ).  Not for childrens ears or eyes. The tracks relate to modern relationships and describe the good and the bad and the very bad and relate to Jane Austen’s Persuasion in a surprising way. Who would have thought Cardi B and Jane Austen had anything in common? And as for the dancing, Louisa and Henrietta go crazy with some energetic robotic moves and exaggerated disco dancing throwing arms and legs around  in some sort of coordinated wild frenzy.

Louisa and Captain Wentworth get close.

Louisa has her accident sliding between Captain Wentworth’s legs attempting an energetic dance move set in this mass of bubbles. As she lays there unconscious, not seen by most of the audience, the bubbles totally cover her. Anne  stands over Louisa and squeezes tomato ketchup on to her prostrate body. It reprsents blood and gore, in case you were  wondering. Louisa is removed from the scene to a local hotel.

The Lyme scene is hedonistic and rather silly to be honest. There is no way Captain Wentworth can possibly recoup any respectability from this scene,  surely? He looks like an idiot , behaves like an idiot and to be honest, he is. They all, apart from Anne behave embarrassingly to put it mildly. 

There is a break in the proceedings at this point. The audience can go to the loo or maybe have a drink at the bar in the foyer. Marilyn and I sat there mesmerised at the sight of stage assistants frantically hoovering up the soap suds and wiping down the huge stage blocks. It took them forever and we both thought the final part of the play would never happen. The volume of soap suds to be cleared up was prodigious. I don’t know whether the shock value of what the audience had witnessed so far had disgruntled some but  two ladies sitting in front of us turned to Marilyn and myself and forcefully  complained that we had been playing music on our phones throughout and they were very accusatory. Marilyn calmly and firmly explained that the speakers surrounding the stage had been playing quiet background music  and it wasn’t us. They turned around again in a huff.Perhaps their hearing aids were not adjusted correctly. Unfortunately, soon after, my phone. which I thought I had switched off, rang loudly. Alice our eldest daughter tried to call me. I had to turn it off swiftly and I must have been red with embarrassment but hidden by the dim lighting of the auditorium.  The two ladies in front didn’t turn a hair.

Throughout the performance there is a running gag about the year 1806 and said as “18 -  0 – 6.”  In a somewhat Monty Pythonish way.  A reference to events eight years earlier of course. The other running gag is Sir walter Elliots catch phrase ,”you must be using Gowlands on your face.” Those who have read the novel will know. However I have done a google  search. Gowlands has other connotations which I won’t divulge now.

Biographies of the cast. You will see some actors have more than one part.

The stages tectonic plates shift once more and the stage now becomes Bath.

Lady Russel arrives with Anne. Sir Walter, Elizabeth and Penelope (Mrs Clay), are already settled in Bath. There is a scene where Penelope appears to be in charge organising where everybody is to stay. It is suggested Mary and Charles Musgrove are to stay too. Elizabeth wonders where everybody will sleep. Penelope has  been waiting for the moment. She suggests, surreptitiously to Elizabeth, that to provide room she can sleep in Elizabeth’s bed with her and  kisses her suggestively. Elizabeth is confused but rejects the idea. In the novel I had wondered about Mrs Clays seemingly clinging relationship with Elizabeth. One interpretation is made evident here. Mr Elliot is in Bath and makes his presence known to the Elliots often visiting them. When he realises the girl he noticed at Lyme is his cousin Anne his interest is peaked even more. Elizabeth of course thinks his interest is in her.There is something cold and calculated about Mr Elliot. He has plans.

The major scene in Bath for this adaptation is Lady Dalrymples party. The denouement is set. Now I must prepare you for this. There is no Mrs Smith in this adaptation. So we wonder how Anne is to know the full extent of Mr Elliot’s machinations, but be patient gentle readers. We shall see. All comes to light. If the Ibizan party time at Lyme might shock, Lady Dalrymple’s party will stun you completely. 

Lights, music, loud electronica and hard driving drum and base ensues. Wild dancing. Louisa and Henrietta  strut their stuff. Mr Elliot has totally commandeered Anne by now. He has designs on marrying her. Lady Russel, Sir Walter, Elizabeth, Penelope, everybody think so. They are  convinced a wedding is imminent. Just when we are settling into to a wild party and getting used to that, Ibizan, Lyme style,hedonism the whole thing moves up a few notches. Lady Dalrymple, a double take and yes it must be Lady Dalrymple, strides onto the stage. An enormous hunky figure at least 6 foot 6 inches tall, dressed head to foot,  in a glistening sequined  black rubber ,”gimp,” costume and wearing skyscraper tall  high heels . She/ he, moves provocatively in a lewd way. The audience gasped then some giggles. I don’t think anybody knew where to look.  Oh my God Lady Dalrymple is a dominatrix. Perhaps she is too in the novel? I hadn’t thought of that, but now come to think about it. 

Captain Wentworth appears at the party and Anne and he talk. Mr Elliot comes over and forcefully, and with a dominant and even an abusive controlling manner  demands she comes away from Wentworth. Anne stands her ground and refuses him. If she didn’t know his true character before she does now. She turns him away and  refuses his marriage proposal.  Mr Elliot , always cold and calculated, we see it now so obviously, immediately finds Elizabeth and proposes to her instead. Elizabeth, who is aware of all that has gone before,  accepts his proposal. She is shameless and has no dignity. They are two people  not destined for love but to eternally torment each other. There's will be a marriage based on a desire for  wealth and position only. Elizabeth has never had the self-awareness and self-analysis of Anne. She only lives for societies rules. As she spurned Penelope’s advances she once more  denies her true self. A moment of sadness that the audience is very aware of.

Anne and Captain Wentworth at last....maybe.

Of course it wouldn’t be Jane Austen’s Persuasion without, "the letter. "We don’t see Captain Wentworth write the letter in this production. It is delivered to Anne during the ball / bacchanalia at Lady Dalrymples by the young boy who was Samuel Musgrove and  now plays the part of a pageboy.

The letter is as it should be.

“I can listen no longer in silence. I must speak to you by such means as are within my reach. You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope…”

 The play ends with Captain Wentworth and Anne professing their love face to face, a love that of course has never faded since finding love eight years previously. At long last Anne Elliot finally makes a decision for herself. Lady Russel is persuaded. Sir Walter Elliot is persuaded. So we think, this is the happy ending of the novel. But,  this is a hybrid of two differing centuries. A weird and wonderful world.  

THE LAST PAGE OF THE PLAY SCRIPT SAYS

( I suppose this is the happy ending people talk about)

WENTWORTH. I’m happy now

ANNE. So am I

WENTWORTH And is It a beginning not an ending

ANNE I hope so. We haven’t even lived half our lives.

WENTWORTH How do you know there could be another war.

ANNE You could be dead by the end of the Summer.

WENTWORTH Or I could die in bed fifty years from now, holding your hand.

ANNE Holding my hand? Am I dead or alive at this point?

WENTWORTH It’s impossible to know what will happen.

ANNE To either of us.

WENTWORTH That’s the fun of it.

ANNE Whatever’s going to happen to me. I’d like to be with you while it happens.

WENTWORTH So we just take the risk?

ANNE Life has some risks.

WENTWORTH Love is one.

ANNE You’ve been lucky before.

WENTWORTH I hope I’ll be lucky again.

ANNE Good luck Captain Wentworth

WENTWORTH Good luck Anne Elliot.

THE END

 

So do you think they get married or not?

 

 

Reference:

Persuasion By Jane Austen (Adapted by Jeff Daniels with James Yeatman) Published by Samuel French at Concord Theatricals 2017 revised edition 2022

 

The Rose Theatre Kingston upon Thames:  https://rosetheatre.org/

Gimp suit: a bondage costume.

Cardi B song lyric:  ( an example)

https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/cardi-b/trustissues.html

 

Definition of “Budgie smugglers.”:

a man’s small skin tight swimming trunks that reveal the outline of his penis and testicles. Usually not a pleasant sight. A budgie, being a small compact bird, is the shape of what is seen through the bathing trunks. Hence the phrase.

GOWLANDS:  

https://pemberley.com/?kbe_knowledgebase=gowlands-lotion-syphilis