1.
Order of Australia
–
Before the establishment of the order, Australian citizens received British honours. The Queen of Australia is Sovereign Head of the Order, while the Governor-General is Principal Companion/Dame/Knight, the Governor-Generals Official Secretary is Secretary of the Order. The order is divided into a general and a military division, honorary awards at all levels may be made to deserving non-citizens – these awards are made additional to the quotas. The badge of the Order of Australia is a convex disc representing the Golden Wattle flower, at the centre is a ring, representing the sea, with the word Australia below two branches of golden wattle. The whole disc is topped by the Crown of St Edward, the AC badge is decorated with citrines, blue enamelled ring and enamelled crown. The AO badge is similar, without the citrines, for the AM badge only the crown is enamelled, and the OAM badge is plain. The AK/AD badge is similar to that of the AC badge, the star for knights and dames is a convex golden disc decorated with citrines, with a blue royally crowned inner disc bearing an image of the coat of arms of Australia. The ribbon of the order is blue with a stripe of golden wattle flower designs. AKs, male ACs and AOs wear their badges on a necklet, women usually wear their badges on a bow on the left shoulder, although they may wear the same insignia as males, if so desired. The orders insignia were designed by Stuart Devlin, the Order currently consists of four levels and the medal, in both general and military divisions. Since 2015, the level has been discontinued. Awards of Knight and Dame of the Order have been made in the division only. Military Division – Not awarded in the military division. There was a quota of four per year, excluding honorary appointments, the Knight- and Damehoods were conferred between 1976 and 1983, and again from 2014 till 2015. Although this level is not awarded anymore, several knight and dames of the Order are still alive, Companion General Division – Eminent achievement and merit of the highest degree in service to Australia or to humanity at large. Military Division – Eminent service in duties of great responsibility. Excluding honorary appointments, until 2003, no more than 25 Companions were appointed in any calendar year, in 2003 this was increased to 30. This was increased in 2016 to 35, Officer General Division – Distinguished service of a high degree to Australia or to humanity at large. Military Division – Distinguished service in responsible positions. Prior to 2003, the quota was 100 Officers appointed in any calendar year, in 2003 this was increased to 125. This was increased in 2016 to 140, Member General Division – Service in a particular locality or field of activity or to a particular group. Military Division – Exceptional service or performance of duty
Order of Australia
–
Order of Australia
2.
Sydney
–
Sydney /ˈsɪdni/ is the state capital of New South Wales and the most populous city in Australia and Oceania. Located on Australias east coast, the metropolis surrounds the worlds largest natural harbour, residents of Sydney are known as Sydneysiders. The Sydney area has been inhabited by indigenous Australians for at least 30,000 years, the first British settlers, led by Captain Arthur Phillip, arrived in 1788 to found Sydney as a penal colony, the first European settlement in Australia. Since convict transportation ended in the century, the city has transformed from a colonial outpost into a major global cultural. As at June 2016 Sydneys estimated population was 5,005,358, in the 2011 census,34 percent of the population reported having been born overseas, representing many different nationalities and making Sydney one of the most multicultural cities in the world. There are more than 250 different languages spoken in Sydney and about one-third of residents speak a language other than English at home and it is classified as an Alpha+ World City by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network, indicating its influence in the region and throughout the world. Ranked eleventh in the world for economic opportunity, Sydney has a market economy with strengths in finance, manufacturing. Its gross regional product was $337 billion in 2013, the largest in Australia, there is a significant concentration of foreign banks and multinational corporations in Sydney and the city is promoted as one of Asia Pacifics leading financial hubs. Its natural features include Sydney Harbour, the Royal National Park, man-made attractions such as the Sydney Opera House, Sydney Tower and the Sydney Harbour Bridge are also well known to international visitors. The first people to inhabit the now known as Sydney were indigenous Australians having migrated from northern Australia. Radiocarbon dating suggests human activity first started to occur in the Sydney area from around 30,735 years ago, the earliest British settlers called them Eora people. Eora is the term the indigenous used to explain their origins upon first contact with the British. Its literal meaning is from this place, prior to the arrival of the British there were 4,000 to 8,000 native people in Sydney from as many as 29 different clans. Sydney Cove from Port Jackson to Petersham was inhabited by the Cadigal clan, the principal language groups were Darug, Guringai, and Dharawal. The earliest Europeans to visit the area noted that the people were conducting activities such as camping and fishing, using trees for bark and food, collecting shells. Development has destroyed much of the citys history including that of the first inhabitants, there continues to be examples of rock art and engravings located in the protected Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park. The first meeting between the people and the British occurred on 29 April 1770 when Lieutenant James Cook landed at Botany Bay on the Kurnell Peninsula. He noted in his journal that they were confused and somewhat hostile towards the foreign visitors, Cook was on a mission of exploration and was not commissioned to start a settlement
Sydney
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The
Sydney Opera House and
CBD at dusk from
Jeffrey Street,
Kirribilli in December 2008
Sydney
–
A Direct North General View of Sydney Cove, by convict artist
Thomas Watling in 1794
Sydney
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Sydney Cove from
Dawes Point, 1817
3.
New South Wales
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New South Wales is a state on the east coast of Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria to the south and it has a coast line with the Tasman Sea on its east side. The Australian Capital Territory is an enclave within the state, New South Wales state capital is Sydney, which is also Australias most populous city. In March 2014, the population of New South Wales was 7.5 million. Just under two-thirds of the population,4.67 million. Inhabitants of New South Wales are referred to as New South Welshmen, the Colony of New South Wales was founded as a penal colony in 1788. It originally comprised a more than half of the Australian mainland with its western boundary set at 129th meridian east in 1825, in addition, the colony also included the island territories of New Zealand, Van Diemens Land, Lord Howe Island, and Norfolk Island. During the 19th century, most of the area was detached to form separate British colonies that eventually became New Zealand. However, the Swan River Colony has never administered as part of New South Wales. Lord Howe Island remains part of New South Wales, while Norfolk Island has become a federal Territory, as have the now known as the Australian Capital Territory. The prior inhabitants of New South Wales were the Aboriginal tribes who arrived in Australia about 40,000 to 60,000 years ago, before European settlement there were an estimated 250,000 Aboriginal people in the region. The Wodi Wodi people are the custodians of the Illawarra region of South Sydney. The Bundjalung people are the custodians of parts of the northern coastal areas. The European discovery of New South Wales was made by Captain James Cook during his 1770 survey along the eastern coast of the Dutch-named continent of New Holland. In his original journal covering the survey, in triplicate to satisfy Admiralty Orders, Cook first named the land New Wales, however, in the copy held by the Admiralty, he revised the wording to New South Wales. After years of chaos and anarchy after the overthrow of Governor William Bligh, macquaries legacy is still evident today. During the 19th century, large areas were separated to form the British colonies of Tasmania, South Australia, Victoria. Responsible government was granted to the New South Wales colony in 1855, following the Treaty of Waitangi, William Hobson declared British sovereignty over New Zealand in 1840
New South Wales
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286 kg (630 lb) gold nugget unearthed in 1872 from
Hill End during the Gold Rush
New South Wales
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Flag
New South Wales
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Japanese POW camp in Cowra, 1944, several weeks before the
Cowra breakout
New South Wales
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A short-lived
South Maitland Railway (SMR) Railcar travelling between
Weston and
Abermain, 1962. The SMR is notable for being the second last system in Australia to use steam haulage.
4.
Bath, Somerset
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Bath is a city in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England, known for its Roman-built baths. In 2011, the population was 88,859, Bath is in the valley of the River Avon,97 miles west of London and 11 miles south-east of Bristol. The city became a World Heritage Site in 1987, the city became a spa with the Latin name Aquæ Sulis c. AD60 when the Romans built baths and a temple in the valley of the River Avon, Bath Abbey was founded in the 7th century and became a religious centre, the building was rebuilt in the 12th and 16th centuries. In the 17th century, claims were made for the properties of water from the springs. Many of the streets and squares were laid out by John Wood, the Elder, and in the 18th century the city became fashionable, Jane Austen lived in Bath in the early 19th century. Further building was undertaken in the 19th century and following the Bath Blitz in World War II, the city has software, publishing and service-oriented industries. Theatres, museums, and other cultural and sporting venues have helped make it a centre for tourism with more than one million staying visitors and 3.8 million day visitors to the city each year. There are several museums including the Museum of Bath Architecture, Victoria Art Gallery, Museum of East Asian Art, the city has two universities, the University of Bath and Bath Spa University, with Bath College providing further education. Sporting clubs include Bath Rugby and Bath City F. C. while TeamBath is the name for all of the University of Bath sports teams. Bath became part of the county of Avon in 1974, and, the hills in the locality such as Bathampton Down saw human activity from the Mesolithic period. Several Bronze Age round barrows were opened by John Skinner in the 18th century, solsbury Hill overlooking the current city was an Iron Age hill fort, and the adjacent Bathampton Camp may also have been one. A long barrow site believed to be from the Beaker people was flattened to make way for RAF Charmy Down, messages to her scratched onto metal, known as curse tablets, have been recovered from the sacred spring by archaeologists. The tablets were written in Latin, and cursed people whom the writers felt had wronged them, for example, if a citizen had his clothes stolen at the baths, he might write a curse, naming the suspects, on a tablet to be read by the goddess. A temple was constructed in AD 60–70, and a complex was built up over the next 300 years. Engineers drove oak piles into the mud to provide a stable foundation, in the 2nd century, the spring was enclosed within a wooden barrel-vaulted structure that housed the caldarium, tepidarium, and frigidarium. The town was given defensive walls, probably in the 3rd century. After the failure of Roman authority in the first decade of the 5th century, in March 2012 a hoard of 30,000 silver Roman coins, one of the largest discovered in Britain, was unearthed in an archaeological dig
Bath, Somerset
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The
Royal Crescent in Bath
Bath, Somerset
–
A nineteenth century
Photochrom of the Great Bath at the
Roman Baths. The entire structure above the level of the pillar bases is a later construction and was not a feature of the building in Roman days.
Bath, Somerset
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Bath Abbey
Bath, Somerset
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Map of Bath by
John Speed published in 1610
5.
Sydney Technical High School
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Sydney Technical High School is an academically selective, state-funded high school for boys in Bexley, a southern suburb of Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1911 as part of Sydney Technical College, the school was one of the six original New South Wales selective schools, the school is colloquially abbreviated to Sydney Tech, STHS or simply Tech. Admission to Year 7 is based on a selective test held in Year 6 during March. Entrance to Years 8,9 and 10 is based on the submission of an application form, Admission to Year 11 is based on the submission of an application form, placement tests in mathematics and English, and an interview. On average, over 80% of its students achieve in the top 20% of the state, in 2010 fifteen students from the schools graduating class received Premiers Awards for All-round Excellence in the NSW HSC. The school won the championship in the University of Newcastle Science. One of the reforms advocated by the 1903 Royal Commission into NSW Education was the establishment of classes providing courses which would involve technical subjects, consequently, Continuation classes for students interested in technical subjects commenced at the Sydney Technical College. In April 1911, these Continuation classes were given the status of a high school, originally, the school was co-educational with 113 boys and 15 girls. In February 1913, the girls were transferred to Fort Street Girls High, and, from then on, the school became for boys only. Since 1911, the school has been located at three Sydney sites, Ultimo House on Mary Ann Street, this was the home of Dr. John Harris. The property was bought by the Government in 1899 and used by Technical Education for many years before being used by Sydney Tech High from 1911 to 1924. Paddington on Albion Street, in 1925, with an enrolment of 421, Sydney Tech High was transferred to Albion Street, although it was a note of expansion, it was a vigorous P&C campaign that encouraged the State Government to fund an entirely new site for the school. Bexley on Forest Road, the Old McConnachies Paddock was occupied and first stone for the foundations was laid in March 1955. The official opening for the new facilities was on 2 August 1958, with four units, the administration block, general classrooms, manual training block. Throughout the years additions have been made to the site. The School Pool was opened in 1966, the Kingston-David Library and Laboratories in 1975, students studying at Sydney Technical High School are asked to follow the school rules in order to prevent conflicts and potentially harmful behavior. The construction was completed in May 2009, the shelter was completed as of March 2015. Veras Gym - A physical gymnasium dedicated for outside classroom learning and it is often used by PASS and SLR students as well as seniors
Sydney Technical High School
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Sydney Technical High School building, 1925
Sydney Technical High School
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"Manners Makyth Man" (
William of Wykeham)
6.
Royal Shakespeare Company
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The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The companys home is in Stratford-upon-Avon, where it has recently redeveloped its Royal Shakespeare, the theatres re-opened in November 2010, having closed in 2007. The new buildings attracted 18,000 visitors within the first week, performances in Stratford-upon-Avon continued throughout the Transformation project at the temporary Courtyard Theatre. The 2011-season began with performances of Macbeth and a re-imagined lost play The History of Cardenio, the fiftieth birthday season also featured The Merchant of Venice with Sir Patrick Stewart and revivals of some of the RSCs greatest plays, including a new staging of Marat/Sade. For the London 2012 Festival as part of the Cultural Olympiad, in 2013 the company began live screenings of its Shakespeare productions – called Live from Stratford-upon-Avon – which are screened around the world. In 2016, the company collaborated with Intel and The Imaginarium Studios to stage The Tempest, John Wards Birmingham-based company, the Warwickshire Company of Comedians, agreed to perform it. A surviving copy of the records that the company performed Othello. The first building erected to commemorate Shakespeare was David Garricks Jubilee Pavilion in 1769, the first permanent commemorative building to Shakespeares works in the town was a theatre built in 1827, in the gardens of New Place, but has long since been demolished. The RSCs history began with the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, which was the brainchild of a local brewer and he donated a two-acre site by the River Avon and in 1875 launched an international campaign to build a theatre in the town of Shakespeares birth. The theatre, a Victorian-Gothic building seating just over 700 people, opened on 23 April 1879, with a performance of Much Ado About Nothing, a title which gave ammunition to several critics. From 1919, under the direction of William Bridges-Adams and after a slow start, the theatre received a Royal Charter of Incorporation in 1925, which gave it status. On the afternoon of 6 March 1926, when a new season was about to commence rehearsals, fire broke out, and the mass of half-timbering chosen to ornament the interior provided dry tinder. By the following morning the theatre was a blackened shell, the company transferred its Shakespeare festivals to a converted local cinema. Fund-raising began for the rebuilding of the theatre, with generous donations arriving from philanthropists in America, george Bernard Shaw commented that her design was the only one that showed any theatre sense. Her modernist plans for an art deco structure came under fire from many directions, later it came under the direction of Sir Barry Jackson in 1945, Anthony Quayle from 1948 to 1956 and Glen Byam Shaw 1957–1959, with an impressive roll-call of actors. Scotts building, with minor adjustments to the stage, remained in constant use until 2007 when it was closed for a major refit of the interior. Timeline,1932 – new Shakespeare Memorial Theatre opens, abutting the remains of the old,1961 – chartered name of the corporation and the Stratford theatre becomes ‘Royal Shakespeare. ’1974 – The Other Place opened, created from a prefabricated former store/rehearsal room in Stratford. 1986 – the Swan Theatre opened, created from the shell of the 1879 Memorial Theatre,1991 – Purpose-built new Other Place, designed by Michael Reardon, opens
Royal Shakespeare Company
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Renovated Royal Shakespeare Theatre in
Stratford-upon-Avon in 2011
Royal Shakespeare Company
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Royal Shakespeare Company logo
Royal Shakespeare Company
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Royal Shakespeare Theatre in
Stratford-upon-Avon in 2003
7.
A Man for All Seasons
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A Man For All Seasons is a play by Robert Bolt. It was first performed in London opening at the Globe Theatre on 1 July 1960 and it later found its way to Broadway, enjoying a critically and commercially successful run of over a year. It has had several revivals, and was made into a multi-Academy Award-winning 1966 feature film. The play portrays More as a man of principle, envied by rivals such as Thomas Cromwell and loved by the common people, the title reflects 20th century agnostic playwright Robert Bolt’s portrayal of More as the ultimate man of conscience. As one who remains true to himself and his beliefs while adapting to all circumstances and times, despite external pressure or influence, More represents a man for all seasons. Bolt borrowed the title from Robert Whittington, a contemporary of More, for where is the man of that gentleness, lowliness and affability. And, as time requireth, a man of marvelous mirth and pastimes, a Man for All Seasons struggles with ideas of identity and conscience. More argues repeatedly that a person is defined by his conscience and his own position is depicted as almost indefensible, the Pope is described as a bad and corrupt individual, forced by the Emperor Charles V to act according to his will. But as More says to Norfolk, What matters is not that its true, but that I believe it, or no, not that I believe it, but that I believe it. More fears that if he breaks with his conscience, he will be damned to hell, while his associates and friends are more concerned with holding onto their own temporal power. At another key point of the play, More testifies before a committee and Norfolk attempts to persuade him to sign the Succession to the Crown Act 1534, Norfolk, Oh. Im not a scholar, as Master Cromwell never tires of pointing out, but damn it, Thomas, look at those names. Cant you do what I did, and come with us, for fellowship. More, And when we stand before God, and you are sent to Paradise for doing according to your conscience, Mores persecution is made to seem even more unjust by the inclusion of Eustace Chapuys, the long-time Imperial ambassador to England, into the story. Instead, More informs Norfolk of the plot, showing him to be patriotic, Bolt also establishes an anti-authoritarian theme which recurs throughout his works. All people in positions of power – King Henry, Cromwell, Wolsey, Cranmer, Chapuys, even Norfolk – are depicted as being corrupt, evil, or at best expedient. Bolts later plays and film screenplays also delve into this theme, although it is the law that eventually forces Mores execution, the play also makes several powerful statements in support of the rule of law. At one point Mores future son-in-law, Roper, urges him to arrest Richard Rich, More answers that Rich has broken no law, And go he should if he were the Devil himself until he broke the law
A Man for All Seasons
–
Programme from the original London production (1960)
A Man for All Seasons
–
Sir
Thomas More, one of the most famous early Lord Chancellors, served and was executed under King
Henry VIII.
8.
The Prisoner
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The Prisoner is a 17-episode British television series first broadcast in Canada beginning on September 6,1967 then in the United Kingdom on 29 September 1967 and in the USA on June 1,1968. It stars and was co-created by Patrick McGoohan, and combines spy fiction with elements of fiction, allegory. The series follows a British former secret agent who is abducted and held prisoner in a coastal village resort. A TV miniseries remake aired on the U. S. cable channel AMC between 15 and 17 November 2009 and this was followed by another remake as an audio drama in 2015 by Big Finish Productions. The series follows a man who, after abruptly and angrily resigning from his job. While packing his luggage, he is rendered unconscious by gas piped into his London flat. When he wakes, he himself in a recreation of his apartment, located in a mysterious seaside village within which he is held captive, isolated from the mainland by mountains. The Village is further secured by numerous monitoring systems and security forces, the man encounters the Villages population, hundreds of people from all walks of life and cultures, all seeming to be peacefully living out their lives. They do not use names, but have been assigned numbers which give no clue as to any persons status within the Village, potential escapees therefore have no idea whom they can and cannot trust. The protagonist is assigned Number Six, but he refuses the pretence of his new identity. Number Six is monitored heavily by Number Two, the Village administrator, All of these are employed not only to find out why Number Six resigned as an agent, but also to elicit other purportedly dangerous information he gained as a spy. The position of Number Two is filled in by other characters on a rotating basis. Sometimes this is part of a plan to confuse Number Six, at other times. Number Six, distrustful of anyone involved with the Village, refuses to co-operate or provide the answers they seek and his schemes lead to the dismissals of the incumbent Number Two on two occasions, although he never escapes. A major theme of the series is individualism, as represented by Number Six, versus collectivism, as represented by Number Two, McGoohan stated that the series aimed to demonstrate a balance between the two points. Several actors—including Alexis Kanner, Christopher Benjamin, Georgina Cookson, Kenneth Griffith and Patrick Cargill—appeared in more than one episode, playing different characters. Maher, McGoohans stunt double, can be seen at the start of almost every episode, running across the beach, he also extensively in The Schizoid Man. The show was created while Patrick McGoohan and George Markstein were working on Danger Man, the exact details of who created which aspects of the show are disputed, majority opinion credits McGoohan as the sole creator of the series
The Prisoner
–
The Prisoner intertitle
The Prisoner
–
Panoramic view of the central piazza, Portmeirion Village
9.
Rumpole of the Bailey
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Rumpole of the Bailey was a British television series created and written by the British writer and barrister John Mortimer. It starred Leo McKern as Horace Rumpole, an elderly London barrister who defended a broad variety of clients, the TV series led to the stories being presented in other media including books and radio. The Bailey of the title is a reference to the Central Criminal Court, while certain biographical details are slightly different in the original television series and the subsequent book series, Horace Rumpole has a number of definite character traits that are constant. First and foremost, Rumpole loves the courtroom, a devotee of Arthur Quiller-Couchs Oxford Book of English Verse, he often quotes Wordsworth. He privately refers to his wife Hilda as She Who Must Be Obeyed and his skill at defending his clients is legendary among the criminal classes. The Timson clan of minor villains regularly rely on Rumpole to get out of their latest bit of trouble with the law. Rumpole is proud of his handling of the Penge Bungalow Murders alone and without a leader early in his career and of his extensive knowledge about bloodstains. Cross-examination is one of his activities, and he disdains barristers who lack either the skill or courage to ask the right questions. His courtroom zeal gets him into trouble from time to time, often, his investigations reveal more than his client wants him to know. Rumpoles most chancy encounters stem from arguing with judges, particularly those who seem to believe that being on trial implies guilt or that the police are infallible. Rumpole enjoys smoking cigars, drinking cheap red wine, and indulging in a diet of fried foods, overboiled vegetables, cheese-and-tomato sandwiches. His cigar smoking is often the subject of debate within his Chambers, despite his affection for the criminal classes, Rumpoles character is marked by a firm set of ethics. He is a believer in the presumption of innocence, the Golden Thread of British Justice. He often reinforces this by proclaiming that it is better for 10 guilty men to go free than for one innocent to be convicted, Rumpoles never plead guilty credo also prevents him from making deals that involve pleading guilty to lesser charges. Rumpole also refuses to prosecute, feeling it important to defend the accused than to work to imprison them. Some of Rumpoles clients feel that things would have been better for them if they had found guilty. And there, Mortimer realised, I had Rumpole, in the television series, where Rumpole first appeared, there is some consistency with regard to Rumpoles backstory. The original play is set in 1974, and Rumpole states that he is 64 years old, Rumpoles Oxford Book of English Verse is inscribed Horace Rumpole, Little Wicks School 1923
Rumpole of the Bailey
–
Caricature of
Leo McKern as Horace Rumpole from the episode "Rumpole's Return"
10.
Help! (film)
–
The second film starring The Beatles following Lesters A Hard Days Night, Help. Sees the group come up against an evil cult, the soundtrack was released as an album, also called Help. The film had its Royal World Premiere at the London Pavilion Theatre in the West End of London on 29 July 1965 in the presence of Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, an eastern cult is about to sacrifice a woman to the goddess Kaili. Just as she is about to be killed, the priestess of the cult, Ahme. Ringo Starr, drummer of the Beatles, has and is wearing it, it was sent to him by the victim in a fan letter. Determined to retrieve the ring and sacrifice the woman, the great Swami Clang, Ahme, after several failed attempts to steal the ring, they confront the Beatles in an Indian restaurant. Ringo learns that if he not return the ring soon. Ringo then discovers that the ring is stuck on his finger, the Beatles go to a jeweller to remove the ring, but the tools he uses all break. They then go to a mad scientist, Foot, and his assistant Algernon, in a lab full of British-made equipment, they attempt to expand the rings molecules so it can slide off Ringos finger. But the machines only manage to remove all his other rings, astonished that his equipment has no effect on the ring, Foot decides that he, too, must have it. While they bumble with trying to get a laser together, Ahme crashes the lab, back home, Ahme tells the group that her sisters time has passed and she is now out of danger and Ringo is now the sacrificial victim. She prepares a solution intended to shrink Ringos finger so she can get the ring off. But then Clang and his henchmen crash the house, causing Ahme to drop the syringe on Pauls leg, while a shrunken Paul hides in an ashtray, the cult attack the other Beatles and pour red paint on Ringo. Foot and Algernon come in, shoots a shot with his Webley and scares the cult away. Paul unshrinks and John subsequently starts to swing a lamp at Foot who tries to shoot him, blaming this on the fact that the gun is British made, Foot retreats. The boys are left to sort things out, the band flees to the Austrian Alps for refuge but both thugs and Foot follow in pursuit. The Beatles practice skiing, then participate in a game of curling, Foot and Algernon booby-trap one of the curling stones with a bomb, George sees the fiendish thingy and tells everyone to run. The bomb eventually goes off after a delay, creating a big hole in the ice from which a Channel swimmer emerges, the boys ski down a slope fleeing from Clang, directed by Ahme, who then misdirects Clang to the take-off ramp for a Ski jumping contest
Help! (film)
–
Theatrical release poster
11.
Thomas Cromwell
–
Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex KG PC was an English lawyer and statesman who served as chief minister to King Henry VIII of England from 1532 to 1540. Cromwell was one of the strongest and most powerful advocates of the English Reformation and he helped to engineer an annulment of the kings marriage to Queen Catherine of Aragon so that Henry could lawfully marry Anne Boleyn. Cromwell subsequently charted an evangelical and reformist course for the Church of England from the posts of vicegerent in spirituals. During his rise to power, Cromwell made many enemies, including his former ally Anne Boleyn and he played a prominent role in her downfall. He later fell from power, after arranging the marriage to German princess Anne of Cleves. Cromwell was arraigned under a bill of attainder and executed for treason, the king later expressed regret at the loss of his chief minister. Until the 1950s, historians discounted Cromwells role, calling him a doctrinaire hack who was more than the agent of the despotic King Henry VIII. Geoffrey Elton, however, featured him as the figure in the Tudor revolution in government in The Tudor Revolution. Elton portrayed Cromwell as the genius, much more so than the king, handling the break with Rome and creating the laws. Subsequent historians have agreed with Elton as to Cromwells importance, though not with his claims of revolution. Thomas Cromwell was born around 1485, in Putney, Surrey, as the son of Walter Cromwell, a blacksmith, fuller and cloth merchant, thomass mother, Katherine, was the aunt of Nicholas Glossop of Wirksworth in Derbyshire. She lived in Putney in the house of an attorney, John Welbeck. Cromwell had two sisters, the elder, Katherine, married Morgan Williams, a Welsh lawyer, the younger, Elizabeth, married a farmer, Katherine and Morgans son, Richard, was employed in his uncles service, and changed his name to Cromwell. Little is known about Cromwells early life and it is believed that he was born at the top of Putney Hill, on the edge of Putney Heath. The plot of ground here referred to is now covered by the Green Man public house, Cromwell declared to Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Cranmer that he had been a ruffian… in his young days. As a youth, he left his family in Putney, accounts of his activities in France, Italy and the Low Countries are sketchy and contradictory. It is alleged that he first became a mercenary, and marched with the French army to Italy, while in Italy, he entered service in the household of the Florentine banker Francesco Frescobaldi. Later, he visited leading mercantile centres in the Low Countries, living among the English merchants, at some point he returned to Italy
Thomas Cromwell
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Portrait of Thomas Cromwell,
Hans Holbein the Younger, (1532–33)
Thomas Cromwell
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Thomas, Cardinal Wolsey
Thomas Cromwell
–
Anne Boleyn
Thomas Cromwell
–
Jane Seymour,
Hans Holbein the Younger
12.
The Blue Lagoon (1980 film)
–
The Blue Lagoon is a 1980 American romantic adventure drama film directed by Randal Kleiser and filmed on Turtle Island in Fiji. The screenplay by Douglas Day Stewart was based on the 1908 novel The Blue Lagoon by Henry De Vere Stacpoole, the film stars Brooke Shields and Christopher Atkins. The music score was composed by Basil Poledouris and the cinematography was by Néstor Almendros, the film tells the story of two young children marooned on a tropical island paradise in the South Pacific. With neither the nor the restrictions of society, emotional feelings and physical changes arise as they reach puberty. Shields was 14 years old at the time of filming and later testified before a U. S, congressional inquiry that older body doubles were used in some of her nude scenes. Also, throughout the film in frontal shots her breasts were covered by her long hair or in other ways. The film received a MPAA rating of R in the United States, in the Victorian period, two young child cousins, Richard and Emmeline Lestrange, and a galley cook, Paddy Button, survive a shipwreck in the South Pacific and reach a lush tropical island. Paddy cares for the children and forbids them by law from going to the other side of the island. He also warns them against eating a berry which is apparently deadly. Paddy soon dies after a binge, and his body is discovered by Richard. Now alone, the go to another part of the island. Years pass and they grow into tall, strong, and beautiful teenagers. They live in their hut, spending their days fishing, swimming. Richard and Emmeline begin to fall in love, although this is stressful for them because of their lack of education on human sexuality. Emmeline is frightened after she has her first menstrual period, confused about it, Richard finds himself becoming physically attracted to Emmeline but she, though often fearful of being left alone, does not reciprocate his feelings, inciting Richard to go off alone and masturbate. Sometime later, their relationship suffers a blow when a ship appears for the first time in years. Richards desire to leave comes into conflict with Emmelines desire to stay, as a result, the ship passes by without noticing them. When Richard angrily confronts Emmeline about this, she tells him that the island is their home now and she throws one back, hitting him on the head
The Blue Lagoon (1980 film)
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Promotional film poster
The Blue Lagoon (1980 film)
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The
Fiji Crested Iguana became known to herpetologists through The Blue Lagoon.
13.
The Omen
–
The Omen is a 1976 American-British supernatural horror film directed by Richard Donner and written by David Seltzer. The film stars Gregory Peck, Lee Remick, David Warner, Harvey Spencer Stephens, Billie Whitelaw, Patrick Troughton, Martin Benson, and Leo McKern. The first installment in The Omen series, the film concerns a young child substituted at birth by American Ambassador Robert Thorn unbeknownst to his wife and they are surrounded by mysterious and ominous deaths, unaware that the child is the Antichrist. The film earned two Academy Award nominations, and won for Best Original Score for Jerry Goldsmith, his only Oscar win, a scene from the film appeared at #16 on Bravos The 100 Scariest Movie Moments. The film spawned a franchise, starting with Damien, Omen II, in Rome, American diplomat Robert Thorn is in a hospital where his wife Katherine gives birth to a boy, who—he is told—dies moments after being born. Robert is convinced by the chaplain, Father Spiletto, to secretly adopt an orphan whose mother died at the same time. Robert agrees, but does not reveal to his wife that the child is not theirs, soon after, Robert is appointed U. S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom. Father Brennan, a Catholic priest, tries repeatedly to warn the Ambassador about Damiens mysterious origins, the priest later tells Robert that Katherine is pregnant and that Damien will prevent her from having the child. Afterward, Brennan is impaled and killed by a lightning rod thrown from the roof of a church during a sudden storm, upon returning home, Katherine tells Robert that she is pregnant and wants an abortion. Learning of Father Brennans death, photographer Keith Jennings begins investigating Damien and he notices shadows in photographs of the nanny and of Father Brennan that seem to presage their bizarre deaths. Photos of Keith also show these shadows, Keith shows Robert the photos and tells him he also believes that Damien is a threat and that he wants to help Robert. While Robert is away, Damien knocks Katherine over a railing to the floor below. Keith and Robert travel to Rome to investigate Damiens birth, a fire destroyed the hospital records and the maternity and nursery wards five years earlier, most of the staff on duty died in the fire. Robert and Keith trace Father Spiletto to St. Benedicts Abbey in Subiaco, stricken mute, blind in his right eye and paralyzed in his right arm, Spiletto writes the name of an ancient Etruscan cemetery in Cerveteri, where Damiens biological mother is buried. Robert and Keith find a carcass in the grave, and in the childs grave next to it. These are Damiens unnatural mother and the remains of the Thorns own child, Keith reiterates Father Brennans belief that Damien is the Antichrist, whose coming is being supported by a conspiracy of Satanists. A pack of dogs, similar to ones seen near the Thorns mansion, drive Robert. Back in London, Mrs. Baylock persuades a nurse to allow her access to Katherine, once inside the room, Mrs. Baylock pushes Katherine out of the window, causing her to fall into an ambulance truck, killing her
The Omen
–
Theatrical release poster by
Tom Jung
14.
Damien: Omen II
–
Damien, Omen II is a 1978 American supernatural horror film directed by Don Taylor, starring William Holden, Lee Grant, and Jonathan Scott-Taylor. The film was the installment in The Omen series, set seven years after the first film. This was Lew Ayres final film role and the debut of Meshach Taylor. The official tagline of the film is The First Time Was Only a Warning, leo McKern reprises his role as Carl Bugenhagen from the original film, he is the only cast member of the series to appear in more than one installment. A week after the burial of Robert and Katherine Thorn, archaeologist Carl Bugenhagen learns of the survival of their adopted son Damien. Confiding to his friend Michael Morgan that Damien is the Antichrist, though Morgan believes him upon seeing an ancient depiction of the Antichrist with Damiens face, both he and Bugenhagen are buried alive as the tunnel collapses on them. Seven years later, the 12-year old Damien is living with his uncle, industrialist Richard Thorn and his wife, Damien gets along well with his cousin Mark, Richards son from his first marriage, with whom he is enrolled in a military academy. However, Damien is despised by Richards aunt, Marion, who sees him as a bad influence on Mark. Though Marion threatens to cut Richard out of her if he does not separate the two boys, she dies of a heart attack while visited by a raven in the dead of night. Soon after, through his friend and curator of the Thorn Museum, Dr. Charles Warren, Hart has pieced together the circumstances of Jennings death after seeing Yigaels Wall. Though no one believes her, Joan believes she may have been mistaken about Damien until she sees his face at his school and drives off in a panic. On the road, after her cars engine dies, Joan is attacked by the raven as it pecks out her eyes. At Marks birthday, Buher introduces himself to Damien, invites him to see the plant, Buher seemingly makes up with Atherton, who drowns after falling through the ice at a hockey game on a frozen lake the following day. A shocked Richard leaves on vacation, leaving Buher to oversee the project in principle. Meanwhile, at the academy, Damiens new commander, Sgt, neff, is revealed to be a secret Satanist like Buher as he takes the boy under his wing while advising him not to draw any attention to himself until the right moment. He also points him to the Biblical Revelation, chapter 13, telling Damien that, for him, the book is precisely that, Damien reads the passage, discovering the 666 Mark of the Beast on his scalp. Learning his true nature he flees the Academy grounds in a terrified panic, the incident injures Damiens class, who were visiting the plant at the time. When Damien alone is found to be unharmed by the fumes, the doctor discovers that Damiens marrow cells resemble that of a jackal, before he can investigate any further or report his findings, however, he is bifurcated by a falling elevator cable
Damien: Omen II
–
Theatrical release poster
15.
The Omen (film series)
–
The Omen is a British-American horror film franchise beginning in 1976. The story was written by David Seltzer, who chose not to continue the series after the first novel. The second novel was written by Joseph Howard, the third novel was done by Gordon McGill. After the third film was produced, a fourth and fifth were made-for-television in an attempt to revive the series, the series centers on Damien Thorn, a child born of Satan and given to Robert and Katherine Thorn, before being passed along the Thorn families as a child. It is revealed among the families that Damien is in fact meant to be the Antichrist, three documentaries regarding the series have been made,666, The Omen - Revealed, The Omen, Legacy, and The Curse of The Omen. The Omen is the film in the series, directed by Richard Donner. The story introduces Robert Thorn, an American Ambassador in Italy who adopts the newborn Damien to replace the newborn that he was told was stillborn. When Damien reaches the age of five as Robert is transferred to Britain, strange events unfold, starting with the boys nanny committing suicide during his birthday party. In the meantime, Katherine is murdered by Mrs. Baylock, Damiens second nanny, arriving in Megiddo to find Bugenhagen, an exorcist and archaeologist, Robert is presented with the only means to kill Damien, Seven Daggers of Megiddo. Though he initially refuses, it both the death of Jennings and discovering the Mark of the Beast on Damiens head to convince Robert to go through with it. But despite killing Mrs. Baylock after a struggle, Robert is killed by the authorities before he can kill Damien, Damien is then left in the care of his uncle, Richard Thorn. The second film, Damien, Omen II starts with Bugenhagen attempting to send Richard a package, then we are introduced to Richards son Mark and his second wife Ann. Athertons death is beneficial for senior manager Paul Buher, another member of the Satanist group Baylock was part of, neff, guides Damien to learn his true nature by advising him to read the Book of Revelation. Though Richard accepted the truth upon receiving the Daggers of Megiddo from Bugenhagens package, though he managed to kill six of the seven monks who each brandish a Dagger of Megiddo, their leader Father DeCarlo lives. Damien unknowingly causes his own downfall by his association with a journalist named Kate Reynolds who kills him at his moment of weakness, but as Damiens death did not occur in the manner that Bugenhagen learned, the Antichrist only suffered a temporary demise. While nothing seems wrong at first, compared to her father, Karen finds herself pregnant and hires a detective to find out about Delias lineage. What follows is a string of bizarre accidental deaths before Karen gives birth to her son Alexander while falling into a paranoia as she tries to reveal her daughters true identity. Though Karen was adamant to kill Alexander, she ended up committing suicide, leaving Alexander, the 2006 remake of the first film, also titled The Omen, was directed and produced by John Moore
The Omen (film series)
–
Poster for the first film
16.
Sapper
–
They are also trained to serve as infantry personnel in defensive and offensive operations. A sappers duties are devoted to tasks involving facilitating movement, defence and survival of allied forces, the term sapper is used in the British Army and Commonwealth nations, Polish Army and the U. S. military. The phrase sapper comes from the French saper, saps were excavated by brigades of trained sappers or instructed troops. When an army was defending a fortress with cannon, they had an obvious height, the attacking armys artillery had to be brought forward, under fire, so as to facilitate effective counter-battery fire. This was achieved by digging what the French termed a sappe, using techniques developed and perfected by Vauban, the sappers began the trench at such an angle so as to avoid enemy fire enfilading the sappe. As they pressed forward, a position was prepared from which cannon could suppress the defenders on the bastions, the sappers would then change the course of their trench, zig-zagging toward the fortress wall. Each leg brought the attackers artillery closer until the cannon would be sufficiently suppressed for the attackers to breach the walls. Broadly speaking, sappers were experts at demolishing or otherwise overcoming or bypassing fortification systems. An additional term applied to sappers of the British Indian Army was miner, the native engineer corps were referred to as sappers and miners, as for example, the Royal Bombay Sappers and Miners. The term arose from a task done by sappers to further the battle after saps were dug, the saps permitted cannon to be brought into firing range of the besieged fort and its cannon, but often the cannon themselves were unable to breach the fort walls. This was dangerous work, often lethal to the sappers, and was resisted by the besieged enemy. Since the two tasks went hand in hand and were done by the troops, native Indian engineer corps came to be called sappers and miners. Sapper is the Royal Engineers equivalent of private, the term sapper was introduced in 1856 when the Corps of Royal Sappers and Miners was amalgamated with the officer corps of the Royal Engineers to form the Corps of Royal Engineers. During the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I Australian sappers repaired a bridge at the crossing of the Jordan River at Jisr Benat Yakub. Here the retreating Ottoman and German rearguard had blown up the central arch which was repaired in five hours by sappers attached to the Australian Mounted Division. Australian Sappers in the Vietnam War were also honoured in the Cold Chisel song Khe Sanh with the line I left my heart to the Sappers round Khe Sanh, in the Canadian Forces, sappers exist both in the regular force and reserve force. The rank of sapper is used instead of private trained to signify completion of the Engineer DP1 course, Canadian sappers have been deployed in many major conflicts in recent history including World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the War in Afghanistan. Ultimately, the objective of the sappers is to facilitate the living, moving, and fighting for friendly troops on the battlefield, the motto of the Canadian Military Engineers is Ubique a motto shared with the Royal Canadian Artillery
Sapper
–
The sappers (" sapeurs ") of the
French Foreign Legion traditionally sport large beards, and wear leather aprons and gloves, plus carry axes in their
ceremonial dress.
Sapper
–
Soldiers of No 2 Field Company,
Bombay Sappers and Miners on duty in China in 1900. The mule carries the tools required for field engineering tasks.
Sapper
–
The fort of
Ghazni which fell as a result of mining by a mixed contingent of the
Bombay and
Bengal Sappers during the
First Afghan War on 23 July 1839.
Sapper
–
Jisr Benat Yakub repaired (September 1918)
17.
Australian Army
–
The Australian Army is Australias military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy, while the Chief of the Defence Force commands the ADF, the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army. The CA is therefore subordinate to the CDF, but is directly responsible to the Minister for Defence. Although Australian soldiers have been involved in a number of minor and major conflicts throughout its history, Australias largest peacekeeping deployment began in 1999 in East Timor, while other ongoing operations include peacekeeping on Bougainville, in the Sinai, and in the Solomon Islands. Humanitarian relief after 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake in Aceh Province, Indonesia, Operation Sumatra Assist, the 1st Division comprises a deployable headquarters, while 2nd Division under the command of Forces Command is the main home-defence formation, containing Army Reserve units. 2nd Divisions headquarters only performs administrative functions, the Australian Army has not deployed a divisional-sized formation since 1945 and does not expect to do so in the future. 1st Division carries out training activities and deploys to command large-scale ground operations. It does not have any combat units permanently assigned, Forces Command controls for administrative purposes all non-special-forces assets of the Australian Army. It is neither an operational nor a deployable command,1 Brigade – Multi-role Combat Brigade based in Darwin and Adelaide. 3 Brigade – Multi-role Combat Brigade based in Townsville,6 Brigade – Mixed brigade based in Sydney. 7 Brigade – Multi-role Combat Brigade based in Brisbane,16 Aviation Brigade – Army Aviation brigade based in Enoggera, Brisbane. 17 Combat Service Support Brigade – Logistic brigade based in Sydney, 2nd Division administers the reserve forces from its headquarters located in Sydney. 4 Brigade – based in Victoria,5 Brigade – based in New South Wales. 8 Brigade – based in New South Wales,9 Brigade – based in South Australia and Tasmania. 11 Brigade – based in Queensland,13 Brigade – based in Western Australia. Special Operations Command comprises a command formation of equal status to the commands in the ADF. It includes all of Armys special forces assets, the force will be known as the Amphibious Ready Element and will be embarked on the Navys new Canberra-class amphibious assault ships. Infantry, and some combat units of the Australian Army carry flags called the Queens Colour
Australian Army
–
Soldiers of the Australian 39th Battalion in September 1942
Australian Army
Australian Army
–
Two Australian soldiers during the
Shah Wali Kot Offensive in
Afghanistan
Australian Army
–
Australian Cavalry Scout in Iraq, 2007
18.
Royal Australian Engineers
–
The Royal Australian Engineers is a corps of the Australian Army. The RAE is ranked fourth in seniority of the corps of the Australian Army, behind the Staff Cadets, Armoured, the corps has also served on numerous peacekeeping operations and was heavily involved in the Australian contribution to the war in Afghanistan. The origins of the Royal Australian Engineers date back to 15 November 1860, by 1876, five of the six colonies—New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania and Western Australia—had raised their own engineer units. These were amalgamated on 1 July 1902 as the Corps of Engineers, at this time, the corps consisted of field, fortress, telegraph, electric and submarine mining companies. After Federation the small regular engineer component was granted the prefix Royal, however, in 1911, the Australian Corps of Signallers was absorbed into the Engineers as the RAE Signal Service. Four years later, in July 1915, all members of the Survey Section RAE, during this period the School of Military Engineering was established at Moore Park in Sydney. During World War I there were approximately 40 engineering units raised as part of the First Australian Imperial Force and these units included field engineering units, tunneling companies, railway units and signalling squadrons which served at Gallipoli, the Sinai, Palestine, France and Belgium. Following the end of the war the School of Military Engineering was disbanded, on 1 January 1925 the RAE Signal Service was separated to form the Australian Corps of Signals. This was followed in 1932 by the Survey Section separating to form the Australian Survey Corps, the regular Permanent Force and reserve Citizen Military Forces engineer units were brought together in January 1936 as the Corps of Royal Australian Engineers. In 1939 the School of Military Engineering was re-established at Steele Barracks in Liverpool, New South Wales, during the inter-war years the RAE maintained a force of 233 regular troops and a militia force of 1,750. With the outbreak of World War II, however, the corps was expanded greatly, eventually reaching a peak of 32,984 men in 1945, RAE units of the Second Australian Imperial Force and militia served in North Africa, Malaya, New Guinea and Borneo campaigns. Following the end of the war the size of the corps was again reduced. Nevertheless, the units and sub-units of the RAE have been deployed on many overseas operations since 1945. During the Korean War there were no formed engineer units deployed by the Australian Army, later, RAE units deployed as part of the Australian commitment to the Malayan Emergency, Confrontation and the Vietnam War. They have also deployed overseas to carry out construction work in New Guinea. During the Vietnam War the RAE maintained a force of about 1,000 personnel in South Vietnam where they served as part of the 1st Australian Task Force. One of the most significant changes came in 1972 and was the decision to establish full regimental sized engineer units and these units were initially known as Field Regiments, but have subsequently become known as Combat Engineer Regiments. As a part of restructuring the RAE was reorganised to raise one regiment for each brigade
Royal Australian Engineers
–
Engineers at Tarakan, 1945
Royal Australian Engineers
–
Royal Australian Engineers
Royal Australian Engineers
–
An RAE sapper assigned to the International Stabilisation Force, Dili, Timor Leste, 2010
Royal Australian Engineers
–
Sappers from 1 CER, 2009
19.
World War II
–
World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
World War II
–
Clockwise from top left: Chinese forces in the
Battle of Wanjialing, Australian
25-pounder guns during the
First Battle of El Alamein, German
Stuka dive bombers on the
Eastern Front in December 1943, a U.S. naval force in the
Lingayen Gulf,
Wilhelm Keitel signing the
German Instrument of Surrender, Soviet troops in the
Battle of Stalingrad
World War II
–
The
League of Nations assembly, held in
Geneva,
Switzerland, 1930
World War II
–
Adolf Hitler at a German
National Socialist political rally in
Weimar, October 1930
World War II
–
Italian soldiers recruited in 1935, on their way to fight the
Second Italo-Abyssinian War
20.
United Kingdom
–
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
United Kingdom
–
Stonehenge, in
Wiltshire, was erected around 2500 BC.
United Kingdom
–
Flag
United Kingdom
–
The
Bayeux Tapestry depicts the
Battle of Hastings, 1066, and the events leading to it.
United Kingdom
–
The
Treaty of Union led to a single united kingdom encompassing all Great Britain.
21.
Old Vic
–
The Old Vic is a theatre located just south-east of Waterloo station in London on the corner of The Cut and Waterloo Road. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, and renamed in 1833 the Royal Victoria Theatre, in 1871 it was rebuilt and reopened as the Royal Victoria Palace. It was taken over by Emma Cons in 1880 and formally named the Royal Victoria Hall, in 1898, a niece of Cons, Lilian Baylis assumed management and began a series of Shakespeare productions in 1914. The building was damaged in 1940 during air raids and it became a Grade II* listed building in 1951 after it reopened. It was also the name of a company that was based at the theatre and formed the core of the National Theatre of Great Britain on its formation in 1963. The National Theatre remained at the Old Vic until new premises were constructed on the South Bank, the Old Vic then became the home of Prospect Theatre Company, at that time a highly successful touring company which staged such acclaimed productions as Derek Jacobis Hamlet. However, with the withdrawal of funding for the company by the Arts Council of Great Britain in 1980 for breaching its touring obligations, the theatre underwent complete refurbishment in 1985. In 2003, Kevin Spacey was appointed as new director of the Old Vic Theatre Company which received considerable media attention. In 2015, Matthew Warchus succeeded Spacey as artistic director, the theatre was a minor theatre and was thus technically forbidden to show serious drama. Nevertheless, when the theatre passed to George Bolwell Davidge in 1824 he succeeded in bringing legendary actor Edmund Kean south of the river to play six Shakespeare plays in six nights. More popular staples in the repertoire were sensational and violent melodramas demonstrating the evils of drink, churned out by the house dramatist, confirmed teetotaller Douglas Jerrold. On 1 July 1833, the theatre was renamed the Royal Victoria Theatre, under the protection and patronage of Victoria, Duchess of Kent, mother to Princess Victoria, the 14-year-old heir presumptive. The duchess and the princess visited only once, on 28 November of that year, the single visit scarcely justified the Old Vic its later billing as Queen Victorias Own Theayter. By 1835, the theatre was advertising itself simply as the Victoria Theatre, in 1841, David Osbaldiston took over as lessee, succeeded on his death in 1850 by his lover and the theatres leading lady, Eliza Vincent, until her death in 1856. Under their management, the theatre remained devoted to melodrama, in 1867, Joseph Arnold Cave took over as lessee. In 1871 he transferred the lease to Romaine Delatorre, who raised funds for the theatre to be rebuilt in the style of the Alhambra Music Hall, jethro Thomas Robinson was engaged as the architect. In September 1871 the old theatre closed, and the new building opened as the Royal Victoria Palace in December of the same year, by 1873, however, Cave had left and Delatorres venture failed. The penny lectures given in the led to the foundation of Morley College, an adult education college
Old Vic
–
The exterior of the Old Vic from the corner of
Baylis Road and
Waterloo Road
Old Vic
–
Royal Coburg Theatre in 1822
Old Vic
–
The theatre at night
Old Vic
–
Staircase of the Old Vic
22.
Royal Shakespeare Theatre
–
The Royal Shakespeare Theatre is a 1, 040+ seat thrust stage theatre owned by the Royal Shakespeare Company dedicated to the English playwright and poet William Shakespeare. It is located in the town of Stratford-upon-Avon – Shakespeares birthplace – in the English Midlands, the Royal Shakespeare and Swan Theatres re-opened in November 2010 after undergoing a major renovation known as the Transformation Project. The Royal Shakespeare Theatre opened in 1932 on the adjacent to the original Shakespeare Memorial Theatre. The architect was Elisabeth Scott, so the theatre became the first important work erected in Britain from the designs of a woman architect and it was renamed the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in 1961, following the establishment of the Royal Shakespeare Company the previous year. In the building designed by Scott, the theatre had a stage. Two tiers of seating were added to the side walls of the theatre. Balcony seats could only be accessed by means of a staircase to the side of the building, separate from the main foyer, the theatre has several notable Art Deco features, including the staircase and corridors at either side of the auditorium. It is a Grade II* listed building, the Royal Shakespeare and Swan Theatres are on the western bank of the River Avon, with the adjacent Bancroft Gardens providing a scenic riverside setting. The Rooftop Restaurant and Bar overlooks both the river and the Bancroft Gardens, the Royal Shakespeare Company has renovated the Royal Shakespeare Theatre as part of a £112. The new theatre is more accessible to people with disabilities. The theatre is a theatre, which allows the actors. The stage reaches out into the audience, who are seated on three sides of it and this one-room theatre creates a more traditional Shakespearean performance area, allowing the audience to draw closer to the actors and creating a more personal theatre experience. The project reached over a total of £100 million in cost and also drew in financial support from RSC America, plans to redevelop the theatre were finalised and work commenced in 2007, with a scheduled completion date of 2010. The RSC had its own team, led by Project Director. Other members of the team included, Bennetts Associates, Buro Happold, Charcoalblue, Mace, Acoustic Dimensions, Drivers Jonas Deloitte and Gardiner. The new theatre opened in November 2010, with events and activities. The Royal Shakespeare Theatre was officially opened on 4 March 2011 by Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, there is also a riverside walk which stretches from the Bancroft Gardens, past the theatre, towards Holy Trinity Church. The whole building is now accessible for the first time for visitors, performers, the Company, A Biographical Dictionary of the Royal Shakespeare Company
Royal Shakespeare Theatre
–
The Royal Shakespeare Theatre in 2011, north frontage and tower.
Royal Shakespeare Theatre
–
The first Shakespeare Memorial theatre complex, pictured in the 1890s
23.
Stratford-upon-Avon
–
Stratford-upon-Avon is a market town and civil parish in Warwickshire, England, on the River Avon,101 miles north west of London,22 miles south east of Birmingham, and 8 miles south west of Warwick. The estimated population in 2007 was 25,505, increasing to 27,445 at the 2011 Census, Stratford was originally inhabited by Anglo-Saxons and remained a village before lord of the manor, John of Coutances, set out plans to develop it into a town in 1196. In that same year, Stratford was granted a charter from King Richard I to hold a market in the town. As a result, Stratford experienced an increase in trade and commerce as well as urban expansion, the town is a popular tourist destination owing to its status as birthplace of English playwright and poet William Shakespeare, and receives approximately 2.5 million visitors a year. The Royal Shakespeare Company resides in Stratfords Royal Shakespeare Theatre, the street was a Roman road which connected Icknield Street in Alcester to the Fosse Way. The ford, which has used as a crossing since Roman times. A survey of 1251-52 uses the name Stratford for the first time to identify Old Stratford, the name was used after that time to describe the area specifically surrounding the Holy Trinity Church and the street of Old Town. The settlement which became known as Stratford was first inhabited by Anglo-Saxons following their 7th century invasion of what would become known as Warwickshire. The land was owned by the church of Worcester and it remained a village until the late 12th century when it was developed into a town by lord of the manor, John of Coutances. John laid out a new plan in 1196 based on a grid system to expand Stratford. Additionally, a charter was granted to Stratford by King Richard I in 1196 which allowed a market to be held in the town. These two charters, which formed the foundations of Stratfords transformation from a village to a town, johns plans to develop Stratford into a town meant Stratford became a place of work for tradesmen and merchants. By 1252 the town had approximately 240 burgages, as well as shops, stalls, Stratfords new workers established a guild known as the Guild of the Holy Cross for their business and religious requirements. Many of the towns earliest and most important buildings are located along what is known as Stratfords Historic Spine, the route of the Historic Spine begins at Shakespeares Birthplace in Henley Street. It continues through Henley Street to the top end of Bridge Street and into High Street where many Elizabethan buildings are located, the route carries on through Chapel Street where Nashs House and New Place are sited. The Historic Spine continues along Church Street where Guild buildings are located dating back to the 15th century, the route then finishes in Old Town, which includes Halls Croft and the Holy Trinity Church. During Stratfords early expansion into a town, the access across the River Avon into and out of the town was over a wooden bridge. In 1480, a new masonry bridge was built to replace it called Clopton Bridge
Stratford-upon-Avon
–
The
Royal Shakespeare Theatre from the Bancroft Gardens
Stratford-upon-Avon
–
Inland summer cloud development, July 2010, Stratford is denoted by the yellow dot.
Stratford-upon-Avon
–
Stratford-upon-Avon's Clock Tower
Stratford-upon-Avon
–
Historic map from 1908
24.
Ocular prosthesis
–
An ocular prosthesis, artificial eye or glass eye is a type of craniofacial prosthesis that replaces an absent natural eye following an enucleation, evisceration, or orbital exenteration. The prosthesis fits over an orbital implant and under the eyelids, though often referred to as a glass eye, the ocular prosthesis roughly takes the shape of a convex shell and is made of medical grade plastic acrylic. A few ocular prostheses today are made of cryolite glass, a variant of the ocular prosthesis is a very thin hard shell known as a scleral shell which can be worn over a damaged or eviscerated eye. Makers of ocular prosthetics are known as ocularists, an ocular prosthesis does not provide vision, this would be a visual prosthesis. Someone with a prosthesis is totally blind on the affected side and has monocular vision. The earliest known evidence of the use of ocular prosthesis is that of a found in Shahr-I Sokhta. It has a form and a diameter of just over 2.5 cm. It consists of light material, probably bitumen paste. The surface of the eye is covered with a thin layer of gold, engraved with a central circle. On both sides of the eye are drilled tiny holes, through which a thread could hold the eyeball in place. Since microscopic research has shown that the eye socket showed clear imprints of the golden thread, in addition to this, an early Hebrew text references a woman who wore an artificial eye made of gold. Roman and Egyptian priests are known to have produced artificial eyes as early as the fifth century BCE constructed from painted clay attached to cloth and worn outside the socket. The first in-socket artificial eyes were made of gold with colored enamel, but the center shifted again, this time to Germany because of their superior glass blowing techniques. Shortly following the introduction of the art of glass eye-making to the United States, as a result, the US instead made artificial eyes from acrylic plastic. Production of modern ocular prosthetics has expanded from simply using glass into many different types of materials, ocularists and eye surgeons have always worked together to make artificial eyes look more realistic. For decades, all efforts and investments to improve the appearance of eyes have been dampened by the immobility of the pupil. One solution to this problem has been demonstrated recently in a device based on an LCD which simulates the pupil size as a function of the ambient light. There are many different types of implants, classification ranging from shape, stock vs custom, porous vs nonporous, specific chemical make-up, the most basic simplification can be to divide implant types into two main groups, non-integrated and integrated
Ocular prosthesis
–
A human ocular prosthesis
Ocular prosthesis
–
Cat with an ocular prosthesis.
Ocular prosthesis
–
Prosthetic eye and glasses made for an injured
WWI soldier by pioneering plastic surgeon
Johannes Esser
25.
Australian English
–
Australian English is a major variety of the English language, used throughout Australia. Although English has no status in the Constitution, Australian English is the countrys de facto official language and is the first language of the majority of the population. Australian English began to diverge from British English after the founding of the Colony of New South Wales in 1788 and was recognised as being different from British English by 1820. It arose from the intermingling of early settlers from a variety of mutually intelligible dialectal regions of the British Isles. Australian English differs from other varieties of English in vocabulary, accent, pronunciation, register, grammar, the earliest form of Australian English was first spoken by the children of the colonists born into the colony of New South Wales. This first generation of children created a new dialect that was to become the language of the nation, the Australian-born children in the new colony were exposed to a wide range of dialects from all over the British Isles, in particular from Ireland and South East England. The native-born children of the created the new dialect from the speech they heard around them. Even when new settlers arrived, this new dialect was strong enough to blunt other patterns of speech, a quarter of the convicts were Irish. Many had been arrested in Ireland, and some in Great Britain, many, if not most, of the Irish spoke Irish and either no English at all, or spoke it poorly and rarely. There were other significant populations of convicts from non-English speaking part of Britain, such as the Scottish Highlands, anthony Burgess writes that Australian English may be thought of as a kind of fossilised Cockney of the Dickensian era. According to linguist Bruce Moore, the input of the various sounds that went into constructing the Australian accent was from south-east England. Some elements of Aboriginal languages have adopted by Australian English—mainly as names for places, flora and fauna. Many such are localised, and do not form part of general Australian use, while others, such as kangaroo, boomerang, budgerigar, wallaby, other examples are cooee and hard yakka. The former is used as a call, for attracting attention. Cooee is also a distance, if hes within cooee. Hard yakka means hard work and is derived from yakka, from the Jagera/Yagara language once spoken in the Brisbane region, also of Aboriginal origin is the word bung, from the Sydney pidgin English, meaning dead, with some extension to broken or useless. Many towns or suburbs of Australia have also influenced or named after Aboriginal words. The best-known example is the capital, Canberra, named after a local word meaning meeting place
Australian English
–
English is the primary language spoken throughout Australia.
Australian English
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The
Australian gold rushes saw many external influences on the language.
Australian English
–
Bush poets such as
Banjo Paterson captured the Australian vocabulary of the 19th century in their
bush ballads.
26.
Iago
–
Iago is a fictional character in Shakespeares Othello. Iago is the main antagonist, and Othellos standard bearer. He is the husband of Emilia, who is in turn the attendant of Othellos wife Desdemona, Iago hates Othello and devises a plan to destroy him by making him believe that his wife is having an affair with his lieutenant, Michael Cassio. The role is thought to have been first played by Robert Armin, the characters source is traced to Giovanni Battista Giraldi Cinthios tale Un Capitano Moro in Gli Hecatommithi. There, the character is simply the ensign, Cinthios tale may have been based on an actual incident occurring in Venice about 1508. While Shakespeare closely followed Cinthios tale in composing Othello, he departed from it in some details, in Cinthios tale, for example, the ensign suffers an unrequited lust for the Moors wife, Desdemona, which then drives his vengeance. Desdemona dies in a different manner in Cinthios tale, the Moor commissions his ensign to bludgeon her to death with a sand-filled stocking. The Moor misses his wife greatly, however, and comes to loathe the sight of his ensign and he demotes him, and refuses to have him in his company. The ensign then seeks revenge by disclosing to the squadron leader, the two men denounce the Moor to the Venetian Seignory. The Moor is arrested, transported from Cyprus to Venice, and tortured and he is condemned to exile, Desdemonas relatives eventually execute him. The ensign escapes any prosecution in Desdemonas death, but engages in other crimes and dies after being tortured, Iago is a soldier who has fought beside Othello for several years, and has become his trusted advisor. At the beginning of the play, Iago claims to have been passed over for promotion to the rank of Othellos lieutenant in favour of Michael Cassio. Iago plots to manipulate Othello into demoting Cassio, and thereafter to bring about the downfall of Othello himself. He has an ally, Roderigo, who assists him in his plans in the belief that after Othello is gone, Iago will help Roderigo earn the affection of Othellos wife. After Iago engineers a drunken brawl to ensure Cassio’s demotion, he sets to work on his second scheme and this plan occupies the final three acts of the play. He manipulates his wife Emilia, Desdemonas lady-in-waiting, into taking from Desdemona a handkerchief that Othello had given her, once Othello flies into a jealous rage, Iago tells him to hide and look on while he talks to Cassio. Iago then leads Othello to believe that a conversation about Cassios mistress. Mad with jealousy, Othello orders Iago to kill Cassio, promising to make him lieutenant in return, Iago then engineers a fight between Cassio and Roderigo in which the latter is killed, but the former merely wounded
Iago
–
Edwin Booth as Iago, c. 1870
Iago
–
Laurence Fishburne and
Kenneth Branagh as Othello and Iago respectively, in a scene from the
1995 version of Othello.
Iago
–
Characters
27.
Othello
–
Othello is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1603. It is based on the story Un Capitano Moro by Cinthio, Roderigo is upset because he loves Desdemona and had asked her father for her hand in marriage. Iago hates Othello for promoting a younger man named Cassio above him, whom Iago considers less capable a soldier than himself, Iago convinces Roderigo to wake Brabantio and tell him about his daughters elopement. Meanwhile, Iago sneaks away to find Othello and warns him that Brabantio is coming for him. Brabantio, provoked by Roderigo, is enraged and will not rest until he has beheaded Othello, but he finds Othellos residence full of the Duke of Venices guards, who prevent violence. News has arrived in Venice that the Turks are going to attack Cyprus, Brabantio has no option but to accompany Othello to the Dukes residence, where he accuses Othello of seducing Desdemona by witchcraft. Othello defends himself before the Duke of Venice, Brabantios kinsmen Lodovico and Gratiano, Othello explains that Desdemona became enamoured of him for the sad and compelling stories he told of his life before Venice, not because of any witchcraft. Iago, still in the room, takes note of Brabantios remark, the party arrives in Cyprus to find that a storm has destroyed the Turkish fleet. Othello orders a celebration and leaves to consummate his marriage with Desdemona. In his absence, Iago gets Cassio drunk, and then persuades Roderigo to draw Cassio into a fight, Montano tries to calm an angry and drunk Cassio down, but end up fighting one another. Montano is injured in the fight, Othello reenters and questions the men as to what happened. Othello blames Cassio for the disturbance and strips him of his rank, Iago persuades Cassio to importune Desdemona to convince her husband to reinstate Cassio. Iago now persuades Othello to be suspicious of Cassio and Desdemona, when Desdemona drops a handkerchief, Emilia finds it, and gives it to her husband Iago, at his request, unaware of what he plans to do with it. Othello reenters and vows with Iago for the death of Desdemona and Cassio, after which he makes Iago his lieutenant. Act III, scene iii, is considered to be the point of the play as it is the scene in which Iago successfully sows the seeds of doubt in Othellos mind. Iago plants the handkerchief in Cassios lodgings, then tells Othello to watch Cassios reactions while Iago questions him. Iago goads Cassio on to talk about his affair with Bianca, a local courtesan, later, Bianca accuses Cassio of giving her a second-hand gift which he had received from another lover. Othello sees this, and Iago convinces him that Cassio received the handkerchief from Desdemona, enraged and hurt, Othello resolves to kill his wife and asks Iago to kill Cassio
Othello
–
The Russian actor and
theatre practitioner Constantin Stanislavski as Othello in 1896
Othello
–
Desdemona and Othello, by
Antonio Muñoz Degrain
Othello
–
Othello costume - illustration by Percy Anderson for Costume Fanciful, Historical and Theatrical, 1906
Othello
–
Painting by
William Salter of Othello weeping over Desdemona's body. Oil on canvas, ca. 1857.
28.
Peter Hall (director)
–
Sir Peter Reginald Frederick Hall CBE is the pre-eminent British theatre director of his generation. In 1955 he introduced London audiences to the work of Samuel Beckett with the UK premiere of Waiting for Godot, Hall founded the Royal Shakespeare Company and went on to build an international reputation in theatre, opera, film and television. He was Director of the National Theatre and Artistic Director of Glyndebourne Festival Opera and he formed The Peter Hall Company and became founding director of The Rose Theatre, Kingston in 2003. Throughout his career, he has been a champion of public funding for the arts. Peter Reginald Frederick Hall was born in Suffolk at Bury St Edmunds and his father was a stationmaster and the family lived for some time at Great Shelford Station. He won a scholarship to The Perse School in Cambridge, before taking up a further scholarship to read English at St. Catharines College, Cambridge, Hall did his National Service in Germany at The RAF Headquarters for Education in Bückerberg. Whilst studying at Cambridge he produced and acted in a number of plays, directing five in his final year and he served on the University Amateur Dramatic Club committee before graduating in 1953. In the same year, Hall staged his first professional play, The Letter by W. Somerset Maugham,1954 to 1955 saw Hall as the Director of the Oxford Playhouse where he directed several notable young actors including Ronnie Barker and Billie Whitelaw. Eileen Atkins and Maggie Smith were also part of the company as acting Assistants Stage Managers, from 1955-1957 Hall ran The Arts Theatre, London where he directed the English-language premiere of Waiting for Godot. Other notable productions at The Arts included the English language premiere of The Waltz of the Toreadors by Jean Anouilh, the company not only played in Stratford but expanded into the Aldwych Theatre, its first London home. The latter was described as the greatest Shakespearian event in living memory which also laid down the doctrine of Shakespearian relevance to the modern world, Peter Hall left the RSC in 1968 after almost ten years as its Director. Hall was appointed Director of The National Theatre in 1973 and led the organisation for fifteen years until 1988, frustrated by construction delays, Hall decided to move the company into the still-unfinished building and to open it theatre by theatre as each neared completion. Extracts from his production of Tamburlaine the Great with Albert Finney were performed out on the terraces, Hall returned to the NT for the last time in 2011 with a production of Twelfth Night mounted by the company to celebrate his eightieth birthday. His daughter, Rebecca Hall, played Viola, on leaving the NT in 1988, Hall launched his own commercial company with productions in the West End and on Broadway of Orpheus Descending and The Merchant of Venice. The Peter Hall Company went on to more than sixty plays in association with a number of well-known producing partners including Bill Kenwright. Notable productions include Wildes An Ideal Husband, Pam Gemss Piaf, Hamlet, The Master Builder, A Streetcar Named Desire, Julian Barrys Lenny, As You Like It, the fiftieth anniversary production of Waiting for Godot, Cowards Hay Fever and Shaws Pygmalion. Halls final acclaimed productions for his company were Henry IV Parts 1 and 2, in 2003, Peter Hall became the Founding Director of The Rose Theatre - a new venue to be constructed in Kingston upon Thames whose design was inspired by the Elizabethan original. He directed a number of productions there including Chekhovs Uncle Vanya, which opened the building in 2008, Hall is now Director Emeritus of The Rose Kingston
Peter Hall (director)
–
Detail from a portrait of Sir Peter Hall by his daughter
Jennifer Caron Hall.
29.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
–
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is a play by Tennessee Williams. One of Williamss best-known works and his favorite, the play won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1955. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof features several recurring motifs, such as social mores, greed, superficiality, mendacity, decay, sexual desire, repression, dialogue throughout is often rendered phonetically to represent accents of the Southern United States. The original production starred Barbara Bel Geddes, Burl Ives, the play was adapted as a motion picture of the same name in 1958, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman as Maggie and Brick, with Burl Ives and Madeleine Sherwood recreating their stage roles. Williams made substantial excisions and alterations to the play for a revival in 1974 and this has been the version used for most subsequent revivals, which have been numerous. The party is to celebrate the birthday of patriarch Big Daddy Pollitt, the Deltas biggest cotton-planter, all family members are aware of Big Daddys true diagnosis, he is dying of cancer. Maggie, determined and beautiful, has escaped a childhood of poverty to marry into the wealthy Pollitts, the family is aware that Brick has not slept with Maggie for a long time, which has strained their marriage. Brick, a football hero, infuriates her by ignoring his brother Goopers attempts to gain control of the family fortune. Bricks indifference and his drinking have escalated with the suicide of his friend Skipper, Maggie fears that Bricks malaise will ensure that Gooper and his wife Mae end up with Big Daddys estate. Through the evening, Brick, Big Daddy and Maggie—and the entire family—separately must face down the issues which they have bottled up inside, Big Daddy attempts a reconciliation with the alcoholic Brick. Brick explains to Big Daddy that Maggie was jealous of the friendship between Brick and Skipper because she believed it had a romantic undercurrent. He states that Skipper took Maggie to bed to prove her wrong, Brick believes that when Skipper couldnt complete the act, his self-questioning about his sexuality and his friendship with Brick made him snap. Brick also reveals that, shortly before he committed suicide, Skipper confessed his feelings to Brick, disgusted with the familys mendacity, Brick tells Big Daddy that the report from the clinic about his condition was falsified for his sake. Big Daddy storms out of the room, leading the party gathered out on the gallery to drift inside, Maggie, Brick, Mae, Gooper, and Doc Baugh decide to tell Big Mama the truth about his illness and she is devastated by the news. Gooper and Mae start to discuss the division of the Pollitt estate, Big Mama defends her husband from Gooper and Maes proposals. Big Daddy reappears and makes known his plans to die peacefully, attempting to secure Bricks inheritance, Maggie tells him she is pregnant. Gooper and Mae know this is a lie, but Big Mama, when they are alone again, Maggie locks away the liquor and promises Brick that she will make the lie true. Mendacity is a theme throughout the play
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
–
First edition cover (
New Directions)
30.
West End of London
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Use of the term began in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross. The West End covers much of the boroughs of Westminster and Camden, while the City of London, or the Square Mile, is the main business and financial district in London, the West End is the main commercial and entertainment centre of the city. It is one of the most expensive locations in the world in which to rent office space and it was also close to the royal seat of power at Westminster, and is largely contained within the City of Westminster. Developed in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, it was built as a series of palaces, expensive town houses, fashionable shops. The areas closest to the City around Holborn, Seven Dials, as the West End is a term used colloquially by Londoners and is not an official geographical or municipal definition, its exact constituent parts are up for debate. The Edgware Road to the north-west and the Victoria Embankment to the south-east were also covered by the document but were treated as adjacent areas to the West End. According to Ed Glinerts West End Chronicles the districts falling within the West End are Mayfair, Soho, Covent Garden, Fitzrovia, one of the local government wards within the City of Westminster is called West End. This covers a area that defined by Glinert, Mayfair, Soho. The population of this ward at the 2011 Census was 10,575, the New West End Company is a business improvement district and runs services including street cleaning and security on Oxford Street, Regent Street and Bond Street. NWEC also runs the Red Caps service, the West End is laid out with many notable public squares and circuses, the latter being the original name for roundabouts in London. London West End Things to do General overview of what to do in the West End
West End of London
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Piccadilly Circus, the heart of the West End
West End of London
–
Shaftesbury Avenue from
Piccadilly Circus in 1949.
West End of London
–
Her Majesty's Theatre in
Haymarket, home to
Andrew Lloyd Webber ’s
The Phantom of the Opera.
West End of London
–
Nelson's Column in
Trafalgar Square
