Must be a nerve-wracking moment for Andy Burnham, waiting to meet his sovereign and kiss paws.

I saw a post that sums them up: Furious at a black Helen of Troy but perfectly happy with a white Jesus.

For me, this has never survived ‘Allo Allo’ mocking the convention that a sufficiently strong accent should be taken as being a separate and mutually unintelligible language…. (I obviously LOVE it in Vikings where they speak Old Norse and Anglo Saxon and *can’t* magically understand each other)

In England’s second city to celebrate the first day of Manchesterism (and rehearse The Mikado).

What a poor excuse for a sportsman.

Leandro Paredes should be banned from international football for life viciously assaulting Spanish players after the final whistle. Indefensible thuggery and criminality.

Say what you like about this Argentina team, they may be graceless, whining, embittered and violent during the match, but they’re also graceless, whining, embittered and violent after it.

What a difference a day makes.

Remind me again how Messi is some kind of hero. What a sad and sorry excuse for sportsmen they are.

Don’t much enjoy the way Spain behave; but seems right that the only team who came with any intention of playing football should win it.

Black Cat: 1 White Fox: 0

Reaching the point where even FPTP won’t deliver a government of fewer than 3 parties (unless you count Lab-Ref)…..

AN APOLOGY: Previous posts of mine might have conveyed the impression that I consider the third-place match a completely meaningless fixture that serves purely as a licence for FIFA to gouge fans for money. I now realise that it is a sporting occasion of almost unparalleled magnificence.

Evening off…

Once again wondering why Music Theatre requires immaculate dance and stunning choreography but only the most cursory attention to the written musical rhythms (and occasionally pitches). Come on guys. The composer made some choices that it’s worth considering might be better than yours.

Feed: "Planet Hugill" Published on Saturday, June 20, 2026

Instagram *suggesting* a lot of very right-wing content to me tonight....

I personally think it all went wrong when you allowed them into savoury cooking; but frankly with that defence breached I don’t think you can go excluding poultry…

Begs the question; what’s the most damage you can do to a Movie title by substituting in the most physically similar Greek letter?

Beethoven 5 is a story about a descending minor third and a three-note anacrusis. When you can feel as awed by that as some para-theatrical fiction about heroic struggle, then the path to wisdom will be open.

Very proud to be part of this with @leahbroad.bsky.social Samantha Ege, and the team at Resonus.

I hate VAR but if you have it you need to use it consistently. Either go back to accepting that the officials’ errors are part of life’s rich and unpredictable tapestry or actually let the machines do it; but make a choice.

Introduced the offspring to ‘Four Wrdsings and a Funeral.’ Total incomprehension from all parties that he didn’t go for Kristin Scott Thomas.

highly recommended release of two highly contrasting clarinet rarities alongside the much-loved Finzi concerto music.apple.com/gb/album/api...

After several years following mainly the Lionesses, I’d forgotten what a bunch of snivelling, diving, whiners they are in the male game.

I'm following it up a few minutes later with Avril Coleridge-Taylor from @jkaconductor.bsky.social, because what's the point of having a radio show if you don't play your mutuals.

Unfortunately, a stunned Paris is how they all got into this whole mess to begin with

#ClassicalMusic Conductor John Andrews and tenor David Webb breathe new life into Sir Arthur Sullivan's vocal works on a brilliant new album. Period instruments reveal the composer's rich, dramatic colors in a whole new way. Have you listened to this new release yet? #Sullivan #NewMusic

EDITOR'S CHOICE, JUNE 2026; Hugh thanks to the team at Presto Music. "Webb's bright, muscular tenor is just perfect for this repertoire... Andrews' orchestrations brim with character"

EDITOR'S CHOICE, JUNE 2026; Hugh thanks to the team at Presto Music. "Webb's bright, muscular tenor is just perfect for this repertoire... Andrews' orchestrations brim with character"

Huge thanks to @bernardhughes.bsky.social for including Sullivan in his reviews this week. Always valuable to have the perspective of a non-aficionado in this repertoire.

Some thoughts on the relationship between Conductor and Director in opera....

Some thoughts on the relationship between Conductor and Director in opera....

Also your periodic reminder that orchestral musicians adopted evening dress because that’s what the audience would be wearing (from c1830-1950). The intention was only ever to be *as smart* as the audience, not smarter…..

One of the most vexed questions of our profession….

Timeline cleanse: Chinchilla in his sand-bath….

And straight in at No. 7!

And straight in at No. 7!

First the heat; then the chafing.

The District Line air conditioning is a most glorious and bountiful thing.

BBC Radio 3 Breakfast Now Playing Arthur Sullivan, David Webb, Charles Rice, John Andrews & Academy of Ancient Music The Gondoliers: We're Called Gondolieri

Paradox is that - having followed the advice - I may now be properly hydrated for the first time in 40 years.

In this weather the chinchillas need a stone slab that’s been kept in the freezer (we have 2 in rotation) and I’m almost jealous.

28 degrees vs 32 degrees….

10 years ago I was recording this as campaigning went on outside; it seemed weirdly ironic at the time that it was quintessentially English music by two composers who were actually born abroad, one of whom then experienced forced re-emigration during WW1.

Er überlebte sechs Premierminister:innen, zwei Mon­ar­ch:in­nen und den Brexit: Nach dem Rücktritt von Keir Starmer bleibt Kater Larry die stabilste Konstante in der britischen Politik. Zum Schwerpunkt 👉 taz.de/Grossbritann...

I appear to have been involved in something actually commercially popular (!)

Frank Cottrell-Boyce: The man with a plan to save British childhood: Frank Cottrell-Boyce, the outgoing children's laureate, uses his new book "A British Childhood" to make a heartfelt appeal for an end to "indifference," arguing that "it doesn't take much to make a … https://ranked.news/1020536?u=b

This year I assured my offspring that all I needed for Father’s Day this year was for the most ludicrously-complicated weekend of the year to be safely navigated. So while there is still an 18th-birthday going on beneath us, they have accomplished this most gloriously.