A birthday countdown in pictures (#20)

I'm almost at the end of the countdown to Armitage Day, the 41th birthday of my muse, Mr. Richard Crispin Armitage on 22 August.

Whenever I need to be reminded of how incredibly talented this man is, I look at the picture below. In 2002, Richard played gentle giant John Standring in the three-part drama series Sparkhouse, a modern version of Wuthering Heights.

I 'met' Richard when he played John Thornton in North & South, but it was his role as John Standring that convinced me that RA was one of the best actors of his generation. He went to the casting for this role in character, and convinced the casting directors without a fragment of doubt that he was John Standring. His performance in Sparkhouse continues to amaze me and I go back to it on a regular basis. You can see the entire series on Youtube, and you really should!

Richard Armitage as John Standring in Sparkhouse (2002)
Picture supplied by www.richardarmitagenet.com

What's a birthday without a birthday present? But what do you get the man who's living his dream?
This year, consider donating to one of Richard's selected charities (Shelter, The Salvation Army, Childline and Barnardo's) - visit his Just Giving page. Thank you!

Fifty shades of righteous indignation

My thoughts on Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James (2011)

DISCLAIMER:
1.It’s impossible to review this book without revealing some of the details of the story. So if you have not read the book(s) and you don’t want to be disappointed, stop right here. Go read Fifty Shades of Grey first. On the other hand, if you want to know exactly what you’re getting yourself into before you decide to read the book, keep on reading. I hope I can help you make up your mind.

2.The below text is about my thoughts on this story and nothing more. In no possible way is this text a reflection on or a suggestion of my own likes or dislikes when it comes to sexual relationships. For the very simple reason, my dearest reader, that my sexual relationships are none of your business ;-)

*********************************

“Just say yes
Just say there’s nothing holding you back
It’s not a test. Nor a trick of the mind, only love
Just say yes
‘Cause I’m aching and I know you are too
For the touch of your warm skin as I breathe you in”
(Just say yes – Snow Patrol)

I had to read this book. For months now, both positive and negative reviews of it had been coming my way and I just had to see for myself what all the fuss was about. So, on the hottest summer weekend of the year, I started reading Fifty Shades of Grey, the first installment in E.L. James’ Fifty Shades trilogy. And just over 24 hours later, I finished it. I don’t think I’ve ever read a complete novel in less than at least a complete weekend, so this was definitely a first for me.

Cracking Christian
Only a few pages into the story, I remember thinking: “She’s too young”.  And a few pages later, when Christian Grey appears, I thought the exact same thing: “I wish he was older”. Of course, I would very soon discover that Ana’s age is a specific choice of the writer, as is the fact that Christian is only 27 and I think it fits the story very well. Anastasia Steele is not even 22 years old yet; she’s immature, insecure and inexperienced. About halfway through the story, Ana makes the typical female mistake in relationships: she thinks she can change him. And, to my surprise, for a long time, she seems to be succeeding! She’s the perfect antidote to Christian’s carefully constructed life of wealth, confidence and strict rules. The only one who could create cracks in his perfect exterior and make everything he’s ever held true come crumbling down.

Fifty shades of fucked up?
Fifty Shades is a brilliant character study: A character study of the elusive Christian Grey, through the eyes of Ana Steele. We discover Christian together with Ana, we see only what she sees, we only experience events the way she experiences them. It’s that particular choice of making this an eye-witness report by Ana that has allowed many readers to characterize Christian as the devil incarnate: we deal with this girl’s discovery of a man and a lifestyle that she has no idea of, and it’s not always the greatest experience. I’m sure that, if some of the story had been written from Christian’s point of view, people would have reacted much more favorably towards this character. But that’s the whole point of this story: trying to find out what’s going on inside the head of Christian Grey. Is he really fifty shades of fucked up, or not?

Sexual revolution?
I’ve read many reviews of this book, and the one thing that surprised me is that some reviewers did not simply discard the story as badly written and lacking substance or even as insulting filth, but they were actually angry that a book like Fifty shades of Grey could be so very successful. I wonder why? I mean, I personally think that the Twilight books are a collection of nonsensical dribble, but that simply means that I don’t read them. Why would I be angry that they exist? Why would I be angry at the fact that some people tend to compare Christian Grey to some of the most loved romantic heroes such as Jane Austen’s Mr. Darcy or Charlotte Brönte’s Rochester? If that’s your opinion, that’s fine. I may not agree, but that’s not the point; what makes these people so angry? Could it be the sexual nature of this book? If you’ve read this book, you’ll know that the sex scenes are extremely explicit. Is that what makes people angry? Is there a certain sense of shock about the brutal honesty and lack of modesty in this story? Are we not as open-minded and sexually liberated as we proclaim to be? I wonder…

Who is Christian Grey?
I personally believe that the explicit sex scenes are part of what makes this a good story. They are frequent, but never vulgar, and they add something to the characterization of Christian Grey. One reviewer said it perfectly: “It is different, exciting, out of the box, off the wall. You must have an open mind to understand how great this book is. It's not porn, it's specific and sexual but the psychological factors are endless.”

With every sexual act that they share, Ana receives little pieces of information about this man that she cannot seem to get away from. If she thought about this rationally, she’d run like hell, but she can’t. She’s intrigued by him, by the world that he’s guiding her into and by the complex personality that is slowly revealing itself to her. I’m sure you too have fallen for the wrong guy at some point in your life – when all your friends said that he was not the man for you and he was not treating you right, you still wanted him.


Why women love Fifty Shades
The success of this book has been attributed to the existence of e-readers like Kindle, making it possible to read a book on a handheld device that does not show the people around you what you’re reading. That’s possible for some, but I have absolutely no issues about reading this book on the train to work. If that’s embarrassing for the person sitting next to or in front of me, than that’s their problem, not mine.


Why did I enjoy Fifty Shades? Because it’s honest, well-written and not trying to be something that it’s not. Oh, and the most delicious main character ever! Christian Grey is mister perfect: the body of a god, a self-made man, intelligent and richer than Oprah. He plays the piano (which, to me, is right up there with a man who plays the cello!), he knows his wine (“I’m not knowledgeable, I just know what I like”), he’s trained to fly a helicopter, has an excellent taste in music (Frank Sinatra! La Traviata!) and he can dance *faints*. And he gave Ana six orgasms in two days!


Oh yes, and he’s an insanely jealous control freak whose preferred way to show affection is by beating the object of his desire with a cane… Nobody’s perfect.


You need to read this book. Put your embarrassment aside, and just go for it!

A birthday countdown in pictures (#19)

Richard, please forgive me if I use your birthday countdown to talk about a worthy cause...

It's exactly one year ago today that 3 men from Little Rock, Arkansas, were released from prison. They had spent 18 years in prison for a crime they did not commit and one of them had been sentenced to death. On 19 August 2011, these men agreed to take a so-called "Alford Plea" to be released from prison. The Alford Plea basically means that you plead guilty in court while you maintain your innocence.

Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Miskelley Jr. are free, but their names have not been cleared.

Peter Jackson, director of The Lord of The Rings trilogy and the upcoming The Hobbit films has been instrumental in getting these men, known as the West Memphis Three out of prison. He continues to support their case and today published a message about this case on his Facebook page.

The documentary West of Memphis, directed by Amy J. Berg and produced by Peter Jackson was shown at this year's Sundance Film Festival.

Damien Echols is an inspired writer. His story, Life After Death, will be released on 18 September 2012. See it on Amazon here. It's at the very top of my reading list.

Richard Armitage as John Porter in episode 3 of Chris Ryan's Strike Back 

Today, my thoughts go out to Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Miskelley Jr. I hope they are finally getting the chance to enjoy life, a life that was taken away from them by a failing judicial system.

My heart goes out to the families of Stevie Branch, Christopher Byers and Michael Moore and I hope that they will someday know who is responsible for the death of their children.

"Lay beside me, tell me what they've done
Speak the words I want to hear, to make my demons run
The door is locked now, but it's open if you're true
If you can understand me, then I can understand the you"

(From The Unforgiven 2 by Metallica)

What's a birthday without a birthday present? But what do you get the man who's living his dream?
This year, consider donating to one of Richard's selected charities (Shelter, The Salvation Army, Childline and Barnardo's) - visit his Just Giving page. Thank you!



A birthday countdown in pictures (#18)

“Margaret liked this smile;
it was the first thing she had admired in this new friend of her father's; and the opposition of character, shown in all these details of appearance she had just been noticing, seemed to explain the attraction they evidently felt towards each other.”

(From North & South by Elisabeth Gaskell)

What can I say? I know how she feels...

Images from a 2008 Promo shoot
Supplied by the Picture Gallery at www.richardarmitagenet.com

What's a birthday without a birthday present? But what do you get the man who's living his dream?
This year, consider donating to one of Richard's selected charities (Shelter, The Salvation Army, Childline and Barnardo's) - visit his Just Giving page. Thank you!



A birthday countdown in pictures (#17)

We're at day 17. Armitage Day is almost upon us. I don't know about you, but I can't wait! I haven't quite figured out what I'm going to do on the 22th, but I'll definitely be sure to have a glass of wine to toast to the good health of a certain Brit we all know and love :-)

So why don't we take it easy for a change. We bow our head and think of all those things we love about Richard Armitage. Personally, I love him because he's genuine and humble (and incredibly talented and extremely handsome as well!). He once mentioned that he loved this song by Keane, and I love this beautiful picture - and they fit together so very well!

The originalof this picture can be found at www.richardarmitagenet.com
It's from the 2011 photoshoot for Project Magazine

I don't wanna be adored
Don't wanna be first in line
Or make myself heard
I'd like to bring a little light
To shine a light on your life
To make you feel loved

No, don't wanna be the only one you know
I wanna be the place you call home

I lay myself down
To make it so, but you don't want to know
I give much more
Than I'd ever ask for

Will you see me in the end
Or is it just a waste of time
Trying to be your friend
Just shine, shine, shine
Shine a little light
Shine a light on my life
Warm me up again

Fool, I wonder if you know yourself at all
You know that it could be so simple

I lay myself down
To make it so, but you don't want to know
You take much more
Than I'd ever ask for

Say a word or two to brighten my day
Do you think that you could see your way

To lay yourself down
And make it so, but you don't want to know
You take much more
Than I'd ever ask for

(Hamburg Song by Keane. From their 2006 album Under The Iron Sea)

What's a birthday without a birthday present? But what do you get the man who's living his dream?
This year, consider donating to one of Richard's selected charities (Shelter, The Salvation Army, Childline and Barnardo's) - visit his Just Giving page. Thank you!

A birthday countdown in pictures (#16)

There's finally proof of Richard's return to designer stubble. The beard is indeed gone! As you all know by now, I really loved that beard. But I have to admit that it's good to see his face again. Basically, it's just good to see him: it looks like the RA drought is finally over!

As those new pictures were all over the Twitter and Facebook today, I decided not to post them here. Actually, I suddenly realised that after 16 days of this countdown, I have not posted one single picture of Richard as Guy of Gisbourne. (This one doesn't really count, right?) Shame on me!!

So, I tried to find the very best picture of Sir Guy but, as you can probably guess, that's an impossible task as almost every single one of them looks incredible.

Here's my favourite Black Knight:

One thing I've realised, looking at my selection: I like him in close-up! :-)

Whenever I think of Richard playing King Richard III, I imagine him looking like Guy of Gisbourne. That reminds me, I have a review to publish of a book about the reign of Richard III. So much to do, so little time... :-) That's coming soon!

Enjoy your Guy Day tomorrow!

What's a birthday without a birthday present? But what do you get the man who's living his dream?
This year, consider donating to one of Richard's selected charities (Shelter, The Salvation Army, Childline and Barnardo's) - visit his Just Giving page. Thank you!

A birthday countdown in pictures (#15)

Welcome to day 15 of our countdown to the 41th birthday of one of the most talented actors of his generation: Mr. Richard Crispin Armitage. Leicester lad, professional chameleon, DIY expert and lover of literature.

I started this countdown to be able to illustrate the things I love about Richard Armitage with pictures. I've mentioned his voice, I've talked about his elegance, his talent, his beautiful blue eyes. But there's one more thing that I adore about this man: his profile!

Just look at this picture of John Porter from episode 3 of Chris Ryan's Strike Back:

Richard Armitage as John Porter in Chris Ryan's Strike Back

Could this man be any more perfect? Smooth skin, dark (short!) hair, those perfect sideburns, that designer stubble, the beautiful, long neck, the narrow lips, the hopelessly irresistible lines around his eyes, the shape of that nose... even his ears are perfect!

Or am I just biased? ;-)

One more thing: My man should wear black. That's his colour. And I adore him as the perfect embodiment of "tall, dark and handsome". But I have to admit that he looks good in this picture. The earthy sand tones suit him extremely well. And those sunglasses...P.E.R.F.E.C.T.I.O.N.



What's a birthday without a birthday present? But what do you get the man who's living his dream?
This year, consider donating to one of Richard's selected charities (Shelter, The Salvation Army, Childline and Barnardo's) - visit his Just Giving page. Thank you!