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The Guardian
3 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Muckle Flugga by Michael Pedersen review – anything can happen on this remote Scottish island
Often thought of as the northernmost point of the British Isles, the Scottish island Muckle Flugga lies on the outer reaches of the Shetland archipelago. Norse legend has it that this craggy and almost uninhabitable place was created by two warring giants, obsessed with the same mermaid. While throwing boulders at each other, one of the rivalrous giants' missiles accidentally plopped into the sea: and so the island was born. A version of this mythic tussle is central to Michael Pedersen's debut novel. When the narrative opens, delivered in a lively present tense sprinkled with Scots, The Father and his 19-year-old son Ouse are the only residents on the island. The Father mans Muckle's lighthouse, and is as volatile as the waves he illuminates. A gossip from a neighbouring island describes him as irascible, with 'a viper in his throat and … a broken soldier's thirst for whisky'. Ouse, meanwhile, is 'a queer sort' 'who sounds as if he's been sooking helium out of party balloons … always staring off into the distance'. He's famed in the area for being an 'artiste', a dab hand at needlework with a reputation for producing beautiful handmade textiles. What unites father and son is that they take their stewardship of the island seriously. They are devoted to the extraordinarily various wildlife – puffins, gannets, sea otters, peacock butterflies – and hypnotised by the thrillingly chimeric weather. Unspoken grief for The Mother, who drowned two years before the story begins, also binds the two together. The Father assumes his only heir will eventually take over the family business. Enter Firth, a foppish twentysomething failed writer from Edinburgh with griefs of his own. Racked with self-loathing, he has vowed to kill himself after fulfilling a promise: to visit the enchanted isle of Muckle Flugga, much loved by his late grandfather. Almost as soon as he arrives, Firth is entranced by Ouse's mercurial demeanour, as he parses landscapes and seascapes alien to Firth's urban eyes. Firth is struck, too, by the blazing potential of Ouse's artistic talent. He wants to whisk him away to the mainland and make him a star. Thus begins the tug of war for Ouse's allegiance: The Father, familiarity and tradition yank one way, but Firth, possibility and the seductive unknown pull just as hard. This perhaps presents the plot as neat and fairly recognisable: a narrative of masculine archetypes vying for one-upmanship, with notes of The Tempest. But Pedersen introduces wild cards – spooky visions of religious zealots, a pumpkin-punching contest – that emphasise the strangeness of this remote place, so far away from the norms of the mainland that anything might be possible. Significant among these zany additions is the ghost of Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson. Stevenson – who came from a family of lighthouse engineers – acts as imaginary friend and confidant to Ouse. He counsels Ouse for his maternal loss and guides him through the decision about where his future might lie. Pedersen threads the apparition's dialogue with aphorisms from the real Stevenson's work and correspondence. The novel's most memorable feature, and perhaps most potentially divisive one, is its loudness. The characterisation of the villainous but vulnerable father, of the hapless city type and of the ethereal innocent is bold and broad – sometimes cartoonish. The setting, rich with images of the aurora borealis and storm-lashed shores, is almost psychedelic. But the narrative voice is loudest of all: constantly baroque, with the linguistic and emotional dials turned up high. Firth receives an unexpected letter, and the missive is 'a Pandora's box, a bete noire, a curse, a lifeline, an arch nemesis, a fairy godmother … a gift from the gods'. A flurry of snow after an exchange between the protagonists is 'a divine offering, the impetus for reconciliation under the auspices of a natural phenomenon'. Pedersen is known as a poet, and his wonder at the magic of language is evident in this self-consciously high style. In places, the linguistic busyness occludes the plot's more interesting undertones: the queer desire between Ouse and Firth, considerations about our place in and responsibilities to the natural world. But there is, ultimately, something immensely charming about this novel. It is weird, rambunctious and repeatedly demands the reader surrender to its particular wildness. Its generosity of spirit, its unrestrained warmth and humour – the brilliantly kinetic description of a surprise ceilidh is a case in point – steadily worked away at my scepticism. Like Ouse's flamboyant designs, inspired by the spectacular landscape around him, it is 'garishly alive'. Muckle Flugga by Michael Pedersen is published by Faber (£16.99). To support the Guardian, order your copy at Delivery charges may apply.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Netflix Hires Ollie Madden, Director of Film4 and Channel 4 Drama, to Oversee U.K. Film
Ollie Madden, director of Film4 and Channel 4 drama, will be leaving the U.K. broadcaster in October to become director of U.K. film at Netflix. Madden will be joining the Anne Mensah-led U.K. content team as of early October. More from The Hollywood Reporter Ben McKenzie on His Crypto Doc 'Everyone Is Lying to You for Money': A "Human Story About Trust" "NATO for News": Is a Joint Effort by Media Companies the Way to Go in the Age of AI? Netflix EMEA Content Boss Touts 'Adolescence,' Debunks a "Myth," Talks Ted Sarandos' Acting Debut He will lead the streamer's U.K. film slate and act as the primary U.K. contact for films on Dan Lin's slate where the intellectual property, talent, and production are based in the U.K., 'with the exception of family films for the U.S./Canada, including Narnia and Dahl, which will continue to be overseen by Racheline Benveniste,' Netflix said. He will also develop a select portfolio of filmmaker-led series. Madden has worked as both an executive and producer across film and high-end drama. 'I'm very excited to work with Anne and Dan to build Netflix's film business in the U.K.,' he said about his future role. 'I've been incredibly proud to spend the past eight years with Film4 and, more recently, Channel 4 Drama, and it's very hard to say goodbye to all my wonderful colleagues and projects,' Madden said in a Channel 4 statement. 'The independence, distinctiveness and mark of quality that Film4 and Channel 4 represent is a precious thing, and I'm confident it will continue to thrive long after my departure.' Farhana Bhula, Film4's head of creative and deputy director, will take over as interim director of Film4, effective from July 1. Gwawr Lloyd, commissioning editor, drama, will become interim head of drama at Channel 4, reporting to Ian Katz. Channel 4 said in a staff memo obtained by THR: 'We are writing to let you know that after a remarkable eight years at the channel Ollie Madden, Director of Film4 and Channel 4 Drama, will be leaving us in October. Under Ollie's leadershi,p Film4 has backed a string of critical and commercial hits from many of the most exciting directors working today. He has overseen scores of award-winning films, including 9 Oscar wins for The Favourite, The Father, Poor Things, and The Zone of Interest, and 24 BAFTA wins for Beast, The Favourite, The Father, Rocks, Poor Things, The Zone of Interest, and Earth Mama.' It added: 'Ollie's commitment, passion and reputation for nurturing talent has seen Film4 not only work with some of the best-known writers and directors in the UK and Ireland but also cement our industry reputation as a huge champion of new talent, backing over 27 debut films and five series by debut writers throughout his Film4 tenure, including Molly Manning-Walker's How to Have Sex and Rose Glass' Saint Maud.' The memo also lauded Bhula. 'Farhana has worked alongside Ollie to create a culture of ambition, collaboration and artistic excellence, enhancing Film4's reputation as one of the most pioneering and dynamic teams in the business,' it said. 'With a current slate that epitomizes everything Film4 stands for, the team will go from strength to strength under Farhana's leadership.' Best of The Hollywood Reporter 13 of Tom Cruise's Most Jaw-Dropping Stunts Hollywood Stars Who Are One Award Away From an EGOT 'The Goonies' Cast, Then and Now
Daily Maverick
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Maverick
It's boom(er) time — 70 is the new 50, so get up and get on with life
Have you noticed how many movies, TV series, YouTube clips and adverts now portray old people as the protagonists and not just the doddering grandpa or hobbling, grey-haired granny? There was a time, until very recently, where the silver-haired brigade appeared exclusively in adverts for medicines to treat age-related ailments, food – as in 'as good as grandma's homemade bobotie' – or financial ads with salutary tales of the need to invest early or the joys of reaping a lifetime of prudent investment. Then there were ads for retirement communities and dietary supplements to prevent constipation, boost bone health or manage arthritis. Grandparents were mostly featured interacting with grandchildren or extended family, or else the old were condescendingly depicted in negative roles that used ageism as humour. That's changed. It's official: seventy is the new fifty, so it follows that people with more trips around the sun are being shown in a different light. If you have any presence on social media, you can't have missed the trailers for a plethora of movies with older people in the cast. There's the upcoming movie The Thursday Murder Club. The book, written by Richard Osman and set in a peaceful retirement village, went viral, quickly catapulting it into the stratosphere. The movie stars Helen Mirren (79), Jonathan Pryce (77), Ben Kingsley (81) and Pierce Brosnan (71) as a group of oldies who become unlikely friends and meet weekly to solve murders. Then there's 80 For Brady in which a bunch of even older old broads – Jane Fonda (87), Rita Moreno (93), Lily Tomlin (85) and Sally Field (78) – go on a life-changing trip to see their football hero, Tom Brady, play in the Superbowl. And mostly the old people are no longer, as a rule, portrayed in stereotypical roles. No purple-rinse brigade here. The young old women wear Lulu Lemon yoga gear for their downward dog mornings; they have sex and fall in love and suffer like teenagers when it all goes wrong. And the new old men? They behave like old old men: chasing much younger women when they're not on the golf course talking about cryptocurrency. (Talk about stereotyping. Sorry.) But it must be said that this new breed of old men has also been heard talking about feelings. Sometimes – like Anthony Hopkins (87) did in The Father – they even cry. This cohort takes up the cudgels as they fight causes. The TV series Matlock sees Cathy Bates (76) play a lawyer getting justice for her dead, opioid-addicted daughter. That television and film studios are pouring money into productions aimed at the not-so-young is no surprise. It's profitable. A lot of money has been thrown into researching this area, not least by the highly respected global financial agency, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has produced a report that boldly announced, '70 is the new 50'. Apparently, today's baby boomers have the cognitive ability to work well past retirement age. And, curiously, someone aged 70 today has the same cognitive function as the average 53-year-old in 2000. That's a recent 25 years ago – the year my mother died, and I turned 42. Memory, orientation and basic maths were tested in one million people aged 50 and older from 41 countries. The IMF called it the 'rise of the silver economy': a world where people are living longer and breeding less, allowing older people to continue working, or fill positions in a job market threatened by a labour shortage. Me and my fellow oldies, they found, are healthier than our counterparts of old. Among other things, like being cognitively superior to our parents at our age, our grip and lung function are better. My dear old mom, who spent a large portion of her Catholic life on her knees, would have pooh-poohed the findings; she could still genuflect, get down to the ground with one knee and lift herself up without aid until she died at 76. What would have shocked her is the behaviour of new old people. Mom had a long list of taboo subjects, the most prominent of them being sex, any bodily functions, blasphemy and the price of things. A running joke with my siblings was that we'd been born through immaculate conception. The growing elderly population even looks younger, and I'm not talking about the red carpet at the Oscars, but shoppers in South African supermarkets and theatregoers. That, no doubt, can be attributed to good nutrition, more frequent exercise and easy access to ever-improving beauty treatments. As a young colleague recently observed: there's no such thing as ugly, only poor. Women, and increasingly men, who can afford it (and those who make it a priority even if they can't), are nipped and tucked into youthful versions of themselves. Under-chin waddle – more commonly known as turkey neck or saggy jowls – and nasolabial and marionette folds, those deeply ageing lines that run from the sides of the nose, past the mouth to the bottom of the chin, are pulled back and pinned to create defined jawlines. Droopy eyelids are snipped to remove excess skin and widen eyes. Foreheads are Botoxed into immovable obedience. And don't get me started on teeth and the prohibitive cost of fixing and whitening them. Even back then when I was growing up, my lovely mom – deeply lined at 60 – often pulled loose skin up with both hands saying wistfully, 'if only'. But a facelift in Ladysmith in the 1980s was seriously not going to happen. There has been a giant shift in the 'getting old' zeitgeist: a change in our cultural perception of ageing. Old people are not let off the hook if they can't stand on one leg. Chair yoga, aqua aerobics and walking are recommendations from eye-rolling friends. It's okay to complain about a bad night's sleep or a bad hip. It's not to allow it to slow you down, or to stop you from joining a U3A (University of the Third Age) gallery walkabout. And so, old people are walking the Camino and climbing mountains, going back to university, taking art classes, learning Mandarin, joining a choir, volunteering at shelters, doing the rigorous courses needed to become counsellors at LifeLine… It puts pressure on those of us who just want to be, to have a cup of tea and a lie-down in the mid-afternoon, to not feel guilty if we turn on daytime TV. It seems that until surgery or a hip/knee/shoulder replacement restricts mobility, we are expected to get up and on with it. Age is no longer an excuse. It's no use complaining. Having been entirely self-reliant (I've lived on my own for two-thirds of my life), I would dearly love to abrogate responsibility for some of the drudgery that I am tasked with – bill paying, getting the car serviced, sorting a plumbing problem, organising my social life (every single outing, holiday, event, dinner). It's exhausting. But that 'seventy is the new fifty' voice is a constant refrain in my head. Get on with it! DM This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper, which is available countrywide for R35.
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
An actor in winter. Sir Anthony Hopkins will have a memoir out this fall
NEW YORK (AP) — Sir Anthony Hopkins will have a memoir out this fall, its title inspired by a childhood picture. 'We Did OK, Kid' will be published Nov. 4 by Summit Books, a Simon & Schuster imprint. 'There is a photograph I keep on my phone of my father and me on the beach when I was a child. I often tell that boy: 'We did OK, kid,'" the Oscar-winning actor said in a statement released Tuesday by Summit. "I wonder how a boy from Wales, the son of a baker, got here. My entire life is a great mystery. This book is my story.' See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. Hopkins, 87, is known for such films as 'The Silence of the Lambs,' ' The Father,' 'The Remains of the Day' and 'The Lion in Winter.' According to Summit, he will also write about his childhood in Wales, his stage career and his personal struggles, including how his drinking destroyed his first marriage, and how he has remained sober for nearly half a century. 'He constantly battles against the desire to move through life alone and avoid connection for fear of getting hurt — much like the men in his family — and as the years go by, he deals with questions of mortality, getting ready to discover what his father called The Big Secret,' the publisher's announcement reads in part. 'Featuring a special collection of personal photographs throughout, 'We Did OK, Kid' is a raw and passionate memoir from a complex, iconic figure who has inspired audiences with remarkable performances for over 60 years.'
The Independent
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
An actor in winter. Sir Anthony Hopkins will have a memoir out this fall
Sir Anthony Hopkins will have a memoir out this fall, its title inspired by a childhood picture. 'We Did OK, Kid' will be published Nov. 4 by Summit Books, a Simon & Schuster imprint. 'There is a photograph I keep on my phone of my father and me on the beach when I was a child. I often tell that boy: 'We did OK, kid,'" the Oscar-winning actor said in a statement released Tuesday by Summit. "I wonder how a boy from Wales, the son of a baker, got here. My entire life is a great mystery. This book is my story.' Hopkins, 87, is known for such films as 'The Silence of the Lambs,' ' The Father,' 'The Remains of the Day' and 'The Lion in Winter.' According to Summit, he will also write about his childhood in Wales, his stage career and his personal struggles, including how his drinking destroyed his first marriage, and how he has remained sober for nearly half a century. 'He constantly battles against the desire to move through life alone and avoid connection for fear of getting hurt — much like the men in his family — and as the years go by, he deals with questions of mortality, getting ready to discover what his father called The Big Secret,' the publisher's announcement reads in part. 'Featuring a special collection of personal photographs throughout, 'We Did OK, Kid' is a raw and passionate memoir from a complex, iconic figure who has inspired audiences with remarkable performances for over 60 years.'
