[janetteB @replies]

@all you Dickens dissenters. I have to stand up for Dickens who after all gave us Christmas as we now know it. I have always had a soft spot for a weighty Dickens tone. His writing is at time very clunky but other times it is brilliant. Our Mutual Friend is my favourite even though the plot makes less sense than a standard Moffat series ending, maybe why some fuzziness in terms of plot doesn’t bother me at all if the story, characters and themes are good enough. I have always liked long novels, the first one I wrote was about 700 pages. No wonder I couldn’t get a publisher to look at it. It is said that a first novel should never exceed about 300 pages. Tell that to Salmon Rushdie.

I read War and Peace when I about thirteen but sadly these days I no longer have time for long reads. I have tried reading Wolf Hall twice but given up not because I wasn’t interested but due to time restraints. I find with a novel one has to be fully immersed hence during the year I tend to only read non fiction which can be put down and picked up again days or even weeks later.

@ichabod My favourite person also went to a “posh” school. He does not have overly fond memories of it however but then I certainly don’t have fond memories of my WC school though I do have excellent recollections of the teachers, who despite understaffing and underfunding and some pretty badly behaved students, did a wonderful job and were mostly inspiring people.

@miapatrick, I have heard horror stories about English schools. I think Coal Hill must be rather an exception. We had a friend who grew up in working class Leeds. He often repeated an account of starting school in Australia. While his teacher was introducing him to the class he was sizing up the boys in the room. Before she finished her spiel he had worked out which boy was the biggest and marched up and punched him in the face. That would have been the done thing in his former school, “otherwise I would have been beaten up in morning recess.” The class and teacher naturally were shocked, much to his surprise.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@Purofilion I share your sentiments entirely about Public schools. Back when I was at Uni and working part time in an International Hotel we did a lot of school functions. It got known that I would not work on the private school dos. The kids or past students were horrifically behaved, arrogant shits. I however jumped at the change to do public school formals. One night we have a toffy private school in the ballroom and Elizabeth City High in a smaller set of rooms. (Elizabeth is the poorer end of town) The kids were saying at the beginning of the night that they had better be on their best behavior given there were private school kids about. I smiled, said nothing but hoped that they wouldn’t be corrupted by the private school kids. AT the end of the night the teachers were relaxing and we went up to them as a group and congratulated them on the behaviour of their students. They nearly fell of their chairs in surprise.

Having said all that my S/O and I sold out completely and sent our boys to a private school but it is not one of the toffy ones. Sadly the local public school has not got a good name and as a parent we had to put the boys welfare before our ethics. Fortunately the fees are not in the $40,000 a term bracket. I can’t imagine how anyone could afford that. A friend of mine recently moved south of the city in order to enroll her son in a good public school and she said that in one term they had done more to help with his learning issues than the private school had in eight years. Does not surprise me at all but they did mark him out for a special school award for the trip to Nepal and not our son who went with him, probably because his father was wealthy and they were hoping for a “gift”. Little did they know his Dad.

And just to add to what has already been said, long may Moffat reign as show runner. (A sentiment shared by the Pres’ of local fan club and by other Who loving acquaintances, which reminds me I have a link to a Scifi blog to share but too late tonight. Will make a note to self for tomorrow.)

Cheers

Janette

 

 

 

[janetteB @replies]

Just saw that on the Guardian. Made my day. I was saying to R.1 the other day that I did not think last year’s christmas special could be bettered. Maybe I was wrong.

Many felt that the poignancy of her farewell to the Doctor in The Name of the Doctor but as Dan Martin points out that is her farewell to Smithy Doc. A.K refers to the casting. I wonder whom she is referring to.

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

@lisa thanks for the link to the trailer. I have to watch at least one more time before I can really comment but yes there is a definite hint of Gallifrey there.

I do wonder if anything more is going to be made of the paintings of Gallifrey in the Gallery. Is that where Gallifrey actually is hidden, in the National Gallery. Maybe the numbers Missy gave the Doctor were the security code. That would certainly explain why almost every alien incursion is centered around London or at least the U.K.

Also seeing M.W at the end there inspired another idea though I sure someone must have suggested it elsewhere but she could be the Meddling Monk. (Though I doubt that Moffat would play the gender change card again immediately after doing that with Missy.) However if that is Gallifrey in the image then I think it heightens the likelihood that M.W, is in some way connected with it.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@Purofilion not hot here today. Winter is clinging on this year down here. So maybe a nice spicy mulled wine for me. I lived for fourteen months in Sweden and owe my life to Swedish health care. WE were there when the centre right government got in so sadly I can only talk about what Sweden was not is. They set about immediately dismantling the “welfare state” and of course all in the interests of lowering taxes. What people don’t realise is that lowering taxes is theft, a cover for taking away government services and selling of our resources.

@ichabod Kropotkin plagiarised that from Robin Hood. There I managed to bring Dr Who into the conversation, something I am accused of doing all the time by the three recalcitrants.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@arbutus. I re watched Robot of Sherwood too last week and like you enjoyed it very much. It is fun, it is meant to be fun and it does it is meant to do. I can really imagine Tom Baker’s Doctor in this story. He would have been very much at home in it. It has a lot of resonance of BG Who and particularly some of the Baker stories. (And back in the day there were fans who complained that there was too much humour in the show and it the beginning of the end…blablabla..)

It did occur to me that as we know nothing of the original or if there was an original Robin Hood, (which is highly unlikely) it is not impossible that there was someone who, by sheer coincidence, matched the the post 18th-19th century description. Robin does say, I am not remembered as a man only a myth. So I will be content that in Dr Who that kind of remarkable coincidence is possible and accept and enjoy.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

I actually thought the unexpected responses of the children to the Tardis was one of the better elements of this episode. It really highlighted the more open mindedness of children and their capacity for embracing the unexpected. Young children, (younger than the “gifted” group) can be confused by what is real or not. When our youngest first saw wolves in a zoo at age five he was shocked because having only read of Wolves in fairy tales along with giants and other forms of magical beast he had assumed they were fantasy beasts too.

I really enjoyed the scenes with the children. It is those elements which make this episode so re watchable despite its narrative flaws. The forest idea could have worked, maybe but for me veered too much into fairy tale. For instance what becomes of Nelson’s column. Does it just magically repair itself once the trees vanish and as others have mentioned Maebh’s plea to leave the trees alone was utterly unconvincing. I do love fairy tale elements being incorporated into Dr Who but there must be an internal logic or consistency and this story I felt lacked that.  I would love to see a story that delves into English fairy lore for instance. The land of faerie really was a form of alternate reality which is a useful narrative “get out of gaol free card”.

Once again there is a central character with a name drawn from mythology, Irish this time, Queen Maebh of Connacht from the Ulster Cycle. A quick scan does not suggest any association with trees but @mudlark will be more familiar than I am with the mythology.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@arbutus. I fear that our public broadcaster is going the way of Canada’s. You are absolutely correct about the limitations of private enterprise in the public domain. Unfortunately governments too have adapted the attitude of private enterprise forgetting their true role. Many years ago I was listening to a former P.M of New Zealand talking about axing local bus services because they were not profitable, back when “economic rationalism” was the favourite buzz word. I wondered what became of the people in those small communities who relied upon those services. It is the responsibility of governments to care for their populations, not to run the country for profit. To go back further the rationale for nationalising the railways in Britain was that private companies could not be trusted with public welfare as their only motivation is profit. The number of rail accidents dropped after nationalisation and increased again when the system was privatised a few decades ago.

@ichabod You summed up capitalism very well there.

@Purofilion I have recently been reading up on Andrew Fisher P,M in 1914 and one of our greatest reformers and it made me realise the degree to which we are now going backwards. Even our best governments are fighting a rear guard action. The ALP is in retreat even when in power and yes the right are very much to blame. Ergh.

And now I am totally off topic. May be this post should be shunted off to the Cloven Hoof. @craig?

Cheers

Janette

 

 

 

[janetteB @replies]

@ania welcome. If Old High Gallifreyan sounds as beautiful as it looks when written I hope that we do get to hear some. I imagine it might sound rather like Swedish or Welsh.

DotD and the Prequel provided some hints as to the richness of Gallifryean society and there were no plastic seats in sight. (A reference to the set dressing in Invasion of Time for those not familiar with BG Who.

Nice to have you back with us again @juniperfish.  I rather liked the Time Lord costumes too. They were suitably O.T. I also liked the costume design for the Gallifreyan people seen in DotD. The images of the children playing reminded me a little of the Hobbit children in LOTR. Perhaps Jackson could direct the “return to Gallifrey” story if there is one.

cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@jimthefish The Murdoch trolls are out in force BTL on the Graun article. I have been wearing out the mouse hitting recommend on that one. There was an excellent post from our very own @juniperfish

thanks to the link to the Q&A too.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@Purofilion

If you haven’t seen it I heartily recommend watching Dr Horrible’s Sing Along Blog. I think it is on youtube.  Filion plays the arch nemesis in that but warning, plenty of ear worm tunes that you won’t get out of your head for months.

And before I am hit with a foam brick for veering off topic, on Who related matters, I would like to see a little more of Gallifrey. After all there is more to Gallifreyan society than strutting time lords with silly collars as evidenced in DotD. I suspect that the Doctor won’t re-find Gallifrey for quite some time, not until either Moffat’s final or Capaldi’s final at least. Also once Gallifrey is found it needs to be protected.

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

@missy I did not realise that you were in Oz too. I tested my SOs ring tone last night. It works but not the Tardis sound message alert. Sadly my phone can’t manage the same. It can’t even do the kitten meow that I had on my humble little flip phone of days of yore. The meow certainly excited some amusing reactions at times perhaps the most amusing being when the nursing staff on the fourth floor of a Swedish hospital were frantically looking for the cat.

I once bought the rather expensive Tardis USB hub but that did not work very well because it was powered from the computer only. (I think the newer ones are better designed.) From memory it was supposed to make the sound whenever a USB device was connected to it. It does make a fine cake decoration however along with the “klicky” Doctor and Romana.

cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@theconsultingdoctor The general rule is that this thread is for discussion of anything referencing information that is not “official”. As far as I know there is no news regarding Maisie Williams’s appearance in Doctor Who that has not now been revealed through official sources, ie the trailer. However it is usually best to err on the side of safety as many of our members really really hate spoilers of any kind and post here if you are unsure.

Alternatively if your theory rests purely on BBC released information you can pop over to the bbc-approved-doctor-who-series-9-spoilers-and-trailers thread in blog posts and join in the discussion about the trailer there.

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

@supernumerary Hi and welcome. I think all your questions have been discussed in great length at various times and in various threads. If you have an enormous amount of free time at your disposal I would recommend reading through but given how we do tend to talk that is a daunting task.

As to any more unanswered plot points I can’t think of any at the moment other than to add to the question of who Orson Pink is “and how did he get the toy soldier?” which is one that I have been dwelling on ever since watching “Listen”. (Even to the absurd degree of dreaming about it.)

@Purofilion I suspect that Moffat will keep some plot threads running to the end of his tenure and I am guessing that this next series will throw up more questions than it answers. Moffat likes to keep us bonkers theorists on our proverbial toes. I have a mental image of him sitting at his desktop reading our discussions and laughing very loudly.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@phaseshift. I really like that ideal Clara becoming teacher to the Time Lords who are much in need of some “humanitarian” lessons. Having just re watched Death in Heaven and the Christmas special I see you point re’ the depressing tone. I was having some eye difficulty throughout. Every companion departure in AGWho with the exception of Martha’s has been sad. The message that travel with the Doctor comes at a price has been hammered in. Clara has certainly paid her emotional dues so a happy ending ending for Clara would work well. (Her dying would also thematically work. What I would not want for the character is to see her left back on earth living a kind of half life which is what we sensed was the case with the aged dream Clara. Her travels with the Doctor need to leave her in a different place, ie not still teaching at Coal Hill.

@lisa and @Purofilion. As to spoilers I will be content to know that the episode did not disappoint.

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

@missy. You are in Australia? I had the impression you hailed from the other side of the planet.

My S/o just now has the Tardis sound as his message tone on his phone.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@mudlark I am flattered. thank you. I am glad my explanation is entertaining because it almost certainly isn’t correct. I trust S.M to deliver something that is simple, entertaining and staring us in the face and rule 1 is, none of us will have thought of it. But at least now that I have formulated my own solution to the problem of the toy soldier I am happy. i really did devote many spare waking and sleeping hours to the problem. There was more than one night when I woke having been dreaming about it and could not recall my dream solution. And talking of dreams…

funny that this episode should be discussed today as R.1 and I watched it this morning. I can’t add anything to the analysis but as the thread is active I cannot resist saying just how brilliant an episode it is. Always when I re watch I catch details that I missed on first watch, and this is a beautifully structured story or rather a babushka doll set of stories. I love the dream within a dream concept. Interestingly the S/O and I were discussing the dream within a dream concept at our local earlier tonight. He had never had the wake up and wonder why the alarm won’t shut up kind of dream. I have reached the point of pulverising the alarm clock before realising that I am still asleep.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

To all those “lucky devils” heading to the Edinburgh screening hope it is a great night and the episode exceeds expectations.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@missy. I just want Capaldi to stay for at least one more series.. Two even better..

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@missy. Yes. More complex, mercurial, changeable, less easy to read. There are more undercurrents in this Doctor, he does not wear his heart on his sleeve Tennant style or have the open-eyed innocence of Smith. Capaldi has brought something new to the role while carrying a little bit of every doctor that has been before.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@arbutus I am sure we can pull the conversation back. I am rather sure there were some Lego Who figures on cakes. (Well if not then I am sure there will be soon.)

I really like @blenkinsopthebrave‘s idea that Clara must die saving the Doctor because that is what Clara always does. (not that I want Clara to die.) This has been somewhat foreshadowed too by the references to her death sprinkled through the series. Occasionally, just very occasionally a companion needs to be killed off in order to sustain a sense of genuine danger.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@Puro The Pres” of the Dr Who fan club confirmed that it will be screened on the 20th.  Oh and congrats on the Wedding anniversary.

@lisa wow those cakes really put my pathetic efforts to shame. These days I cheat and use Playmobil and any other suitably scaled models for cake decorations. Saves a lot of time and calories. I do have to be careful if there are candles however as the figures can melt. Last yr R.2 made a very good dalek out of Marzipan but sadly the dog found it. Thought it was the best bone ever.

Which reminds me. I must head to the city to get English jelly babies. The local lolly shop having gone the way of all the other local small businesses.

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

@lisa thank you for that link. No real spoilers but some interesting snippets of news there to help endure the interminable wait until the 19th of September.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@missy I certainly hope the rumours are not true but given the nature of the internet/fan rumour mill I am not going to despair yet. I suspect that in the protracted wait for the new series fans are getting restless, anxious, and obsessing over every little scrap of information or non information. The wait is sending us all crazy. 🙂 I have all available digits crossed that both Moffat and Capaldi will be about for at least two more series. (If Capaldi is finding the work too strenuous then they might well have a shortened S.10 leading into a regen’ in s.11.) Why not have a mid series regeneration? It has never been done before but surely would ease actor, director and viewers gently into the change and keep nervous execs assured of ongoing viewing attachment to the series.

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

@ichabod  Don’t worry. I think@phaseshift was only trying to nudge the conversation re’ Capaldi’s tenure over to the news thread for housekeeping reasons not because it is in any way spoilery for it that were the case he would be dispatching the discussion to the Spoilers threat poste haste.

What we all need right now is some actual Who to discuss. The 19th of September is still so far away. It has been a long wait this year and we are all very understandably getting a tad impatient.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@mudlark that sounds like a former flatmate’s method for cleaning the griller many years ago. Leave it on high and go out. Fortunately the flat didn’t burn down as I would have been rather upset about loosing all my books. I was rather upset about the electricity bill but it did clean the griller.

re ovens, The back element on our oven blew up about two years ago, when it was about three years old. Conveniently out of warranty of course. We had it replaced after a few months. I paid particular attention to what the repair man did just in case. Sure enough about six months ago it blew again, just after I put a cake in. I rang and neighbour and sent our eldest running across the road with the half cooked cake to finish baking in her oven. We replaced the element ourselves and now cross fingers every time we turn on the oven. I remember when an oven was a lifetime investment. So much for modern technology.

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

Just doing a re watch of the last series now and loving PC as the Doctor more and more. I was hoping he might have a longer tenure. Four years would be nice. Rumours are certainly circulating. I spoke to the Pres’ of the local Dr Who fan club and he expressed concerns that Moffat is leaving. In the absence of any concrete news rumours will also arise. I hope that is all they are.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@mudlark  I think he was lying when he mentioned family. It was a clumsy excuse for not having organised the date with Clara earlier probably because he was too nervous. Seb does remark upon the difficulty in trying to locate any family after Danny’s death.

However rule 1 is  I am always wrong so whatever theory I come up with is going to be incorrect. It does not spoil the fun of trying however. 🙂 And if the Orson/toy soldier riddle is never explained then I will happily cling to my own explanation. I love the open nature of Moffat’s writing, allowing for individual interpretations. Sometimes it is nice to have mysteries that are never resolved or at least not for a series or two.

Cheers

Janette

 

 

[janetteB @replies]

@purofilion I generally buy basic sliced multi grain, from the supermarket, the worst bread possible. Having three, (often four) teenage boys to feed fancy breads are a luxury. They will happily get through a loaf in a night. We do have a bread maker but rarely use it, partly for the reason you don’t have one. Homemade bread disappears twice as fast as the bought stuff.

The limited nature of history as taught in Australia is why I chose not to do Honours History. I looked at the courses on offer and took English and Drama instead. I have often regretted that as I would like to do a History masters. I should just be sensible and do a dip ed instead. (never too late to decide upon a career.) I did enjoy Modern History and Australian History but would have loved to have done ancient history. At least now they do some ancient history in year 8. Yr 9 history is back to the “same old”.

I have studied a lot of history in the past twenty years, picking on various periods relating to my writing, so roughly my main areas of interest are Early Medieval Europe and Twentieth Century Australia. I am currently focusing on Australian women and German citizens, (internees in particular) in WWI.

@pedant I hope that you will be comfortable soon. As long as you have a sofa by the 19th September all will be well. 🙂

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@ichabod yes you are right. IT is just the phone cable. I think my taste in gothic coasts is getting the better of my eyesight.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@arbutus Yes indeed. I am also vegetarian but living with a family of carnivores.

@Rose2112 Have you read up on Fodmaps? There is a theory that a lot of “gluten intolerance” is actually an intolerance to Fodmaps. They are also found in dairy products and some fruits.

There was an article in the Guardian just the other day on food intolerance. I think it missed the glaringly obvious myself, the fact that the food we eat now is heavily adulterated. For instance most commonly consumed breads are far higher in gluten than they were 100 years ago. Also chemical additives can cause all sorts of obscure reactions, (such as skin outbreaks) and that is an area no one wants to go near because food additive production is a multimillion dollar business. About a year ago I read a very scary article by a journo’ who had managed to infiltrate a food additive fair. It was all too reminiscent of School Reunion.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

Thanks @Purofilion. I am happy to have finally devised a theory that takes the toy full circle and all thanks to Missy. I am certain that she was responsible for Danny’s rather random death. Will be interesting to see if Moffat does ever resolve the Danny/Orson mystery. He does often keep story threads going over one or more series.

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

@Purofilion My S/O solved the onion cutting issue for me last year. He bought me some (very cheap) retro motorcycle goggles. They look hilarious and they work. Now I can happily cut a whole sack of onions without pain. Swimming goggles would also do the trick.

@other Mums, My youngest (R.3) has only just stopped giving me a hug when he goes off to school in the mornings. Not entirely sure it is an age thing or due to my being too grumpy most mornings. I often wish I could borrow a Tardis and take a quick trip back to when they were little. (would also be a great help when it comes to getting to school on time and getting Yr 12 assignments in on time..)

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

This is possibly more relevant to Listen as it involves the Toy Soldier which I have been obsessing about but it also involves Missy so I will post here. This is really a side thing. I expect we will never hear mention of the toy soldier again. Indeed I have had so much fun working out a rationale for it that I am not sure I want the series to stomp all over my illusions. (ie come up with an infinitely superior story to explain the movement of the toy soldier) Given the nature of the Listen story and so much of Moffat’s writing I was determined that the toy in question should become a paradox. Orson claims it belonged to a time travelling ancestor. It was assumed that was Clara but it seems evident that that is not so. I think we can now safely assume that Clara is not pregnant at the end of this story and Orson is unlikely to be her descendent.

I recently thought that maybe Danny was planted in the orphanage by Missy. That would account for his lack of family as referenced by Seb. She took him from the future. He is Orson’s twin brother. He was a trap for Clara eventually leading her and the Doctor to the Nethersphere and to Missy. Missy also left the toy soldier at the orphanage which she had stolen from the Doctor when they were children. When Danny dies without a will his estate, what there is of it, goes to company run by Missy and she re acquires the toy. It then passes down through the generations to Orson. Maybe Orson and Danny are descended from Missy or the Master who after all did spend rather a lot of time on earth solving the question of the time travelling ancestor. (I liked the idea that they were descended from one of the Doctor’s companions but could not work out how the toy got from Danny to Orson if that was the case. I also toyed with the idea that they were grandchildren of Susan hence Orson’s confusion as to whether it was his grand or great grandparent who was the time traveller it being both.)

Anyway have had fun toying with theories re’ the toy irrelevant though it may be,,

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

Seems as though the Tennant family have been holidaying in Cardiff recently. Curiouser and curiouser. Moffat pulling the strings or the return of Jenny??

Either way a lovely photo. Thanks @fatmaninabox

Is that a new coat or just an embellished sleeve that CapDoc is wearing? Looks rather like my boots.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

Oh, and @purofilion, you make your own marzipan? I am massively impressed. Can I come to your house for tea?

Can I add my name to that please? Puro and @arbutus have either of you ever heard of or tried the Swedish Easter Buns, Semlor? They are large, very light, slightly spiced and sweetened bread rolls, split and filled with almond paste and whipped cream. Absolutely divine.

@mudlark I have always known “drop-scones” by the name “pikelets”. They are a useful standby when they boys have friends over, quick and easy. I often add sultanas and cinnamon.

@Puro. I have been spared the “Hotplate” agony. Our writing exercise yesterday was about internet abuse leading to an interesting discussion about how we are currently killing freedom of speech. There are some hysterically nasty people out there and yes thank goodness for this wonderful little haven of civility.

@ichabod and @lisa. My S/O spent two weeks in the US some years back and was begging me for salads when he came home. First and only time he had ever expressed a desire to eat healthy food. One morning he walked down to breakfast, surveyed what was on offer on the buffet and returned to his room to cold pizza figuring that it was the healthiest option. I do suspect however that Aussie kids eat more fast food than U.S. ones, a theory based upon a shared school diary that R/2 brought home many years ago. The early entries were done in a Texan school. I was able to work out where the entries changed by the different attitudes, humour and eating habits. (Though it did wonder if the Texan children were being entirely honest about their gourmet sounding home cooked meals.) I was really surprised but how many cultural differences were apparent in the writing of six year old children. I suspect, when the diary returned to Texas that the children there would rather horrified by the bad behaviour of the “toy” involved.

And now I am off to make some savoury damper for R/1 who is not feeling well today. I would have make pikelets but have run out of eggs.

Cheers

Janette

 

 

[janetteB @replies]

@arbutus The Anzac is indeed a biscuit make with oats golden syrup, melted butter, flour and of course sugar.

@mudlark Maybe your grandmother found the recipe in English Women’s Weekly. My mother found some amazing recipes in that publication, the most remarkable being Dutch Apple Pie with which I greatly impressed our neighbour born to Dutch parents. I have googled it and the recipe is indeed “original”.

I have probably told this story before, so apologies if so but about four years ago I was called into the school to discuss problems with you youngest, (Recalcitrant 3) Amongst less pressing concerns, (homework not done) the teacher and counsellor claimed that we were not feeding him. Twice he had responded in the negative when asked if he had been given “tea” the previous night. They are very English here in S.A. I am not sure they were entirely convinced when I explained that we refer to the evening meal as “dinner” and he had indeed been given that. R.3 told me later he wondered why they asked if he had been drinking tea. Language confusion can occur even within a small localised community..

when I was growing up “sweet course” was referred to interchangeably as either “pudding”, “desert”, or “sweets”.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@mudlark the Anzac is a staple here still. We often buy packs of them for the boys which is shameful as they are so easy to make. I recently bought a bag of whole oats with the noble intention of cooking some up with Recalcitrant 3’s help over the last school hols but there wasn’t time. Maybe I should make some for this weekend’s D&D session. Anzacs got their name because Aussie and Kiwi women used to send them over to the troops in WWI. I guess they travelled well.

Australian schools don’t supply hot meals at lunch time. Lunch is packed or purchased at the tuck shop and eaten or not in the school yard. When we lived in Sweden for a year one of the highlights for the boys was having lunch provided especially on Pancake Tuesdays.

@Purofilion. Yes and no. I bought a SLR (camera) instead, lost of lot of weight and became vegetarian so a lot of benefits as a result of eating that dodgy trifle. I shall endeavour to not mention that topic again I promise. I do however have another theory about that toy soldier..:_)

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

@purofilion sorry I miss-pelt your name above.  I think it is the cold affecting my typing. After two days of spring we are plunged back into wet, dreary winter. But the blossom is out and summer is coming.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@purfilion. The two eldest have both just passed their father who is average height. They were both late “growers” and for many years I feared they were going to be shorties like me. The youngest is hoping to be the tallest of the three but will be a couple of years yet before that happens.

I was supposed to be going to Harrods for afternoon tea with friends for my 21st birthday but got food poisoning from trifle the day before and was not feeling up to eating cake and I never did get to Harrods.

@arbutus. “Pokies” are betting machines and the cause of much poverty since they invaded our pubs in the mid to late nineties. There is a song by Aussie band, “The Whitlams” titled “Blow up the Pokies” which aptly sums up my sentiments towards them. Maybe I will put it up on the music thread. I don’t go there often as for some reason it tends to crash my laptop. The poor dear is feeling her age.

I have warned the boys that they will still be “the boys” to their father and I when they are hitting retirement age, should we be still alive by then.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@lisa our “local” pub has a cafe area and not too long ago I observed a young couple, maybe on their first date, sitting at the front bar, deep in conversation and sharing a pot of tea. Now that is something you would not have seen even ten years ago. Pubs have to be so much more than watering holes these days though unfortunately in this part of the world most have taken up the “pokie” option. Our Local is “pokie free” and thus far more creative in building business. They have a cinema screen in the back garden for short film screenings when the weather is more conducive too so it is not entirely unlike The Cloven Hoof. (Oh and they often sell brownies but they are not Tardis blue alas.)

@mudlark. Thank you for pointing out the distinction. I did not know that either despite having been reared on Enid Blyton where they were always taking tea of one form or another. Maybe that is why the evening meal is often referred to as “tea” here though in Australia it is usually the main meal of the day.

@Rose2112 the only time in the U.K that I had the full spread of scones, sandwiches, pate etc was at Fortnam and Masons and it was referred to as “High Tea”. I thought that was for snotty reasons and to mask the fact that the scones were dry and the sandwiches stale. Other times, down in the West Country it was “cream tea”. Ah a west country cream tea. I would almost endure the hell that is Heathrow for that. This conversation is giving me itchy feet and I don’t think the bank account will be saying yes to a major OS venture for a very long time. Melt in the mouth french style pastries in Vietnam is not such a bad alternative though.

cheers

Janette

 

 

[janetteB @replies]

@Rose2112 The discussion about another Nine story inspired me to re watch this two parter over the past two days. It was good, exceedingly good. I have not watched any nine stories for a while and I had forgotten just how good he was. I much prefer the dynamic between EcclesDoc and Rose to that of Rose and Tennant. Theirs is a matey relationship which works well (Using the term “mate” in the Aussie sense.) though Rose did irritate me when she was going goey over Captain Jack.

From the Doctor’s embarrassment when he sees the WWII propaganda poster on the wall of the nightclub to the final dance sequence it is hard to find anything to fault in the two parter, and I certainly wouldn’t want to try.

It was curious, (amusing not being the apt term) to read immediately after watching that they are currently trying to diffuse a WWII bomb in London. The effects of the Blitz live on.

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

@Purofilion We had fun pre-birth names for our boys, Strangely James, Pugsley and Uncle Fester. We chose not to know the gender of “Strangely” but as it took us two weeks to agree upon a name for him we decided to find out in future so we had more time to decide upon names. It didn’t help. It still took us even longer to chose names for Pugsley and Uncle Fester. Now I think they should be referred to as “recalcitrant teenager one, two and three.” We still refer to them collectively as “the boys” though R.C2 (now 17 yrs old) did object a week or so ago.

I was still painting their room when they started school. They had outgrown the room before I finished it.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

so many things to comment on. I need a list. Before I start on tea/coffee related anecdotes though here goes,

@mudlark that trifle sounds nice!! I have never had trifle without the jelly which i detest jelly having been a staple childhood desert. My relationship with trifle, never good, was considerably soured after a bout of trifle related food poisoning in the U.K. but I think your kind of trifle might change my mind on the matter.

@Purofilion. The Home Ec’ teacher at the boys’ school is also a terror by all accounts so may be you have a point. Our neighbour is also a home ec teacher and she is lovely so maybe an exception. (And yes I have seen her in the class room not just over the dining table imbibing wine and “nibbles”. A few years ago a friend and I did a “Teenage Masterchef” competition at the school. It was a lot of fun and I learnt a few useful skills too. We brought in professional chefs each week to run a class then at the end the students competed for the title.

I recently bought a shiny cherry red retro electric kettle. We had been looking at it for over two years but when our last kettle died it was on the too expensive right now list. We were boiling water for a while but I didn’t trust the boys to be doing that while I was away. I wanted a home to return to not to mention two working hot plates. (Only two work. Had the second two repaired while under warranty but they died again within a few months so I gave up on the luxury of having four hotplates. Ah the wonders of modern appliances..)

On onto tea anecdotes. My father drank tea so week that in his brother in laws words “it needed crutches”. When I started work at a pub in Surrey I was asked to make the boss tea and so sent in something resembling the tepid greyish liquid my father favoured. He sent it back with the words, “Please send me an English cup of tea.” Lessons in English tea making followed.

Many years ago when I was a student I helped a friend of a friend set up a cafe down in the city. She had bought tins of tea, Lapsang souchong, Queen Mary, English breakfast, Irish Breakfast, Darjeeling, and of course a selection of herbals. Through her contacts a manufacturers’ union exec starting holding their meetings in the back room. They were fairly stereotypical Aussie workers, and Mary’s fancy teas did not appeal to them any more than her “fancy foods”. “Just plain tea and toast. None of that French pastry stuff.” Amusingly after a few months they grew to expand their tastes and found that the fancy teas were rather good after all. By the end one of them began to order, “that Queen Mary and one of them Croissants please.” (As an irrelevant aside their legal adviser, a smart keen young man with strong, left political leanings is now our Premier and a thorn in the side of the moron P.M)

@Rose2112 Unfortunately we all get that annoying “howdy”. It is part of the software. The spelling is also set to U.S. which occasionally throws me but that is the internet in general..

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@thekrynoidman True. You defend Adric and your post gets exterminated. I had read the discussion and there were some excellent posts. IT was nice to read something positive about Adric. I had essentially stopped watching the originals by the time Tom Baker left. I never warmed to any of the Davison era assistants, or Davison himself for that matter. He wasn’t bad just a tad ordinary in the role. I think he would have really benefited from a companion whom he could have worked with rather than three that he was working against.

But enough gripes. It is hard to talk about Earthshock without dwelling upon that ending. I recall the final episode of Earthshock back in the day and at the time I thought that Who would never be the same again. I was shocked by the ending but also excited because they had the courage to follow through with the threat and actually kill a major character. We know the Doctor cannot die but until this episode we also knew that a well established companion could not die either. This story gave the series a fresh sense of actual danger. I would like to see AGWho take that plunge some time too.

The story itself is tightly scripted and moves along at quite a pace. I guessed in the first episode that we were going to find out what caused the extinction of the dinosaurs but feared to say so because it might sound too much like a spoiler though I am sure we all assumed the same. The dino discussion screamed “smoking gun” or is that “Chekhov’s duck?”

Thus far the Davison stories which we have watched have been better than expected. I really must make time to watch Caves of Androzani.

cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

Like @arbutus I have been busy or rather distracted by “other life”. Often think it would be easier to be re-doing yr 12 myself than having sons doing it. Still only about ten weeks to go. A lot of deadlines in that time however..

All this talk of food reminds me that with only 40 days till the next series airs  I had better start planning our annual “Who” party. The only addition from last series was Coffee, for which I am most grateful. I am a sad sorry coffee addict. I don’t remember when I started to drink coffee but I do recall going home at lunchtimes while in primary school to listen to “Blue Hills” on the radio and drink coffee with Mum. She was a classic 50s Australian cook, in other words she didn’t cook food, she boiled it to death but she did love baking and coffee was always accompanied by an array of home baked cakes, biscuits and slices. I dodged the baking gene but I do make cake or muffins every weekend for the lunchboxes.

@lisa you have convinced me to try green tea. I have started drinking herb tea again. I generally find real tea too acidic though I tolerate it when the occasion, such as a Dr Who party, demands. I enjoyed the Chai I had in Nepal but it did tend to be quite sweet.

@Purofilion. I half lived on iced black coffee while in Vietnam though I learned after a few days to ask for it without sugar as they serve their coffee very sweet. My other staple was fresh young coconut. I am now grateful to whatever over paid, over hyped celebrity it was that popularised coconut water as it is now available in supermarkets here and, though it its cure all properties may be much exaggerated it is, I believe mostly harmless. Yummy and harmless is not something one often finds.

Cider is one of my favourite drinks too. Our “local” serves some rather nice boutique ciders. I tend to drink it in summer though but summer is coming. Winter here ended two days ago in typical South Australian fashion. One day it is freezing and the next the air is mellow, the birds begin chirping, the clouds roll away. I expect that within a week or so our living room will be evenly coated with husky fur.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

Hi and welcome @rose2112

I am envious. I want that mug. I have several Who mugs but I have never seen that one and now with the demise of our beloved ABC shops I am not likely to..

@craig. Good work as always. I was following the discussion but too brain dead to comment at the time. Maybe I should take the opportunity to fix the typo in my name..

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

Interesting. Thank you for that snippet of info @lisa. I will have to re watch The Girl Who Waited as I really don’t remember that episode all that well. Like other I too assumed that they were simply re-using an old set for economy reasons but Moffat is the master of making a story out of necessity so it would not be at all surprising if there is some connection after all. Moffat also likes to play with reality and alternate time streams.

So now I know what to watch on Monday.

Cheers

Janette

[janetteB @replies]

@missy I have sent some hilarious messages from my phone courtesy of spell checker. (At least I have something to blame anyway. 🙂 ) Unfortunately I have only myself to blame for the numerous typos in my posts. I usually proof read to but to no avail. The editor of the local paper made me feel much better recently when he pointed out that when we read over our own work our brain reads what it thinks is there rather than interpreting what our eye sees. I still dread to think how many errors slipped past me earlier this week when I was proof reading the local paper..

Cheers

Janette

 

[janetteB @replies]

@missy I protest. I am most definitely not and never have been a thug. 🙂

(Spell checker strikes again me thinks.)

Cheers

Janette

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