Gathering and spottering and a bit of puddling

Once again, a week with a nice example of the resilience and ingenuity of theatre-makers in the longest nationwide closure since the ban in 1642 which lasted more-or-less until the Restoration - although bubonic plague in 1593 had chased live performance out of London for fourteen months, if you count that.  Bristol Old Vic is one of the theatres providing lock-down dramatic entertainment online until literal doors can open again.The zoom Gathering on Thursday, hosted by director Tom Morris, was carefully planned to include new as well as remembered acts, with a balance of age and gender, and to create a sense of committed friendship within the walls of 'The Theatre Royal', as aficionados still describe this playhouse.

The theme was love, shared in poetry (Michael Byrne reciting Yeats' Song of Wandering Aengus was one highlight) and song (the superb Audrey Brisson, who chatted about her baby, also called Amalie) as well as by memories from past productions. Every performance was accompanied by one of 2 sign language interpreters, both of whom enhanced the acts by their vigorous enthusiasm. Final guest Louis Maskell joined Audrey for the Beauty & the Beast duet from The Grinning Man, which must have been a technical nightmare but sounded great. (As a footnote, a bootleg film of the original production, which this blog raved about in 2016, is viewable for less than the cost of a fish & chips, and you can get a 5-show boxset for unlimited viewing for half the cost of a bottle of fizz. Just saying!) 

Also under the heading of 'theatrical thrills', keep an eye next week, when the embargo on reports of an exciting new production of Dorian Gray is lifted... (image of Fionn Whitehead by Aaron James, for this co-production by the Barn Theatre, Lawrence Batley Theatre, New Wolsey Theatre, Oxford Playhouse and Theatr Clwyd. )

And a recommended addition to your BBC iplayer downloads: - Franz, a story of two families struggling with the aftermath of WWI - this may may you weep but remains unpredictable right to the end.

This was a week when springtime became more visible, and hopes of real-time connections were enhanced by plans for a summer festival and band-dates in Frome, with Black Swan Arts hopeful of reopening soon, and the popular River House Cafe team leaving their premises on the bridge to join them there. The Frome Wildlife Watch group has been practically flooded with otters, now frequently spotted along the town river (video here from the phone of Oliver Wright) and the other major news this week was the siting of a White Tailed Eagle by member Julian (Bugsy) Hight - re-posted here with his permission - a bird not seen in England since 1810 when the last one was shot, but recently re-introduced to the Isle of Wight.This one seems to have decided that Longleat was a better residence - probably attracted by the number of ancient trees and wildlife in that estate. "Rewilding is happening in unexpected places" Bugsy reports encouragingly.  Primarily known as the champion of Frome's trees, he's created on commission from the town council this short video to tell the story of Selwood's oaks.  Oaks grow best in solitary positions: It's a popular misconception that Selwood Forest comprised dense thicket, as in fact 'forest' was the land the commoners lived on until hunt-mad William the Conquerer invented land ownership and claimed vast swathes for his deer. Nick Hayes' excellent Book of Trespass explains "Under Anglo Saxon rule these tracts of land were recognised as the vial source of subsistence for all peasants of the area ... commoners had rights not just to graze their cattle and pigs, but to take wood, dig peat and gravel, and fish the ponds. For the first time in English history, the commoners and their cattle were barred from the land they used. These areas became known as 'forest' from the Latin foris meaning outside of because they were areas that operated outside of common law."  Next time you visit a stately home and wonder how the family came to own it, you can remind yourself that they just did what William did: they took it from the people who lived there.

Ending this week's doings & musings with images of the river Frome in two different moods - bubbling down to join Mells brook at the sunny start of the week, and lethargic along the disputed footpath at the end of the week.

Glowing window art & a crammed miscellany celebrating waning winter

Things to do as February ends: Well, if you live in Frome, you could do what over 200 households have done and fill your windows with glowing imagery to create a Window Wanderland. This now-annual event has been extended an extra day, so if you're reading this on Monday you have time to check the map here and enjoy the exuberant artistry: ranging from stunningly beautifully crafted to joyfully expressive, many with profound messages of hope, these are all simply wonderful. Frome was an early and eager participant in this national project - it's ideally suited to our quirky town which has a life & logic often at odds with controlling authorities - viz the news last week of a man posting cash through letterboxes who when interviewed by the police turned out to be just a kind man. The Mail reported the story with a picture of a letterbox for further clarification.

Wandering backwards time-wise now, Tuesday 23rd was the 200th anniversary of the death in Rome of John Keats, attended by a doctor who daily bled the weakened poet (8 ounces at a time) and with Joseph Severn, the friend who had travelled with him on what both knew would be his final journey: consumption, and distress at the vitriolic reviews his 'cockney poetry' was receiving, were killing him. The dying poet and history both blame his critics, but Keats' 'imperturbable drivelling idiocy' is now held by many in the same regard as did Shelley, who had a copy of Keats poems in his pocket when he drowned. To mark the actual hour of the poet's death the British School at Rome premiered Lift Me Up I am Dying, an account of his final days by art historian Pelé Cox, compiled from extracts of letters and fragments of poems. The scrapbook approach makes this lively viewing and highlights the tragic irony that Keats' lucent imagery and sensuous story-telling was offensive to the public-school-educated publishing world. 

Moving from poetry to fiction: Bath's 'Story Friday' team A Word In Your Ear, led by highly successful fictionist & dramatist Clare Reddaway, has been looking at ways to continue bringing spoken word stories their followers. After a successful series of Youtube stories last year, Clare has again collaborated with Kilter Theatre to create Storyopathy - "Hand-crafted story therapy for when you feel like you’re losing the plot…"  I'm particularly pleased because one of the Storyopathic Remedies written by me: The Invisible Granny will be read by Olly Langdon on Thursday 25 March - you can book here, and it's just the one price for as many of you as can safely & legally fit round your laptop screen. 

Now for a Fromie miscellany, starting with The Last Lockdown haiflu collation from Liv Torc, reflecting the upward curve in mood as spring and hopes of future freedom stir. Andy Wrintmore in his new series of The Giant Pod talks with comedian Rich Wilson - and Andy also picks the playlist on Eleanor Talbot's latest edition of Variations on a Theme.  

Moving outdoors: Dress-Up Friday, initiated by the wonderful Rare Species Theatre Company, continues to inspire Fromies to strut their glad rags in the streets and shops of town - it's good to have something to mark the passing weeks tbhonest - and Frome Wildlife Watch brings daily reports of encouraging sightings: badgers, hares, kingfishers and otters around the town weir were recent specials, and the bird life is amazing. This is a red kite spotted just north of town and caught on camera for the webpage by Joe Paul Durrant. 

It's only a couple of weeks since lakes round here were frozen and after the thaw, acres of land became lakes, so it's great to see blue skies and a slowly returning equilibrium. Chris Packham's Self-Isolating Bird Club is another place to celebrate our national wild life,  with nearly 56,000 members posting delights daily. 

And finally: anyone interested in the struggles mentioned last week between Frome conservationists and developers avid to convert shared land into private profit, might like to look at this informative website Who Owns England?  Guy Shrubsole's book of the same name is a good companion to Nick Hayes' brilliant Book of Trespass - and I've also belatedly acquired Robert Macfarlane's Wild Places.  As the Ice Moon starts to wane, we can take heart that the year is mellowing and this time next month will be the start of summer time...