In Brief

They had a wedding across the road yesterday. The house was done up in blue and white fairy lights and they had a real live drummer- or that's what it sounded like- to welcome the guests.  At 1.15 in the morning they let off the fireworks. 

The house has been stripped back to bare walls and furniture too heavy or bulky for me to move. I ask myself whether I miss all my personal things and the answer seems to be, "Not all that much". I was getting twinges of sentiment yesterday evening, but this morning I'm fine with the new, minimalist look.

The days have been damp and dark, with the odd one- like today- that is cold and cloudless. 

Norman Wisdom

They buried Norman Wisdom the day before yesterday. Those movies of his- with their little man schtick and rudimentary slapstick (he didn't even do his own stunts)- were  a cultural aberration- old hat even as they were being made. Smarter comics got into TV, but Norman couldn't or wouldn't make the leap- and spent half a century in the wings- waiting for the call that never came. In spite of the evidence of the films- which are so dire they don't even have a cult following- he was a very funny man.  I saw him do a routine with a glass of water on the Des O'Connor Show which was masterclass in comic timing.  Someone should have harnessed that talent.  He should have had his own sitcom, or played Shakespeare's clowns, or become a character actor, but none of that ever happened- for whatever reasons. What a waste.