Pretty fun day today, not much in the way of serious reading or intellectual activity in any way at all. I went up to London to meet up with a friend and we went and had a nice chatty, lazy lunch which was delivered to our table by a rather fetching waiter with a dark, brooding look and, I have to say it, a simply gorgeous bum. Added a little sparkle to the grilled chicken sandwich....
In the afternoon we were in Leicester Square and popped into the Empire cinema to see Bruce Willis in Die Hard 4. I think the original Die Hard is one of the best trash movies of all time, aided of course by the Divine Alan as Hans Gruber, Nos 2 and 3 not so good, but now John McLaine is back, this time saving the world from imminent shutdown by a mad computer hacker. Simply terrific, loads of action, ridiculously barmy stunts with planes crashing, bridges collapsing, gun battles, a fight in a car jammed half way down a lift shaft (don't ask), packed with laconic one liners, totally hilarious and over the top and Viv and I loved every single minute of it.
I have not been to the cinema for some months and now in ten days I have seen the Bourne Ultimatum (super cool), Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (best one yet) and now Die Hard 4 today. From this you will gather that I adore films that are sheer fun and full of excitement. While I am quite happy to sit down in the quiet of my home and watch Jan de Florette or Il Postino or a serious movie, when in the 
actual cinema I like monsters, space ships, car chases and gun fights.
After the film we had to keep our strength up with a cup of tea and carrot cake and then went our separate ways and as Leicester Square is not far from Piccadilly it was incumbent upon me to pop into Waterstone's and have a wander. I came out clutching two Agatha Christies, a new Victoria Clayton (her earlier books under the name of Victoria Walker are being reprinted by the wondrous Fidra Books) and Winnie and Wolf by A N Wilson, another on the Man Booker long list which sounds right up my strasse as it is all about Hitler, Winifred Wagner and, of course, the music of Richard which I adore. I have a copy of The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng as well ready to read, which was sent to me by Myrmidon Press some weeks ago and am delighted to see a small independent publisher featuring on this list. I am feeling pretty pleased with myself at the moment as actually reading three books on the Man Booker list, having just finished The Welsh Girl is an achievement of no mean order - for me at any rate.
I must admit, dear readers, that after all this modernity I do feel a Trollope moment coming on (Anthony of course, not Joanna).....
