Page 22 - BR-March-2018

March 2018 March 2018
OBITUARIES
when people can appear on TV talking about “their passion for
quinoa”, I mean passion. He was probably the only man I know who
could accurately rig a man’o’war of Nelson’s fleet. I don’t think I am
exaggerating when I call him a world-class expert. His library of books on the
subject is full of his own corrections. Nelson, and the Royal Navy during Nelson’s
time, was a love which remained with him to the end.
And how he was good at woodworking!. When we were children, in Norway,
he single-handedly designed, then built a sailing boat. Every single aspect of
this he did himself. Fascinated, as a four year old, I watched him steam planks
of wood to get the precise curvature he needed. And I watched him sand,
caulk and varnish this entirely wooden boat until it almost glowed. Nor did we
just sail in the fjord, we took it out to sea. He sold the boat when we left Norway,
but for the rest of his active life he was a much appreciated sailing companion.
He built us wooden chests, even if my brother had to wait a few decades for his
to be finished. We should be honest that he wasn’t always the best at finishing
a project. If anyone wants an C18 horse drawn sleigh, which we witnessed him
th
buy as a “barn find” from a Danish farmer 45 years ago, and the renovation of
which he never quite completed, please see my brother Marki and myself
afterwards.
He made model ships and wooden whales for the bathtub for us as children,
and then in turn for our children.
I have a walking stick collection as I need to use a stick. It was only after he’d
made me a really lovely stick, that I found out that he’d secretly measured my
other sticks to get the length right. When I told him that Kingsley kept stealing it,
he made another in the right size for him. And I was deeply moved to find, not
only the steam-engined model ship he’d been building for Kingsley, but
another two walking sticks in his size.
Visual arts were another passion. I am not best qualified to talk about this as
even my stick men are embarrassingly bad, as my brother delights in telling me,
but not only has this talent and passion been passed on to Marki, Marki’s own
son Daniel has the same skills and interest in the
subject, something that I know gave our father great
joy. And Natalie has certainly got his eyes, if not quite
his eye for art yet.
He loved painting and drawing and the house is also
full of art books. As a child, I traipsed around art
exhibitions beside him, never quite sharing his intensity,
until I took him to the Pont exhibition at the Cartoon
Museum, and the last big Hogarth Exhibition. We both
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MILBORNE MOVIES
March 2nd Milborne Movies is showing
'Victoria and Abdul". This is the
extraordinary (mostly) true story of an
unexpected friendship in the later years of
Queen Victoria's (Academy Award winner
Judi Dench) remarkable rule. When Abdul
Karim (Ali Fazal), a young clerk, travels from
India to participate in the Queen's Golden
Jubilee, he is surprised to find favour with
the Queen herself. As the Queen questions
the constrictions of her long-held position,
the two forge an unlikely and devoted
alliance with a loyalty to one another that
her household and inner circle all attempt
to destroy. As the friendship deepens, the
Queen begins to see a changing world
through new eyes.
"This film is a complete delight. I went along
without great expectations.... a worthy film I thought I should go and see to write
a worthy review about. But I was entranced from beginning to end. It's probably
best described as a comedy drama... always a difficult trick for a movie-maker to
pull off. But here in the competent hands of director Stephen Frears ("Florence
Foster Jenkins") the comedy is both very, VERY funny, with the drama also being
extremely moving. And crucially the transition between the two never feels
forced.
Above all, this is an acting tour de force for Dame Judi, reprising her role as the
elderly queen from "Mrs Brown" which (shockingly!) is now 20 years old. I know its
early in the season to be placing bets, before having seen any of the other major
contenders, but Dench's "insanity" speech screams "Oscar reel" to me. Her
performance is masterly from beginning to end.
Rather overshadowed by Dench is the relative newcomer to western cinema Ali
Fazal (he had a role in the "Furious 7" film). But his performance is almost as
impressive, bringing the warmth and compassion to the supporting role that is so
sorely needed if the overall balance of the film is to be maintained.
Another star of the show is the Scottish countryside, ravishingly photographed by
Danny Cohen ("Florence Foster Jenkins", "Room") with this film probably doing
more for the Scottish Tourist Board than any paid for advertising could ever do!
Overall this is a true delight of a film, perfectly balanced, brilliantly acted." [Bob-
the-movie-man]
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