Swinging!

Scilla peruviana (again) - on full breathtaking display [click to embiggen]

The first sunny day since we've been back, and it was inevitable that I'd spend it in the extensive gardens here at Dolores Delargo Towers! We now have two sets of display shelves - and each needed a bit of propping-up to avoid them shifting on our uneven, sloping paving, so all the pots needed to come off. Then came the job of gathering up the plants again (and more), to arrange them on and around the shelving for maximum display and to disguise the edges. At each turn, the crud and litter (mainly from the bastard weed trees) had to be cleared [as did the pots/troughs of spent daffs and the dead wallflowers and tulips, to be replaced with the foxgloves, the first of which I potted-up] - and several plants needed potting on/refreshed compost as I went along. Needless to say, I'm aching...

What finer tonic could there be after all that, than a trip into the heart of Swinging Soho - courtesy of the ever-marvellous Soft Tempo Lounge?

Soft Tempo Lounge - London Chic '67

Ah, that's better.

[Music: Polish Radio Orchestra - My Girl, Suzy; Original film: Swinging Britain in the 60s: A Psychedelic Dream (1967) - British Pathé]

It's grey, it's grey since she went away, oh, oh

Our lovely Hippeastrum “Cape Horn” has been outside all winter, and evidently came to no harm

It was another beautiful Spring day today, and the chilly wind of earlier this week had completely dropped - so, obviously I spent most of it in the extensive gardens here at Dolores Delargo Towers. The last of the summer annuals-filled window-boxes and a wall pot are done. I moved-on a few more plants in little pots into bigger ones, then began the task of tackling the moth-eaten overwintered large-leaf salvia collection, which have all exhausted the soil they were in. More tomorrow, no doubt - and then hopefully everything will be ready for the summer "jungle" display. Once we get back from Spain, It will be time to do the "Tetris" task of placing the gazillions of pots into the best location for them to thrive and look their best [of course, everything's covered in a coat of flowers and detritus from the bastard weed trees at the moment; there's not a season when they don't give us grief]...

Meanwhile, sad news - Mademoiselle Evy Lenton, lead singer of the camp-as-tits one-hit-wonders La Belle Époque has donned her last glittery jacket and ascended the dry-ice strewn staircase to Fabulon, at - gulp - the age of 80.

It's obvious what to play in tribute, of course, really, since they only ever had one hit:

La Belle Epoque - Black is Black

Love it!

RIP, Évelyne "Evy" Lenton (born Evelyn Verrecchia, 16th December 1945 - 22nd April 2026)

Gnus to Gnomes

RIP, Barbara Taylor Bradford, glamorous to the end.

It's a "snippets post" again today, dear reader...

• Bastard weed trees news: Thanks to the banal "outrage on social media" about the vandals who chopped down a tree that was seen in a film, its saplings are being distributed across the country for charity. If any of them gets planted in or near someone's garden, they'll regret it. We spend months every year digging the clag and seedlings those weeds leave behind from our pots!

• I'm a Gnu no more: One of Britain's most recognisable brands, Typhoo Tea has gone into administration after 121 years.

Classic Ads: I'm a Gnu with a cup of Typhoo

• Royal memorabilia news: Bits of old curtain material from Windsor Castle have been used to cover footstools, that are up for auction for the King's Foundation charity.

• Longevity news: RIP Liverpudlian John Tinniswood, who was the world's oldest man at 112 - born in the same year as the sinking of the Titanic!
• Desecration of Medieval history news: Both Smithfield meat market in Farringdon (established in at least 1174) and Billingsgate fish market (founded in Tudor times, and relocated to Canary Wharf in 1982) are being closed down for good by the City of London Corporation. All in the name of "progress" [= "money"]. Tragic.
• Monumental news: The refurbishment work on the magnificent Gothic cathedral Notre-Dame de Paris has been completed, five years after the fire that destroyed huge parts of the building, and it will re-open to the public on 8th December. At least the French care about history.
• And finally - Gnome rave news: A garden gnome made of Ecstasy (MDMA) was discovered in a drugs raid in the Netherlands. As the article says: "Possibly the only lawn ornament in the world that’ll make you hug strangers". Madam Arcati's "Donny" is on a high as we speak!

And the weather? Finally quite mild after the wintry storms of late.

Speaking of gnomes:

David Bowie - Laughing Gnome

Feel the melody that's in the air

Waves of relief are beginning to wash over me, as the scent of a weekend wafts tantalisingly in the air. The forecast doesn't look too bad, either - temps in the low 60s F and, importantly, no rain! - so there's every chance I might be able to embark on "phase 1" of clearing autumnal clag off the extensive gardens here at Dolores Delargo Towers ["phase 2" will be once the bastard weed trees shed all their leaves in a few weeks' time]...

Meanwhile, let's plan the party! How about a House ("yeah, you know House!") classic to warm us up nicely? Until it was on BBC Radio 2's Dance Sounds of the 90s recently, I hadn't heard this one in years...

Thank Disco Jack It's Friday!

N-Joi - Anthem

Have a good one, peeps!

Mix it up!

"A blustery day", said Pooh. The wind is bringing the bastard Sycamore* keys down like a blizzard upon the extensive gardens here at Dolores Delargo Towers today. I could weep at the encroaching blanket of evilness that's subsuming all our lovely plants...

Never mind, eh? How about a little selection of the "newer" music that has caught my ear of late to take our minds off it?

Let's kick off, shall we, with an "Elton John lookey-likey" throwing a tantrum? It's rather catchy, actually...

Bentley Robles - Tantrum

Take a bit of Kazaky, mix it with a touch of Trans-X Living On Video, add a bitch on heat, and what do you get? This!

Kunixi x Daddy Squad - SXY XY XTC

Speaking of "on heat"... Call him slut? Call him whore? OK then, I will!

Micah McLaurin - Call Me

Bringing a bit of much-needed class into the proceedings after all that lascivious behaviour, something jazzy and joyful:

Ezra Collective ft. Yazmin Lacey - God Gave Me Feet For Dancing

Something a bit mysterious from Austria:

Rüfüs Du Sol - Break My Love

And finally - saving the best for last, another absolute banger from Our Princess Kylie!!

Kylie Minogue - Lights Camera Action

As ever, let me know your thoughts, dear reader!

[*I just found out that in the You-Ess-Ay, "Sycamore" is used to describe what we know as Plane trees, and over there this benighted batard weed is referred to as "Sycamore Maple".

"We have really everything in common with America nowadays except, of course, language." - Oscar Wilde]

As long as anyone with hot blood can

We've made a sort-of-effort to scrape up some of the sludgy leaf-detritis that's coating the garden, thanks to the hideous weed trees in other people's gardens. Of course, it's blowing a hooley again, so by this time tomorrow it'll look exactly the same. Oh, how I hate this "season of death"...

To brighten up the mood somewhat, how about another little something from our "house band" Postmodern Jukebox? That'll do nicely!

Postmodern Jukebox feat. Stella Katherine Cole - Uptown Girl (Billy Joel Vintage Judy Garland-style cover)

That's better...

Of gardens, new toys and power-ballads

I've knackered myself out today trying to do battle with the carpet of bastard sycamore seeds that are coating the extensive gardens here at Dolores Delargo Towers (thanks to the neglect of tenants next door who have allowed this most evil of weed trees to grow unchecked in their garden). I even invested in a "new toy", a garden vacuum/leaf blower, and it's still a punishing task (and somewhat never ending, as no sooner is the paving cleared, more of the damn things helicopter down)!

Time to wind-down, methinks...

It's been a little while since I visited the lovely Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox for a bit of "Sunday Music", but my heavens! With this formidable diva on board, I'm very glad I did:

Postmodern Jukebox feat. Sarah Potenza - The Power Of Love (Huey Lewis New Orleans Blues Cover)

Yo, Mama!!

Might-seduce-your-dad type

That's far too energetic for my kind of gardening...

It is sweltering today! Unfortunately it's also incredibly muggy, so - knowing that with all the gigantic overgrown weed trees which various considerate neighbours round here have neglected and block all our light, I would not only be sweating buckets but also be mainly in the shade if I stayed in the garden - I took off to the garden centre for a change of air. I had no particular shopping in mind and, given the price of everything even vaguely of interest, I returned empty-handed - but I got some sun in a lovely environment, so was worth going...

To complement that mellow, laid back feeling that a heatwave always brings, I think we are well overdue another outing for the archetypal purveyors of "Sunday music" - our "house band" Postmodern Jukebox!

Postmodern Jukebox ft. Ariana Savalas - Bad Guy (Billie Eilish Tango Style Cover)

Billie Eilish?! Who said I wasn't down with the kids, eh?

Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox official site

Ich bin ein Vamp

I still haven't managed to get my hair cut

It's been another weird day, weather-wise - quite a lot of sunshine, but the gales have been so strong we thought another of the horrid weed trees over the back from us was going to come down. Unfortunately it's still standing, blocking out the mid-afternoon light.

Hey ho, between us we managed to get a few jobs done in the garden, as is our wont, so all is not lost. Here's some "Sunday music" to round the day off nicely, courtesy of a lady who we've managed to miss, more's the pity, each time she's appeared in London [maybe next time, eh?] - Melbourne's finest, Melissa Madden Gray aka Meow Meow!

First up, here she is with one of our "house bands" here at Dolores Delargo Towers, Pink Martini:

Meow Meow and Pink Martini - I Lost Myself

And, in case anyone were in any doubt about her reputation...

Meow Meow - Ich Bin Ein Vamp

Faboo!

Meow Meow website

Oh, By Jingo

Pinkness! courtesy of our extravagant Cyclamen coum

It's been another gorgeous springlike day in the extensive gardens here at Dolores Delargo Towers, as we continued digging-out and re-doing our pots and troughs, pruning and clearing the detritus dumped all over everything by the ugly weed trees overhanging from neighbours' plots - in particular the utterly vile Sycamore, whose winged seeds get everywhere, and will each sprout into another forty-foot tree given half a chance.

While enjoying the sunshine and the pottering, we were accompanied by a glut of programmes from the fantastic Clare Teal Swing and Big Band show on Radio 2 on catch-up. And lo and behold, I find it would have been the birthday today of the fabulous Miss Betty Hutton, doyenne of that particular era (before she became more famous for big-screen musicals) - so, by way of a celebration, here's a double-bill of the lady's zaniness...

...first with (I think - it's difficult to tell under the blackface "Minstrel" makeup) Vincent Lopez and His Orchestra:

Betty Hutton - Do You Know About Swinging

...and second, in a spectacular sequence from Incendiary Blonde:

Betty Hutton - Oh, By Jingo

Nobody did it like Betty!

Betty Hutton (born Elizabeth June Thornburg, 26th February 1921 – 12th March 2007)

Till you feel like bursting

Madame Arcati, our chums Al and Mark and I went to our first RHS Flower Show of the season yesterday - the Orchid and Spring Plant Fair. It was stunning, over-the-top and a feast for the eyes, so we all felt well at home... [I went on for one or two drinkies at Halfway II Heaven afterwards, met up with a cohort of chums, and ended up getting to bed at gone 2am; quite a Friday, indeed - I didn't arise today till 2pm, which has meant the day has been somewhat curtailed; although I did manage to get out, do shopping, and lop some very tall branches off one of the weed trees with our new extendable pruner, so not entirely lost.]

Speaking of floral beauties, today would have been Miss Billie Holiday's birthday, so let us wallow in some classy music (for a change). Take it away, Lady Day (and Satchmo)!

Billie Holiday with Louis Armstrong - The Blues Are Brewin'

Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan, 7th April 1915 – 17th July 1959)

Tonight is party time, it's party time tonight

As is usual in the UK, all the promising sunshine and mild air that gave us hope that Spring was actually here is set to evaporate on the weekend, with a drop of 12C in temperatures to almost zero, and the risk of more snow. So much for any plans to do some sorting in our new extensive gardens, after having pruned the weed trees to let in the light, as the pots may need to be sheltered again rather than moved to their permanent positions...

Hey ho, there's plenty of stuff to do indoors - and a weekend is a weekend is a weekend, after all! Let's retrieve our most outlandish glitz'n'bling 80s outfits out of the back of the wardrobe, grab a silver fan, and pose along with the lovely ladies of Class Action, who know a song about that...

...and Thank Disco It's Friday!

Class Action - Weekend

Enjoy, dear reader...