Sunday Culture

Different parts of Edinburgh have been on fire over the last couple of weeks, the immediate repercussions of which are causing mild travel upset in an already overcrowded town filled with residents and those flocking here to soak up the culture. And this is before the F word brings even more visitors to our town.

But I’m not (yet) a Fringe humbug. I welcome the ability to have a massive arts festival on my doorstep (and return by foot to my quiet home afterwards). Albeit an increasingly commercialised London-centric festival pushing out grassroots performers who can’t afford to do the Fringe for a month…..

What I’ve been reading 

I was delighted to come across the Substack publication of a gorgeous print journal Dulcify that I soaked up the two printed issues of. One of the two remains proudly displayed in my kitchen, a mildly showy indicator to visitors of what I consider to be taste. Joanna, the founder, has created a beautifully curated ‘slow journalism’ newsletter. Her enthusiasm and joy in meeting and writing about those who cook the food we eat in restaurants we love or curate a shop full of treasures is a balm to the overstimulation of social media. Please read and mellow in the writing (and photography).

https://dulcifyjournal.substack.com

What I’ve been watching 

Having long had a BFI player subscription, I’ve often neglected it in favour of the bigger bolder streamers but I’ve made a promise to myself to dive in and watch one film from the BFI’s most recent ‘Greatest Films of All Time’ list a week (eh…..maybe fortnightly). No list is definitive and is highly subjective but I consider it more of a guide.

I clicked on ‘Cléo from 5 to 7’, a 1962 film by Agnes Varda. Following the protagonist around Paris in real time as she awaits a medical test result, the film gives us a close up view of the nascent change in her self perception. Varda has a photographic eye in capturing this fateful afternoon and seeing the Paris of 1962 is a treat. Nouvelle Vague at its finest.

The list in question. How many have you seen?

Oh and I’ve seen the Odyssey. I must admit my initial reaction was a bit ‘meh’. Perhaps I’d built up the anticipation too much. I enjoyed it, it was truly epic to watch and one sequence in particular with Samantha Morton was stunningly rendered. Agamemnon’s DRIP was a sight. But it was a smidge too long and I would have loved to have seen that story with less familiar faces.

What I’ve been listening to

I recently rewatched ‘Daisy Jones and the Six’, aptly described in a review as Fleetwood Mac fan fiction. I have a quasi nostalgic long term fantasy about living in the music scene in the 70s. Which music scene you ask? Well all of them but mostly rock slipping in to punk. So Fleetwood Mac has soundtracked my week. The early Peter Green bluesy stuff (Rumours was their 11th album and at about the same iteration of band members). Yes, the languid ‘Albatross’ existed before we all buzzed off those M+S ads. This is not just music….

Also this week had the 7th anniversary of my friend’s death. In the aftermath, a few of us made a shared Spotify playlist filled with music she loved, music that reminded us of her, music each of us had shared with her. Spotify collaborations were in their infancy then but there was something about sharing music that helped us move through something together.

Find a song you love and dance freely to it. Like nobody is watching. Go on.

GRMA,

Deirdre x