La Haine (Mathieu Kassovitz, 1995 France)

Last night I introduced - virtually - Kassovitz's La Haine at The Odyssey cinema in St. Albans, the latest in our Postcards from Europe strand in the programme. Our next film will be Louis Malle's Ascenseur pour l'échafaud/Lift to the Scaffold (1958 France) on Sunday 18th October at 7.15. See here for details.

On Lockdown...

Earlier this year I wrote a short piece reflecting on the experience of lockdown. This was for the British Psychoanalytic Council who asked me, as one of their recently nominated 'Scholars', to write something On Lockdown for them.

For a Few Dollars More (Sergio Leone, 1965 Italy)

As part of the series Postcards from Europe, which I have curated with The Odyssey Cinema, I have recorded a number of video introductions in lieu of the face to face delivery to audiences in the cinema. I recently introduced Sergio Leone's 1965 film For a Few Dollars More...

Bicycle Thieves (Vittorio de Sica, 1948 Italy)

As part of the series Postcards from Europe, which I have curated with The Odyssey Cinema, I have recorded a number of video introductions in lieu of the face to face delivery to audiences in the cinema. I have also revisited previous introductions, including that of my favourite film, Vittorio de Sica's 1948 masterpiece Ladri di biciclette /Bicycle Thieves.

It's good to be back...

My last post was almost nine years ago. Since then a huge amount has happened to me - and to the world! One of the major events for me was my redundancy from academia after almost twenty-three years in UK higher education. The current pandemic has made the prospect of full-time teaching in the university sector very slim but I have managed to pick up some part-time work, including lecturing - now online - at the famous City Lit in Covent Garden. My current and upcoming courses include How to Read a Film: A Beginner's Guide to Cinema and Masters of Cinema: Agnès Varda. I have also been curating and introducing film screenings at The Odyssey Cinema in St. Albans and hosting post-screening discussions, something which currently has shifted to video. Given my current situation now seemed like the perfect time to resurrect my dormant blog and to begin writing once more about the things that interest me, namely, film, television, cars and motorcycles... So, please watch this space!

A Wolf in Wolf's Clothing...

It's time to say goodbye to the Mazda MX-5 that I have been commuting in for the past couple of years. Although a great little car, I have been hankering after a bit more power; after all I did sell my 140bhp motorcycle to purchase it. On the twisties the car has been a joy and it is on B roads that it excels but the lure of horsepower is hard to resist and so I have now bought a car that I never imagined owning: a BMW. In fact, I have held many prejudices, associating all kinds of unpleasant road behaviour with drivers of the marque (this despite having many friends who own them). However, as with all prejudices, they are there to be challenged and once I had test driven this particular car it was difficult to resist... First there is the legendary build quality - this is a 16 year old car yet it has very little rust on it. Secondly, it was at one time a seriously expensive vehicle and as such it comes with a lot of the equipment that customers parting with over £40,000 might expect but thirdly, and this is vital, it has the most incredible engine - a 3.2 litre straight six - which is ultimately what this machine is all about...

With 320bhp available this old M3 is a seriously quick car but what really surprised me was its handling; despite its bulk it is really very impressive. There are a few things that need doing but for the most part these are cosmetic. Also because of its media history - it featured on Discovery's Wheeler Dealers a few years back - there are certain things that I know have been done. It has a full service history including the VANOS unit which also helps...
So I'm entering a new chapter in my motoring life, never having driven a car like it before. Sure I've owned, driven and ridden powerful vehicles but nothing quite like this imposing Beemer.

For me it is not the most attractive of cars - it looks a lot like most modern boxes (although it is much more attractive with the hood down) - but ultimately the car is defined by its engine which sits invisible beneath a more or less standard 3 series bonnet. Its performance is hidden to some extent too but it does have an aggressive stance and as such isn't quite that wolf in sheep's clothing that I had at first imagined it to be...

Silverstone Classic 2011

Classic and Sport Car's James Elliott wondered after this year's Silverstone Classic whether others had enjoyed the event as much as he had (see 'I loved the Silverstone Classic, but did you?'). As a first time visitor to this three day event I can respond in the affirmative to his question. Arriving after a more or less traffic free journey, driving my father down in his 1969 3 Litre V6 wooden chassis Marcos was a pleasure in itself. Now that I have my own children I enjoy sharing these kinds of events with my Dad even more now than I did when I was younger. Representing his website - www.motorsnaps.com - meant that we were parked up with the VIPs and were ferried to the heart of the event courtesy of a fleet of brand new Jaguars.
In a moment of real nostalgia I came across the half-scale type 35B Bugatti made by Tula Engineering that my father helped to set up in the early 1970s.

Based then in Kimpton in Hertfordshire, I remember trips to the little 'factory' unit where the larger scale Bugattis were restored and where these smaller 'toys' were made. I think that they were powered by a lawn mower engine and from the perspective of a child they felt very quick. They were certainly great fun to drive and I was very lucky to have the opportunity to pilot one from time to time. Here I am sitting proudly behind the wheel of one at Tula Engineering in my school uniform; a 'gentleman' racer if ever I saw one!

I also remember the mini grand prix that were staged at a friend's house, which invariably involved the adults racing these tiny replicas, usually with one leg hanging over the side of the car. Memorably on one occasion a full size Bugatti joined its smaller siblings around the circuit, most likely the result of a few too many beers with lunch; somehow unimaginable today!

In the photo on the left, my dad is squeezing into the middle car while Nick Mason (left) looks on... So for me, this year's Silverstone Classic managed to take me back to my childhood in a quite unexpected fashion but given that my passion for cars began at an early age it seems entirely appropriate that it should have done...