The FMcG School of Elocution

I think we all know how much I admire/respect/love/crave Ms. M L V Ciccone, but did anyone else think her accent during her interview with Parky was a little peculiar? Or downright bizarre?

There again, how many Irish people have gone to live in America and returned ten years later with a drawl - or indeed, gone to England and picked up something of the accent there. But for many of these people it was a survival technique. I suppose Mrs. Richie can do and say what she likes (however she likes) - she'll still have us talking about it nonetheless.

I happened upon a 2nd Hand Bookstore in Takadanobaba (near to my university) on Friday and decided to have a look, on the basis that there are so few well-stocked English-language bookshops anywhere in Tokyo. I found a copy of The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon - which, believe it or not, is like a 1000 year old blog. In it, the acerbic and charming author - of whose name we aren't really certain - notes the day-to-day ephemera of court life in Japan. She sometimes discusses trees, flowers, even insects, sometimes complains about lapses in manners (which she never misses) and sometimes just gives lists, like "Hateful Things" or "Things that Make One Smile" or "Things that Make Ones Heart Beat Faster". Obviously I want to make a play about her...

I hear that Confessions On A Dancefloor is already on sale in Dublin, but I shall be waiting until its release here on Wednesday. I imagine I'll like it...