#Jackie Collett

[verypsbfan019]

"Was it worth it?"

Just an illustration about Duck staring at his younger self, a 19-year-old engine driver known as Jacqueline Collett. Although Duck is currently 38, he thinks about who he used to be when he started to work at Paddington station. He thinks about how much he has changed in 19 years and how worthy it was.

There are no words to describe how good it feels...

[samsqueerpolycule]

Thinking about how Lazslo really is not one to talk about his emotions very much but they just pour out of him when it comes to Nadja.

[medium-observation]

FEBRUARY RELEASE

Beetlejuice - First US National Tour

January 21, 2024 - Medium Observation

Video | Matinée

Cast:

Justin Collette (Beetlejuice), Larkin Reilly (u/s Lydia Deetz), Megan McGinnis (Barbara Maitland), Matthew Michael Janisse (s/w Adam Maitland), Jesse Sharp (Charles Deetz), Sarah Litzsinger (Delia Deetz), Hillary Porter (Miss Argentina), Abe Goldfarb (Otho), Brian Vaughn (Maxie Dean), Lexie Dorsett Sharp (s/w Maxine Dean/Juno), Haley Hannah (s/w Girl Scout), Ryan Breslin (s/w Ensemble)

Notes:

Excellent video of Larkin and Matthew as Lydia and Adam respectively. Minimal washout with very little to no obstruction.

NFT DATE: August 1st, 2024

Screenshots:https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBbtWz

Video is $20

Moulin Rouge! The Musical - First US National Tour

January 6, 2024 - Medium Observation

Video | Matinée

Cast:

Mark Doyle (u/s Christian), Arianna Rosario (alt Satine), Robert Petkoff (Zidler), Kevyn Morrow (e/c Toulouse), Andrew Brewer (Duke), Danny Burgos (Santiago), Sarah Bowden (Nini), Harper Miles (La Chocolat), Nicci Claspell (Arabia), Max Heitmann (Baby Doll), Kamal Lado (Pierre), Sam J. Cahn, Darius Crenshaw, Jimena Flores Sanchez, Tommy Gedrich, Cameron Hobbs, Tamrin Goldberg (s/w), Pepe Munoz (s/w), Tanisha Moore, Brayden Newby, Elyse Niederee, Kent Overshown, Stefanie Renee Salyers, Adéa Michelle Sessoms, Preston Taylor

Notes:

Absolutely perfect video of Mark, Arianna and Kevyn as Christian, Satine and Toulouse respectively! Zero obstruction, minimal washout.

NFT DATE: August 1st, 2024

Screenshots:https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjB9sf1

Video is $20

Wicked - Second US National Tour (Munchkinland)

January 28, 2024 - Medium Observation

Video

Cast:

Olivia Valli (Elphaba), Celia Hottenstein (Glinda), Colin LeMoine (u/s Fiyero), Timothy Shew (The Wizard), Kathy Fitzgerald (Madame Morrible), Tara Kostmayer (Nessarose), Kyle McArthur (Boq), Boise Holmes (Doctor Dillamond), Mitchell Tobin (Chistery), Jane Brockman (Midwife), Alexia Acebo (Witch's Mother), Wayne Schroder (Witch's Father / Ozian Official), Jennifer Mariela Bermeo (Ensemble), Remmie Bourgeouis (Ensemble), Sean Burns (Ensemble), Jōvan Dansberry (Ensemble), Matt Densky (Ensemble), Marie Eife (Ensemble), Jenny Florkowski (s/w Ensemble), David Kaverman (s/w Ensemble), Lauren Leach (Ensemble), Megan Loomis (Ensemble), Madison Claire Parks (Ensemble), Jackie Raye (Ensemble), Kat Rodriguez (Ensemble), Anthony Santos (Ensemble), Derek Schiesel (Ensemble), Tregoney Shepherd (Ensemble), Brett Stoelker (Ensemble), Maggie Van Wieringen (Ensemble)

Notes:

Fantastic video of Colin Fiyero! Some readjusting throughout, minimal washout. 

NFT DATE: August 1st, 2024

Screenshots:https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBcqfY

Video is $20

Videos can be purchased through me at mediumobservationtrading@gmail.com

[joethetoonfanandoutcast]

Xover Possibility: Scooby-Universal-Doo

This is a limited crossover series I'm now considering.

Scooby and the gang have teamed up with several celebrities and a few famous characters in taking down ghosts and solving mysteries under WB's commission, but let's see what happens if they end up in the Universal Pictures cyber universe and end up doing…well, pretty much the same formula, except with versions of the Universal animated characters.

Here are some possibilities I thought up.

Franchise: Despicable Me Characters teamed up with: Felonious Gru, Lucy Wilde, and three of the Minions Type of monster/ghost: Chronology: before Despicable Me 3 or Despicable Me 4 Guest Voices: Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Steve Coogan, and Pierre Coffin Chase scene song: "Chuck Berry" by Pharrell Williams (from Despicable Me 3)

Franchise: the Lorax Characters teamed up with: Ted Wiggins, Audrey, and the Lorax (whom Mystery Inc believes is a mascot) Type of monster/ghost: Guest Voices: Michael Cera, Ashleigh Ball, Danny DeVito and Chris Renaud Chase scene song: n/a

Franchise: the Secret Life of Pets Characters teamed up with: Katie, Max, Duke, Gidget, and Snowball Type of monster/ghost: Note: The pets will be able to communicate thanks to a translation device Gru briefly lets the gang borrow Guest Voices: Patton Oswalt, Eric Stonestreet, a Kevin Hart soundalike, Jenny Slate, Ellie Kemper, and Lori Alan Chase scene song:

Franchise: the Road to El Dorado Characters teamed up with: Modern-day lookalike descendants of Miguel, Tulio and Chel with the same names Type of monster/ghost: Stone Jaguar Guest Voices: Kevin Kline, a Kenneth Branagh soundalike, and Rosie Perez Chase scene song: n/a

Franchise: Shrek/Puss in Boots Characters teamed up with: Type of monster/ghost: Guest Voices: ??? Chase scene song: ?

Franchise: Wallace & Gromit Characters teamed up with: Wallace & Gromit Type of monster/ghost: Guest Voices: ??? Chase scene song: a UK rock band song

Franchise: Kung Fu Panda Characters teamed up with: "furry cosplayers" Po and the Furious Five (minus Mantis) Type of monster/ghost: Guest Voices: Jack Black, Kari Wahlgren, David Cross, Lucy Liu, and a Jackie Chan soundalike Chase scene song: Dumpling Warrior Remix (instrumental) from Kung Fu Panda 2

Franchise: Megamind Characters teamed up with: Megamind, Minion, and Roxanne Ritchi Type of monster/ghost: Note: Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate and its TV series would be ignored Guest Voices: Keith Ferguson, David Cross, and Tina Fey Chase scene song: "Crazy Train" by Ozzy Osborne

Franchise: Mr. Peabody & Sherman Characters teamed up with: Who else? Mr. Peabody and Sherman Type of monster/ghost: Guest Voices: Chris Parnell and a male child actor Chase scene song: "Way Back When" by Grizzfolk

Franchise: Rocky & Bullwinkle Characters teamed up with: Rocket J. Squirrel and Bullwinkle J. Moose Type of monster/ghost: Guest Voices: Kath Soucie, Tom Kenny, and any voice from the 2018 cartoon Chase scene song: ?

Franchise: Captain Underpants Characters teamed up with: George Beard, Harold Hutchins, and a reluctant Benjamin Krupp/Captain Underpants Type of monster/ghost: Guest Voices: Jay Gragnani, Ramone Hamilton, Jorge Diaz, and either Nat Faxon or Ed Helms Chase scene song: "Captain Underpants" by Weird Al Yankovic

Franchise: the Bad Guys Characters teamed up with: the Bad Guys Type of monster/ghost: Guest Voices: Sam Rockwell, Awkwafina, Marc Maron, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramos, Alex Borstein, and Lily Singh Chase scene song: ?

Franchise: Ruby Gillman Characters teamed up with: Ruby and Agatha Gillman Type of monster/ghost: Guest Voices: Lana Condor, Toni Collette, Colman Domingo, Sam Richardson, Blue Chapman, Jaboukie White-Young, and Will Forte Chase scene song: n/a

Franchise: Mario Characters teamed up with: Mario and Luigi Type of monster/ghost: Bowser Koopa Guest Voices: Chris Pratt, Charlie Day, Jack Black, Jessica Diciccio, and Sebastian Maniscalo Chase scene song: Mario video game music

Franchise: Curious George Characters teamed up with: Curious George and Ted the Man in the Yellow Hat Type of monster/ghost: Guest Voices: Jeff Bennett, Bill Chott, and Rolonda Watts Chase scene song: n/a

I'm not absolutely certain I'll do this, as I'm already committed to other things. In fact, I might give this series idea to someone more qualified to write crossover mysteries. But still, if anyone would like to suggest types of monsters or ghosts Mystery Inc and their new co-detectives would be facing, I could try to think of the episode plots for them. Also, don't suggest the villains' identities unless through private note, otherwise it would kill the mystery.

[baby-chirp]

[bamboomusiclist]

3/5  おはようございます。Carl Wilson / Youngblood BFZ 37970  等更新しました。

Buddy Collette / Nice Day C3531 Duke Ellington / the Indispensable Lpm-6009 Curtis Fuller / Imagination Mg12144 Paul Desmond / Desmond Blue with Strings Lpm2438 Paul Desmond / Glad to Be Unhappy lpm3407 Barney Kessel / Bossa Nova r9-604 Barney Kessel / Some Like It Hot m3565 Jackie Paris / Can't Get Started With You songs by Jackie Paris mgw60004 Lurlean Hunter / Lonesome Gal lpm1151 McGuire Sisters / Sugartime Crl57217 Joe Thomas / Feelin's From Within gm-3315 Roland Kirk / Bright Moments sd2-907 Roland Kirk / Blacknuss Sd1601 Roland Kirk / Natural Black Inventions Root Strata sd1578 Can / I Want More vs422-12 James Brown / There it Is pd-5028 High Fashion / Feelin' Lucky Lately 8529 Kasso / Walkman 792.821 Carl Wilson / Youngblood BFZ 37970 Crosby Nash David Crosby & Graham Nash / Live aa1042

~bamboo music~ https://bamboo-music.net  info@bamboo-music.net   530-0028 大阪市北区万歳町3-41 シロノビル104号 06-6363-2700

[the-book-queen]

Hide your wallets, it’s that time again! #TBQsBookDeals

Your Wednesday thread of #romancedeals is ready, FREE to $1.99. Happy shopping! 📚❤

    FREE ✦ Love Lessons for a Lady by Collette Cameron

She just became the assistant headmistress. He's the grandson of a viscount but has chosen to become a dance master/music instructor at the school.

Historical Romance (MF) | https://amzn.to/3YA1pii 

FREE ✦ Her Scottish Wolf by Theodora Taylor

CW: Cancer

1st POV. Boss + assistant. Oh yeah, and he's secretly a wolf shifter.

Paranormal Romance (MF) | https://amzn.to/3XffCAr 

FREE ✦ His Grumpy Childhood Friend by Jackie Lau

Childhood friends meet again years later and he agrees to give her dating lessons.

Contemporary Romance (MF) | https://amzn.to/3Yj0Bif 

$1.99 ✦ Fake It Till You Bake It by Jamie Wesley

Reality star must work at a cupcake bakery owned by an uptight pro football player + fake relationship.

Contemporary Romance (MF) | https://amzn.to/3lhFoGV 

$1.99 ✦ Striking Distance by Pamela Clare

TV reporter + Navy SEAL. His team rescued her after being kidnapped by a terrorist group. Two years later, and she's still a target.

Romantic Suspense (MF) | https://amzn.to/3l8pQVK 

 Putting these lists together takes time. If you appreciate this content, please consider buying me a Ko-Fi. http://ko-fi.com/danielletbq 

[veroricamars]

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS

↳ 1x22: State

Slammin’ Sammy: He took a team that was battered, a town that was ailing, and he did more than put a band-aid on things. I’ll tell you that. He healed this team and he healed this town.

[teddybear-kiddo]

⋙ adorable, soft and warm names i found (inspired by this post) (≧◡≦)

❛ ━━━━━━･❪ ❁ ❫ ･━━━━━━ ❜

⋙ ¡feminine names!

🦊 Daisy

🌟 Hattie (Harriet, Harriette, Henriette)

🦊 Nelly (Cornelia, Hannelle, Petronella)

🌟 Shiloh

🦊 Abby (Abigail, Annabel, Gabrielle)

🌟 Gabby (Gabrielle, Isabella)

🦊 Addie (Adelaide, Adela, Adaline)

🌟 Annie (Annabell, Anika, Angeline)

🦊 Alfie

🌟 Alice

🦊 Tessie (Teresa, Tessa)

🌟 Tillie (Matilda, Ottilie, Milicent)

🦊 Essie/Ettie (Ester, Estelle)

🌟 Gracie

🦊 Jenny

🌟 Rosie (Rosemary, Rosetta, Rosalie)

🦊 Bonnie

🌟 Dotty (Dorothy)

🦊 Sally

🌟 Millie (Milicent, Melisa, Ludmila)

🦊 Lizzy (Elizabeth, Lisandra, Annelise)

🌟 Lindsay/Lindsey

🦊 Tabi (Tabitha)

🌟 Tammy

🦊 Vivi (Vivien, Viveka, Vivianna)

🌟 Clara

🦊 Clementine

🌟 Connie

🦊 Ellie (Elizabeth, Eleanore, Eloise)

🌟 Lena (Helena, Elena, Alena)

🦊 Josie (Josephine)

🌟 Harmony

🦊 Melody

🌟 Prim (Primrose)

🦊 Hazel

🌟 Ivy

🦊 Saddie

🌟 Winnie (Winifred, Winslow, Winter)

🦊 Miriam/Mariam/Marion

🌟 Manon

🦊 Alma

🌟 Enid

🦊 Maude

🌟 Mavis

🦊 Amelie/Amelia

🌟 Amory (Amoriel)

🦊 Camellia/Camila

🌟 Cecily

🦊 Daphne

🌟 Dinah

🦊 Dahlia

🌟 Lili (Lilian, Lilika, Lillien)

🦊 Lu

🌟 Lucy (Lucille, Lucinda, Lucienne)

🦊 Heidi

🌟 Valerie

🦊 Valentina

🌟 Zoey

🦊 Poppy

🌟 Ruby

🦊 Evie (Eve, Eva, Eveline, Aveline)

🌟 Molly

🦊 Pippa

🌟 Nancy

🦊 Honey (Hannah, Hannelle)

🌟 Bebe

🦊 Immy (Imogen)

🌟 Izzy (Isabella, Isadora)

🦊 Peach

🌟 Wendy

🦊 Katie (Katherine, Katrielle)

🌟 Mary/Merry

🦊 Lottie

🌟 Mae

🦊 Ashley

🌟 Julie (Juliet, Juliana)

🦊 Yana/Yara

🌟 Sookie

🦊 Nixie

🌟 Thea (Theodora, Theodosia)

🦊 Sabine

🌟 Danielle

🦊 Miley

🌟 Jane

🦊 Collette/Cosette

🌟 Vayla

🦊 Carla

🌟 Carol/Caroline

🦊 Veronica

🌟 Vanessa

🦊 Winry

🌟 Willow/Winslow

🦊 Wren

🌟 Malory

🦊 Mina

🌟 Maika

🦊 Mabel

🌟 Chloe

🦊 Nastia/Nadia

🌟 Nana

🦊 Natalie

🌟 Birdie

❛ ━━━━━━･❪ ❁ ❫ ･━━━━━━ ❜

⋙ ¡neutral names!

☁ Bailey

🌙 Hailey

☁ Peri/Pari

🌙 Alfie

☁ Billie

🌙 Bobbie

☁ Charlie

🌙 Teddy

☁ Fern

🌙 Fawn

☁ Sammy

🌙 Marley

☁ Feri

🌙 Riley

☁ Jackie

🌙 Jamie

☁ Jude

🌙 Alex

☁ Angel

🌙 Casey

☁ Cassidy

🌙 Peyton

☁ Remi

🌙 Peyton

🌙 Reese

☁ Sage

🌙 Rowan

☁ Puck

🌙 River

☁ Emery

🌙 Skylar

☁ Finley

🌙 Quinn

☁ Max

🌙 Kai

☁ Rory

🌙 Albie

☁ Cedar

🌙 Everett

☁ Harley

🌙 Noel

☁ Milo

🌙 Marlowe

☁ Penn

🌙 Bram

☁ Hedley

🌙 Velvet

☁ Meadow

🌙 Clove/Clover

☁ Pax

🌙 Bee

❛ ━━━━━━･❪ ❁ ❫ ･━━━━━━ ❜

⋙ ¡masculine names!

🍄 Koda

🐮 Elliott

🍄 Theo (Theodore)

🐮 Warrick

🍄 Noe/Noah

🐮 Monroe

🍄 Oscar

🐮 Leo

🍄 Nico

🐮 Ottie (Othello, Otto, Otis)

🍄 Archie (Arthur, Archibald)

🐮 Harry

🍄 Percy

🐮 Monty

🍄 Rudy

🐮 Roscoe

🍄 Andy (Andrew)

🐮 Toby (Tobias)

🍄 Benny (Benjamin, Bennett)

🐮 Henry

🍄 Augie (Augustus, Augustine)

🐮 Pim

🍄 Pip

🐮 Ollie (Oliver)

🍄 Sebi (Sebastian)

🐮 Casper

🍄 Hugh

🐮 Danny (Daniel)

🍄 Miles

🐮 Manuel

🍄 Arlo

🐮 Seth

🍄 Damian/Damien

🐮 Brahms

🍄 Ephraim

🐮 Rafael

🍄 Nathan

🐮 Mateo

[ifyouknewmystory]

Hit me up lovelies

Y'all, I saw five Broadway shows this weekend, and would LOVE to talk to ANY of you about ANY of them!! I stagedoored after all of them so if you have questions about that I can also do that! (* after their name means I met them as well!!)

-Wicked with Jackie Burns as Elphaba and Amanda Jane Cooper* as Glinda (I also met Rondi Reed, PJ Benjamin, Jye Frasca, Chad Jennings, and Kristen Martin) -Anastasia with Christy Altomare* as Anastasia and Zach Adkins* as Dmitry (I also met John Bolton, Caroline O'Connor, and Nicole Scimeca) -School of Rock with Justin Collette* as Dewey and Jenn Gambatese* as Rosalie (I also met many of the kids but it was difficult to see who was who as they were just running down the line) -Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with Ryan Sell* as Charlie and Christian Borle as Willy Wonka (I also met Mike Wartella, Emma Pfaeffle, Trista Dollison, F. Michael Haynie, Allen H. Green, and Jared Bradshaw) -Aladdin with Jacob Dickey* as Aladdin, Courtney Reed as Jasmine, Major Attaway as Genie

ALSO IF YOU JUST WANT TO TALK ABOUT BROADWAY IM SO DOWN!!!

[verypsbfan019]

Duck when he was 19-20 years old working at Paddington station💚🦆🚂

By that time, he was known as Jacqueline (Jackie for short). He was perceived as a woman by his coworkers and family. Although he never felt connected with his assigned gender at birth, it took him two more years to realize that he was trans (and started his transition some time after that) 👀

[darina24yt]

My favourite ship's of Brawl Stars:

Max x Brock

Sandy x Jessie

Colt x Bull

Pam x Byron

Piper x Rico

Emz x Poco

Mortis x Bibi

Tara x Gene

Dynamike x Gale

Lou x Surge

Colonel Ruffs x Mr. P

Collette x Spike

Nani x Sprout

Carl x Jackie

Lola x Griff

Leon x Meg

El Primo x Rosa

Penny x Daril

Bo x Amber

Belle x Shelly

[natromanxoff]

19 - The Dynamic Duo V Montreux

Hello folks. I was sitting around twiddling my thumbs and I thought I would give the old hard drive a clean up, so before I dump a load of rubbish I thought I'd better answer these before I throw everything in the recycle bin. Let's start with a lady from New Jersey who goes by the name of Dorothy who gave me a very interesting offer for the next time I'm in New York. If you're reading this Dorothy, could you send Jacky your email address so I can reply to you. I've just opened up a "secret" Hotmail account so I can send replies without pestering the lovely Mrs Smith all the time, and to test it I went to the guestbook and picked a few names at random. Maybe I should reply to the irate drummer, but if I do that he'll just reply to me and the girls in the office will miss out on laughing at him as well. Staying with the skin bashers for a mo, Ron Hansen in Madison is a drummer, and said he liked my jokes and reckons Mr Irate uses three sticks, two in his hands and one up his arse (his words not mine). Would I be correct in saying your a Zep fan Ron? Today's question is, "What do you get if you cross a drummer with a roadie?" The answer is a stupid roadie.

Moving on, last time around I mentioned a drink which we consumed in Brazil, and the charming Sonia and Dina informed me it was called Caipirinha, and a pleasant little tipple it was to. Somewhere in Australia there is a lady called Karen who is listening to the Offspring CD non-stop, so I'm gonna have to try and answer her question as she has such great musical tastes, even though she wants to know the..........(flashing lights, fireworks, drum roll) Hoover Salesman Story. ARGHHHH. Its actually a very short tale, and I think it's quiet boring but it seems to have grown in stature over the years, and as always I'm gonna drag it out and start from the first skiing expedition that I ventured on with RT.

Having checked my trendy little biog mag, I reckon the year is 1980, and the dynamic duo are in Montreux putting the finishing touches to Fun in Space and we have a few days off before a tour starts in Zurich when Rog says, "Let's go skiing." He had skied a few times before and was ok at it, but I had never put a pair of skis on in my life. I said, "Lets go, but you ski and I'll just get pissed." He then went on about what a buzz it is and how I would love it, etc. As we were touring soon our American crew had to fly out, so I called up Jim Devenney and told him to come over a couple of days earlier cause we were gonna ski. Jim is a great skier and was on the first flight available and I picked him up at Geneva airport ready for some fun. That night we hit the town and have too many drinks and Rog goes off to bed semi early, while Jim and myself sat out on the jetty of Duckingham Palace with a ghetto blaster, Derek and Clive tapes, and a vat of wine singing disgusting songs at full blast, which must have echoed over to France. Suddenly we hear a French voice screaming at us and we have no idea what he was saying so we carried on goofing around, and the next thing I hear is a huge splash as Devenney falls in.

Let me assure you that a drunk trying to get a drunk out of Lake Geneva is not an easy task, but we succeed and head back to DP and retire to our rooms. I'd just got into bed when I hear a crash and go to investigate, only to find JD had gone in the wrong room and was trying to get into a baby's cot, and getting him out of there was harder than getting him of the lake.

Next day Roger, Dave Richards, his wife Collette, Jim and myself set off to Zermatt, and on arrival we stock up on skis, passes and other skiing paraphernalia (big words now!) Dinner, drinks and off to bed. Next morning we're up and ready to go, and thinking I'll never ski again after this I refuse to waste money on a ski suit, so I wear jeans. My second wrong move, the first was agreeing to go. The hotel owner wouldn't let us leave the hotel without first drinking a couple of Sambuccas, not my idea of a good breakfast, eggs, bacon, tea, toast and Italian liqueurs, but who are we to refuse. Next I've got to try and walk in those godamn boots, and we eventually arrive at the top of the Matterhorn.

The OK skiers, RT and Dave set off on their own, Collette begins a very slow trip down while JD tells me he'll stay and teach me. On go the skis, and down I go, flat on my arse. Up I get and I'm off, for all of about 2ft before I'm down again. This is not any fun. After a couple more tumbles my great mate Jim said, "If you're gonna f*** around I'm going." And thats the last I saw of him all day. Thanks pal. I'm standing there watching people ski and think, "It can't be that hard. If you stand like this, lean like that, you can ski." So I stand and lean in the correct positions and I'm away, screeching down a mountain with only one very small problem, I have no idea how to turn or stop, so as I'm flying past Collette, and she reckons I looked very worried, I yelled for some advice and all she said was, "DIVE." Sound advice, so thats what I do, and by now I'm getting wet. I wait for her and then we set off together, the blind leading the blind, with me diving at the slightest bit of speed or bend in the piste. A million years later we eventually reach the bottom of this awful slope and it's finally over. Wrong. Theres a T-bar to get on so we wait in line till it's our turn. You're supposed to put the bar just under your bum and it drags you up, but I'm 6ft and Collettes about 5ft 5in, so the bar was either in the middle of her back or around my knees, and no one told me not to sit on the f***ing thing and we bounced around for a while until we fell off. I'm now getting really pissed off with all this, "Get me a helicopter," I demanded from Collete. She told me they don't just send them, you have to be hurt. I replied with, "I'll break my f***ing arm but I've gotta get off this mountain." Realising I'm not getting a copter I light a ciggie and ponder.

We agree to split up and go with someone our own height, so I ended up with a great German guy who was really helpful. Once on the T-bar I can see that it goes way up and I would have to ski back down to base camp, and in case you've forgotten, I can't ski, so I said that I was gonna bail out, and jumped off. I then head of in a straight line to the cable car, skis on the shoulder and wading through 3ft of snow in a pair of very heavy and very cold jeans. What seemed like hours of wading I make civilisation and head to the bar for a triple strength coffee and a triple scotch while everyone gawked at me cause I looked like I had a shower fully clothed. Yeah, I wanna do this again.

Dinner that night was great fun for the others cause they got to take the piss out of me. Their day will come. The rest of the nights activities shall remain sealed away, but a good time was had by one and all. The tour went smoothly and I try and put Zermatt behind me, except Collette, still to this day, takes great delight in telling everyone about it, and everytime she says it she makes me look more and more pathetic.

The next winter appears and I'm at home and the phone rings, "CT, wanna go skiing?" To which my reply was nothing like, "Oh I'd love to you fabulous little drummer boy." I can't believe he talked me into it again, but this time we were gonna do things correctly and go to Aviemore in Scotland and take lessons, this was the saving factor in his plan. So once again we pile into the Range Rover and aim north. We split the driving (for a change) and had a good journey up through the snow covered mountains till we get to the resort. A usual night was on the cards, dinner, drinks and bed, then up bright and early for some lessons and a good day on the slopes. This time we've both got the correct outfits so we head off to where our little group of idiot skiers are. We're all standing in a line, with Rog and me at the end, and each person gets to snow-plough a few feet. These clowns have less idea than my first try, and it's also incredibly cold and we've now got icicles hanging off our hair. It's our turn and we both look like olympic champions, but the only thing wrong with getting it right the first time is that the instructor then turns his attentions back to the start of the line. Here I am once again standing on the top of a mountain, freezing cold with two 'things' stuck on the end of a pair of stupid boots, and I inform His Royal Highness that the next trip away involves sand and sun, no excuses, end of argument. RT agreed that this wasn't much fun and thought my idea worth considering.

We finally heard the two magic words, "Lunch Break." We're gone in search of some good HOT food and a nice beaujolais, and we found both. We also found that the hotel bar had an amazing selection of whisky, and we had to try as many as possible. We're now semi pissed and decide that as we're warm we might as well go back to this lesson even though we are very late, and the instructor looked at us and said, "Where have you two been?" Rog came back with "Trying lots of your wonderful scotch's." He was fine with that answer and we carried on trying to learn something, and would you believe by the end of the day I could actually turn and stop.

Back to the hotel for a nap before dinner. Over a very nice meal and a couple of little drinkettes we agree that it's far to cold here and we'll clear off the next day, so into the bar we go with our earlier mission of trying all the scotch's. We were sitting at a table chatting away and cracking jokes with each other and end up talking to the couple on the next table, swapping skiing stories, needless to say mine were very short, and having a bit of a laugh, when the woman said, "What do you two do for a living?" God knows why, but I said; "We're Hoover salesmen." At first they didn't believe us but we both started going on about the difference between domestic and industrial cleaners, uprights, backpack types, ones you pull along the floor. We went on about the different wattage, suction power, the amount of pressure on Axminsters and Wilton carpets, even a couple of car expressions like overhead this and thats. What the hell do we know about vacuum cleaners? But boy are we good at this. After about 30 mins of utter bullshit the subject finally changed and they wished us all the best with our door to door salesmanship and off they went to bed. We then had to reassure each other what we actually did for a living, had some more drinks and tried to work out how we knew so much about cleaners as both of us have spent most of our lives trying to stay well away from them. We spent the drive back to London having a good laugh about the one day we spent in a Scottish ski resort.

Well that's it folks, the story of a small company, R & C Taylor,..... Hoover Salesmen. I did learn to ski quite well, and whilst in Gstadd doing the Shove it album Spike flew out cause he fancied learning to ski, and the fool asked me to teach him. I wasn't much help because everytime he fell over I burst out laughing cause I kept seeing myself in Zermatt, and Spike looked just as worried and stupid as I did.

Before I go I noticed that Jacky had to get her boiler fixed and said for me not to make a comment, but little things like that spark me off and I remembered that when we were recording in the Townhouse Studios I had a little, no a big affair with the studio chef. Every three months Virgin would do a magazine for all their staff, written by all the heads of various departments, airlines, studios, video, shops, films, etc. and they would say what was going on with their particular section. Alan Douglas, who was chief engineer of all Virgin studios wrote who was recording where, and he wrote, "Queen are in studio 4, and Crystal, their main man is stoking the kitchen boiler." I thought that was hilarious, but Jane went ballistic. That's it for now.

Loadsa luv Crystal (Carpet cleaner to the stars)

[cumbriacrack]

The Lost Words: Told In Gold “Once upon a time, words began to vanish from the language of children. They disappeared so quietly that at first no-one noticed.  Fading away like water on stone Full story: https://www.cumbriacrack.com/2019/09/11/the-lost-words-told-in-gold/

[sleepykittypaws]

Celebrate the Olympic Spirit

Sure, the Olympics aren’t a holiday, per se, but the every-four-year, or two if you count both Summer and Winter editions separately, massive international sporting events sure seems like a reason to celebrate, especially given their recent, unprecedented delay. And what better way to get into the Games mood, than by watching a sports movie?

Here are my favorite motivating, inspirational, and aspirational tales of athletic derring do…

Favorite Sports Movies

The Cutting Edge (1992) - This figure skating romance was released around the 1992 Olympics, and actually name-checks that year's winter host city, Albertville, more than once.  It's not good in the traditional sense of great storytelling or athletic veracity, but I loved it so very much I saw it three times in the theater as a teen. Watching it at some point during every Winter Games is a tradition for me so, yeah, I can’t help it, I love this silly sports movie/romance, which also features a bit of holiday feels.

Wimbledon (2004) - It's a rom-com. It's a sports movie. It's a rom-com sports movie that really should be better known. Notting Hill but set at tennis' best-known event. Paul Bettany and Kristen Dunst have surprisingly great chemistry, and there's more sports-related tension than you'd think.

Friday Night Lights (2004) - A football movie for people who don't really like football. a.k.a. 🙋‍♀️. The TV series it spawned is also brilliant (”Clear Eyes, Full Hearts,” indeed), and well worth a watch, but the original movie, starring Billy Bob Thornton, is, honestly, a masterpiece. Definitely Peter Berg's best work and the original book, written by Berg's cousin, Buzz Bissinger, is a great read.

Muriel's Wedding (1994) - You mean you forgot this Australian export, which made Toni Collette a star, was a sports movie? Yep, one of my all-time favorite movies, of any genre, this absolutely brilliant, ABBA-soaked comedy is not only a girls-night go-to, but also a stealth Olympic sport classic.

Remember the Titans (2000) - OK, football isn't in the Olympics, but it sure does make for a good sports movie setting. Even if this early 1970s-set story is most definitely Disney-fied, Denzel Washington, Will Patton, Ryan Gosling and a baby Hayden Panettiere really sell this sort-of true story.

Invictus (2009)-Rugby isn't an Olympic sport, or even one most Americans know much about, but this Matt Damon-led, Clint Eastwood-directed, based-on-a-true-story tale made me care about a sport I'd only tangentially knew even existed before watching.

Hoosiers (1986)-I grew up in Indiana so, by law, I have to include this basketball classic on any "best of" sports movie lists. Also, it actually is really very good.

Rudy (1993)-Ditto the above. But, again, it's hard not to root for Sean Astin (and Jon Favreau!) in this love letter to the Fighting Irish. Plus, there’s no better scavenger hunt task or TikTok challenge than going into a bar and convincing a patron to allow you to put them on your shoulders and march around chanting, 'Rudy, Rudy, Rudy.' 

Miracle (2004) - Given how much more popular the Summer Olympics are, it's weird that the Winter Games seem to get all the good movies made about them, but this Kurt Russell-led true tale is another Disney sports movie classic.

McFarland, USA (2015) - Disney, and Kevin Costner, just really know how to make a sports movie, damn it! This movie made me care about cross country for which it, too, could have carried the title Miracle.

A League of Their Own (1992)-The best baseball movie ever. Yeah, I said what I said. Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Lori Petty—even Madonna and Rosie O'Donnell are making it work. 1992 was a weirdly great year for sports movies.

Moneyball (2011) - A movie about baseball, and math, and yet it's also great, I swear. In addition to all of the above, it's also a stealth Christmas movie and maybe Chris Pratt's best non-Marvel, movie role.

Creed (2015) - This surprisingly effective Rocky reboot starring Michael B Jordan as Apollo Creed's illegitimate son has spawned its own movie series which, in many ways, exceeds the original Rocky franchise.

Rocky Balboa (2006) - Maybe it's because I was a toddler when the original Rocky came out, so only saw the ever-worse sequels as a kid, but this mid-aughts return to the character for Sylvester Stallone, as both writer and actor, is a triumph.

Eddie the Eagle (2016) - That Hugh Jackman features in as many movies (spoiler alert) on this list as Kevin Costner surprised me, too. This story of the English ski jumper who became infamous for being, well, less than golden, is one of those non-Olympic triumph stories that really works. If you're going to watch one underdog-at-the-Games movie, I definitely prefer this this to the more ubiquitous Cool Runnings.

Love & Basketball (2000) - Only because I'm an anglophile is this great, chemistry-filled Sanaa Lathan and Omar Epps college basketball romance not my favorite sports-movie-meets-rom-com.

I, Tonya (2017) - Margot Robbie and a nearly unrecognizable Sebastian Stan are perfectly cast in this sarcastic, highly stylized look at the Tonya Harding scandal.

Pride (2007) - Apparently I like this swimming movie, which I think almost no one saw, better than critics, but I found this 1970s-set, Terrence Howard-Bernie Mac-starring story of inner city kids excelling in the pool emotional and entertaining.

Field of Dreams (1989) - This Kevin Costner magical realism baseball classic is often goofy and imminently tease-worthy and yet…It also works. Maybe it's no surprise that someone who loves cheesy Christmas movies as much as I do would have a soft spot for Field of Dreams.

42 (2013) - Chadwick Boseman is absolutely fantastic as legend Jackie Robinson. One of those movies that's ostensibly about baseball, but is really about so much more, except not in a pretentious way.

Race (2016) - Before Jason Sudeikis was Ted Lasso, he was famed track coach Larry Synder in this Jesse Owens biopic that is far from perfect, but still important. Plus, I honestly don't think Stephan James got enough credit for his relatively nuanced portrayal of Owens.

Goon (2011) - This overlooked gem starring Sean William Scott as a semi-pro hockey player whose main skill is his ability to take, and dole out, a beating, is surprisingly great.

Real Steel (2011) - This is a robot-boxing movie starring Hugh Jackman that is basically Rocky meets Over the Top—and yet it's actually really good. Yeah, I was surprised, too.

Forget Paris (1995) - OK, so maybe Billy Crystal playing an NBA referee doesn't really make this a sports movie, but it does begin and end (spoiler alert) at real NBA games, and I will die on the hill that this rom-com co-starring Debra Winger is wildly under-rated.

Bend it like Beckham (2002) - This girl-power sports movie has some highly questionable romantic dynamics (the coach is their love interest???) but this Parminder Nagra-Keira Knightley movie is also a heckuva sports movie and an inspiring immigrant story.

Bonus Pick: The Apple TV+ series Ted Lasso is one of the best things I watched in 2020, and I'm sure of that, because I watched it twice since, just to be sure. Jason Sudekis is absolutely perfect as an American college football coach taking over a UK Premier League team. This sweet show with a heart of gold is smart, funny, and absolutely impossible not to love—even for a cynic such as myself.

More Sports Movies Worth Watching

For someone not very into sports, I am, apparently, into watching movies about sports, so while not a comprehensive listing of the entire, vast genre, here are a few more suggestions I personally think are worth watching.

The Miracle Season (2018) - This movie about high school volleyball champs whose star player dies suddenly stars Helen Hunt and is a lot better than you'd think based on its tiny budget and, honestly, fairly small story. Just missed making my Top 25.

The Way Back (2020) - This Ben Affleck as a drunken high school basketball coach movie is a lot better than expected. Released just as the pandemic kicked into high gear, it was overlooked last year, but worth seeking out.

Fighting with My Family (2019) - Does it count if it's a show, not a sport? Either way (but that's why this isn't in my Top 25), this stealth Christmas movie/love letter to the WWE is a lot better than it ever needed to be thanks to some really great performances from Florence Pugh, Lena Headey and directer Stephen Merchant. Even The Rock reins it in.

Warrior (2011) - You couldn't pay me to watch an actual UFC bout, but this Tom Hardy story of (literally) battling brothers is incredibly compelling and well done.

Win Win (2011) - This movie isn't really enough about wrestling, even though its ostensibly centered around the sport, to make it into my Top 25, but it's still really good, and Amy Ryan gives an outstanding performance.

Fever Pitch (2005) - Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon star in this remake of a UK film whose ending they had to shift when the Red Sox unexpectedly won the World Series.

Fever Pitch (1997) - This Colin Firth-starring, Arsenal-centered original is much smaller, more realistic and arguably better than the big budget Barrymore-Fallon redux.

We are Marshall (2006) - A real-life sports tragedy made into a sports-movie tearjerker starring Matthew McConaughy. And my tears were very much jerked by the end.

Coach Carter (2005) - Samuel L Jackson plays real-life basketball coach Ken Carter and, because it's a Disney movie, doesn't use the F-word even once. Now that's a feat worthy of its own sports movie.

Invincible (2006) - Yes, it's Mark Wahlberg, and another based-on-a-true-story, Disney sports movie that hits all the cliches, but dang it, that works on me. It just does.

Glory Road (2006) - If you're sensing a theme with me and Disney sports movies…Well, you're not wrong. This look at the first all-Black starting lineup at the 1966 NCAA Final Four does, unfortunately, center white coach Don Haskins, played by Josh Lucas (though I always mis-remember it as Josh Charles), making the important story it tells less than what it should be, but it still mostly works.

Million Dollar Arm (2014) - Admittedly one of the lesser Disney sports movie entries, and another that centers a white guy in a film mostly about people of color (not a great look), this Jon Hamm movie about a scout seeking an Indian cricket star who can make it in the Major Leagues still mostly worked for me.

The Mighty Ducks (1992) - One of the few movies on this list aimed directly at kids, this beloved peewee hockey saga actually is cute, and mostly does hold up.

Cool Runnings (1993) - Kind of shocked this movie that is part White Savior-movie and part-wacky kids movie essentially making fun of a real group of athletes of color came out in 1993 and not 1973, but the earnest charm of John Candy and a general Disney gloss keep this from being totally unwatchable and mostly just mildly, rather than extremely, offensive. Not really recommending, but feels like it belongs on an Olympic movie list.

Nadia (1984) - This made-for-TV, mostly true biopic, starring Talia Balsam as Nadia Comaneci, was a Disney Channel staple in that network’s early days. 

Munich (2005) - It's a movie with the Olympics very much at its heart—namely the 1972 Israeli athlete hostage tragedy—that isn't really about the Olympics at all, but this Steven Spielberg-directed movie about national revenge is compelling, if problematic if you think about it for too long.

American Anthem (1986) - Is this Mitch Gaylord-Mrs. Wayne Gretzky (a.k.a Janet Jones) starring movie good, realistic and/or well-written? No, no and none of the above. But did I still watch it 8,000 times as a kid on HBO? Yes. Yes, I did.

Men with Brooms (2002) - Once, on a business trip to Canada, my husband was stuck in a hotel that only got three channels, and one of them always seemed to be showing curling, which actually got him weirdly into this obscure sport. This movie wasn't quite as fun as I hoped, but it's still a mostly charming, if slight, Canadian classic.

Unbroken (2014) - The harrowing and incredible real-life story of Louis Zamperini deserved better than this Angelina Jolie-directed movie delivered, but it's still a serviceable version of a worthy tale.

Chariots of Fire (1981) - I remember being bored out of my mind by this movie trying to watch this movie on cable as a kid, but no denying that, if nothing else, the score is iconic and indelibly linked to sports-movie magic.

Without Limits (1998) - Jared Leto’s Prefontaine beat this one to the theaters, but this Billy Crudup-starring film is the better of the two movies about the life of running pioneer Steve Prefontaine. There’s also a 1995 documentary, Fire on the Track: The Steve Prefontaine Story.

Personal Best (1982) - Mariel Hemingway’s story of ambition at odds with love, is a sports and LGTBQ+ classic. 

Olympic Dreams (2019) - The story of how this small, meandering movie was made during the 2018 Winter Games is, unfortunately, more interesting than the movie itself, but there is some charm in watching Nick Kroll as an Olympic dentist making his way through the real Village, while interacting with real athletes.

Foxcatcher (2015) - This excellently-acted story is more true crime than sports inspiration, but if you're seeking a look at the dark side of the Games—and don’t want to turn on a doc like Athlete A—this is very dark tale indeed.

Seabiscuit (2003) - Every great athlete deserves to have their story told.

Any Given Sunday (1999) - Oliver Stone and Al Pacino take on pro Football. 'Nuff said.

The Replacements (2000) - I mean, the movie isn't amazing, but Keanu Reeves is super charming and Gene Hackman is always worth a watch.

The Program (1993) - Another bit of a dark-side-of-football take, worth it if only for the fantastic cast: James Caan, Halle Berry, Omar Eps, Joey Lauren Adams.

Everbody’s All-American (1988) - Not a movie I particularly love, but this Dennis Quaid-Jessica Lange football story that spans decades has always stuck in my memory.

Bull Durham (1988) - Just let Kevin Costner play actual baseball already.