It’s the first time I’ve ever watched this film and one thing I took away from it has to be the family dynamic.
They have switched faces, so the characters switch, but there is the moment when the daughter is protected from her aggressive boyfriend, as he is ripped out of the car. Asked does she have protection for which she wasn’t sure where he was going until she is given a knife.
Later in the film protecting the young boy from all the gun fire. Again there is a sense of duty to protect the children.
Not your family, but still protecting and making sure family is safe regardless of the first thought of destroying each others family a maternal instinct seemed to take effect on each enemies family. Something poetic about that.
Regardless to the beginning of the movie, I honestly believe the bad guy does have some guilt in his heart and this reversal of protecting each others family. I do find this an interesting concept and not really explored in any other movie I know of.
I would love it if anyone can tell me another movie where a bad guy protects the innocent. Is this a more anti hero aspect? The concept of swapping roles, from pure evil to pure good does sound like a great storyline. Maybe if anyone reads this can tell me a good movie to watch from these aspects.
This TFL Hidden London tour started outside at the Diana statue in Green Park and then took us into for a tour of some of the hidden passages for this tube station. After the close of the old Dover Street station entrance, they moved to the newly opened entrance of Greek Park in 1933 next to the Ritz which is where everyone enters and exits each day.
As a group we made our way down and through another gate. These areas were closed off before the war as they were no longer needed however as WW2 came along the passages were reopened and they created lots of small units and areas for the war effort. This included an underground HQ for the Railway Executive Committee (REC). I was constantly looking for the old wall lines of the partitions to understand how small each unit was. And very small they were.
We carried on round to see more hidden tunnels, where the old lift shafts where, which had been turned into offices and one into a kitchen. Then back we visited a very impressive air shaft. The stairs down and the air shaft itself where you really feel like you’re not supposed to be there. A rather unique experience. This is certainly one of the top experiences on the TFL Hidden London tours. I certainly recommend this one.
For a long time, I’ve always been interested in the travel vlogger and often watch video’s on YouTube. But about two weeks ago after seeing an account on Twitter for one vlogger I noticed a Discord chat room. I’ve used Discord before for gaming chat, but I really had no idea what to expect.
So, I wanted to support this one girl streamer who was kind of cute and did some travel vlogging. She really isn’t very big in this scene, but there was something natural about her. So, I ended up in this chat room. At first, I thought this is okay, but there seemed to be this somewhat toxic immature community there.
After a few days I got hooked trying to communicate with this new chat room community. However, I descended into what can only be described as mental darkness. Their ignorance of the world, not knowing how one should treat a fellow human. There are somethings I like to avoid, as having lost family, friends to suicide. I don’t think these people understood it’s not a subject to joke around about. The immaturity where some users took some of your picture posts and re-edit them to their own needs to annoy you…
I was truly lost here, so at first, I blocked two users because I didn’t want to hear it, but by the third time, I had a feeling the first user I blocked had come back with a duplicate account to agitate me again. The fourth and final time I was driven, this time a user takes my picture of horses and decides to zoom right in on the animal’s rectum to repost it.
I really couldn’t stand that so I departed the chatroom after two weeks. The girl who built this community who was the main streamer seems nice, but I tried to chat to her. Only for the cute bubbly girl to cold shoulder me.
The other aspect is, I really didn’t know anything about twitch.tv as I have never used it. But now, I started to try it out some evenings. I am not really into watching the gamers, but those users who are travelling, I find really interesting. There was one Korean girl who following my football club of Tottenham was also streaming. It was interesting watching her break emotionally as Spurs lost yet another game. I can reflect on that because I am also emotionally scarred by the terrible football that Tottenham have played.
I feel I need to watch these in limited amounts, but I got an idea of how some people get addicted to these things. I also found out that one travel blogger, working out her numbers, she must be earning over £140,000 a year before taxes. But all that travelling must have serious overheads. And I don’t think she is a top streamer; the top people must be making a fortune.In the end, where I thought I might be able to find some new digital friends just felt like a nightmare. In order to keep my sanity, I really need to be careful in this digital world. I could also see how it can drain one’s income or make someone a millionaire. A new world is out there for those that know how to navigate, but I kind of have failed to navigate it properly.
I decided to go have a look at this small London museum south of the river in Rotherhithe and I wasn’t sure when I first entered. This was a Saturday and there were a fair few people, however this was really a very small venue and it really didn’t take me long to consume what content there was. A little bit of history on the tunnel underneath and transport history and that’s it.
My next problem was the tour itself. I know they are volunteers; however, I couldn’t hear the fella that well at all. This small old knowledgeable man had such a small voice it didn’t travel past the amount of people. So, I then walked away to see the pit shaft. And that’s all it was, a big old pit shaft.
I couldn’t even bring myself to take any photos. I was left feeling very disappointed, I looked at the nice view across the river on the way out and made my way back home. No matter how nice the volunteers were, it didn’t help me what so ever. My disappointment lingers even now as I write this.
Honestly, there are far better places to visit in London.
Into London for a fairly new tour, this time at the Piccadilly Circus hub. You start off by one of the least used exits and make your way into the concourse getting a history lesson along the way. There is an old map in the concourse area and directly opposite a tribute to Frank Pick.
World clock map, it had been restored to working order.
Here I felt that we should have been shown around the concourse a lot better before descending down the stairs to the hidden tunnels. There is a fair amount of unique 1920s architectural features to point out. The tile work, pillars lights, a very unique world clock map was addressed. Maybe it would help to point out the location of where Stephen Bone’s mural was before it was lost. We then walked round to an area with a few small shops. However the majority of these seemed unoccupied, but the foot fall at the time didn’t look like it would help the matter.
Empty shop unit
The lead tour guide chose some steps next to a small shop and we descended down. This seemed mainly to not get caught up with other passengers. We made it down to the Northern Line platform where at one end we entered through a gated door.
This is where you enter and feel really off the grid, a feeling of, I shouldn’t be here. These tunnels and others around housed many of the peoples of London during the WW2 blitz. We were shown many photos of the people sleeping on the escalators as well. One photo looked a lot like St John Woods tube station. There was also a section of tunnel to house artworks to protect them from the bombing. These were transported from Dover Street (now Green Park) via a tube train for storage. Saw some abandoned lift shafts, round a bit more then the tour felt like it abruptly ended.
Looking the lift shaft.
This is the first time I feel that a Hidden London tour needs to be adjusted. But nevertheless, it was an interesting experience. Not as good as their Aldwych experience which is the one I recommend the most.
I only went for a short weekend break and flew out from London Airport, which is so much easier to deal with compared too large airports than Heathrow.
In Berlin I got a taxi from the airport to my hotel and it’s not cheap, €65 for a 35-minute trip did seem a lot to me. It was also the same back and I tried to pay with the card, but the taxi driver had no idea how to use his card machine!! Or did he??
My first evening I walked around the immediate area next to my hotel. It was cold but not too bad. There are works going on right next to the hotel for the whole area, Deutscher Dom and Konzerthaus were completely closed off. I then found a pub-restaurant where I had schnitzel and a large beer. Not bad a meal, but I couldn’t finish the beer as it was far too much.
Walking around in the evening.Look at the head on that beer!
The next day I walked over to the Brandenburg Gate had a little look around. On the way the city felt empty, walking in the centre of Berlin, large buildings empty streets. Walked past several embassies guarded by lots of police. By the gate was a tourist store and I brought myself a museums pass and walked up to the museum island. Probably boring to a lot of people but I went into the Deutsches Historisches Museum and had a wonder. I believe I was only in one part of the museum as the main museum was being overhauled.
Next, I walked across and went inside Berlin Cathedral had a good look and walked all the way to the top and around. The stairs were a little killing, but really not that bad. But I am still young…ish!
Berlin Cathedral
After I had lunch I visited the Altes Museum lots of Greek artefacts on display including an amazing life like bust of Caesar.
I was feeling somewhat warn-out so I walked back to my hotel and I asked the concierge to book me into what is described as one of Berlin’s top restaurants called Borchardt’s. In my book it said it was where diplomats and celebrities go to.
Sitting in the restaurant it really did feel like the place the Berlin elite go to. And there was one gentleman who was sporting a flag pin on his blazer, a diplomat? Sitting next to me was a couple who I can only describe as wearing high end clothing labels. I ordered fillet steak with sweet potato chips and a salad and the waiter picked a glass of red wine to go with my meal. For one person I paid €75 altogether.
The next day I first went to Checkpoint Charlie, had a look around and I read the boards. I didn’t actually go into the museum on the side as I wanted to go checkout the fairly new Spy Museum. It was a good bit of fun, I tried to do a few puzzles in there, but I really wasn’t very good! Would I even make a good spy?
After that I walked round to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews. An interesting piece of art in itself. From the exterior it looks like a graveyard, you enter and it feels like a maze. You really don’t see the deep middle from the top. To me it feels like the weight of humanity has left a scar here. A calm exterior, the wound underneath.
I then made my way back to museum island as I wanted to see the bust of Nefertiti. On the way I past a square, but I didn’t know the significands of what I was looking at until a lady told me what it meant. In the square was a glass window showing a room with shelves, but it was a representation of a library without books. This is the square where the Nazi’s did their book burning in the 1930s.
I finally go to the museum and started to wonder around and finally found the Nefertiti Bust, to see this is person, see the contours, the elegance, colours. It truly is a work of art. Anyone that goes to Berlin must see this antient piece of history. It truly is stunning. It’s not just the bust, but there are lots of fantastic historical items in the museum. I could easily visit this museum again.
My next stop was the TV Tower, it was already nearing 6pm and felt it was a getting on a bit and I didn’t want to late ticket they were offering to go up. So, I called it a day and walked back to the hotel. Maybe I can get up there on my next visit.
I was very sad to learn of the threat to close this beloved cinema. Over the last few years I am very happy to go and see old classics, obscure films with those childhood memories thrown in.
But the landlord wants to do what? Increase the rent, destroy what so many have loved. This is a part of the beating heart of Soho in London.
I arrived at Clapham South not knowing what to expect, I exited the station had a little walk into the park and back around meeting everyone to start the tour.
We slowly descended down the spiral staircase and made our way to the bottom. There was a gentleman there who was re-enacting as an original staff member during the time of the shelter. He gave us all a replica ticket, this would help us find our beds later.
We had our introduction and walked to a room which shows some of the bombs that fell on London. I never knew about a bomb called a butterfly bomb. That was certainly interesting to see.
Upon exiting this room, I noticed one of the top brass Chris Nix (curator for the London Transport Museum) had joined us. I said hello and we had a little bit of a chat as we went round the complex.
We walked back out and into another very large tunnel room. These rooms go on forever! We were told there are two miles of tunnels so you will certainly get your steps in at this location you have to do. They showed some pictures of the raised level of Clapham Common but when I enquired after, (was that the spoil from creating the tunnels) The lady said yes it was. So it seems Clapham Common once had raised level area’s after many digs to create the tunnels and then over time they had that taken away.
We walked all the way down and round into another tunnel, told to look at our tickets and then find our beds we were staying in. I noticed that I was standing right in front of my bed for the night. (Least I wasn’t really staying for the night! It’s spooky down there.) And there are multiple tunnels with different names with thousands of beds.
All the beds are on the right, but there were beds once attached to the left wall. So there would have been even less room to walk down the corridor. And there are many more tunnels like this.
After the war the tunnels became a cheap hotel to help the homeless and later the Windrush generation. After more knowledge consumed we carried on, found a lost teddy bear, the mess hall, James Bond’s secret layer and finally out. But then I had to get back up those stars. That really is a tough climb! As quick as I have written this, this wasn’t a quick visit either. It was a good 90 minutes walking, wondering and I really enjoyed it. These hidden London tours just seem to get better and better. This is a must for any WW2 fan, historian and schools really need to book in to visit as this will be an exceptional learning aid for young children to know what it was like during the war years.
Mess hall and uniform.
I had no idea there was also Campbell’s tea. I had their tomato soup before but apparently they still make the tea. Will have to buy myself some to try one day.
Some of the items found when the re excavated and explored these tunnels.
I hadn’t listened to any other reviews before going to see the film so I couldn’t be influenced by them. However, I might have been influenced by one in this write up.
Tom Hardy is back in his Eddie Brock, Venom persona and although loose, it also feels forced at times. We start off where the last film left us and they had that moment, are we going to New York to visit Spider-man? That doesn’t materialise, they bring in another character from that franchise in Knull voiced by non-other than Andy Serkis however did they really use the character? Knull sends his minions out, some black Ops guys are running amuck and some scientists with rather flat acting.
So, Eddie and Venom turns out are a key to unlock Knull and are on the run from the authorities for murder. They end up in the Nevada desert rather quickly hunted by one of the minions and then bump into a family who are out searching for aliens.
I didn’t quite get this whole setup, a family searching for, are aliens are real. In a universe where an alien snapped everyone out of existence to be returned five years later. In a universe where there was a massive alien army that invaded New York during the Avengers film. I can’t fault Rhys Ifans acting here or that of the actors of his family. Them and Tom Hardy are the only ones that felt natural. The rest of the acting felt somewhat falsed.
I ask did marvel forgot that they already used Rhys Ifans as Dr Connors who turned himself into a Lizard. Who knows!
We then end up in to Las Vegas which seemed to be an excuse to get to the character Mrs Chen, who for some reason went to running a small convenient store to a high stakes roller being put up in the top room at the hotel! How did that happen?? And the dance? The last dance… Did they really put much thought into that?
Straight back into the desert and straight to Area51 where we have the epic battle. Interesting battle and then it’s all over.
It’s a watchable film, but overall just felt lacklustre at times.
I got myself a ticket on the Eventbrite app to go Mudlarking on the Thames which is run through the Thames Explorer Trust.
The day started off very cold, but got very nice rather quickly and a sunny day it was. I took the train down to Blackfriars and walked along to Millennium Bridge waiting there a bit, met a few people and we started off with a talk on history and what we can find and off we went.
Down diretly under the bridge we went onto the foreshore. I walked up and down the area to have an explore around and there was a hell of a lot of building debris around from different types of bricks to roof tiles. In amongst all that were loads of different types of shards of pots. A lot of animal bones scattered around, (at least I hope it was all animal!). Various different bits of glass, many washed to rounded edges from the tide. I had an interesting time. But the jig is, you can’t take anything home.
I will have to apply for a permit myself. However this is what I found.
I rather liked the London gin bottle with London written on it. (I assumed it was suppose to be London considering it’s the city I found it in!) A few bits of pottery and the old bottle top which looks rather like one a codd-neck which would have had a marble in.
London gin bottle
Alas I had to leave it all on the shore to wash away. Guess I will have to get a permit for a year so I can take some finds home.
All in all, an interesting few hours on a nice sunny day.
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