Latest news with #AliceThroughtheLookingGlass
Telegraph
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Martha Kearney: ‘Meg Ryan was the worst interviewee I've ever had'
Martha Kearney, 67, was born in Dublin and joined the BBC in 1990. She presented Radio 4's The World At One programme for 11 years and was one of the main Today programme presenters for eight and a half years before stepping down last summer. She currently presents This Natural Life on the same station and lives in Suffolk with her husband, the documentary maker Chris Shaw. Best childhood memory? When I was living in Ditchling in Sussex at the age of about 11, I was asked to play Alice in a village production of Alice Through the Looking Glass. It was a real little girl's dream. I had a little cape with a muffler and a little velvet cap. It turns out the production I was in became a cult classic. The music in it, which was quite psychedelic, was recorded and it was, much later, released as an album. I got a copy and so I now have a recording where you can hear my childhood voice. Best day of your life? It was in the best year of my life – 1989. My partner (now husband) Chris and I both packed in our jobs and went travelling. The first thing we did was go trekking in the foothills of the Himalayas in Kashmir. The altitude made sleeping tough but I remember one day where we walked across a glacier and emerged into a valley which was completely covered in purple flowers. We had a picnic and I recall lying in the grass and looking at the snowy peaks around us. It was just an incredible moment – partly because it was so difficult to get there. We felt we'd really earned our view. Best friend you ever had? I can only narrow this down to my best friend at the BBC – but that would definitely be Kirsty Wark. We met in the early 1990s when I first came to Newsnight. She was presenting at that time and she was, and is, just huge fun. She's also been such a supportive colleague. She took the time to show me around the studio, taught me how to look into the right camera and all that. She was very patient and sisterly to me. Over the years we've been on lots of holidays together. I threw a surprise birthday for her the other week where myself and lots of her friends all jumped out from behind the sofa. The decibel levels were very high that night. Best live radio or TV debate? I was presenting Woman's Hour and had both Germaine Greer and Julie Burchill on at the same time. The most almighty row broke out and Julie really attacked Germaine's book which I think was about plastic surgery. It was one of those moments where I just stood back and let the pair of them have their say. We ditched the rest of the programme so we didn't have to stop them. It was just amazing live radio where I had no idea what was going to happen next. I think Germaine was taken aback as she's such a great polemicist, but Julie just tore into her. Best decision? Buying our cottage in Suffolk. My parents found it and we're there most of the time now. We were given a beehive as a wedding present so that got me started as a beekeeper too. Moving to Suffolk really made me connect properly with the natural world. I saw my first peacock butterfly of the year today so it's a place where you really do feel the different seasons. Best place in the world? I really like exploring ancient ruins. I studied Latin and Greek at university and that love of those cultures have stayed with me all my life. The ones I really like are overgrown and feel a long way from anywhere. Termessos is one of the best preserved ancient sites in Turkey, with temples and huge blocks of stone. You feel like you're coming across things for the very first time when you're there. There are brambles and wild flowers everywhere and there's something about those tumbled, ancient blocks which is very romantic. Worst day of your life? The day of the death of my brother-in-law Alastair two years ago. He had Down's syndrome and he was an incredibly important part of my life. He always used to say that I was like both a mother and a sister to him. He got premature dementia and wasn't allowed to see us for a long time during Covid. It was very tough. He got very ill indeed and Chris and I were both with him when he died in hospital. He was only 60. I think about him all the time but do feel very blessed that I was able to be with him at the end. Worst thing you've ever eaten? I was in hospital having my wisdom teeth taken out. I couldn't wait for mealtime and I thought I'd been given a pastry in custard. It turned out it was a sausage roll which they'd put custard on by accident, instead of gravy. I was so hungry but I just couldn't eat that. Worst person you've ever shared a studio with? Meg Ryan was surprising. I'd always loved her films and I was expecting to meet this happy, funny, bubbly blonde, like her on-screen persona. But she was completely different. I almost didn't recognise her. She seemed so unhappy and angry and she clearly really didn't want to be interviewed. I was quite intimidated by her, and I wasn't even asking particularly probing questions. She was so tetchy and difficult. I felt a lot better when I saw her on Parkinson a week later and he had a very tough time with her as well. I thought, if Parky's having trouble then my bad interview with Meg can't all have been my fault. Worst mistake you've ever made? In 1979 I had this huge, early crisis of confidence. When I was a student I wrote to Woman's Hour to see if I could do some work experience for them. They liked an idea of mine about a woman's cult that had started up in Oxford with priestesses. I went off, recorded the piece, edited it then had a complete meltdown of confidence, decided it wasn't good enough and never sent the piece in. I did end up presenting Woman's Hour, but that was about 20 years later. I always think I could have saved myself a few years if I'd had the confidence. The imposter syndrome young women go through is a very real thing and it can be very debilitating. Worst book you've ever read? Weir of Hermiston by Robert Louis Stevenson was a book I had to read at school. I loved Treasure Island but this one was just so tedious. We were reading it aloud around the class so it just took forever to get through it. I did know a student at Oxford who hated one of his textbooks so much that he got an air rifle and shot holes in it! I've never gone that far. Worst place you've ever visited? The women's prison in Kabul, Afghanistan in 2002. What was really shocking was how incredibly overcrowded it was and how young the prisoners were. They were girls really, not women, and some were with their babies, lying on the floor. They'd been locked up for transgressing the religious laws of the Taliban, like being found in a car with a man who wasn't a member of their family. I hope those girls were let out of prison. But then I think about what's happening now and I feel so sorry for the women whose hopes were raised and have now been taken away, again. All time worst? Being on a plane surrounded by parents who let their children watch Peppa Pig or whatever on their iPads without headphones, all at the same time. I do occasionally ask people if they have any headphones. I also know people who will put on their own music very loudly, just to shock them. It's just this cacophony of different sounds all around you that I don't like.
USA Today
07-02-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Ray Mariano: Down the rabbit hole into Trump's Wonderland
Ray Mariano: Down the rabbit hole into Trump's Wonderland I loved watching Disney's "Alice in Wonderland" with my children and more recently "Alice Through the Looking Glass" with my grandchildren. These movies are full of goofy characters who say things like 'Oh, you can't help that. We're all mad here.' Everything in these movies is the opposite of what you'd expect it to be. Up is down and big is small. But when you're watching the movies with little children, it's just silly fun. Recently, as I watched the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter and listened to the tributes offered about that good and decent man, I couldn't help feeling that I was on the other side of the looking glass — the Mad Hatter's side, where, as Alice said, 'nothing would be what it is because everything would be what it isn't.' There in the church was a president and four former presidents. For better or worse, as men and as presidents, four of the five tried to conduct themselves in a dignified manner. They didn't always succeed. But when they failed, they were contrite and resolved to do better. And then there's Donald Trump. The Red Queen and the bully Much like the Red Queen in the movie, Trump loves to bully and scream at people. Try and imagine any of the other four presidents calling the governor of California 'Newscum.' If they ever did anything like that, the public and media reaction would have been swift and blisteringly harsh. Yet as we now linger on the other side of the looking glass, this disgraceful behavior is somehow acceptable. And it's 'off with their heads' for anyone who has the courage to stand against Trump. In this strange, nonsensical world, 'all ways are my (Trump's) way.' Anyone who says otherwise, including career federal employees, is put on an enemies list and faces firing, investigation and prosecution. Once prided for their independence, now to avoid the Red Queen's wrath, newspapers pull political editorials and satirical cartoons disparaging Trump. Prominent anti-Trump media personalities are being removed or demoted. Trump has even called for certain cable news channels, who offer opposing views, to be shut down. Previously, you would expect a president to console and support victims of catastrophic wildfires that touched tens of thousands. Now, because some of them didn't support Trump on Election Day, what they get are ridicule, threats and lies. Trump's cast of bizarre characters Only in Trump's Wonderland would our current rouges' gallery of unqualified Cabinet nominees be acceptable. It wouldn't be so bad if Trump had just nominated a group of Tweedledees and Tweedledums. But his nomination of Robert Kennedy Jr., a man who has admitted to having a portion of his brain eaten by a worm, threatens the health of every American. The nominations of Matt Gaetz, Pete Hegseth, Dr. Oz and Tulsi Gabbard are distinguished by their misconduct and total lack of anything resembling reasonable qualifications for their respective offices. The single overriding qualification for all of Trump's nominees is that they are blindly loyal to the Red Queen And then we have the Mad Hatter, Elon Musk, appointed to lead an imaginary department that doesn't exist. Only in Trump's Wonderland would you expect a man whose company holds nearly 100 different government contracts with 17 federal agencies totaling $3 billion to be an objective adviser. Only in Trump's Wonderland would Rocky Balboa and two others be appointed as imaginary 'Special Ambassadors' to Hollywood to help bring back 'the Golden Age of Hollywood.' Day 1 and beyond On the very first day of the Red Queen's reign, we saw a dizzying list of pronouncements and actions that defy what we used to call reality. Of all of them, Trump's pardon and commutation of sentences for men who attacked and brutally beat police officers on Jan. 6 is the most troubling. Trump calls these criminals the real victims. His unthinkable action is frighteningly similar to Hitler's pardoning of all Nazis including those involved in a failed insurrection. Trump revoked an executive order put in place in 1965 that bars discrimination in hiring in the federal government. He ordered health agencies to pause warning Americans about serious illness like bird flu and had critical data on disease transmission scrubbed from government websites. In action that the Red Queen would envy, Trump is conducting an unprecedented retribution campaign looking to purge thousands of FBI field agents, leaving America vulnerable to terrorist attacks. Musk wants to put the U.S. Treasury on a blockchain, the technology that underpins bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, including Musk's dogecoin, jeopardizing our entire monetary system. In a bizarre and dangerous pronouncement, Trump told the world that the people of Gaza should permanently leave their homeland and that the U.S. would take over and own Gaza, putting Americans directly in the line of fire. And as unthinkable as it may seem, in Trump's dystopian Wonderland, the Ku Klux Klan walks freely around town posting flyers for their meetings. To pay for tax cuts for the richest Americans, the Queen's loyal guards now plot to remove health insurance from millions of vulnerable Americans while also plotting to cut Social Security— both unthinkable before we passed through the looking glass. Defying reality, every day Trump and Musk brazenly and publicly break new laws knowing that Republicans in Congress, much like the terrified guards who got caught painting the roses red, will do whatever the Queen commands. In Wonderland, while Trump is burning down government institutions, most Democratic leaders, afraid to anger the Queen, sit silently and limit their opposition to meaningless posts on social media. All this and more because of a man who called the violent attacks on Jan. 6 'a day of love.' Up is down and big is small. Watching the animated movie "Alice in Wonderland" with little children can be harmless fun. But in 2025 America, as we peer through the looking glass, what we see is a horror film, with real-life consequences. And the movie is just beginning. Email Raymond V. Mariano at He served four terms as mayor of Worcester and previously served on the City Council and School Committee. He grew up in Great Brook Valley and holds degrees from Worcester State College and Clark University. He was most recently executive director of the Worcester Housing Authority. His endorsements do not necessarily reflect the position of the Telegram & Gazette.
The Guardian
29-01-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
The tragic conflict in Gaza should not be oversimplified
Owen Jones's article (Israel's leaders committed genocide in Gaza and must pay for it. Their political and media allies must too, 23 January) oversimplifies the deeply complex and tragic conflict in Gaza, diluting the seriousness of his arguments. While he condemns the west's supply of weapons to Israel, he ignores the global arms trade that fuels violence on both sides. Hamas and other militant groups have also received weapons, and the international community has failed to address this. Critiquing only one side's arms supply neglects the broader dynamics that perpetuate this conflict. Jones also frames morality around the number of casualties, highlighting Palestinian civilian deaths while downplaying Israeli suffering. The killing of civilians, especially children, is immoral regardless of scale or side. A numbers-based approach risks creating a false moral hierarchy and trivialising individual tragedies. Lastly, Jones critiques the media for enabling Israel's actions but fails to address how sensationalism and oversimplification in reporting have failed both sides. Media narratives, well demonstrated in Jones's article, often present this conflict as a battle between oppressor and oppressed, ignoring the shared culpability and the humanity of all victims. Journalism should hold all parties accountable rather than seeking attention-grabbing headlines. Acknowledging the inhumane actions of both Hamas and the Israeli leadership strengthens the case for justice and peace. Supporting the Palestinian cause does not mean absolving Hamas, just as defending Israel cannot ignore its policies towards Palestinians. True accountability lies in recognising the suffering on both sides and demanding global action to prevent further violence. The real shame is the failure of the international community, which has allowed this tragedy to escalate. It is time for the media to reject black-and-white narratives and support a solution based on empathy, accountability and systemic TalLondon Not for the first time, I detect a real sense of despair in Owen Jones's words on the desperately sad situation in Gaza. I also share that despair, and indeed the rage, that he so obviously feels and expresses so eloquently about the complicity of our politicians and media in the atrocities perpetrated on the Palestinian people. What can I say to him to give him hope? Quote the words of the late, brilliant Edward Said to explain the Alice Through the Looking Glass prism the media have come to represent the conflict in the Middle East through? Or perhaps I can simply say this: while we write, we maintain the line, and strengthen the general intellect, and thus, hope for the HewittMarlborough, Wiltshire
