TV's Austin and Autism

The BBC recently aired a series called Austin (named after the main character) who is on the autism spectrum - as is the actor who plays him7, Michael Theo.

If you haven't yet seen it, the overall direction of the story is somewhat predictable, although the journey is interesting. Ben Miller's character (Julian) is a children's book author and Sally Phillips plays his wife (Ingrid), the illustrator. Austin seeks out Julian and tells him that he is his son from before he married Ingrid.

It's a slow start but stick with it. To cut to the chase, Julian is self-centred and the viewers know that the story is engineered to end with him becoming a better person. But does he? To find out, you'll need to watch the last episode - and all the other episodes, even if some of them are a little frustrating.

Interestingly, Billie Piper makes an appearance as 'herself' (but not really herself). Other noteworthy characters include Austin's Grandad, his mum, his step-sister plus the journalist friend he makes towards the end of the series.

Verdict: give it a go. 

Languages - Tip of the Iceberg.

Britain is a small island within which is a small country called England. Much of the world speaks English and, despite having Welsh spoken in the bordering country to the west and French spoken to the east and south of us, we make little effort to learn their languages.

I touched on learning languages in my Doctor/Dentist post. Or not learning them, as is more usual.

Although I may be a few years out of date, I doubt much has improved in the past 10 or so years, as it certainly didn't in the preceding decades (centuries, even). Having lived in Europe with a young child, I can compare the results but I'll focus on the methods used. Bear in mind that, if you are taught something for the first time, it's equally easy to learn the best way or another way.  

ENGLISH

First of all, in Britain, some teachers cannot master English grammar themselves* and there is virtually no attempt to correct pupils' enunciation. I appreciate that local dialects should be allowed (even though some make me cringe) but if a child talking to an adult about Harry Potter refers, instead, to "arry po'a" it takes only a few seconds to calmly speak the words correctly. Most children will comply and some may even learn! Of course, this brings us to another problem - many adults were never taught properly, either.
*in their defence, they might be, say, Geography teachers, but you would still expect a certain level of competence in English. I've often come across Europeans who speak better English than native Brits.

FRENCH

So, we can't always master English but that doesn't mean we shouldn't try other languages. French is usually the first language to be taught in generic British schools - and the earliest that pupils are exposed to this is around age ten. Often, the 'French' teacher is not French, which is fine if they can do the job properly but that's not always the case. For example, having returned to the UK with a smattering of French, my young child proceeded to question the teacher's pronunciation.

A major failing in these lessons is that there are more words spoken in English than in French in a French lesson. In some countries, second languages are taught from age seven by immersing pupils from the moment they walk into the room; French (or German or whatever) is the primary language spoken throughout the lesson. In other countries, languages are included in all lessons.

But attitude also plays a large part. Driven by the demand for schools to illustrate 'good' results, teachers and pupils are always under pressure. Learning is a chore rather than a pleasure, which encourages a negative attitude to learning. 

WELSH

The possible exception is Wales. There were very few native Welsh speakers among the townsfolk born between the wars and the baby boomers (in my family, anyway) but their children/grandchildren can converse in their native language. Once you master how to pronounce the letters in written words, you will be able to speak the language - even if you can't understand what it means! Here are some examples: 

• LL as in Llan is pronounced Hlan 
• DD as in Heddlu is a hard th (as in leather)
• FF as in Ffrog is pronounced frog, whereas...
• F is pronounced as V therefore Fron is Vron

Vowels are weird, too, e.g. Cymru is pronounced as Cumri

Here are some Welsh place names:

• Llandudno... "Hlandidno"
• Llangollen... "Hlan-goh-hlun"
• Froncysyllte... "Vron-cu-su-hli" (yes, really!)
• Betws-y-Coed... "Bettus-i-Coid"
• Rhos... similar to 'roast' without the 't'
• Afon is "Aavon" which means River (hence, the River Avon is the River River)

A link to further information regarding the Welsh alphabet (which comprises 29 letters, as below, though I've never seen a Welsh computer keyboard...)

A, B, C, Ch, D, Dd, E, Ff, G, Ng, H, I, J, L, Ll, M, N, O, P, Ph, R, Rh, S, T, Th, U, W, Y

The English alphabet is 26 letters but arguably longer as it doesn't include sounds like ch, sh, th, etc. 

Death in Paradise and Beyond Paradise

Having watched every single episode of Death in Paradise (most of them twice), there's a lot to discuss. So first, let's review Beyond Paradise which features DI Humphrey Goodman who finished his stint on the fictional Caribbean island of Sainte Marie.

Humphrey (Kris Marshall) and Martha (Sally Bretton) live in Cornwall where there seem to be as many deaths to solve as there were on Sainte Marie. It's not as compelling as a weekly trip to the sun in January but the cast members hold their own, reflecting the setup of their Caribbean counterparts. There's a female DS, the young naive constable with potential, the efficient wordly-wise office administrator, and the annoying off-site boss (a women, which is par for the course in terms of British TV police hierarchy). But where is the bar owner, I hear you ask... this is most likely the Sally Bretton role, as she owns and runs a nearby catering establishment.

It's a cosy watch but I would love Dwayne Myers (Danny John-Jules) to pop by, when he's visiting his relatives in London!

Caribbean or Cornwall

Death in Paradise has seen five British detectives heading up the office on the French island, overseen by the same commissioner (played by Don Warrington, who I first remember from Rising Damp, many years ago) and who now seems to be retiring. The other character to appear frequently in every series is Catherine Bordey (Elizabeth Bourgine) who owns the local hostelry, is Mayor of the island, long-time friend to Selwyn (Commissioner) and mother of Camille, once a DS at Sainte Marie whose career moved her to France, where she has now settled.

DI #1 Richard Poole played by Ben Miller (series 1-3) 

DI #2 Humphrey Goodman played by Kris Marshall (series 3-6) 

DI #3 Jack Mooney played by Ardal O'Hanlon (series 6-9)

DI #4 Neville Parker played by Ralph Little (series 9-13) 

DI #5 Mervin Wilson played by Don Gilet (current) 

One of the great things about Death in Paradise is that the storylines occasionally include visits from some of the gone-but-not-forgotten characters. Long may it continue.

Reacher - Serialisation on Amazon Prime

There have been three TV series to date and they don't follow the books precisely but this is quite normal. Series one was based on the first book, Killing Floor, series three was based on book seven (probably my least favourite of the Reacher books I've read so far - too much action for me but others may prefer it).

Whereas the books seem to be in chronological order, the series are random. I'm not even sure which book the second series is based on, as I haven't read it yet.

Did I enjoy the series? Yes, mostly. I like the character's strengths, even if does take things to the extreme and has to have a bed-mate everywhere he travels. I say extreme because the character is very physical whereas I'm weedy and also a pacifist - why fight with fists or weapons when you can keep your distance and try to work out what to do? Reacher is not quite a vigilante but he will, very effectively, sort things out his way, rather than hand matters to an over-stretched, bound-by-rules police force.

However, those would be different stories, such as Ludwig or Patience, who like solving puzzles.

Julia Stewart books

• The Last Pearl Fisher of Scotland 
• The Pigeon Pie Mystery 
• The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise 
• The Matchmaker of Périgord 

I've enjoyed reading all these books by Julia Stewart. Each one is entirely different, in terms of genre,  story and writing style, with barely a grammatical error.

The first one I read (over ten years ago) was The Matchmaker of Périgord, a quirky love story set in a small village in France - and which elicited numerous grins! I've recommended it to several people (many of whom are Francophiles, as I knew that they would appreciate the humour). 

The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise is also quirky and a little sad, with lots of interesting snippets (which I assume to be true?) relating to the Tower of London since Victorian times, as a tourist attraction rather than a place of incarceration and executions! 

A historically based novel centred around life in Hampton Court Palace, The Pigeon Pie Mystery is a cross between a Victorian murder-mystery and The Importance of Being Ernest. Subtly humorous, the 'upper classes' are not all awful...  

Another complete change of genre for The Last Pearl Fisher of Scotland. An intriguing story about the demise of pearl fishing but a satisfying outcome to the pearl fisherman's quest. 

If any of these books appeal to you, I hope you will enjoy your choice(s). Let us know in the comments. 

Coping with January

If you're lucky, you'll be at a ski resort. However, this is a 'comfort post' for the rest of us. 

Outside, it's currently cold, wet, windy and grey in the UK. One way of dealing with this is retail therapy but, even with the sales prices, this can be very expensive - as can be eating at a restaurant. Cheaper indoor alternatives include: ten-pin bowling, roller- or ice-skating, going to a café or pub or watching a film at the cinema. 

... But instead of spending money to see one film, maybe take advantage of all the streaming services you have at home on your massive new TV that you bought yourself in the after-Christmas sale? Even if you only have a medium TV and no additional streaming services (such as Netflix, Prime or Disney+), most people have access to BBC i-player - and this is critical in January - to binge-watch all the "Death in Paradise" series from Ben Miller onwards. Each episode in an hour-long visit to the Caribbean. It's perfect for me to lose myself in the aesthetic, never mind the stories, which are so predictable that we guessed 'whodunnit' as soon as we see the characters (or possibly, the actors playing those parts). 

There are almost 100 episodes so that should see you through the worst of January and possibly February.

Meanwhile, here are some Caribbean images for you to sigh over...

 

 

At sunset in the warm Caribbean, you can stroll along the coast and find a number of restaurants and bars overlooking the sea. At home, where the temperatures are cooler, you could chill with some cocktails or rum punch - or hug a mug of hot chocolate as you dream of being alive in paradise!

Debut Novel by Richard Armitage

Actor Richard Armitage has written his first novel, a thriller, titled Geneva. According to the 'blurb' it's not a particularly happy book, with the main character showing signs of early onset Alzheimer's. It is, however, described as "Outstanding" by popular writer Harlan Coben, whose televised books often had major roles for Armitage. And, to be fair, he was good in them, as befitting an award winning star of screen and TV. He seems to portray the complexities of characters, mixing darkness and vulnerability. Personally, my favourite of his roles was the TV series of Robin Hood where his portrayal of Guy of Gisborne moved from unlikeable to hero. He was also in the sit-com, The Vicar of Dibley, which was fun.

Anyway, back to the book. 

It centres around Sarah, a not-so-average woman, the winner of a Nobel award for a medical science breakthrough who has retired to be a mother to her daughter. Her husband is also in the medical profession and her father is in a care facility, suffering from Alzheimer's disease, a form of dementia. Sarah fears that she is exhibiting signs of early-onset Alzheimer's and is persuaded to endorse a new, revolutionary technology from a Swiss pharmaceutical research institute. (Don't worry, the story is aimed at ordinary people who need have no knowledge of the technical details of the plot.)

Geneva is the setting throughout virtually the whole book, which grows more intense with every chapter. Perhaps too intense for some but it's an easy read and the 'baddies' get their come-uppance.

I read the whole book with Richard Armitage cast as Sarah's husband.