18May1996

My dear folks,

Jim Reeves is crooning a near midnight song. The ceiling creaks above me as Anita crawls into bed. Cathy has just had a bath & is doing the same. Mavis has snuggled up on both Cathy’s & Anita’s laps for his nightly dose of human warmth & can consider himself lucky. When the mood’s upon him, no-one is cuter than Mave working himself into the crook of one’s arm for a lovey-dovey session.

We have been to Riverdance. It was truly a very special show - staged in the vast Hammersmith Apollo before an audience of thousands who warmed to the spectacle & clapped the dancers along - in the clappable places at least, for the rhythms were often complex & sometimes plaintive. Imagine a small orchestra using folk instruments to produce mother earth themes woven in with a-cappella singing & inspired traditional Irish & tap dancing. Sounds like a feast of fish & fowl, I know. But it’s unforgettable. If you ever get the chance, see it. Cathy, Anita & I were enthralled & we clapped ourselves silly as did the audience around us, until our hands & arms ached. How those folks danced, athletic, feather footed solos & duos & with drumbeat precision as a troupe! They mocked gravity & for an hour or two we all belonged to a lighter earth.

Earlier in the day, I spent five hours at a brain-storming session on the BBC Web-Site on the Internet. It’s unsatisfactory as things stand & we pondered all the possibilities of making it a serious stopping point for cyber surfers. We’re only too well aware of the heavy investment some of the competition are making in their own sites. One major competitor has 150 staff working solely on the web site - almost as many as our total staff in the World Service Newsroom. The business is a serious one & it’s getting steadily seriouser. It was also jolly useful to learn about the computer experiences of newsroom colleagues, some of whom are really good.

Cathy & Anita took themselves off to the Science Museum & returned late afternoon with rave reviews. They did everything do-able & tried everything try-able & were very pleased with the results. Sunday they have in mind to visit the V&A & meet up with a friend of Cathy’s. I hope to join them for a few hours as well. They have enjoyed every minute & every hour of their trip - in spite of the deteriorating weather. It’s not pouring here, Jones, as it has been down at the Quinta. But it’s been cold, damp & miz., with more to come before it clears. Thank you for your fax. I did ache for you & our guests. I do hope the sun comes out soon & stays out for a long time.

Now I’m going to bed.

Blessings
T