The Other News From England.

12 February 2001.

The Other News is out early this week, but you can still access last week's edition by clicking below.

Another of those weeks in which a huge scene in Joe Punter's Shakespeare renders space for anything much else unavailable.

Index of earlier issues - click here.

(Those who like digging about will find that there are hundreds of articles on many subjects to be found on this site.)

Old issues.

There are some much earlier Other News on this site. Click below.

early Othernews - 1992, 93, 94.

Bonnington Cafe and Bonnington Square.

Sorry about Saturday just gone. I have become confused about the Bonnington bookings. THIS Saturday I believe it will be Phil again. No charge, but the hat goes round.

Bonnington cafe is a communally owned cafe in Vauxhall, Central London. The atmosphere is somewhat Bohemian, international, friendly, educated, and much wine (bought from the corner shop across the road) gets drunk. Good quality vegetarian. Cheap. The only lighting is usually candles stuck in wine bottles, and the furniture is a collection of odds and sods that people have thrown out. The overall result is relaxed and pleasing. People tend to spend the whole evening over their meal, and engage in discussion with those on other tables, the caterer, the band, passers through......

Bonnington Cafe, Vauxhall Grove, London SW8 UK. Near Vauxhall underground and mainline station, buses 185, 36, 2, 88, 322 and others. Booking is difficult.

Joe Punter's Shakespeare.

King Henry the 6th. part 3.

ACT 1 .

Scene 4.

Another part of the field.

Alarms. Enter Richard, Duke of York.

YORK:

The queen's army has taken the field. Both my uncles were killed rescuing me, and all my followers are running away. My sons - god knows what's happened to them, but I do know that they have behaved like men born to renown by life or death. Three times Richard made a lane to me, and cried "Courage, father! Fight it out!" and just as often Edward came to my side with sword painted to the hilt with blood from those who had encountered him, and when the hardiest warriors retired, Richard cried "Charge, and give no foot of ground!", and cried "A crown, or else a glorious tomb! A sceptre or an earthly sepulchre (grave)! With this, we charged again, but alas we failed like a swan trying in vain to swim against a mighty tide.

(a short alarm within)

Ah, hark! the fatal followers pursue, and I am faint and cannot fly their fury. Were I strong, I would not shun my duties here, but time runs out for me. Here I must stay and end my life.

(enter the queen, Clifford and Northumberland, and soldiers)

Come, bloody Clifford and rough Northumberland I dare you. I am your butt, and I dare you.

NORTHUMBERLAND:

Yield to mercy, proud Plantagenet.

CLIFFORD:

Aye, to such ruthless mercy as he showed to my father. He is fallen.

YORK:

My ashes may well bring revenge upon you all, and in that hope I throw my eyes up to heaven, scorning whatever you can afflict me with. Why aren't you coming? What? Multitudes and fear?

CLIFFORD:

That's how cowards behave when they can fight no further. Like doves pecking the fallen falcon's talons, or how desperate thieves, hopeless of their lives, breathe out invective against their captors.

YORK:

Oh Clifford, think of the time, if you can without blushing, when this face has mde thee faint before now.

CLIFFORD:

I will not bandy words with you, but will exchange two blows for each one with swords.

(draws)

QUEEN:

Wait, Clifford! For a thousand reasons I would prolong the traitor's life a little. Wrath makes him deaf. - speak, Northumberland.

NORTHUMBERLAND:

Hold, clifford! do not honour him so much as to prick your finger, even if it would wound his heart. What valour is it, when a cur grins, to thrust his hand between his teeth when he might spurn you with his foot away? It is the spoils of war to take all advantages.

(hope I got that right - ed)

(they lay hands on York, who struggles)

CLIFFORD:

Aye. So strives the woodcock in the gin (trap).

NORTHUMBERLAND:

So does the cony struggle in the net.

YORK:

So do thieves triumph upon their booty! So do true men yield when outnumbered by too many robbers.

NORTHUMBERLAND:

What would your grace have done to him now?

QUEEN:

Brave warriors Clifford and Northumnberland, make him stand upon this molehill here - he who thought himself so great that he could be king of England yet shrank to nothing under the slightest pressure. What!? Was it you who should be king of England? Was it you who revelled in our parliament and preached about your high descent? Where are your mess of sons to back you now? The wanton Edward and the lusty George? And where is that valiant crook-back prodigy Dicky with his grumbling who was ready to back his dad in mutiny? Or, where is your darling Rutland? Look, I stained this napkin with the blood that clifford made issue from the boy's body, and if your eyes can water for his death I give you this to dry your cheeks with. Alas, poor York, but I hate you deadly. I should lament your miserable state. Please grieve to make me merry, York. Stamp, rave, and fret, so that I may sing and dance. What? Has your fiery heart parched your entrails so much that not a tear can fall for rutland's death? Why are you patient, man? You should be mad. And I, to make you mad, mock you in this way. You need to be paid, I see, to make me sport. You cannot speak unless you wear a crown. A crown for York, and , lords, bow to him. - hold his hands whilst I put it on him.

(putting a paper crown on his head)

Aye, now he looks like a king. Aye this is the one who took Henry's chair, and this is the one who was his adopted heir. - but how is it that Plantagenet, who broke his solemn oath, is crowned so soon? As I think, you should not be king till King Henry has shaken hands with death. And now will you steal that crown during his life, against your holy oath? It's too unpardonable! - Off with the crown and his head, and whilst we breathe, take time to do him dead.

CLIFFORD:

That is my duty, for my father's sake.

QUEEN:

Nay! Stop a moment. Let us hear the orisons he makes.

YORK:

She-wolf of France, but worse, with tongue more poisonous than the adder, how unseemly for one of your sex to to triumph like this over your foes. But that your face is, vizard-like, unchanging, made impudent by evil deeds, I would make you blush by telling you from where you came, who your parents were, had you any sensitivity. Your father bears the name of King of Naples, Sicily and Jerusalem, yet he is not as wealthy as an English yeoman. Did he teach you to insult? I would remind you of the old adage that beggars on horseback run their horse to death. It's beauty that often makes women proud, but god knows your share of that is small. It is virtue that often makes them most admired, whilst the contrary makes you wondered at, government that makes them seem divine, but your want of that makes you abominable. You are as opposite of any good as the Antipodes are to us, or as south to north, a tiger's heart wrapped in woman's hide! How could you drain the child's life-blood to ask the father to wipe his eyes with and yet pretend to be a woman? You are everything a woman is not. All those things you wanted me to do, rave, cry, stamp, you now have, and every tear cries vengeance against thee fell Clifford, and thee false Frenchwoman.

NORTHUMBERLAND:

His passion shows so hard that I can hardly avoid crying.

YORK:

That face of his even hungry cannibals would not have touched, yet you are more inhuman. I wash the blood away with my tears, yet keep the napkin, and go and boast about it, and if you tell the story right, upon my soul the hearers will shed tears - yes even my enemies would shed tears and it was a piteous deed! Then, take the crown, and with the crown my curse -

(giving back the paper crown)

And may it comfort you! as now I reap at your too-cruel hand! - hard-hearted Clifford, take me from this world, my soul to heaven, my blood upon your hands.

NORTHUMBERLAND:

Had he been the killer of all my family I would not for my life be unable to weep with him, to see how sorrow grips his soul.

QUEEN:

What, ready to weep, my lord Northumberland? Just think of the wrong he did us all and that will quickly dry your tears.

CLIFFORD:

Here's for my oath, here's for my father's death.

(stabbing him)

QUEEN:

And here's to right our gentle king.

(stabbing him)

YORK:

Upon thy grate of mercy, gracious God! My soul flies through these wounds to seek you.

(dies)

QUEEN:

Off with his head, and set it on York gates - so York may overlook the town of York.

(Flourish. All exit)

More next week.

MISCELLANY.

Not so very long ago, a friend of mine went to see Hamlet with a friend of hers. Hamlet is similarly gorey and full of yobbish behaviour to King Henry the Sixth. My friend's friend (a lady who went to Benenden, incidentally, where they try to convince the world that the best education for young ladies is to be found) during the interval said "Grim, isn't it? Does it have a happy ending?

Southwark.

RECENTLY, an upbeat note marked "CSL working in partnership with Southwark" came from Southwark's contractor who deals with housing benefit telling me:

which many of us know does not happen.

What actually happens is that CSL have not enough people to do the job in hand, and so do something like throw the claims in the wastepaper bin when there are too many of them. Nobody has yet found out for certain exactly what they do, but it is clear from the number of persons whose benefit is not being paid when they are obviously a valid claimant that something like that happens.

And on the other hand, my lodger, who left last september, still has mail from CSL sent to her at this address, despite the fact that CSL were notified at the time she departed that she was leaving. These letters come in threes, thus maximising as much as possible the waste without it being so many letters that it is obvious even within CSL that there is something wrong. I have the problem of working out whether to forward them to her or return them to CSL, who presumably will not know what to do with them. CSL's envelope has on it the message: "if you are not the named person please complete the following: Name(s)....... Date moved in....." . It is of course quite obvious that any person moving into a flat out of which somebody else has just moved will be thrilled to have such important things to do, so they're bound to get returned. As for their arriving in the hallway of a block of flats in large numbers, that could be even more enthralling.

And then finally, I was told the other day that a representative of Southwark was on the radio recently telling the nation that Southwark was the only council in Britain whose housing benefit claims were all up to date, when I know for a fact that one claim very close to me was put in last Autumn and looks like it will never get processed. Well, I suppose that is a way of getting things up to date - you lose them.

Any old fool can throw a piece of paper in the wastepaper bin. Some can even throw them in the recycle bin.........

...........................................................................................................................

The stuff that doesn`t often get changed now follows:

Alternet News.

Alternet News might appeal to some readers as a regular list of goings-on in the human rights/green areas of life. You can receive it by email. I have put one copy on this site so that you get an idea of what it is about and how to subscribe.

For sample Alternet email click here.

Biotechnology

Click here for an email that arrived in January 2000 concerning a proposed reasoned approach to this tricky subject

Goforth's social justice e-zine.

This interesting email magazine comes at fairly regular intervals and is of interest to almost anybody who is interested in human rights and green issues. In November 2000 it was going out to about 10,000 addresses. Try it. It won't cost you anything, and you can reproduce the contents without paying. You can subscribe by writing to them at: sjzine@netscape.net, or visit: Goforth's site

This website is about accounting investigations and fiddles. If you like to look at financial scandals (both hidden and public) this might be worth a look. I have not been there myself, but the books produced by these people, although difficult to follow, cover a lot of mysterious ground.

This website is about the destruction of countryside and agriculture. Worth a visit if you want to find out about how it is thought the British countryside will fair under the ongoing creep of the multinationals.

This website is one to do with monetary reform.The British Association for Monetary Reform. If you are interested in economics it is worth a look. http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~bamr1

This is a website about alternative currencies.Might be worth a look to those who have realised that you don't necessarily have to have money as such to be prosperous.

This is a website for something called The Green Guide. I know nothing about it, but am hoping it is something worthy. Please let me know if it is questionable.

This is a site concerned with one of the most unpopular planning decisions ever made in Greater London, the Crystal Palace Complex. It is so stunningly awful that only a handful of people who do not live near it appear to approve, whilst the rest are not entirely uninclined to mention such things as payola, freemasons....you name it! The site belongs to the London Borough of Bromley, but the aggro generated by it and the destruction of amenity caused by it will be almost entirely suffered by residents of adjoining boroughs and not the people of Bromley themselves.

This is a recycling site based in London, and offering materials to anybody. The organisation is a charity seeking to link suppliers of surplus materials with users. Especially good for the more ingenious designers amongst us.

The email of the people who run the above site is cs@london-recycling.demon.co.uk. They are called Creative Supplies. Look them up for more info.

Here's an interesting education site - particularly for those who have young children and are not quite sure what to do to avoid the worst of what`s on offer in the mainstream of education.They are called www.edrev.org.

early Othernews - 1992, 93, 94.

Early Other News essays.

There were a few essays that went out with the early Other News as a freestanding item. You can read these by clicking below.

Essays.

The Soup Designer`s Handbook.

The Soup Designer`s Handbook.

London Journey - a trip from Docklands through Beckenham and back to Docklands.

Friday Woodworkers.

(Friday Woodworkers are suffering a temporary break due to some of the episodes not having been fully edited at the time of writing. It may take some timne to fix this problem.

Episode 17.

(These articles were written in 1988, and were my first attempt at writing. Some people when shown these fell about laughing, some smiled faintly - and some yawned. I thought I was going to write a technical book, but it soon became apparent that I was much more interested in the people than the technology - and that is the main reason there are no drawings - although it might be rather good to do a couple of caricatures sometime.)

Index of Friday Woodorker articles (and a means of access).

Index of earlier issues.

Gabriele Gad on alternative therapy.

A READER COMPLAINED that it was not possible to go back more than 6 articles in Gabriele`s area. Regrettably this is because there is no index, and I have not the time to organise one yet. However, for those determined enough to find the early ones, they should be accessible by going to an early Other News and clicking through from it. This will not be fast, but I think will do the job. They started about November 1997 I think.

editor@othernews.co.uk

Cartoons and graphics.

drawings click here.

sheet music click here.

Consumers.

LEXMARK 3200 PRINTER.

In an earlier issue I told you about my feelings regarding Tempo retailers and the Lexmark 3200 printer I bought from them.

The Lexmark 3200 printer I got from Tempo must surely be the most uneconomical printer I could possibly have bought. The black cartridge only does about 250 pages of ordinary type - for £28! That makes each sheet cost 11.2 pence plus the cost of the paper and probably another 11.2 pence more if any colour is used! - ABOUT 22.4 PENCE A SHEET! Nearly a pound for every four sheets!

I wouldn`t recommend you to buy it - but also look at my earlier article for an idea of Tempo`s service.

Wanted

A person to help make up a subject index for the growing numbers of articles on The Other News From England. Email editor@othernews.co.uk (this may now have been provided, but please email if you might like to join in in some way - ed.)

All material on this site is copyright. Contact me if you want to use it. I am quite flexible. Educational non-profit use is free - but ask for permission and print an acknowledgement. If you can`t think what to print, put:

From The Other News From England. http://www.othernews.co.uk

Even better if you print the date of the article.

editor@othernews.co.uk

That`s all this week folks