Wednesday, 15 October 2025

John Le Carre - A Legacy of Spies (2017)

 Nick’s choices



*THEME: Retirement*


READ:John Le Carre - A Legacy of Spies (2017)



Peter Guillam, Smiley's former right-hand man, returns to a very 21st century new service headquarters by the Thames. Bunny is fabulously and memorably faux-friendly whilst Laura is all business. The veteran Guillam uses all his knowledge to try to outfox this pair of interrogators who want to know all about Operation Windfall (detailed in 'The Spy Who Came In from the Cold'). This protracted opening scene is John le Carré at his very best and brings Guillam slap bang into the modern world. From then on Guillam is forced to revisit his former life and consider the consequences of what happened. Le Carre was a fabulous writer and this is a fabulous novel which beautifully concludes the series, or is it?


Nick explained how retirement was a good overarching theme. He felt this book was a somewhat stilted read and was not le Carre at his best.


This was the second time that Hamish had read this book and, aside from some shocking sex scenes, he found it as agreeable as ever.


Robin was new to the book and the author and he absolutely blimmin loved it.


Keith thought it was clever with great attention to detail. He enjoyed the set up but also noted there were too many notes in files. He was however transported back to places and times, in a good way.


Roland was less impressed. He never got a feel for the characters. And felt overall it was laboured, uninspiring, and heavy going. Suffice to say he did no enjoy it.


Tristan is a big fan, however this book simply did not work for him. Rehashed thin gruel which does sound pretty unpleasant.



Nick 6.5 / Tristan 4 / Nigel 8 / Keith 7 / Robin 9 / Hamish 7.5 / Roland 5





LISTEN: Leonard Cohen - You Want It Darker (2016)


Nick described this album as an extraordinary piece of work. Also, very funny. Brilliant, stunning!


It was not Roland‘s kind of thing. He didn’t listen to the words. Words schmords. Pleasant but too simplistic and uninspiring with a lack of hooks and melodies. Back in yer box Cohen.


Keith liked the humour and the writing and found it all very musical.


Nigel loves the voice, the sound and was glad to revisit this legacy assuring gem which is a perfect fit with the mortality saturated vibe of the book. The sparse dark sound works perfectly with Leonard Cohen‘s gravelly baritone. Both gloomy and comforting, a trick few other musical artists could pull off.


Hamish described Leonard Cohen as an extraordinary lyricist. This album is much better than the early stuff. It was a pleasure to listen to his voice again.


Tristan has never been a Leonard Cohen fan and was only dimly aware of who he was, and so was not expecting a lot. After a few listens he concluded that the lyrics and indeed the songs are absolutely brilliant. Pure poetry. He was surprised by how much he enjoyed the music.



Nick 10 / Tristan 8 / Nigel 9 / Keith - / Robin - / Hamish - / Roland -



WATCH: The Limey (1999) dir by Steven Soderbergh


Steven Soderbergh directs a solid cast in this powerful non-linear neo-noir crime film which subverts the revenge genre. The editing creates a fragmented and dreamlike feel which works well. 



The old clips of a young Terence Stamp are from the 1967 film Poor Cow, directed by Ken Loach. Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Lem Dobbs used the footage to create a backstory for Stamp's character, Wilson, showing him as a young man and a budding criminal.


This stylistic masterstroke provides a hazy, memory-like peek into Wilson's past and his relationship with the mother of his daughter.


The cast are great - especially Terence Stamp and Peter Fonda - and the clash of these legends gives the film added resonance. 


It’s a simple plot given added heft by the editing, performances, flashbacks, and artistic choices. 


Nick enjoyed it despite the awful Cockneyisms dubbing it a melancholy & weird little film.


Nigel was seduced by the film’s dreamlike, hallucinatory quality and enjoyed seeing Stamp and Fonda back on the screen.


Roland was gradually won over by this film. He enjoyed the culture clash between the Californians and the Terrence Stamp character.


Keith described it as a real romp. The moral position of the daughter was a good theme.


Robin was less convinced but found elements enjoyable enough


A clean sweep of (relative) positivity? Alas no. Tristan called it a stinker and piss poor and went on to lambast everything about it.



Nick - / Tristan 2 / Nigel 8 / Keith 9 / Robin 5 / Hamish - / Roland -




ENDORSE IT  


HBG endorse it: 5th September 2025 - 9th October 2025


TV

Mixtape (BBC iPlayer)

Black Rabbit (Netflix)


BOOKS

Camilla’s second hand bookshop in Eastbourne

The Impossible Fortune (Thursday Murder Club #5) by Richard Osman 

Clown Town (Slough House, #9) by Mick Herron


MUSIC

Geese - Getting Killed (2025)

Maodcast Riviera Beat

Edwyn Collins live


FILM

The Holdovers

One Battle After Another


PODCASTS

Sleeping Forecast (BBC Sounds) - classical and ambient music mixed with excerpts from the Shipping Forecast 


EXHIBITIONS

Sussex Modernism (Towner Gallery, Eastbourne)

The Ravilious collection (Towner Gallery, Eastbourne)







Monday, 8 September 2025

Christopher Isherwood - Goodbye to Berlin (1939)

 Roland’s choices



*THEME: 1930s Berlin*


Venue: Roland’s House 6️⃣0️⃣ 🎂


We met on Thursday 4th September 2025 at Roland’s house for a double celebration. Not only was it our return from the Summer break it was also the date of Roland’s 60th birthday. It was a memorable night with presents, a good time vibe, and Roland’s splendid 1930s Berlin themed selections.





READ: Christopher Isherwood - Goodbye to Berlin (1939)


Not so much a novel as a collection of semi autobiographical interconnected vignettes, diary entries, and character studies that serve as a haunting farewell to a city staring into the abyss. Hamish was frustrated by the lack of a story.


Published in 1939, just as the clouds of World War 2 were gathering, the book provides a vibrant snapshot of Weimar era Berlin. Narrated by a young English writer named "Christopher Isherwood" we get an eye witness account of a chaotic and fascinating world of seedy boarding houses, nightclubs, a wealthy family, and the humble apartments of ordinary people. Keith was not so sure about Isherwood as a narrator.


The book is populated by a cast of unforgettable characters. Most famously there’s Sally Bowles, the divinely decadent nightclub singer whose flamboyant theatricality masks a profound vulnerability, and whose reckless abandon embodies the carefree hedonism of the era. Alongside Sally are Fräulein Schroeder, the maternal landlady, the Landauers, a wealthy and cultured Jewish family, and many more.


The book exudes a powerful sense of atmosphere and the reader comes away with a vivid picture of the vibrant world of 1930's Berlin. The book's final chapters, as Isherwood prepares to leave the city, are infused with a profound sense of loss, a heartfelt farewell to a world he knows will never be the same. It is a farewell not just to Berlin, but to an entire way of life. A classic book that retains its relevance and power. Tristan found it fascinating but flawed, and Nick, despite his score, said it felt light.


Nick 10 / Tristan 7 / Nigel 9 / Keith 7 / Robin 8 / Hamish 6 / Roland 7.5



LISTEN: Bauhaus - The Bela Session (2018)


Bela Lugosi’s Dead is great, everything else from the session less so, was the general consensus, except Nick who likes to be jarred and gave it 10 out of 10.



WATCH: Cabaret (1972) dir by Bob Fosse


To varying degrees we all lauded this film. 


Nick 10 / Tristan 10 / Nigel 10 / Keith 9 / Robin 6 / Hamish 8 / Roland 6.5



ENDORSE IT  


HBG endorse it: 21st July 2025 - 4th September 2025


BOOKS

Gunk by Saba Sams 

Trade Thompson - The Rosewater Insurrection 


TV

Mandy (BBC iPlayer)

Pernilee (Netflix)


FILM

Gosford Park (2001) dir by Robert Altman (BBC iPlayer)

Hallow Road (2025) dir by Babak Anvari 

Speak No Evil (2024) dir by James Watkins

Bird (Mubi)

The Florida Project (Mubi)

Hollywood Gate (BBC iPlayer)


PODCASTS

The People vs MacDonald’s (BBC Sounds)

What Happened To Counter Culture?

(BBC Sounds)


MUSIC

Getdown Services live - go see them. Guaranteed good times

Devo documentary (Netflix)