A plug for my brother’s new movie
December 12th, 2006-
It’s not about politics but about lies, deceit and facing up to the truth
In 2004 my brother, John Smithson, won a BAFTA award for the climbing drama, Touching the Void, which continues to attract interest. This weekend his new movie, Deep Water, is released at selected cinemas throughout the UK.
It’s a true story that has many parallels with one or two leading figures in contemporary politics. For in 1966 the yachtsman, Donald Crowhurst, sought to deal with his mounting debts and personal problems by entering the round the world yacht race. For months his bid caught the imagination of the British public, as reports came back that he was making the fastest time.
Alas it was all based on a massive deception and he had never left the Atlantic. The movie tells vividly the story of the drama as he tried to face up to the mega lies he had allowed to be told.
I think it’s great - but then I would.
Mike Smithson
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“It’s a true story that has many parallels with one or two leading figures in contemporary politics”
Bit tenuous…
Congratulations to your brother!
Hopefully for him this new movie will be as successful as the previous one
“It’s not about politics but about lies, deceit and facing upto the truth.”
Seems to me it is about politics !!
Best wishes for the film …. and Michelle you’ll look triff on the red carpet in that pink number !!
Heard him on Radio 4 Start the week(?) wondered if John Smithson was from your clan.
Now that one can live in a world/worlds of your own on the internet there shouldn’t be any need for people to get in the mess that poor Donald did - But no doubt some of us will.
You wouldn’t be thinking about our Mr Brown (as Donald) and the yacht race(the Premiership race) - with the mounting debts playing themselves, by any chance would you?
4. “wondered if John Smithson was from your clan.”
as opposed to the Lib Dem leader on Kirklees Council!
If you are very lucky Benedict may write something about on his blog
Benedict - thousands of hits. Donald Crowson - thousands of miles. Yes I see the connection.
Sorry Crowhurst - Crowson is a fabric magnate in my industry (also appearing in the News of the World.)
Skinner was in top form today in the Commons (for his standards):
“Is the Secretary of State aware that I do not need any so-called parliamentary experts to tell me over and over again what my position is? I did not support the war at the beginning, and I do not support it now—and I do not need any high and mighty politicians to tell me that. Get the troops out as quickly as you can”
And btw Mike I think “a plug for my brother’s new movie” is a bit mean.
Surely it’s worth a chain too !
I also heard the R4 piece, and didn’t make the connection. Much like when “Johnny Ball’s daughter” became “Zoe Ball’s dad”, I wonder when “Mike, brother of John Smithson” will become “John, brother of Mike Smithson”?
I was at the premier in Kendal a few weeks ago, having provided support for the Kendal Mountain Film Festival, and on return posted OT that this was something to see (if a bit over-long).
The analogies to the actions of some politicians are very strong: now who do we know who starts off with a boast; develops a little untruth; gets magnified into a wopper; then jumps ship?
Sorry to go off topic but I’ve just been watching The Money Programme on BBC 2. It appears that the extortionate bank charges customers face when they go overdrawn are potentially reclaimable for the previous six years! These charges appear to be illegal because they are excessive and therefore unjustifiable.
12 - or the politician who blithely puts out that everything is lovely, whislt there is a seething mass of stormy disturbance underneath him?
Good luck with the film, Smithson family.
Anybody been watching the next chancellor market recently? Balls has drifted in the market with Alistair Darling now a clear favourite. David Miliband remains a fairly strong market at around 8 to 1. But I see, one time Smithson tip, Stephen “Ten foot” Timms has also been drifting. Grateful for any thoughts from those residing closer to the Westminster village than myself in the Rhonnda.
Tabman @ 14……..no, it’s about choice rather than the elements conspiring against him/them/us.
Seriously, the film is well-worth seeing, and thanks to BAFTA in their support of the Second Biggest Film Festival in the Country.
Classic! Paxman: “The more voters see of Cameron, the less they like him.”
17 Well Paxman doesn’t like him as he was bested by Cameron in short order. Paxman is an overbearing opinionated prat. He spreads no light on a subject, only noise.
I like this Sun guy, he’s making mincemeat of Vaizey.
18 - oooh, get you ducky. Playing the man, not the ball
20 I suppose that Paxman is rather close to your heart Tabman, as you also play the man not the ball and create more noise than light?
21 - whatever you say old bean, you can’t spoil my mood tonight. That was classic telly. Vaizey was floundering like a landed guppy
15. Some weeks ago there were some speculative pieces in some newspapers about GB possibly splitting the Treasury in 2 departments. Would a similar move affect the market?
22 - Have to agree with pbc’s favourite balding coot
- Vaizey was, er, unimpressive. Why didn’t he just tell the bloated and bigoted Sun hack to bog off, and that we can - and will - win the next election without prostrating ourselves before the Dirty Digger’s drones.
Good luck to your brother’s film Mike! Kevin Macdonald is likely to become one of this country’s finest directors and if as one of the producers your brother had anything to do with putting ‘Touching the Void’ and Macdonald to-gether or even to ensuring that it became the outstanding piece of work that it did then many congratulations.
A film is always the property of a lot of people (unless it’s a flop in which case it’s all down to the director!)and only the people on the film really know who contributed what. And the chances of a success like Touching the Void are always less than even money. So I’ll keep my fingers crossed and see it as soon as I’m able.
Good luck to your brother Mike - I never associated the Mike Smithson that I knew of (electonically) with the John Smithson of rather terrifying disaster films. Hope it goes well for him.
Best wishes to your brother for the film Mike; although I didn’t know of the connection before this thread, Touching the Void is one of my mother’s favourite films, and I expect I will be ‘encouraged’ to see this over Christmas.
And many congratulations to Anthony Little and family from last thread.
How can any lib dem say they like a Sun reporter, he was the typical loud mouth hang em and flog em type? They also hate lib dems, if they had’t have parroted the Blair lie then there could well be more lib dem MPs as of now. Good to see that Rebakah ‘traitor’ Wade is having marital difficulties anyway, couldn’t happen to a nicer woman….
Sorry Andrea - there’s going to be a re-count for those Upper House seats in Victoria now.
I was there a few weeks ago and noticed that Kennett is still a favoured expletive (as in “Mate, I’ve had a Kennett of a day”). He hasn’t been Premier for years - gives a whole new meaning to the term “image problem”.
Good luck to your brother Mike. I remember reading about the film “touching the void” but did not associate it with the Smithson on PB.com.
http://www.channel4.com/film/reviews/feature.jsp?id=126435
‘Rebekah’ rather….
Has anyone seen the synopsis of Will Self’s new novel?
Wehere do I start? I am aware of the Crowhurst story. It is in many ways very sad. I expect the film to be moving. When I watch it I will of course as Peter suggests give it a plug on my own blog.
Re 13, St John, Penalties in contracts are now and always have been non enforceable. (As opposed to ileagal) If some one with whom you have a contract is in breach of said contract then they can only ask for reasonable compensation. It may well be that there is a figure in the contract to cover certain sorts of breaches, but they still have to amount to covering the losses caused by the breach which incedently the non breaching party has to mitigate as much as is reasonable, rather than any penalty.
So if you can show the true costs of a breach and the charge against you is higher, it is not enforceable so you can ask for it back.
However what the banks are doing is not answering these cases so they do not creata case law and clarity, instead they tend not to answer the case at all and lose by default. What they then do is stop dealing with you at all.
That is fine and within their rights but we will have to see how they transfere information etc. to stop people excersising their rights.
19: Just watched the Newsnight thing out of interest. Had to turn it off half way through. The Sun character was so hectoring and obnoxious, Paxman so sneering, that no one could discuss politics seriously in such company.
Tabman If you have a high when you see Paxman then you are in deep trouble. If its intensified by Sun hacks then you really need urgent help.
Are you saying this is the Blair exit strategy?
(lots of appropriate emoticons!)
Anyway - all the best to your bro - British actuality films have always been a world leader and I am sure this will be another great addition. I did hear bits of the STW piece but unfortunately Monday mornings are not the best time to pay attention!
Democrats have picked up another House seat - TX-23.
IIRC Donald Crowhurst a Liberal councillor
John Smithson is a Liberal Democrat councillor in Huddersfield and was until recently Deputy Leader of the Council.
29. Thanks Lin. Was the recount requested by the Labour Party?
I’m sure it will be a lot better than ‘Open Water’ which was one of the worst films i have ever seen!
I thought “Touching the Void” was brilliant. Look forward to the latest.
I see The Master is in villainous form today: Handbags at dawn.
Crikey, Mike, I didn’t know you had a star in the family !
Or should I say ANOTHER star in the family…
This is on at the Watershed in Bristol, so I will try and check it out in the next few weeks.
Mike - a serious question. Where did you guys go to school ?
Don’t need the full details, but I would be very impressed with what you have achieved in life if you had a state education.
One of the things that depresses me is that whilst I had the benefit of a ‘grammar’ school education, as I lived ‘way up west’ where they were last to be abolished, the state system has now gone to pot.
Although I think having private education is an invidious thing and leads to division, I couldn’t blame anyone who goes down that route if the alternative is having illiterate, innumerate crack dealers in the house.
re 44. My brother John and I went to what was then Burnage Grammar School in Manchester. It is now part of a comprehensive. John then went to what is now Manchester Metropolitan University and then Cardiff University’s department of journaliam. I went to the LSE.
So the answer is yes -state educated.
Mike - I realise you cannot really comment and remain impartial.
But I’m sure you have a view on whether the opportunities you and your brother had are better or worse in the current state system.
It isn’t really a party political point anyway - both parties are committed to comprehensive education, and I can now see the snags with the ‘eleven plus’ condemning many to a secondary modern education.
It is just that I am not really convinced what we have now is a real improvement. Labour would say, ah yes, but the ‘majority’ now have a better standard, rather than just an elite. But the large numbers of people in the ‘bottom half’ of the table who are still being denied a decent education does make me rather cross.
Indeed Tony Benn always wanted 3 types of school, Grammar, Technical and Secondary Modern, which would have meant less of the pass/fail stigma, and schools designed with ‘aptitude’ in mind.
But that is another story !! Take care.