Like in all things human, there is a hierarchy within comedy. Comedians understand this and we accept it. Not all comedians are the same. Some comedians are funnier than others and the funniest comedians tend to be the most famous although not always. It is… Read More »Tom who?
An exciting start to my year and a need perhaps to recalibrate my career, my accomplishments and my place in the world. Because it turns out that I am in fact, a legend. Who knew? Not me and it seems not my son either when… Read More »I am legend…
Recently I have written a few obituaries or tributes to men who have had a large bearing on my life. And so it is this week with the passing of Michael Apted, the director of P’Tang Yang Kipperbang, a TV film that I starred in.… Read More »Glass half full…
The Holland family are back to full strength over Christmas with Tom and Harry back from the States and Sam back from Gleneagles. And due to various circumstances, all back to their parents’ house. The Old Folks Home as they might call it. Like an… Read More »A Modern Family…
There is a romantic notion of being a writer. Something magical. Only an imagination required and how bountiful it can be. The sales and acclaim. Book tours and readings. Adaptations, premieres… And the process of writing itself; so noble and dignified. A room with a… Read More »Oh, to be a scribe…
Doing numerous radio interviews for Takes on Life, presenters off-air have been careful to enquire if it’s agreeable to make mention of my progeny and in particular my first born. I am approving of their etiquette and manners and I quickly assure them that is… Read More »Being green is bad for us…
Finally, an upside of Covid 19 with Sam returning home because the world famous Gleneagles resort has been shut until February 2021. Waiting for him at Gatwick airport this week I felt ambivalent. Excited of course to see my Sam but saddened to experience a… Read More »Slap dash or Cunning?
People prefer absolutes in life, of course. Binary decisions and outcomes. But life is often more complex than this and becoming ever more so. Who crossed the finishing line first? This is fine when measuring the fastest sprinter on earth but less satisfactory when the… Read More »Maradona or Pele?
How many kids grow up to do for a living what they dreamt of? Not many, I’d say. Certainly not the ones who planned on being astronauts. Like most little boys, I had fleeting aspirations of being a football player and to play for En-ger-land. … Read More »Writing my way out…
It is better to give than to receive! A well known phrase and one that chimes with me. To be able to make someone happy, or to cheer someone up is a wonderful thing to experience. And especially so when giving someone a gift which… Read More »Presents of Mind…