A cornucopia of a week: drama, bands, ramblings, art - & my new book now on sale!

This week's bulletin once again begins with a performance in Frome's Merlin amphitheatre: HMS Pinafore, Gilbert & Sullivan's comic opera of class pretensions, as interpreted and presented by another of the illustrious casts of Illyria Outdoor Theatre.  (There's also a childrens' show or two from this stable going round this summer, so hopefully this wonderful company will survive the dramatic hiatus caused by plague.)

There's a certain poignant irony in some of the parodic songs - in spite of all temptations, to belong to other nations, he remains an Englishman, for example - but a great set, tight direction, and the talented cast all combine to create an entertaining evening: "Pantomime for grownups!" as one delighted audience member summed up.

This week has been particularly rich in musical entertainment.  Nesta Yurt Camping, unknown to me until quite recently although it's only a 20 minute walk down the lanes from my house, for various reasons last week became almost a second home. The food here is amazing - vegan menu with delicacies like banana-blossom 'fish' and chips - there's a friendly, casual but well-equipped, tent site and visitors from town are welcomed at the undercover evening entertainment. On Wednesday the band stage featured Rosco Shakes, a fantastic funky local trio comprising Dom on guitar, Ned on drums & vocals, and Tim on crazy honky-tonking piano.

Music too in Frome's Victoria Park, where a sunny Saturday saw families & friends sprawled on rugs or - for the more organised - settled on garden chairs to listen to live music from the bandstand all afternoon.  Frome's fabulously funky quintet The Valley, joined by Colin on cajon, led off and other excellent local musicians followed, including brilliant bluesy duo Roger & Annie Davenport. Great sounds, brilliant atmosphere, reminding us all what summers can be like here...

This August hasn't been the kind of summer we longed for during the winter months, but there has been some sunshine and abatement in the downpours and blustering winds. Tuesday's respite gave me a chance to visit Rodden Nature Reserve - one of Frome's best kept secrets, largely because it's closed during the long breeding season for the many rare birds who find this a safe haven. Paths of desire are kept clear between wetland areas, and the entire wildlife park is brimming with autumnal flowers, bushes, reeds and trees - and dense with insect life plus tiny mammals & frogs. 

Art & Lit corner now: Frome Art Society opened its annual exhibition in the Round Tower of Black Swan Arts on Friday: an eclectic display with much to enjoy - though it isn't always easy to avoid window reflections on the glass of the paintings - and a chance for all visitors to vote for their favourite piece. This evocative view of the  river is by Kristen Vincent. 

And my personal big news is the arrival of copies for sale of my new book: Déjà  Lu is a collection of 37 short stories, most of which have been previously published in journals & anthologies or broadcast on BBC4, and now for the first time readable together in all their strange diversity. Suzy Howlett, author, thespian, and reviewer, has summed up delightfully: "This collection, stylishly presented with cover artwork by David Moss, is a delight in the same way that a selection box of hand-made chocolates is: you can select and taste the soft-centres, the nutty, the rich and dark, the hard-boiled, the sweet, the fruity and the plain gorgeous. They are all delicious!"  My first delivery is already all sold or committed, but please contact me if you'd like a copy from the second box, due next week! Thanks Patrick Dunn for the - genuinely spontaneous - picture! 

 Ending this week's bulletin with an image from the fields around Frome, where autumn is already arriving...

Two swinging time-treks & artsy happenings now

  Frome Art Society exhibitions in Black Swan Arts always offer a wide diversity of styles and subjects, and this year the society has impressively reached their Ruby Anniversary which if artists' and marital years are the same means the society has been thriving for an impressive four decades. The work will all be on display until 25th May: here's the evocative painting titled Hospitalisation by Vanessa Taylor (which won second prize) and Alan Overton's blissful Riverside Walk.

Words at the Black Swan regular workshop in response to each exhibition was led by Louise Green,  who encouraged us to note the watery element in many of the images.

Poetry is in the frame at the moment, with an upcoming Frome Poetry Cafe, last week's Frome FM radio Poetry Special (broadcast link 3 May) - and a focus on poets at the Frome Writers Collective evening social at Three Swans too: Here I was again  joined by Rosie Jackson and Bob Hull to talk about poetry and read some of our own, with an informal open mic after the break.  Thanks Gill Harry for the image & write-up.
As well as a friendly and enjoyable evening, this meant another outing for my reading dress, which brings me neatly on to Tuesday's trip London.
It's over half a century since Mary Quant followed the Beatles, David Hockney and David Bailey into the hall of trend, but her name still chimes whenever trailblazers of the '60s are celebrated. Most people at the Victoria & Albert's exhibition seemed, like me, of her generation when I visited with my friend Helen last Tuesday. We had a great day out in the sunshine of South Kensington, but agreed that the iconic designer wasn't quite as mind-blowingly groundbreaking as she seems now revered to be. After all, since the late '50s we'd been rolling up our school skirts to detention-risking heights, raiding mens' shops for big buckled belts, and spurning the generous 'room-to-grow' of our mothers' economising philosophies. What Mary Quant was brilliant at was self-promotion: she looked gorgeous, she was well-connected, and she had mastered the art of the soundbite. A girl, she said, should have 3 reasons for her outfit- to be noticed, to look sexy, and to feel good. I did have one Quant item at college - that cinnamon pinafore-dress from the Ginger Group collection (though not the hat paired with it in the exhibition!) - but I was designing my own attire too. 
Here's me in 1964, and some of my sketches. The dress with 'pantaloon sleeves' is pretty much exact to my drawing for it but the trouser suit was actually jade green not turquoise, with purple contrast - still a favourite colour-combo of mine today, though colour in the snaps has altered beyond retrieval - and my multi-talented mother created both these treasured outfits despite her reservations.  For me, the design outlet that's taken over now in terms of colour and theatricality is Desigual, so it was great to discover this week that GAFF in Bath is an Aladdin's Cavern of these gorgeously bizarre Spanish styles. Thanks Mo Behradmehr for providing coffee - and discount!

Moving on now after this plunge into self-indulgence, via other colourful costumes and flamboyant personalities, to Cut Capers at the SWX on Friday - funk & ska from this explosive 9-piece Bristol band so sensationally successful they're now signed up by Freshly Squeezed Music and will be touring all summer - dates here.
A mood swing to soul with lovely Emma Harris on Saturday at the Cornerhouse, then gear-shift to outrageous for the story of Farrokh Bulsara aka Freddy Mercury at the open-air screening of Bohemian Rhapsody at Frome Cricket Club as the moon rose after a sun-filled Sunday.
With wild garlic and cow parsley thick along the verges and hawthorn blossom dense in the hedges, the 3 mile walk to Nunney is part of the enjoyment of the wonderful Nunney Acoustic Cafe on Sunday. Benjamin Hardy-Phillips ably took the guest spot, with 17 other acts! (though a couple were duos and one was an acapella sextet) A lively and convivial afternoon, with refreshments, and two of the singers, courtesy of Events Horizon. Here's Ben and, also from Frome, Paul Kirtley & David Goodman from the We Don't Scare Easy crew, and Nunney regulars Maia Fry and host Francis Hayden. And as this bulletin is already late, that's probably enough for one week...