APRIL FOOLS!
THE JOKES ON YOU!
It's April Fools Day in Gotham City. The king of jokes is loose to unleash hell upon Batman and the Injustice League who stand in his way. Let the games begin!
Friday 31 March 2017
COMING UP on INJUSTICE: April Fool's Day!
Thursday 30 March 2017
When is The Chase coming back?
Hello Everyone.
So a few people have been commenting on my gameplay videos recently asking me "When will The Chase be coming back?" and before I answer that question, can I just ask people not to comment on my gameplay videos or indeed any other videos that aren't chase related questions or things to do with The Chase. I do other videos on my channel as well, and so if you could please comment on stuff to do with the video rather than asking me something which is completely irrelevant.
So when is The Chase coming back? well, the answer to that question at the moment is I don't know. I know that's not the answer you will want to hear, you'll probably be expecting me to say a date and give a full run down of the series. I don't know when I will be doing more chase videos. To be honest that last series I did, I did a lot of episodes so I probably won't do as many as eighteen again. (nineteen counting the Christmas special)
Also, this leads into another thing will "The Vixen" be included. Again, I don't know. Barnstorm Games, who make the chase app say that they do plan to do more with the chase, but nothing immediate. So, we could be waiting a while longer before the updated version including The Vixen is released. Some people say to me, why don't you just add The Vixen in and work around out. Well, to crop her in would be very difficult and time-consuming to do, so I really don't want to go to the trouble of doing that. So the basic answer to that bit is if The Vixen is not included in the app, I can't include her as part of the chasers line up.
That also brings me to this point, I am running out of things to do with just the four chasers that are on the app. The last series really used up the last of my ideas that I had. I'm also running out of "Who is the chaser?" line ups to use with just the four of them, because all of nowadays include The Vixen. So that's become more difficult.
In short, I really don't know what's happening with the series, other than there will be another series, I'll need to find a way of sorting something that works for me and I think will work for anyone who watches my videos.
So to sign off, The Chase will be back in 2017, just not anytime soon.
Wednesday 29 March 2017
COMING SOON Injustice: Gods Among Us - Swamp Stomp! Solomon Grundy Challenge Tower!
SWAMP STOMP!
SOLOMON GRUNDY, BORN ON A MONDAY!
Grundy fights off Superman and nine other opponents in the classic tower challenge!
Tuesday 28 March 2017
Mortal Kombat XL: Bug Spray! The Wrath of D'Vorah
THE WRATH OF D'VORAH
Friday 31st March 2017
D'Vorah, Queen of the Kytinn seeks out to protect her children and destroy all those who threaten to destroy her hive. Feel her sting!
Monday 27 March 2017
COMING SOON Injustice: Gods Among Us - You Face The God of War! Ares Challenge Tower!
FACE THE GOD OF WAR!
CONFLICT AND DESTRUCTION AWAIT!
Ares fights off Superman and nine other opponents in the classic tower challenge!
Thursday 23 March 2017
COMING UP on EGGHEADS
EGGHEADS - SPECIALS
Wednesday 22 March 2017
Mortal Kombat XL: Fear the Cyber Initiative
MORTAL KOMBAT XL: FEAR THE CYBER INITIATIVE
TRIBORG'S INCURSION
THURSDAY 23RD MARCH 2017
After destroying Shinnok, Triborg turned his attention to the special forces, General Blade and her troops fought valiantly but their human weaknesses lead to their inevitable defeat. Now with access to the SF computer network, Triborg used it to interface with the Lin Kuei storage drives from which he was spawned. He saved the brainwave data of dozens of his Lin Kuei brothers and sisters to the SF servers. The SF laboratories provided the materials necessary for Triborg to create cybernetic bodies for each one.
Soon the downloads were complete. The Cyber Lin Kuei had been reformed. But because Sub Zero had forever sullied the clan's name. Triborg decided to begin anew. He would henceforth be known as the leader of the deadliest clan in all the realms. The Tekunin.
The newly formed Tekunin clan set off to dominate and make all fear the cyber initiative.
Tuesday 21 March 2017
My Friend
I went for a coffee with my friend today. I was contemplating on whether or not I should ask her for a chat, but the sheer force of my mind told me to just message her. Not thinking anything big of it. I would have been happy to have just talked her over facebook. She suggested meeting for a coffee to which I thought of as being a nice offer and so I accepted, arranged to meet and we took it from there.
This was a new friend who I had made whilst working on Rope. Usually, when I work on a play I don't usually see the cast members from shows again for a while after the show has finished. So when Rope happened it was a surprise to me the escalation of the social interaction which went on within our small group. We were going to the pub a lot and socialising, just hanging out as a group. We all became close to each other very quickly and we keep in touch with one another and have regular meet ups, so we would see each other quite a lot, joke about and have the group chats on Facebook so the banter is pretty much there and we still do those things. I'm lucky to be in a group like that at the moment because it's boosting my confidence and everyone around is very nice and friendly. I'm surrounded by lots of good people at the moment and I feel very blessed. And what's good about it is, no one feels left out from the group.
But this particular friend was someone who I have grown quite an attachment to throughout the time I was working with her on Rope. I have this thing with girls that I like, that if I like them, I kind of tend to over react and get over excited and this likeness turns into "I really like you".
Given my mistakes in the past with girls, I thought I would approach it this time around with caution because there was an anxiety issue there that made me want to give off a good impression for a start, I wanted her to like me, I want her to think of me as a professional. But also, there was a thing at the back of my mind which told me to go "hold on, take a step back" and not be too intense, because I think the reason why I haven't had much success with girls in the past is not understanding the boundary I have with regards to space and her needs and what she wants from me, so I took caution with this new person as she was new to me when I first met her and now as time went on when I would see her at rehearsals you talk, you get to know each other a bit and it's good stepping stones. It wasn't until I invited her to my twenty-first birthday party that I started to socialise with her and then after that, I think that was the start of our friendship.
So as I say, I have grown quite an attachment to this person, just because I was very fond of her. I'm not sure how she felt about me, but what I got off her was that she had this welcoming warmness about her which made me want to trust her. She seemed a very nice, friendly person and I responded positively to that. As you would do, if someone was nice to you, you would respond to that in a positive way.
I wanted to talk to her about a few things, and that lead to a coffee at Costa, which lead into a chat and then we took it from there. I find her quite an easy person to talk to, once we get a conversation going and once that happens that develops a good flow.
We never ran out of stuff to say, and we were just open, we were honest with each other which made it really genuine. It was one of those times to just go out and see each other and just have a very long in depth conversation because sometimes you need to have that, you need to just talk to someone who has a free ear and is willing to listen to you and help you come up with practical solutions. I also took this as an opportunity to get to her a bit better as a person too. It was comforting to talk about stuff going on in our lives because she'd name examples which related to me which were relevant which really showed me that she understood where I was coming from and if you go out to the pub with friends, you don't normally get time to do all of that. In this case, it was comforting and reassuring to have someone there to talk to and she was there for me.
She made it easy for me to trust her. She has a lovely warmness to her which gives off a positive vibe that makes me want to trust her. That takes off a big burden for me, speaking as someone who has major trust issues with people. I find it really hard to trust people. But given just how she is and her positivity, I can feel calm around her, there's no tension there which is good. It made the conversation flow to the best that it could because I felt there wasn't anything for me to hold back. And it's therapeutic to talk to a friend on a level which is equal to you.
Something I have learnt which is new is that this person is very generous. I mean that in a sense that she is generous with time, she is generous with respecting me as a person and most importantly she is generous with love. I say love in the context of me starting to feel deep affection for this person. Not love as in a relationship kind of way.
There was a sentimental moment where I had a cuddle with her and that made me feel secure, it made me feel safe and it was very just sort of good to do that. I don't really know how to describe it, but it was a moment of pure sentimentality which rounded off the whole day for me.
My friend took me under her wing today and I'm so grateful for that. x
This was a new friend who I had made whilst working on Rope. Usually, when I work on a play I don't usually see the cast members from shows again for a while after the show has finished. So when Rope happened it was a surprise to me the escalation of the social interaction which went on within our small group. We were going to the pub a lot and socialising, just hanging out as a group. We all became close to each other very quickly and we keep in touch with one another and have regular meet ups, so we would see each other quite a lot, joke about and have the group chats on Facebook so the banter is pretty much there and we still do those things. I'm lucky to be in a group like that at the moment because it's boosting my confidence and everyone around is very nice and friendly. I'm surrounded by lots of good people at the moment and I feel very blessed. And what's good about it is, no one feels left out from the group.
But this particular friend was someone who I have grown quite an attachment to throughout the time I was working with her on Rope. I have this thing with girls that I like, that if I like them, I kind of tend to over react and get over excited and this likeness turns into "I really like you".
Given my mistakes in the past with girls, I thought I would approach it this time around with caution because there was an anxiety issue there that made me want to give off a good impression for a start, I wanted her to like me, I want her to think of me as a professional. But also, there was a thing at the back of my mind which told me to go "hold on, take a step back" and not be too intense, because I think the reason why I haven't had much success with girls in the past is not understanding the boundary I have with regards to space and her needs and what she wants from me, so I took caution with this new person as she was new to me when I first met her and now as time went on when I would see her at rehearsals you talk, you get to know each other a bit and it's good stepping stones. It wasn't until I invited her to my twenty-first birthday party that I started to socialise with her and then after that, I think that was the start of our friendship.
So as I say, I have grown quite an attachment to this person, just because I was very fond of her. I'm not sure how she felt about me, but what I got off her was that she had this welcoming warmness about her which made me want to trust her. She seemed a very nice, friendly person and I responded positively to that. As you would do, if someone was nice to you, you would respond to that in a positive way.
I wanted to talk to her about a few things, and that lead to a coffee at Costa, which lead into a chat and then we took it from there. I find her quite an easy person to talk to, once we get a conversation going and once that happens that develops a good flow.
We never ran out of stuff to say, and we were just open, we were honest with each other which made it really genuine. It was one of those times to just go out and see each other and just have a very long in depth conversation because sometimes you need to have that, you need to just talk to someone who has a free ear and is willing to listen to you and help you come up with practical solutions. I also took this as an opportunity to get to her a bit better as a person too. It was comforting to talk about stuff going on in our lives because she'd name examples which related to me which were relevant which really showed me that she understood where I was coming from and if you go out to the pub with friends, you don't normally get time to do all of that. In this case, it was comforting and reassuring to have someone there to talk to and she was there for me.
She made it easy for me to trust her. She has a lovely warmness to her which gives off a positive vibe that makes me want to trust her. That takes off a big burden for me, speaking as someone who has major trust issues with people. I find it really hard to trust people. But given just how she is and her positivity, I can feel calm around her, there's no tension there which is good. It made the conversation flow to the best that it could because I felt there wasn't anything for me to hold back. And it's therapeutic to talk to a friend on a level which is equal to you.
Something I have learnt which is new is that this person is very generous. I mean that in a sense that she is generous with time, she is generous with respecting me as a person and most importantly she is generous with love. I say love in the context of me starting to feel deep affection for this person. Not love as in a relationship kind of way.
There was a sentimental moment where I had a cuddle with her and that made me feel secure, it made me feel safe and it was very just sort of good to do that. I don't really know how to describe it, but it was a moment of pure sentimentality which rounded off the whole day for me.
My friend took me under her wing today and I'm so grateful for that. x
Monday 20 March 2017
Aspergers Syndrome and a peculiar evening
Hi.
Today I'd like to write about a different type of blog. I'd like to talk to you about Asperges Syndrome. Asperges Syndrome is not a learning disability. It has features of: Autistic, Spectrum Disorder, Non verbal learning disabilities and AD/HD.
I'd like to talk you through Asperges Syndrome in the context within the domains of which some of those characteristics occur.
In regards to social interaction, those with Asperges Syndrome tend to have limited and sometimes inappropriate kinds of behaviours when socially interacting with others. Such as difficulties with non verbal communication so they have a hard time reading gestures or facial expressions and sometimes their gestures and facial expressions don't communicate what it is that they're thinking and feeling. Often misunderstand emotional cues so they miscue when listening to someone or watching somebody they may then say something which is inappropriate or repeat something which is inappropriate to the situation because they're misreading the social aspect of the situation or the emotional aspect of the situation.
Individuals with Asperges are often seen to have low eye contact, either not making good eye contact or sustaining good eye contact. And in the social interaction area, those with Asperges tend to be at risk for not having many friends. They tend to be socially isolated.
In the language area, people with Asperges are extremely verbal, highly verbal. And their language can be very sophisticated at times. What they do, when they're talking is they tend to discuss themselves and their interests and not focus on the interests of others. It can be a one sided conversation and there the person with Asperges is at risk of progressing of the reciprocal flow between the conversation of one person and another and that can be awkward. They tend to be literal in the ways in which they understand language and in some cases pedantic. They ways in which they use there voice. The tone, pitch and ways they moderate the volume of their voice can prove problematic.
They also tend to have quirky kinds of behaviours. Such as bizarre fascinations or crazy obsessions with objects or subjects or interests that they have. So they may memorise, the map of the underground trains or they might be fascinated by something which they then feel they've got to learn all about, they focus on that one subject and they run with it and they become quite expert at it.
They exhibit, often, awkward body language - posture and movement, they sometimes don't know what to do with their hands. They have posture difficulties or present posture difficulties or present differently in social situations that are awkward. People with Asperges can be bothered by bright lights or by noise or tastes which feel strange to them. They tend to have difficulties often in their co-ordination. They have problems with routines or change in routines, they don't often like change. Transitions in activity so moving on from one thing to another, and they are known to have physical difficulties with writing/ hand writing.
Asperges people tend to have an average amount of intelligence and they can in some cases show signs or characteristics of giftedness.
Asperges Syndrome often manifests itself with features of attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD), anxiety and in some cases depression. And may also be referred to at times as high functioning autistics.
I was diagnosed at the age of five with Asperges Syndrome, and have some of things which I have described to you just now.
I've often felt like I was never been normal, there were the other kids at school who didn't have what I've got and weren't like me who were normal and then there was me, who stood out amongst the rest as being the special one. I've always found social interactions with people my own age hard to maintain for a long period of time. I would get a group of friends and then fall out with them very quickly. The social interaction domain was a hard one for me to understand and sustain throughout my childhood and even now.
Others around me always tended to misunderstand me. Call me weird or made up jokes, rumours or stories about me which weren't true or nice. I was bullied at school and picked on for being different and that was all because the other kids in my year group at school apart from the select few who were genuinly nice would rather make up a cruel joke at my expense than actually talk to me and get to know me so that they would understand me better.
I have often felt like a fuck up. I often felt like a faliure when I was at school. To this day, I still feel like a fuck up. I feel like I just keep making stupid mistakes which in some cases would backfire on me very badly or would get me into trouble. I have a lot of time to myself, there are so many days were I'm just in my room looking at the same four walls. It leads back to the point I made earlier about asperges people being socially isolated. I can make friends, that's fine, but keeping them, that's the issue. To me, it works in such a way that something will happen where I will do something to fuck it up and I'm back to square one again.
Having explained Asperges Syndrome to you and going into a little bit of my background behind my experience with it on social basis, the understanding is at hand, it's there for me to talk about events which occurred last night when I went out to the pub to meet a few friends.
There's this one friend who I have who I won't name who is a girl and is very pretty. Now, I find it hard to talk to girls anyway, apart from the women in my family I find it very hard to approach women, especially if they're pretty. Because there are too many things going in my head for me to handle at one time. I want her to like me without thinking I am a total weirdo and I want the conversation to flow well so she'll think of me as an easy going, sophisticated young guy who has his heart in the right place and comes across as a good genuine person. But often with aspergers what I actually mean and what comes across are two very different things.
I felt like when I was talking to her, I noticed that I tended to revert back to myself and what I was doing and not really concentrating on her interests or what she was up to, or if I did it wasn't for a very long time. To me that was sign telling me that that was bad. I then left it at that, we had our conversation and then I blissfully went back to my seat. Then again at the bar where we both went up to get a drink I then felt that I needed to feel the need to explain to her a bit about my asperges and how it affects me and how it can sometimes cause me to submit certain behaviours such as this and then I suggested going into an in depth conversation with her about it as an option for her to understand me better at a more convenient time. Her answer to that was that she seemed to be fine with it, and that she didn't feel that we needed to have such a conversation because she had had an introduction to Aspergers Syndrome, she knew what it was, and therefore felt she understood it enough for her not to want to do that with me. The problem there is, if someone tells me they are fine, I assume the opposite of what they have said. That's when the anxiety at the back of mind makes me feel paranoid and then starts making me worry over a thousand other possibilities she could be thinking of me. Which is not good, but unavoidable to think about.
I often felt at times, I was recognising the problems with me as the night went on. I felt like I kinda knew I was misreading the social aspect of the situation of being amongst a group of people I was with and indeed people my own age, and that wasn't good either. Not to mention, the things we talked in conversation were very personal to me, and which made me feel awkward and made it very awkward for me to comply or join in with the conversation that was happening. To me it was a very peculiar evening of which I felt, I responded to very poorly.
I don't think I responded to the social aspect of the situation very well at all. I left feeling very tired and very awkward about the whole thing, and I felt like an idiot, basically is what I'm trying to say in a nutshell. That doesn't mean to say that anything was wrong with my friends. I'm not saying that. What I am saying is or talking about is the problems I felt were wrong with me, and how I felt the evening went for me in regards to my behaviour and how I handled things.
It's times like these I wish that I didn't have asperges or at least wish I could understand the signs more clearly so I could at least know how to avoid them, with that knowledge at hand, I may feel there wasn't something there holding me back.
Today I'd like to write about a different type of blog. I'd like to talk to you about Asperges Syndrome. Asperges Syndrome is not a learning disability. It has features of: Autistic, Spectrum Disorder, Non verbal learning disabilities and AD/HD.
I'd like to talk you through Asperges Syndrome in the context within the domains of which some of those characteristics occur.
In regards to social interaction, those with Asperges Syndrome tend to have limited and sometimes inappropriate kinds of behaviours when socially interacting with others. Such as difficulties with non verbal communication so they have a hard time reading gestures or facial expressions and sometimes their gestures and facial expressions don't communicate what it is that they're thinking and feeling. Often misunderstand emotional cues so they miscue when listening to someone or watching somebody they may then say something which is inappropriate or repeat something which is inappropriate to the situation because they're misreading the social aspect of the situation or the emotional aspect of the situation.
Individuals with Asperges are often seen to have low eye contact, either not making good eye contact or sustaining good eye contact. And in the social interaction area, those with Asperges tend to be at risk for not having many friends. They tend to be socially isolated.
In the language area, people with Asperges are extremely verbal, highly verbal. And their language can be very sophisticated at times. What they do, when they're talking is they tend to discuss themselves and their interests and not focus on the interests of others. It can be a one sided conversation and there the person with Asperges is at risk of progressing of the reciprocal flow between the conversation of one person and another and that can be awkward. They tend to be literal in the ways in which they understand language and in some cases pedantic. They ways in which they use there voice. The tone, pitch and ways they moderate the volume of their voice can prove problematic.
They also tend to have quirky kinds of behaviours. Such as bizarre fascinations or crazy obsessions with objects or subjects or interests that they have. So they may memorise, the map of the underground trains or they might be fascinated by something which they then feel they've got to learn all about, they focus on that one subject and they run with it and they become quite expert at it.
They exhibit, often, awkward body language - posture and movement, they sometimes don't know what to do with their hands. They have posture difficulties or present posture difficulties or present differently in social situations that are awkward. People with Asperges can be bothered by bright lights or by noise or tastes which feel strange to them. They tend to have difficulties often in their co-ordination. They have problems with routines or change in routines, they don't often like change. Transitions in activity so moving on from one thing to another, and they are known to have physical difficulties with writing/ hand writing.
Asperges people tend to have an average amount of intelligence and they can in some cases show signs or characteristics of giftedness.
Asperges Syndrome often manifests itself with features of attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD), anxiety and in some cases depression. And may also be referred to at times as high functioning autistics.
I was diagnosed at the age of five with Asperges Syndrome, and have some of things which I have described to you just now.
I've often felt like I was never been normal, there were the other kids at school who didn't have what I've got and weren't like me who were normal and then there was me, who stood out amongst the rest as being the special one. I've always found social interactions with people my own age hard to maintain for a long period of time. I would get a group of friends and then fall out with them very quickly. The social interaction domain was a hard one for me to understand and sustain throughout my childhood and even now.
Others around me always tended to misunderstand me. Call me weird or made up jokes, rumours or stories about me which weren't true or nice. I was bullied at school and picked on for being different and that was all because the other kids in my year group at school apart from the select few who were genuinly nice would rather make up a cruel joke at my expense than actually talk to me and get to know me so that they would understand me better.
I have often felt like a fuck up. I often felt like a faliure when I was at school. To this day, I still feel like a fuck up. I feel like I just keep making stupid mistakes which in some cases would backfire on me very badly or would get me into trouble. I have a lot of time to myself, there are so many days were I'm just in my room looking at the same four walls. It leads back to the point I made earlier about asperges people being socially isolated. I can make friends, that's fine, but keeping them, that's the issue. To me, it works in such a way that something will happen where I will do something to fuck it up and I'm back to square one again.
Having explained Asperges Syndrome to you and going into a little bit of my background behind my experience with it on social basis, the understanding is at hand, it's there for me to talk about events which occurred last night when I went out to the pub to meet a few friends.
There's this one friend who I have who I won't name who is a girl and is very pretty. Now, I find it hard to talk to girls anyway, apart from the women in my family I find it very hard to approach women, especially if they're pretty. Because there are too many things going in my head for me to handle at one time. I want her to like me without thinking I am a total weirdo and I want the conversation to flow well so she'll think of me as an easy going, sophisticated young guy who has his heart in the right place and comes across as a good genuine person. But often with aspergers what I actually mean and what comes across are two very different things.
I felt like when I was talking to her, I noticed that I tended to revert back to myself and what I was doing and not really concentrating on her interests or what she was up to, or if I did it wasn't for a very long time. To me that was sign telling me that that was bad. I then left it at that, we had our conversation and then I blissfully went back to my seat. Then again at the bar where we both went up to get a drink I then felt that I needed to feel the need to explain to her a bit about my asperges and how it affects me and how it can sometimes cause me to submit certain behaviours such as this and then I suggested going into an in depth conversation with her about it as an option for her to understand me better at a more convenient time. Her answer to that was that she seemed to be fine with it, and that she didn't feel that we needed to have such a conversation because she had had an introduction to Aspergers Syndrome, she knew what it was, and therefore felt she understood it enough for her not to want to do that with me. The problem there is, if someone tells me they are fine, I assume the opposite of what they have said. That's when the anxiety at the back of mind makes me feel paranoid and then starts making me worry over a thousand other possibilities she could be thinking of me. Which is not good, but unavoidable to think about.
I often felt at times, I was recognising the problems with me as the night went on. I felt like I kinda knew I was misreading the social aspect of the situation of being amongst a group of people I was with and indeed people my own age, and that wasn't good either. Not to mention, the things we talked in conversation were very personal to me, and which made me feel awkward and made it very awkward for me to comply or join in with the conversation that was happening. To me it was a very peculiar evening of which I felt, I responded to very poorly.
I don't think I responded to the social aspect of the situation very well at all. I left feeling very tired and very awkward about the whole thing, and I felt like an idiot, basically is what I'm trying to say in a nutshell. That doesn't mean to say that anything was wrong with my friends. I'm not saying that. What I am saying is or talking about is the problems I felt were wrong with me, and how I felt the evening went for me in regards to my behaviour and how I handled things.
It's times like these I wish that I didn't have asperges or at least wish I could understand the signs more clearly so I could at least know how to avoid them, with that knowledge at hand, I may feel there wasn't something there holding me back.
Friday 17 March 2017
COMING UP: Whose returning to Who?
WHOSE RETRUNING TO WHO?
A short post going through some of the monsters returning in the new series of Doctor Who Adventures set to start in April 2017.
The war loving potato headed soldiers from the planet Sontar are causing trouble on desert planet of Dedmos. The alleged "Hero" of Sontar - Commander Kraagh is planning something monsterous and as such could endanger other innocent life forms.
Ice Warriors
Reptilious humanoids natives from the planet of Mars. When scientists from the Earth exbitionary team of Colony 9 come across an Ice Warrior embeded within a block of ice, they see fit to investigate it's properties, however, when the creature wakes up and is revitalised, it has other ideas.
Daleks
The Daleks have invaded Earth and are now it's masters. In an alternative reality to ours, but the Earth as we know it is in the hands of the Daleks. They have infected Earth with a virus and as such control the population through fear and terror.
Davros
The creator of the Daleks, sits back and watches his daleks control the population of Earth. Skaro is gone, Gallifrey is gone, and so Davros does the next worst thing to get back at the Doctor. He takes over Earth.
Thursday 16 March 2017
COMING UP on EGGHEADS
EGGHEADS - SPECIALS
Tuesday 14 March 2017
COMING UP on EGGHEADS
NEW SERIES
EGGHEADS - SPECIALS
Sunday 12 March 2017
Mortal Kombat XL: Lasher - Crack of the Whip!
LASHER
CRACK OF THE WHIP!
THE INSURGENCE OF TAKAHASHI TAKEDA
(FRIDAY 17TH MARCH)
With Shinnok defeated, Takeda and his father set out to find his mother's killer. A member of the red dragon clan. Special forces technology enabled Takeda to locate the clan's base and disguise himself and Kenshi as they infiltrated their ranks. Deep within the mountain stronghold, Takeda discovered an actual dragon that was a prisoner of the clan. The creature used its magic to define the murderer's name and then transported Takeda and Kenshi to a far away cave. There they discovered a man encased in a stalagmite. The Dragon also said that this man would have reason to confront Su Chin's killer. Takeda began to free him.
After having finished his training with the Shirai Ryu and now Chujin, Kenshi has set Takeda a series of tasks to complete as part of a course of intense challenges to prove his strength, skill, agility, stamina and tactics. His friends from special forces assist Kenshi in this task to help Takeda in completing this challenge.
It won't be easy but it will push Takeda to new limits for which he has never been pushed before.
Friday 10 March 2017
It's been a funny couple of days...
Hi everyone.
So things have not been very good for me recently, and I wanted to do this little post just to so there would be no misinterpritation and I could just say exactly what I wanted to.
I'm going to be honest when I come out and say that it's been a funny couple of days. It's been a funny couple of weeks to tell you the truth. A mixture of good and bad. Mostly good, however, the bad things that have happened have proved to be real stinkers which have caused me great distress, worry and upset.
I was working on a play at my local theatre group when I got told the news of the passing of our director, but just our director, a friend and colleague. That very much was a terrible shock to everybody because when you work on something like a play, for instance, you work on it for three or so months. In that time you see people three - four times a week. You form a bond with them, have a laugh in between bits of rehearsal and sometimes in which this case had proved evident form a social life with your colleagues which become friends. Where I'm getting at is, you become close to these people you're working with and you form a special bond which I don't think you can get from any other work place. You become like a family in the sense that you got each other's backs and you support each other. If one of us is having a bad day you're there to pat them on back and say "It's all right mate, onwards and upwards to the next day."
Also, I've been under the most strenuous and extraordinary pressures with Uni at the moment. I've got four assignments to complete all at once in three months left that there is of the course. Teaching time is beginning to slow down, there is not much more that can be taught in lectures, it's left up to us now to get on with the work and do it to the best of our ability.
Being totally honest, it's no secret that I don't enjoy my course at Uni, and some people say that Uni is one of the best experiences of your life. Well if I were to quote Will from The Inbetweeners "The only way that would true for me, is if I went from Uni to prison and stay there forever until I died." Some people may be sad to leave Uni. I won't be sad. I'm in the same position with leaving Uni as I was when I was leaving School. I was so miserable in the last few months of school to the extent where I literally could not wait to leave. And in this case, with Uni, that feeling has some what returned. I hate this course, I hate the teaching staff, I don't have any enthusiasm for the whole thing anymore and just wish it would end.
Film and TV like any creative industry is a tough nut to crack, you have to be really passionately driven and really love what you do in order to do it. I some what feel that any true passion I had towards this interest has rubbed off. It has very much made me more lenient towards working in theatre and writing my own plays, forming my own production company etc. There's a thing with theatre that just feels more free and just a very different discipline, however, I do think it's lovely to mix it up and do a bit of everything and just do what feels right when it comes along. So I'm not putting off the idea of Film and TV completely but it's just not the thing I want to be doing 24/7. Hollywood snobs aren't really my kind of people.
But the worst feeling to feel is the fact that you can't talk to anyone about this, you feel as if you need to suck it up and just shut off the rest of the world from what you're truely feeling. It's not something I recommend, but it's what I do when feeling down about things like this. It leads me to a very sad, lonely and isolated place which I don't like but to me, it's the obvious way to go because it's better than the alternative.
If there is one thing I could say that I could never expect to have happened, it's to mix in with a new kind of crowd of people my own age group and just be apart of "a gang" or "a friendship group". I am a good person, and surrounded by good, nice, friendly people and I'm very slowly but surely working through my problems and trying to find my way back.
So things have not been very good for me recently, and I wanted to do this little post just to so there would be no misinterpritation and I could just say exactly what I wanted to.
I'm going to be honest when I come out and say that it's been a funny couple of days. It's been a funny couple of weeks to tell you the truth. A mixture of good and bad. Mostly good, however, the bad things that have happened have proved to be real stinkers which have caused me great distress, worry and upset.
I was working on a play at my local theatre group when I got told the news of the passing of our director, but just our director, a friend and colleague. That very much was a terrible shock to everybody because when you work on something like a play, for instance, you work on it for three or so months. In that time you see people three - four times a week. You form a bond with them, have a laugh in between bits of rehearsal and sometimes in which this case had proved evident form a social life with your colleagues which become friends. Where I'm getting at is, you become close to these people you're working with and you form a special bond which I don't think you can get from any other work place. You become like a family in the sense that you got each other's backs and you support each other. If one of us is having a bad day you're there to pat them on back and say "It's all right mate, onwards and upwards to the next day."
Also, I've been under the most strenuous and extraordinary pressures with Uni at the moment. I've got four assignments to complete all at once in three months left that there is of the course. Teaching time is beginning to slow down, there is not much more that can be taught in lectures, it's left up to us now to get on with the work and do it to the best of our ability.
Being totally honest, it's no secret that I don't enjoy my course at Uni, and some people say that Uni is one of the best experiences of your life. Well if I were to quote Will from The Inbetweeners "The only way that would true for me, is if I went from Uni to prison and stay there forever until I died." Some people may be sad to leave Uni. I won't be sad. I'm in the same position with leaving Uni as I was when I was leaving School. I was so miserable in the last few months of school to the extent where I literally could not wait to leave. And in this case, with Uni, that feeling has some what returned. I hate this course, I hate the teaching staff, I don't have any enthusiasm for the whole thing anymore and just wish it would end.
Film and TV like any creative industry is a tough nut to crack, you have to be really passionately driven and really love what you do in order to do it. I some what feel that any true passion I had towards this interest has rubbed off. It has very much made me more lenient towards working in theatre and writing my own plays, forming my own production company etc. There's a thing with theatre that just feels more free and just a very different discipline, however, I do think it's lovely to mix it up and do a bit of everything and just do what feels right when it comes along. So I'm not putting off the idea of Film and TV completely but it's just not the thing I want to be doing 24/7. Hollywood snobs aren't really my kind of people.
But the worst feeling to feel is the fact that you can't talk to anyone about this, you feel as if you need to suck it up and just shut off the rest of the world from what you're truely feeling. It's not something I recommend, but it's what I do when feeling down about things like this. It leads me to a very sad, lonely and isolated place which I don't like but to me, it's the obvious way to go because it's better than the alternative.
If there is one thing I could say that I could never expect to have happened, it's to mix in with a new kind of crowd of people my own age group and just be apart of "a gang" or "a friendship group". I am a good person, and surrounded by good, nice, friendly people and I'm very slowly but surely working through my problems and trying to find my way back.
Wednesday 8 March 2017
COMING SOON Injustice: Gods Among Us - Go Fish! Aquaman Challenge Tower!
FACE THE MIGHT OF ATLANTIS! POSEIDON TAKE YOU!
Aquaman fights of Superman and nine other opponents in the classic challenge tower!Almighty Neptune!
Tuesday 7 March 2017
Mortal Kombat XL: Raiden's Revenge
Tomorrow on Mortal Kombat XL - Raiden's Revenge.
Raiden, protector of Chaos Realm not only protects the realms, he seeks out and destroys all who threaten it. Shinnok was an Elder God, Impossible to kill, however, there are fates worse than death.
After Millennia of fending off Earthrealm's enemies, Raiden began to wonder if defense was the best path to peace. In a change of tactics, Raiden and the Shirai Ryu attacked Kotal Kahn's armies before they could rebuild. They decimated the Emperor's forces, leaving Outworld at their mercy. The victorious Raiden claimed dominion over Outworld. The first of many threats to Earthrealm had been removed.
Now, Raiden exacts his revenge on all threats to the poisoned Earthrealm, as the world falls into the hands of Chaos, as Netherrealm, Chaos Realm and Outworld begin the invasion.
Monday 6 March 2017
Rope
University student Wyndham Brandon comes up with this idea about committing a murder just for the sake of committing such an act, he gets his friend and accomplice Charles Granillo to assist him. They kill a fellow undergraduate student, by strangulation and rope and stuff the body in a chest. Of which they then invite the victim's father, his aunt, and three well-chosen friends to come round for a party, while the body is locked inside the chest. Throughout the night, tension rises and the one question that is on the audience's lips as they are watching it is "Are these two young men, going to get away with it?".
Immaculate Murder and How to get away it -
The Review of Rope.
The Review of Rope.
I used to discuss with Nick various ideas he had about various projects that he had, and one of the things that would come up in discussions was his passion for wanting to direct this play called "Rope" which had come to the attention of the company of ten, when the play that was originally planned for the February/March slot "Strangers on a Train" got scrapped because we couldn't get the rights to do it.
My interest in this project, came about when I was reading up coming plays in the prompt corner. "Strangers on a Train" was one of them and I thought "Well, I like the sound of it". I'll go along with it and do that, but when I heard we weren't doing it anymore, given the circumstances of not getting the rights, Rope was pitched and seemed to be a suitable replacement and it's been a play of which so I'm told other members were very keen on putting forward instead.
So with Rope being chosen as the replacement, I also wondered who was going to be directing and when I saw Nick Strudwick's name, I thought "Yes" I'll do that one. Because Nick is just one of those directors who I felt like I could always say yes to. Instantly. Without much thought or consideration, given I had such a special experience on Eclipsed.
But in actual fact it was Nick that approached me to be on his stage management team for Rope because it was him who came to me in July of 2016 and asked me would I be interested and available to do it. To which, of course, I said yes. But shortly after that Eve Richardson who was the stage manager emailed me to ask me if I wanted to be an Assistant Stage Manager, to which I said "Yes".
So being on the team, Nick told me that he'd be in touch about nearer the time. And then in October 2016, the play parade where directors come to talk about their shows came along, Nick spoke about Rope in what he wanted to achieve with it and who he was looking for in regards to cast and crew. By this point, I had given thought of actually auditioning to be in the play. I remember reading it thinking "It would be cool to be Brandon or Rupert". And so I spoke to Nick about getting an audition date sorted and I came along on a night to read and gave what I can only describe as being one of the worst auditions I ever gave in my life. Anyway, I didn't get a part, no surprise to anyone. Myself out of all of them. I had a chat with Nick about casting, after he made his decisions and decided on who was going to be playing who, and to me, it made sense. It was all about pairings. And he felt that Joel Corless and Duncan Kennedy worked well as Brandon and Granillo and that Tom Dean and Mary Harris made a good pair as Raglan and Leila. And I didn't get Rupert because Nick felt that that part needed to played by an older actor, so he did, in fact, cast Russell Vincent which to me seemed like an excellent choice. He very much pressed that they should be chosen for their roles. And I think he was right.
With cast in place, it was time for what I call the meet and greet part of the whole thing which was the read through, where everyone just comes along and says "Hello" and any crew who come along get to see the cast together for the first time, and they discuss the play and read it out loud. It was there I first met Tom and Mary who were both new members and seemed from what I gather on first impressions, two very nice, friendly people. I was delighted to see Paul Manuel, whom I have worked with recently on the double bill "The Browning Version/ Black Comedy" So it's always nice to see a familiar face again. Russell I knew, but never had the opportunity to work with him properly, so the chance of that to come around was just a reward in itself. And the cast seemed to me like it was very well chosen and put together and within Nick's wishes in what he wanted and who was I to disagree with that. I think he had a good solid cast in hand and supported by a fantastic team.
With rehearsals well under way, Nick is one of those directors who doesn't believe in structuring
He very much likes people to get a grips with their characters, and so the way that he did that was to invite cast members to come to rehearsal and the whole of the rehearsal was just the cast talking amongst themselves, discussing their characters and he did a bit of what he liked to call "Hot seating" in the premise of how they think this person saw their character evolving.
Early rehearsals there wasn't that much to do as far as I can recall, so it was recommended that I take some time off over Christmas while Nick and the cast worked. I went off on a three-week break over Christmas to return in early January, of which we got the rehearsal schedule and a draft of the first rota. By that time Nick was absent from rehearsals, he was there some days and then he wasn't there for some other days, and Jean Day, his productions assistant had to take over. Then we got told that Nick was taken ill and had to leave the production, and we had a guest director Terry Prince come in, to fill in for Nick while he was ill. Terry of which I knew quite well from seeing him around the theatre, various workshop exercises and things like that, but have never properly worked with him, so as I thought, oh, well this is a pleasure to get to work with the great Terry Prince as I thought of him. He was The Great Terry Prince. So it was good to get a director to cover us and give some direction, and Terry didn't put his stamp on it, he just simply made notes when necessary, worked closely with the cast and made sure everything was running smoothly with performances, and he really helped us get through it in the absence of our director. He did a brilliant job.
As rehearsals went on, you really felt things coming on and things developing at their own pace. Last few weeks of rehearsals, in particular, I thought, this really started to come through.
With this being a period drama, things like set would be crucial. The set was designed by Ian Crawford, who also did the sound. Of course, going through any script, for any play, if you're a set designer you look and think, "Oh heavens, how are we going to make the set look good?" Because with the best will of the world, set design can prove and end up being a problem for effects rather than anything else. The set had to look authentic to the time in which it was set, The play takes place in a small flat in Mayfair 1930. It also had to be taken with care, because nothing could really be out of place, so there were some restrictions and requirements to be met, but you also had a free hand to do whatever you wanted, providing it was fireproof and hazardless, not likely to cause harm to any of the cast and crew, which was essential. I was very impressed with the finished set, and the detail of the set and the overall appealing look of it, especially with different lighting, because the play starts in total darkness, the only light comes from the light of two cigarettes which Brandon and Granillo smoke. I thought it was a really top design, and looking back on it, I would put it up pretty high as being one of my favourite sets and design work on the seven shows that I have worked on so far at the Abbey Theatre.
The costume department worked really hard in making it look like they were in 1930 or whenever it was set. Props were on point, and Judith and her props team were fantastic with making sure everything was exactly right.
It was a very challenging show for lighting and sound because there was a storm, heavy rain, lots of technical ques, Nick had confidence in Ian Crawford and Russ Gordon to pull this off, Ian doing the sound and Russ doing the lights. So sound and lighting were very important for this show and having worked with Russ before, I know he knows how to make lighting work most effectively. So on both parts, those worked very well.
As part of the publicity, I arranged to get a radio interview sorted on Radio Verulam, on the Friday afternoon Out and About Show. I got Joel and Paul to come on with me. It's always nice to get cast members to come on and talk about their show, it's also fun to come on a show and just talk about it. Leading up to the Radio Interview, I did feel a bit unsure as to how we would pitch this thing, because we had to really sell it and I felt with ticket sales being low we had to help boost them. I always feel confident doing live radio, and I love being the studio and feeling the warmth of Diana and Jenny, who are both really nice people to be around. And what helped was that I had Paul and Joel with me, who were equally as fantastic as myself.
When we did then, get to the run, I felt that now was the time for everything to pull off all that hard work and for cast and crew it was the time to show, how good we all were. I was disappointed with the ticket sales, the show wasn't selling as well as it should, whether that was something to do with the weather or people just don't come out to the theatre this time of year, where it's wet and just coming into spring, I don't know. It's a time of year where ticket sales are low. But like any show, tickets pick up towards the end of the run, in the second week and I feel final results were effectively improved and picked up nicely. I heard mainly positive things about it. No one was overtly critical of it, they just talked about how tense it was at the end, and how well the cast did.
Joel I didn't know but seeing him audition, I knew he'd make a good Brandon. You know when you just have a certain gut feeling about something or someone for all the right reasons, as soon as he walked in and started reading so confidently I thought, I knew that he could do it. Because Brandon is a hard part to play for a young person. He has many long speeches and he's hardly ever off stage, he has a lot to do in terms of driving the play forward, as a leading role Joel met the requirements to the nail. He smashed it. Especially towards the end of the run. The last two performances I thought he smashed it. He was brilliant.
Duncan, I knew and thought he was terrific Granillo. Very sensitively portrayed and with a little help from Nick, managed to get the real emotion out of how his character was feeling. When you've committed a murder and struggle to keep it together, you feel like the walls are closing in on you and you're trapped and you think you are going to be found out at any moment and Duncan really gave off the sense of that edgy motion, which kept audiences on their toes.
Tom and Mary were both new members. Tom of which, went to same school as me. He was a beaumonter. Raglan, as far as I understood him was a very socially awkward character, the sort of person who means well, but doesn't quite know what to do with himself, and there were many moments where I could see Tom really understood that and therefore that came through to his advantage I thought.
Mary, I thought was a very good Leila. Because she looked good for that part. She is a very beautiful and glamourous young lady, she's also a very nice, friendly person too and I think that comes through. With this being her first show with the company and having literally just moved into the St Albans area fairly recently. She didn't seem intimidated by the whole thing and I think you needed that as well. When I asked her about her influences or how she prepared for the role, she told me that she watched a lot of the crown before her audition and got a lot of influences from that. She seemed to understand her character and what she wanted to do with it.
There was a short time when Tom was away on a trip with school and therefore had to miss two very important rehearsals, one of them being the first dress rehearsal. So Terry gave me the task of filling in as Raglan. So in the time leading up to before he went on his trip. I was asked to come along to rehearsals, watch Tom. How he moved and his mannerisms and everything, just help me with the task of filling in.
For the dress rehearsal, I got to dress up in my own costume and I would come on with the book and all I had to do was act out the lines as I was reading them off the book. Which was great for me, because it meant it would feel like I had got that part. It was an important thing, and a job that needed doing that was how I approached it, knowing full well I could never replace Tom. I was just there, as a body and that was it. But I was very nervous on that dress rehearsal and Mary was a star. On stage, she really looked after me and helped me get through it, and she worked a bit more closely with me than she had done before, just to help me get through. Which to me, I was very appreciative to her for that, so thank you Mary.
But the two of them, working together, was truly excellent, to the extent where you feel as if they have known each other for years and years. When that wasn't the case. But Tom and Mary work so effortlessly together, you wouldn't think they have only known each other for such a short space of time. I think the best thing that worked with the two of them was their intentive listening. This is something which Terry brought up, regularly with them, it only works if everything they hear in the play, every night they are hearing it for the first time. With that understanding in hand, I think that really helped them make the whole thing work to the best of its ability in my view.
Paul as Sir Johnstone was very tenderly portrayed I think. Sir Johnstone is someone who was completely oblivious to what true intention was going on around him. He thinks he's just coming round to look at some spare books which Brandon has inherited, when actually he is the prime target of what is a very cruel trick, in some ways very sickening. And the telephone scene where he finds out that his son hasn't come home, had everyone feeling a lot of sympathy for him. And Paul did what came naturally to him. Which was fantastic.
Beverley, you look at her and think that Mrs Debenham is a very plain character. Not much to her at all. I think it's easy to misunderstand her character. It's easy to just shrug her off as being a dithery old lady, but in actual fact, she isn't that old and she certainly isn't dithery. Beverley had such a wonderful refreshing innocence to the character which made it comical. I liked that a lot.
Zodiac who I have known for many came into the mix as Sabot. I'd call our time together and happy accident. Wherein it's nice to get back in touch with someone and spend time with them after so long.
And of course Russell, whom after seeing him in "My Boy Jack" has always been one of these actors who I inspire to. He played the crafty and sharp, intuitive Rupert Cadell. Who was a poet and war veteran who is like a detective in the play, he has a tremendous stage presence, in which you knew that Russell was on stage and he doesn't even need to say a single word. He has the experience on his back, he's very concentrated and dedicated to his role, and the hard work pays off in the impact that he gives off and the audience responds to that. In the early rehearsals, he seemed to understand the other characters as well as his own, like Brandon and Granillo in particular. He was also very tenderly rehearsed by Nick and he gave him a very good foundation stone for the character. Which again, helped him a lot.
It came to the last night, and for me, I felt proud and sad at the same time. I didn't want it to end, but I felt very proud for what he have achieved and it really did feel like a team effort. There has been one other occasion that I can think where I have felt that way before, and that was "Eclipsed". I was very saddened to see it end, and I have post-show blues, which isn't a natural thing for me to develop.
I got an email from Eve, my stage manager after the show ended and she said this and I quote. "I hope you have made more friends in the business. I am sure they will be around for quite a while." I think she's right on that account.
But the amazing thing here is that this all starts and ends with Nick.
Nick died just before the run of "Rope". So he never saw that finished. I went to his funeral, and there were some wonderful tributes and homages to Nick. I think what came across at that funeral service was how loved he was by everybody who knew him, and what a lovely guy he was.
I have so much to be grateful to Nick for. He not only gave me "Rope" he also gave me "Eclipsed", and "Eclipsed" was a whole life-changing experience. I think what I got from him was something very special, something which, I don't feel I will ever get from another director like him again, so, you know, Thank You.
With rehearsals well under way, Nick is one of those directors who doesn't believe in structuring
He very much likes people to get a grips with their characters, and so the way that he did that was to invite cast members to come to rehearsal and the whole of the rehearsal was just the cast talking amongst themselves, discussing their characters and he did a bit of what he liked to call "Hot seating" in the premise of how they think this person saw their character evolving.
Early rehearsals there wasn't that much to do as far as I can recall, so it was recommended that I take some time off over Christmas while Nick and the cast worked. I went off on a three-week break over Christmas to return in early January, of which we got the rehearsal schedule and a draft of the first rota. By that time Nick was absent from rehearsals, he was there some days and then he wasn't there for some other days, and Jean Day, his productions assistant had to take over. Then we got told that Nick was taken ill and had to leave the production, and we had a guest director Terry Prince come in, to fill in for Nick while he was ill. Terry of which I knew quite well from seeing him around the theatre, various workshop exercises and things like that, but have never properly worked with him, so as I thought, oh, well this is a pleasure to get to work with the great Terry Prince as I thought of him. He was The Great Terry Prince. So it was good to get a director to cover us and give some direction, and Terry didn't put his stamp on it, he just simply made notes when necessary, worked closely with the cast and made sure everything was running smoothly with performances, and he really helped us get through it in the absence of our director. He did a brilliant job.
As rehearsals went on, you really felt things coming on and things developing at their own pace. Last few weeks of rehearsals, in particular, I thought, this really started to come through.
With this being a period drama, things like set would be crucial. The set was designed by Ian Crawford, who also did the sound. Of course, going through any script, for any play, if you're a set designer you look and think, "Oh heavens, how are we going to make the set look good?" Because with the best will of the world, set design can prove and end up being a problem for effects rather than anything else. The set had to look authentic to the time in which it was set, The play takes place in a small flat in Mayfair 1930. It also had to be taken with care, because nothing could really be out of place, so there were some restrictions and requirements to be met, but you also had a free hand to do whatever you wanted, providing it was fireproof and hazardless, not likely to cause harm to any of the cast and crew, which was essential. I was very impressed with the finished set, and the detail of the set and the overall appealing look of it, especially with different lighting, because the play starts in total darkness, the only light comes from the light of two cigarettes which Brandon and Granillo smoke. I thought it was a really top design, and looking back on it, I would put it up pretty high as being one of my favourite sets and design work on the seven shows that I have worked on so far at the Abbey Theatre.
The set design for Rope.
The costume department worked really hard in making it look like they were in 1930 or whenever it was set. Props were on point, and Judith and her props team were fantastic with making sure everything was exactly right.
It was a very challenging show for lighting and sound because there was a storm, heavy rain, lots of technical ques, Nick had confidence in Ian Crawford and Russ Gordon to pull this off, Ian doing the sound and Russ doing the lights. So sound and lighting were very important for this show and having worked with Russ before, I know he knows how to make lighting work most effectively. So on both parts, those worked very well.
As part of the publicity, I arranged to get a radio interview sorted on Radio Verulam, on the Friday afternoon Out and About Show. I got Joel and Paul to come on with me. It's always nice to get cast members to come on and talk about their show, it's also fun to come on a show and just talk about it. Leading up to the Radio Interview, I did feel a bit unsure as to how we would pitch this thing, because we had to really sell it and I felt with ticket sales being low we had to help boost them. I always feel confident doing live radio, and I love being the studio and feeling the warmth of Diana and Jenny, who are both really nice people to be around. And what helped was that I had Paul and Joel with me, who were equally as fantastic as myself.
Me, Joel (Right) and Paul (Left) on Radio Verulam Out and About Show, Friday 17th February 2017.
When we did then, get to the run, I felt that now was the time for everything to pull off all that hard work and for cast and crew it was the time to show, how good we all were. I was disappointed with the ticket sales, the show wasn't selling as well as it should, whether that was something to do with the weather or people just don't come out to the theatre this time of year, where it's wet and just coming into spring, I don't know. It's a time of year where ticket sales are low. But like any show, tickets pick up towards the end of the run, in the second week and I feel final results were effectively improved and picked up nicely. I heard mainly positive things about it. No one was overtly critical of it, they just talked about how tense it was at the end, and how well the cast did.
The Cast and Crew of "Rope" - February/March 2017.
Joel I didn't know but seeing him audition, I knew he'd make a good Brandon. You know when you just have a certain gut feeling about something or someone for all the right reasons, as soon as he walked in and started reading so confidently I thought, I knew that he could do it. Because Brandon is a hard part to play for a young person. He has many long speeches and he's hardly ever off stage, he has a lot to do in terms of driving the play forward, as a leading role Joel met the requirements to the nail. He smashed it. Especially towards the end of the run. The last two performances I thought he smashed it. He was brilliant.
Duncan, I knew and thought he was terrific Granillo. Very sensitively portrayed and with a little help from Nick, managed to get the real emotion out of how his character was feeling. When you've committed a murder and struggle to keep it together, you feel like the walls are closing in on you and you're trapped and you think you are going to be found out at any moment and Duncan really gave off the sense of that edgy motion, which kept audiences on their toes.
Tom and Mary were both new members. Tom of which, went to same school as me. He was a beaumonter. Raglan, as far as I understood him was a very socially awkward character, the sort of person who means well, but doesn't quite know what to do with himself, and there were many moments where I could see Tom really understood that and therefore that came through to his advantage I thought.
Mary, I thought was a very good Leila. Because she looked good for that part. She is a very beautiful and glamourous young lady, she's also a very nice, friendly person too and I think that comes through. With this being her first show with the company and having literally just moved into the St Albans area fairly recently. She didn't seem intimidated by the whole thing and I think you needed that as well. When I asked her about her influences or how she prepared for the role, she told me that she watched a lot of the crown before her audition and got a lot of influences from that. She seemed to understand her character and what she wanted to do with it.
There was a short time when Tom was away on a trip with school and therefore had to miss two very important rehearsals, one of them being the first dress rehearsal. So Terry gave me the task of filling in as Raglan. So in the time leading up to before he went on his trip. I was asked to come along to rehearsals, watch Tom. How he moved and his mannerisms and everything, just help me with the task of filling in.
For the dress rehearsal, I got to dress up in my own costume and I would come on with the book and all I had to do was act out the lines as I was reading them off the book. Which was great for me, because it meant it would feel like I had got that part. It was an important thing, and a job that needed doing that was how I approached it, knowing full well I could never replace Tom. I was just there, as a body and that was it. But I was very nervous on that dress rehearsal and Mary was a star. On stage, she really looked after me and helped me get through it, and she worked a bit more closely with me than she had done before, just to help me get through. Which to me, I was very appreciative to her for that, so thank you Mary.
Mary Harris as Leila Arden (Left) and Tom Dean as Kenneth Raglan (Right)
But the two of them, working together, was truly excellent, to the extent where you feel as if they have known each other for years and years. When that wasn't the case. But Tom and Mary work so effortlessly together, you wouldn't think they have only known each other for such a short space of time. I think the best thing that worked with the two of them was their intentive listening. This is something which Terry brought up, regularly with them, it only works if everything they hear in the play, every night they are hearing it for the first time. With that understanding in hand, I think that really helped them make the whole thing work to the best of its ability in my view.
Paul as Sir Johnstone was very tenderly portrayed I think. Sir Johnstone is someone who was completely oblivious to what true intention was going on around him. He thinks he's just coming round to look at some spare books which Brandon has inherited, when actually he is the prime target of what is a very cruel trick, in some ways very sickening. And the telephone scene where he finds out that his son hasn't come home, had everyone feeling a lot of sympathy for him. And Paul did what came naturally to him. Which was fantastic.
Beverley, you look at her and think that Mrs Debenham is a very plain character. Not much to her at all. I think it's easy to misunderstand her character. It's easy to just shrug her off as being a dithery old lady, but in actual fact, she isn't that old and she certainly isn't dithery. Beverley had such a wonderful refreshing innocence to the character which made it comical. I liked that a lot.
Zodiac who I have known for many came into the mix as Sabot. I'd call our time together and happy accident. Wherein it's nice to get back in touch with someone and spend time with them after so long.
And of course Russell, whom after seeing him in "My Boy Jack" has always been one of these actors who I inspire to. He played the crafty and sharp, intuitive Rupert Cadell. Who was a poet and war veteran who is like a detective in the play, he has a tremendous stage presence, in which you knew that Russell was on stage and he doesn't even need to say a single word. He has the experience on his back, he's very concentrated and dedicated to his role, and the hard work pays off in the impact that he gives off and the audience responds to that. In the early rehearsals, he seemed to understand the other characters as well as his own, like Brandon and Granillo in particular. He was also very tenderly rehearsed by Nick and he gave him a very good foundation stone for the character. Which again, helped him a lot.
It came to the last night, and for me, I felt proud and sad at the same time. I didn't want it to end, but I felt very proud for what he have achieved and it really did feel like a team effort. There has been one other occasion that I can think where I have felt that way before, and that was "Eclipsed". I was very saddened to see it end, and I have post-show blues, which isn't a natural thing for me to develop.
I got an email from Eve, my stage manager after the show ended and she said this and I quote. "I hope you have made more friends in the business. I am sure they will be around for quite a while." I think she's right on that account.
But the amazing thing here is that this all starts and ends with Nick.
Nick died just before the run of "Rope". So he never saw that finished. I went to his funeral, and there were some wonderful tributes and homages to Nick. I think what came across at that funeral service was how loved he was by everybody who knew him, and what a lovely guy he was.
I have so much to be grateful to Nick for. He not only gave me "Rope" he also gave me "Eclipsed", and "Eclipsed" was a whole life-changing experience. I think what I got from him was something very special, something which, I don't feel I will ever get from another director like him again, so, you know, Thank You.
Nick Strudwick
1932 - 2017.
Sunday 5 March 2017
Doctor Who | We'll Never Forget You | Babelcolour : David Tennant Tenth Doctor Tribute
David Tennant may be gone, but he's not forgotten.
One of my favourite tribute videos to a doctor.
Mortal Kombat XL: Kotal Kahn Variations
MORTAL KOMBAT XL : KOTAL KAHN VARIATIONS
Check out this guide on how to unlock and see the different costume skins and variations of the emperor of Outworld.
Kotal Kahn - Unlocked at the beginning of the game. Available in all three variations of Blood God, Sun God and War God.
Osh Tekk Warrior - Unlocked in the Krypt or by completing a klassic tower as Kotal Kahn, any variation at any mode of difficulty.
Dark Lord - Unlocked by purchasing the "Medieval" Pack containing: Kotal Kahn, Ferra/Torr and Kung Jin.
That concludes this short post on how to unlock all the different variants of Kotal Kahn. There's three, one of which is automatically unlocked for you and the other two are pretty easy to unlock which is good. Unlock some other costume skins which can prove to be a pain to unlock.
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