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)

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)

Percival Everett - James (2025)

 Robin’s choices

THEME: Afrocentric

We met on Monday 21 June 2025 to discuss Robin’s Afrocentric themed choices

READ: Percival Everett - James (2025)

James is a re-imagining of Mark Twain's classic, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, but which shifts the perspective to Jim the enslaved man and thereby Everett transforms the entire story. 

HBG had read and discussed The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn 13 years ago. 

Percival Everrett’s reimagining is narrated in the first person by James. This is the single most important difference. We get to experience the events from the perspective of the enslaved man, a perspective that was largely absent from the original. This shift allows for a much deeper and more complex exploration of the realities of slavery.

Robin stated this was his perfect book. He was blown away by how Everett's James is a man of incredible intelligence, wit, and intellect who has secretly taught himself to read and write and has an extensive knowledge of philosophy and literature, debating with himself in his mind about thinkers like Voltaire and John Locke.

Roland loved it. The simple fable story belied the book’s serious points and themes. Each encounter provides a different perspective. Both simple and profound

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is probably Hamish’s favourite book. Hamish lauded Percival Everett who he regards as a truly wonderful writer. He delicately treads the tightrope of respecting Twain's novel whilst tackling its greatest flaw as viewed through 21st century eyes. In doing so, he creates a modern classic that truly succeeds in adding to Twain's masterpiece. 

Nigel loved this reclamation of a classic narrative, giving a voice and a reality to a character who was silenced by history. A powerful, perceptive, passionate, angry, witty and memorable retelling of a classic American text. Percival Everett has really pulled off something special with this novel which is resolutely its own book.

Tristan admired the unflinching analysis of the horrific mental as well as physical hardships of being enslaved, and the introduction of a host of other characters, both sympathetic and, largely, not. And the plot twist was a stroke of genius.

Keith felt there was a lot of rafting and hiding out and catching catfish and yet there was still enough extra content that he felt he was getting a fresh view e.g the life of the minstrel, or the conditions of working in a sawmill. Percival Everett makes his point and makes it well but it still felt pretty straightforward in terms of wrapping one’s head around the content.

Nick was impressed by this sharp, satirical, and laugh out loud funny retelling of Twain’s much maligned classic. Everett manages to create a Boy’s Own page turner and a stinging social critique without either being compromised. Nick, no stranger to hyperbole, declared this The Greatest Book Club Book By A Country Mile

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

LISTEN: The Fatback Band - Night Fever (1976)

Robin really likes Fatback and is off to see them at Koko soon and acknowledged that Night Fever, whilst good, is not peak Fatback

Nigel is also a Fatback fanboy who felt this was Fatback-by-numbers and in the shadow of the more compelling Fatback funk (e.g. gems like Wicky Wacky, I Found Lovin, Yum Yum, Do The Bus Stop, and Spanish Hustle).  

He also wondered how on Fatback managed to so completely screw up their cover of December 1963 Oh What A Night.

Roland enjoyed it but felt it was Fatback trying to get on board with the then fashionable disco sound.

Hamish doesn't mind a bit of 70s funk and felt this was decent but not a long lost classic. 

Nick felt this lacked the power of the other two selections, but that he would have to be wearing concrete boots not to get up and shake his thang to these tunes.

Keith described it as tight, talented but in no way timeless

Tristan started thinking “booooring”, then moved to "ok yeah somewhat funky” and concluded by wanting to know who exactly it was that stole the boogie, and why they hadn't been brought to justice?

Nick - / Tristan - / Nigel 2 / Keith - / Robin - / Hamish 7

Watch: Do the Right Thing (1989) dir by Spike Lee

Robin felt this was dated but still stands up. 

Hamish did not review.

Nick thinks this film is still a gut punch: vibrant, funny, unsettling, and distressingly as relevant today as it was when it was made with no easy answers

A masterpiece according to Tristan, complete with a brilliantly convincing and varied cast of characters, and the ambivalent portrayal of all the different ethnic groups. The heart-breaking ending is sadly just as relevant nowadays as it was 36 years ago.

Keith felt it had not aged well and felt a bit too innocent

Nigel had mixed feelings back in 1989 and they were still there following this rewatch. He feels Spike went on to make far better films. The old fashioned orchestral score and sickly red colour palette distract. Nigel acknowledged that its themes of racial tension, inequality and police brutality are sadly still all too relevant 

Roland begged to differ. He was immersed in the pressure cooker narrative and dubbed Spike’s film an absolute classic. 

Nick 10 / Tristan 9 / Nigel 5 / Keith - / Roland 10 / Robin 7 

ENDORSE IT 

HBG endorse it: 13 June 2025 - 20th July 2025

TV

Dept Q (Netflix)

Shifty (BBC iPlayer)

The Bear (Season 3) (Disney+)

Mix Tape (BBC iPlayer)

FILM

28 Years Later (2025) dir by Danny Boyle

Vita and Virginia (Prime) dir by Chanya Button

MUSIC

Antony Szmierek - Service Station At The End Of The Universe (2025)

Young Fathers - 28 Years Later OST (2025)

PODCASTS

The Bureau of Lost Culture