Hamlet on the Titanic

April 14, 2025Art, Fiction, Good Things, Language, Plays, Psychology, Titanic

This 15th April is the 113th anniversary of the night RMS Titanic sank. My great-grandmother, Noël Rothes, was, ‘One of the lucky ones’, as she wrote three days later. Lucky not only because she survived, but because none of her beloved menfolk had sailed from Southampton with her. If they had, they would have died in … Read More

Language: how it means everything, and nothing

July 14, 2024Allyship, Antiracism, Art, Artists, Equality, Fiction, Human Rights, Kindness, Language, Listening, Literary Prizes, Plays, Refugees, Storytelling, Theatre

A couple of weeks ago some friends suggested we see ENGLISH, by Sanaz Toossi, at the Kiln Theatre. It’s finished its run now, but if you see it advertised anywhere, go. Toossi wrote the play after the travel ban, colloquially known as the Muslim Ban – ‘a licence to discriminate, disguised as a “national security … Read More

What does it mean to be good?

May 14, 2023Allyship, Art, Artists, Equality, Fiction, Goodness, Morality, Plays

In a 2013 article by Steve Taylor PhD in Psychology Today, good is defined as: a lack of self-centredness … the ability to empathise with other people, feel compassion … and put [others’] needs before your own. It means … sacrificing your own well-being for the sake of others. It means benevolence, altruism and selflessness, … Read More