Currently watching...

..."Downton Abbey!"

Last night was the premier for the third season, and it has started off in a delightful way. The Great War is over, and although Mary and Matthew are married--finally--the intrique has already started. And the legendary Shirley MacLaine showed up as Cora's American mother. There was some powerful and hilarious energy between her and the other legendary cast member, Dame Maggie Smith.

There is a true tenderness and sweetness inherent in both the characters and the story, which is a welcome relief from the post-modern archness which so often surrounds us. I will be at The Abbey every Sunday night for the next seven weeks. And I understand, just like Season 2, there is a Christmas special as well.

FREE BATES!

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/downtonabbey/index.html

"Patrick Procktor: Art and Life"

Friend of "Oh, By The Way" Ian Massey has written to tell us of a marvelous art show in York featuring the underrated work of artist Patrick Procktor (1936-2003). Mr. Massey wrote a biography of Procktor, profusely illustrated with examples of the artist's work and with documentary photographs, called PATRICK PROCKTOR: ART AND LIFE, published by Unicorn Press. And now Mr. Massey has curated an exhibition of Procktor's oils and watercolors at Huddersfield Art Gallery. Take a look at the video below, shot during the installation of the show, and listen to Massey and Robert Selby, Co-Director of the Redfern Gallery in London (watch for the Procktor watercolor portrait of Selby from 1991) talk about the life and work of this great artist. Some stunning pieces are shown as well, such as "Figures In A Corridor" (1963), "6AM At Heaton Hall" (1966), and "The Beach: Figures In Red And Black" (1962-63).

The exhibition's original closing date of November 10 has been extended through December 1, 2012. If you are in Yorkshire, do enjoy this rare opportunity to see such a large collection of Procktor's work.

http://www.kirklees.gov.uk/leisure/arts/art.shtml