@janetteb   From the cited article:  Similarly the pronunciation of the letter “t” in words like metal is disappearing and is being replaced by glottal stops, in which a stop sound is made by rapidly closing the vocal cords. In this way, the word butter has ended up with a pronunciation like “bu’er”.

Agh!  I hate it, hate it, hate it!  I do *n…[Read more]

Hi, @zeyra — welcome to the Sofa (and the rest of the site too, of course)!  We’re always happy to have new voices.  I was never any good at math, and it’s only due to Miss Matske, of hallowed memory, who gave me an undeserved Pass in math (she knew I’d never get into college without a Scholarship and I wouldn’t get that with an average dragged d…[Read more]

@thane15  Puro   Short baton wielding people are arrogant. For good reason.

Love the mental image:  short, baton, trip wire.

@blenkinsopthebrave  The vault is in the basement, isn’t it?  They went outside the building with the Doctor’s office in it to reach the vault.  Universities in the States sometimes have whole mazes of service tunnels beneath the buildings on their campuses, which maintenance staff use to deal with plumbing, ventilation, heating, and cooling sy…[Read more]

It’s excellent — thanks so much for the link!  Did Moffat ever do stand-up comedy?  He’s amazing with the quick, clever, and funny retort (often a retort to what he himself just said).  Quick wits — damn it, he will be missed.  Some excellent questions from the audience, as well.

One odd thing, though, and I wonder if anyone else felt this: I s…[Read more]

@mudlark  @smallgreenplant

[Bird on desk] could conceivably refer to the events of Face the Raven, and a missing second bird, Muninn, representing the memories that the Doctor has lost. Far fetched, but appealing.

Very appealing.  As for munin’s return — that could be an interesting and affecting way to join this softer, warmer Doctor to his e…[Read more]

@mudlark  Doctor in his times has met Leonardo and Van Gogh, so perhaps he met Rembrandt also, and this portrait was the result of the encounter.

You’ve made me realize suddenly that what I *really* want to see on that wall is a portrait by Rembrandt — of the Doctor, *this* Doctor, confronting the viewer as Rembrandt himself does in this…[Read more]

@jimthefish  I’m very much hoping that SM is planning a Writer’s Tale type book. I feel certain there would be very many interesting stories to hear from his tenure in the big seat.

Oh, I second that — I’d love to see it happen!  But if so, I doubt it would be published for a long time — he has (I hope) a long writing career still ahead of hi…[Read more]

@wolfweed  Thanks for the link.

@wolfweed  Couldn’t help it — I had to laugh!  The title alone did it.

@mersey   Thanks for your comments on the Rembrandt — love the line of descent to Fabritious!  So, you’re seeing the portrait as a statement of entirely justified pride in his accomplishments?  I’d see that as, “Here I stand, a fat old guy with paint on my hands, but I know that I am top of my class and that posterity will not forget me!”  T…[Read more]

@conchobarre  the odds of it being Kris Marshall have just risen dramatically

Oh, damn.  I don’t like this guy for the part at all.  Oh, well.  Them’s the breaks . . . I’ll watch just to see what Chibnall does, or I’ll try to, anyway.  If it’s Marshall.

@jimthefish  Broadchurch 3 hasn’t inspired me with any more confidence in Chibnal…[Read more]

@nerys  @redlemons  I never cared much to re-watching DW — until the Moffat/Capaldi team took over.  That was the point at which I began suggesting to the people who were uncomfortable with or unable to connect with or understand S8-9 that they wait a bit, and then watch again.  That stuff was layered as fine cake (dark; probably bittersweet cho…[Read more]