Music for your #October playlist: "Well, it's a marvelous night for a Moondance With the stars up above in your eyes A fantabulous night to make romance 'Neath the cover of October skies" youtu.be/6lFxGBB4UGU?...

I saw Graham Gouldman and friends at the Rayleigh Mill Hall perform a wonderful set of his songs, ranging from tracks written for The Yardbirds, The Hollies, 10cc and others. It was a wonderful intimate set with some interesting between song background stories

Postcard from Southend seafront

Postcard from Rayleigh

Postcard from Essex

Robert Plant and his band Saving Grace played an interesting intimate set at Circuit in Kingston. It was a very appreciative audience, but lovely to see the old rocker performing some of the different songs he loved.

One man opened a series of cinemas in abandoned London buildings (from Catford to Ealing, from Sidcup to Sutton) as part of a plan to revive the capital’s high streets. Politicians love the idea and provided millions to help. So why do they keep going bust? www.londoncentric.media/p/preston-be...

Made it to Stamford Bridge in time for kick-off

AFC Wimbledon win 2-1. Now heading to Stamford Bridge

AFC Wimbledon take on Wycombe Wanderers at Plough Lane in League One. It's my first game of the day and I'm hoping for a Wombles victory

They were the voices of The Beatles in the 1960s cartoon series. Paul Frees played John and George, Lance Percival played Paul and Ringo youtu.be/TMoiqsdi_os?...

"You're so sheer, you're so chic Octogenarian of the week" Happy birthday Bryan Ferry who is 80 today. youtu.be/BonWfTW7jKc?...

The job search continues. I got sacked as a chef after they didn't like my ad hoc solution to a thick sauce. They said the German white wine ruined the flavour.

Pop trivia: how did Paul Frees and Lance Percival become part of The Beatles?

I saw an interesting band from Galway playing in a church in Kingston. Newdad are just releasing their second album and it's worth a listen

Postcard from Kingston

I saw The Producers at the Garrick Theatre. If you like musicals you'll love it. It's a lot of fun and Andy Nyman as Max Bialystock has some good comedic moments. For me, it lost of the genius of the original film as well as one of my favourite characters. But it's a fun 2.5hours

The service on the District Line from Wimbledon has been diabolical and unreliable for around two weeks now. What is @TfL doing to fix the constant signal failures on the line? Yet again I've had to find alternative ways to travel into central London

It's 55 years ago today that the first episode of pop comedy The Partridge Family was broadcast in the US, loosely based on the real-life musical family the Cowsills. The programme ran for four years, making a major star of David Cassidy. youtu.be/rlz-9WsJ9N4?...

The brilliant Anthony Newley was born on this day in 1931. His great talent straddled music, theatre and film (I'd recommend seeking out 1963's The Small World of Sammy Lee) but he wrote many well-known tunes, including this that became one of Nina Simone's best-loved songs youtu.be/oHRNrgDIJfo?...

The richest man on earth owns X. The second richest man on earth is about to be a major owner of TikTok. The third richest man owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. The fourth richest man owns The Washington Post. See the problem here?

Farage wanting to kick people out of the country because they migrated here made me angry and made me think about which best of British people and things wouldn't have happened were it not for the brilliance of immigration to the UK.

Claudia Cardinale: the only actor to star in three of Sight & Sound's 100 best films of all time, but who also played the princess in The Pink Panther, destoyer & rebuilder of adolescents the world over. The cause of & cure for all our problems. No better legacy. RIP

I saw Mary Page Marlowe at the Old Vic. It was an interesting production in the round and just 90 minutes long telling the quilted story of a fairly ordinary woman's struggles in life. With great performances from Andrea Risborough and Susan Sarandon the play was enjoyable.

Tonight"s #theatre treat is Mary Page Marlowe at the Old Vic.

Pop trivia to celebrate Toni Basil's 82nd birthday: who recorded the original version of Mickey? youtu.be/3E-Zrg9CB_Q?...

Fact check: deranged gibberish

Obligatory post of the best rapture scene ever: youtu.be/pV-_GDveft8?...

You had me at: "ignore Donald Trump’s claims"

Sunday lunchtime #cocktail treat while I peel the parsnips and potatoes is a classic Daiquiri, made with the delicious Diplomatico Reserva Rum from Venezuela, with some fresh lemon juice and sugar syrup, shaken with ice and strained into a small coupe glass. Pip pip!

#blackandwhitefilm of the day: Kind Hearts & Coronets, 1949. Dennis Price murders his way to his aristocratic birthright, looking Alec Guinness's seven characters in a classic black comedy. Joan Greenwood as Sibella is beautifully amoral on @Film4 at 11am youtu.be/lTOeAGSV5Ro?...

Favourite 10 TV comedies, in no particular order. Cheers Porridge M*A*S*H Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads Blackadder Yes Minister The Thick Of It Curb Your Enthusiasm Peep Show Spaced

49 years ago today, The Sex Pistols played a famous gig at the 100 Club. Ever wondered what they sounded like? Here's a ropey recording of their performance, starting with Anarchy In The UK, their first single youtu.be/g5fZMTm2w0E?...

BBC2, starting at 1pm today, the marvelous The Railway Children with that so emotional ending... youtu.be/nVbT3t0j11M?...

I've had a fun and interesting week. I hope you have too.

I saw Bacchae at the Olivier Theatre at the National. A retelling of the Greek tragedy by Euripedes, it added rapping, movement and lots of fun to the story. Some cracking performances made it an entertaining evening out.

Friday's #theatre treat is Bacchae at the Olivier Theatre. It's a new version of the Euripides play and promises music, rhythm and movement. It's another with no interval, just 105 minutes right through, which I quite favour

The job search continues. I was in the running to be a presenter on Masterchef, but as part of the audition I had to mix eggs for 5 minutes to make then fluffy. I didn't have a watch so guessed the time, but fell short by almost a minute. It was a calculated whisk that didn't pay off.

#Debt woes rise: A record number of people turned to debt relief orders in August. The Insolvency Service said the number of people going financially insolvent across England and Wales jumped by 16% compared with a year earlier. 11,348 people entered insolvency, 7% higher than July's total.

Free speech is dead

#blackandwhitefilm of tomorrow: All The King's Men, 1949, which won 3 Oscars. A ruthless big-shot becomes a power-crazy politician. There's plenty of corruption and lies on display, although no trips to London to meet the King, on @Film4 at 2.45pm youtu.be/DivcuGBAHcI?...

Andrea Jenkyns has awarded herself an increase of £150K to “run her office” as Mayor of Lincolnshire. Council taxpayers will now have to fork out £262K per annum for her immense talent and expertise. Reform U.K. Ltd, always knowingly grifting.

#blackandwhitefilm of tomorrow: All The King's Men, 1949, which won 3 Oscars. A ruthless big-shot becomes a power-crazy politician. There's plenty of corruption and lies on display, although no trips to London to meet the King, on @Film4 at 2.45pm youtu.be/DivcuGBAHcI?...

The job search continues. My interview to be an architect didn't go too well. I walked in and sang and danced my introduction. They rejected me saying, you obviously know how to make an entrance but it all seemed a bit of a facade.

What a treat - you could watch five really good and different #blackandwhitefilms free-to-air today. 12.45pm Dead of Night (Film4) 2.50pm Hue And Cry (Film4) 5.05pm It Always Rains On Sunday (TalkingPics) 8pm Brief Encounter (BBC4) 1.35am The Miracle Of The Bells (TalkingPics)

What a treat - you could watch five really good and different #blackandwhitefilms free-to-air today. 12.45pm Dead of Night (Film4) 2.50pm Hue And Cry (Film4) 5.05pm It Always Rains On Sunday (TalkingPics) 8pm Brief Encounter (BBC4) 1.35am The Miracle Of The Bells (TalkingPics)

I saw Clarkston at the Trafalgar Theatre. It was a fast-paced and touching drama about two boys struggling against the world. Just 100 minutes long, too.

Wednesday #theatre treat is a new play, Clarkston at the Trafalgar Theatre. It's opening night so no reviews yet, so no real expectations