the vibes

Gold Rush for Great Britain – Six in One Day!

Posted on August 4, 2012 by Mark

Team GB won six gold medals and a silver on Day Eight of the Olympics, taking the Great British Goldrush to 14, with 7 silver and 8 bronze. Super Saturday marks the UK’s best performance in the Olympiad for over a century. The crowd in the stadium went wild as Mo Farah and Jessica Ennis stole the show. There’s a wonderful sense of pride in Britain tonight, not least because we are the host nation, and on every television there are tears of joy, shock and awe as the athletes realise their own achievements.

Women’s Heptathlon – Jessica Ennis
Men’s Longjump – Greg Rutherford
Men’s 10,000m – Mo Farah
Women’s Lightweight Double Sculls – Sophie Hosking and Katherine Copeland
Men’s Four – Andy Triggs Hodge, Pete Reed, Andy Gregory and Tom James

Kind of makes up for the Japanese complaints about their gymnastic placing, depriving Britain and the Ukraine of their original medals. Japan, you were really crap. (So much for good grace and sportsmanship…)

Categories: Random, Vibe Monitor | Tags: Gold Medal, London 2012, Olympic, Olympic Games, Olympics, Six, sports, Super Saturday, Team GB, tv, Tv shows | 4 Comments

The Olympic Torch

Posted on July 28, 2012 by Mark

The stunning culmination of the London 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony, as the torch lights the cauldron, seen here from inside the incredible structure. I had to pause my TV and snap this on the iPhone.

Original image BBC TV

Categories: Photography, Random, Vibe Monitor | Tags: bbc, Cauldron, Games, iPhone, Olympic, Olympics, Opening Ceremony, sports, Torch, tv | 17 Comments

Are the Olympics Absolutely Fabulous?

Posted on July 26, 2012 by Mark

Patsy and Eddie speak for the nation!

Absolutely Fabulous Olympic Games Special Patsy and Eddie Torch

In this week’s excellent Olympic Games Special, Patsy Stone and Edina Monsoon eloquently voiced the real feelings of the British people about the biggest event in the history of London. Yes there’s a lot of flag-waving and it’s great for tourism, but it’s a whole different ball game when you actually live here.

Eddie and Patsy present their pre-Games make-over plans to Saffy.

Eddie “We’re gonna be liposuctioned, lasered and lifted, darling. I’m going to be wearing my buttocks as a head rest by the time…”
Saffy “Well you better hurry up because it starts this week.”
Eddie “What?”
Saffy “The Olympics.”
Eddie “What? No! [to Patsy] Darling did you know it started this week?”
Patsy “What?’
Eddie “[panicking] The…running-the Olympics!”
Patsy “Where?”
Saffy “Oh my god! How could you have missed it? Even coming from the airport – it’s everywhere!”
Eddie “Yeah, darling, it’s been ‘everywhere’ for FIVE BLOODY YEARS, hasn’t it? Excuse me if I missed that it actually started! It’s been like tinnitus!”

Absolutely Fabulous Olympic Special Patsy and Eddie running

Image © BBC 2012

Patsy and Eddie find themselves in the Olympic Stadium just days before the big day.

Patsy “It’s empty.”
Eddie “That’s cos nobody could get tickets, isn’t it darling?”

Absolutely Fabulous Patsy lights cigarette from Olympic Flame

Image © BBC 2012

Perhaps the best quote of all is Eddie’s Mother, staring bemused at some unused tickets…

Mother “I don’t see why anyone would actually want to be there when they can watch it in comfort on the good old Auntie Beeb.”

You can watch this episode on the Dear Old Auntie Beeb here and also some big sporting events which are happening this weekend…

All quotes © BBC Saunders and French Productions MMXI

Categories: Random, Vibe Monitor | Tags: Absolutely Fabulous, bbc, comedy, humor, Jennifer Saunders, Joanna Lumley, London, London 2012, Olympic, Olympic Games, sports, tv, Tv shows | 10 Comments

Mount Olympus: Origin of the Olympic Ideal

Posted on July 25, 2012 by Mark

Home of the gods and the origin of the Olympic ideal. Mount Olympus was the seat of Zeus, and the games were held in his honour at Olympia. A permanent crown of angry clouds reign above the peaks, ample inspiration for legends and myth.

I’ve stood at the foot of this mountain gazing in awe, wondering if Spielberg was inspired by such an imposing view. You can imagine how the ancient Greeks saw gods in these clouds.

Exploring the mountain itself is an adventure: wild boar bigger than cars, shrines, snakes and giant waterfalls.

In the shadow of the mountain is a museum, containing art, jewellery and sculpture so sophisticated you would think it was crafted in modern times. Walking round with my mouth open, I was amazed at how advanced ancient Greek culture was. It’s easy to see how this was the cradle of modern civilisation.

Greek culture is rich and colourful, and wandering from Mount Olympus down to Olympic Beach you can see how a different kind of deity dominates. The churches have brightly decorated interiors, adorned with icons, murals and relics.

If there isn’t a church to hand, there are shrines everywhere. Even on the beach!

We finally found some holy wine…(don’t run, Panos!)

Angela Merkel was spotted swimming in the sea…

Greece is a wonderful country which I’ve visited many times. Unfortunately Germany is hell-bent on destroying this proud nation, imposing draconian sanctions on the people, causing widespread poverty and suffering. For some bizarre reason, the western media portrays the Greek people as deserving of punishment, and nothing could be more wrong. The people unfairly pay the price of their corrupt government (Spain and Italy seem exempt from similar penalties: I mean, really. Italy!) As Sea Monster Merkel spies oil in the Greek sea, you can rest assured she will make the nation a slave to her appetites.

Despite the economic upheaval, tourism is alive and well, and you can support the Greek people by taking your vacation there. Take a look at my trip to idyllic Santorini here.

Categories: Art, Photography, Travel, Vibe Monitor | Tags: church, Culture, Greece, London 2012, Mount Olympus, Olympic, Olympics, pottery, Religion, Sculpture | 14 Comments

Prey – Oil on Canvas

Posted on July 22, 2012 by Mark

Prey by Mark Wallis, 2000, oil on canvas.

Click on the image to see the uncensored version (PG – frontal nudity)

This is a detail from Prey, my second attempt at oil painting. In the full work, the model is stretched out in cruciform, and the photograph I worked from (by Jim French) appealed to my atheist nature. I was fascinated by the religious overtones and dramatic lighting, and the implied restraint of such physicality. There is drama in the male form which is rarely mined.

The piece was exhibited in Amsterdam’s Warmoesstraat, a bohemian stretch of galleries and bars between Centraal Station and The Dam Square.

One of the things which intrigued me about this painting was people’s reactions: people either loved it or hated it with nothing in between. Most people saw a face in the torso, found it striking and evocative or grotesque and offensive. It was good to provoke such extreme reactions. Art should always aspire to be something greater than the sum of it’s parts.