Grey is Okay

What a day.

Grey, dark, drizzly and humdrum.

In other words, the most glorious kind of day to be plonked in front of a computer doing editing, sound recording and mixing, DVD making and generally being antisocial.

No worries about wasting good weather, no stigma against staying home all day drinking cups of tea and eating biscuits. Perfect.

Except I'm not at my home computer doing my editing. I'm at work doing work editing.

Ho hum, best make the most of it.

There is something very comforting about a grey day.

Some have described the feeling as schadenfreude, notably the cast (and puppets) of Avenue Q in their song of the same name:

'Don't you feel all warm and cosy, watchin' people out in the rain?'

Well, being generally well disposed and sympathetic to people out in the rain, I think there is a more innocent pleasure in being at home on a grey day. It does allow one the kind of impunity to actually be at home I have already described, but also has a kind of nostalgic ache to it.

Sitting here I am reminded of probably one of the best shows ever created by the BBC, or rather trilogy of shows, by the brilliant television writer Alan Plater: The Beiderbecke Triology.

Set in the often grey, run-down and shabby area of inner city Leeds, still looking similar 24 years after it was filmed, there was an amazing warmth and humanity about the show, as well as being wonderfully funny, clever, tense, romantic, exciting and blending all these elements seamlessly. Its beautifully drawn main characters Trevor and Jill were a joy, and James Bolam and Barbara Flynn bring them to life with subtle brilliance.

Listen to me, I'm gushing.

The point is, it is the televisual equivalent of curling up on the sofa under a blanket with a fire on a grey day. You feel nice, shiver occasionally, and enjoy the feeling of home.

I hope my work gives people something of that same comfort, although I'll need to work hard to be as good as Alan Plater.

In film news, just about everything is finished except the voiceover work for Eden and a very special, super-secret project that I will unveil at the screening :D

Make way for film!

Jim