Thoughts and words

Whispers in the Hearts of Men - learning English the Beatles way

In Whispers in the Hearts of Men - kidnapped historian, Richard Chambers, is delighted that his young Palestinian guard has some English language skills. The guard has learned his English by listening to pop music in general and to The Beatles in particular. The guard has also picked up some... Read more →

Androcles and the lion and gay love in "Whispers in the Hearts of Men" - part 3 - extract

History lecturer Richard Chambers is back in the Middle-East on a lecture tour. He is unable to stop himself from visiting the boy's school at which he had taught 37 years previously. He is surprised, that after all this time, he still feels guilt regarding a relationship that developed with... Read more →

Androcles, the lion and gay love in "Whispers in the Hearts of Men" - part 2

"Whispers in the Hearts of Men" has several themes and one of these themes deals with the forbidden! Several authors have written about it. Several filmmakers have made it their subject. The "subject" or "it" is the almost unmentionable, the modern-day-threat-to-our-children. "It" is the attraction of older men to younger... Read more →

Inspiration from misfortune

At the clinic today, sitting in a chair, giving blood and dreaming. Man walks in. My nurse arrives. Man and nurse exchange a few low words in German. I hear the man say he'll be spending time with his grandchildren. Nurse says how sorry she is. Nurse gives man a... Read more →

Androcles, the lion and "Whispers in the Hearts of Men" - part 1

Imagine a person who learned English by listening to The Beatles and to TV football commentaries. What might he or she sound like? What motivates suicide bombers? Are strong feelings for children always wrong? In the West, you might be beaten up or locked up for expressing such feelings. Are... Read more →

Memory and reality: Jacqueline du Pre

Last night (Sunday 22 October) I watched "Jacqueline du Pre: A Gift Beyond Words." This was a film made by Christopher Nupen and shown on BBC4. Du Pre has become an almost legendary figure, a musical phenomenon who married Daniel Barenboim. Both Barenboim and du Pre often collaborated with other... Read more →

Beautiful places: appearance and reality

I finished my previous blog on Baden Baden with these words. "Even today, on warm sunny days, you can dance around the bandstand outside the casino - perhaps a waltz in memory of that last summer - the summer of 1914 - before WW1 broke out and changed everything for... Read more →

Inspiration from beautiful places: Baden Baden

Readers of my blog will know by now that history provides me with inspiration. There are some towns in Europe in which the touch of history is everywhere. Baden-Baden, a spa town in southwestern Germany’s Black Forest, is one of these places. Its thermal baths helped it become a fashionable... Read more →

Inspiration from the past: memory and truth on Monte Pasubio

I did not take this picture on Monte Pasubio - one of my fellow walkers did that. I don't recall exactly who! Here we have two figures on the side of the mountain. Two figures - a young man and a young woman I would guess, and somehow joined together... Read more →

Inspiration from the past - beauty and horror on Monte Pasubio

Three old friends and assorted family members set off to climb Monte Pasubio just over a week ago. There were 10 of us. The youngest was just 11 years old. The oldest was 67. We spent the night at 1900 metres in the WW1 military refuge shown in pic 4... Read more →