The Squeee

On the final day of April, Swedes take to lighting big bonfires and sing to celebrate the coming of spring and to be free of the final clutches of winter. [ Source ] Traditionally, we'd put on our graduation caps and sing in choirs (especially if you're a university student at Lund or Uppsala), about how spring has sprung. The event is called Walpurgisnacht in Germany, but we call it Valborg , or Valborgsmässoafton .

Got an email a while back about a new Brontë biography that's out now. The email didn't say too much about it (like a title), aside from that it "rocks major myths surrounding the family", but there was a link to a YouTube video. Thought I'd share it and see what you reckon. Video description reads: More than just a biography, 'Charlotte Brontë's Thunder' is for readers who love a good detective story or a dark, haunting murder mystery. This shocking and controversial biography proves that Charlotte wrote all the Bronte novels. Why did she use 3 male pen names? Charlotte was desperate to protect herself and her sisters Emily and Anne from a few corrupt and dangerous men whose crimes she was secretly recording in her writing.

Through PeriodDramas.com , we learn that Haddon Hall (outside Bakewell in Derbyshire), the Thornfield of no less than three different Jane Eyre adaptations ( Gainsbourg/Hurt 1996 , Wilson/Stephens 2006 , Wasikowska/Fassbender 2011 ), is to have an exhibition of the costumes of said productions. Last year, they displayed costumes from the 2011 production, but now they're getting ones from the previous two as well. Yay!! If it was just the 2011 costumes, I wouldn't be that tempted to go - been there, seen those - but with the other two adaptations as well ... awwww, I'll totally have to. Just imagine, seeing Rochester's deep green coat ... wow. Also, the 2011 costumes are incredible : Mrs. Fairfax's apron. I loved it in the film. It's even more wonderful to behold in real life.

Provided the world doesn't actually end at the Winter Solstice this year (Mayan prophecy and all that), and missing the holiday season completely because they want to bring it in line with the publication of the very first novel in the series 23 years ago ... The final instalment in the epic Wheel of Time fantasy series finally has a release date:

Just because I hadn't thought about making this a recurring feature back when I reviewed Tiger Bay . Quoth meself: The most surprising thing was how much Korchinsky looked like Johnny Depp! Man, he must've been a heartthrob back in the day! Lookit those gorgeous brown eyes! *swoon* Ladies, behold: It's a hoot looking at really old films and realising that actually, the actors back then could easily rival the heartthrobs of today!

Admittedly, I only half-watched the film he was in, which means I can't in all good honesty review it (which is a shame, because it would be my first Hitchcock and it's on IMDb's Top 250 list), but one thing surprised me: James Mason was a rather dashing fellow back in the day!

Today, author Rosy Thornton has released her latest novel, called Ninepins . There's already a positive buzz about it, one reviewer calling it "tense, engaging and atmospheric", and Waterstones saying it has "the tension of a thriller". Ninepins is an isolated former tollhouse, standing high on a bank beside a waterway in the Cambridgeshire fens. There, since her divorce, Laura lives alone with her 12-year-old daughter, Beth. Below the bank stands the old pumphouse – a former fen drainage station – which is rented to a series of student lodgers. But this year’s lodger is different: Willow is seventeen, and in local authority care. Battling down her reservations, Laura takes her on. Do Willow’s strangenesses and her mysterious and troubled past make her a threat to Laura and, especially, to Beth? What were the circumstances surrounding the act of arson which led to Willow being taken into care? Set against the brooding landscape of the fens, Ninepins explo...

In the early hours of 15 April 1912, over 1500 people were lost at sea in the biggest maritime disaster in history: the sinking of the RMS Titanic. A disaster that could have easily been averted or even avoided. Today, we remember those who met their watery grave that night. R.I.P.

From Screen Daily through Dread Central , we learn that Frank Spotnitz would love to see more of The X-Files . Wouldn't we all? Well, okay, I would! Quoth the man: There is a very active and relentless fan campaign for a last movie. I do feel like it would be a terrible shame if that didn’t happen. It feels wrong not to give it an ending around the alien colonisation of earth. David [Duchovny] and Gillian [Anderson] feel the same. I have a clear idea of how it would go and I’ve been talking to Chris Carter about it for a long time. I’ll keep banging the drum whenever I meet the Fox guys. Apparently, Fox still holds the rights to any sequels, but as the last movie didn't do very well, they're ... reluctant, shall we say? I actually really enjoyed the film, and the main criticism of it ("it's not about the aliens, it's like a normal episode!") is exactly why I enjoyed it. So there!

Glad påsk! [ Source ] In Britain, Easter seems to only mean two bank holidays, chocolate eggs and Biblical adaptations on telly. In Sweden, aside from the extra days off work, the chocolate eggs and Charlton Heston, you would - at least when I was growing up - eat boiled eggs which you had painted in one way or another. Some days before, you would have brought in birch twigs and adorned it with coloured feathers and little egg-ornaments and things. Think tabletop Christmas tree and you're on the right lines. If you made sure to put water in the vase (and marbles to weigh it down so it wouldn't fall over), the twigs would sprout little green leaves in the indoor warmth, and if you've never smelled opening birch leaf buds, you don't know what you're missing.

Today, I found out that the last of the founding members of The Dubliners, and thereby the one who has been with the group the longest, has passed away. I can't relate to the maker of a guitar amp, although Mr. Marshall's contribution to musicians everywhere is admirable, and I've never really heard more than Hey Hey We're The Monkees to feel other than "aww, well, sorry for his family and friends" about Davy Jones's passing a month or so ago ... and I've not said more about Whitney Houston's death than reviewing The Bodyguard . The Dubliners is different. They're probably my favourite Irish folk band, for starters, and they're legendary . We had the chance to see them last year when they were in Nottingham. They were back again this year, for the 50th Anniversary Tour in March, and I was really torn, because I really wanted to go and see them, and on the other hand, we saw them the year before, and we also had other plans for that eve...

Thanks to the fantabulous Laurence Rickard (@Lazbotron), I found this and had to share. It's a song from the new series (starts on Monday!), starring a group of Greek philosophers, singing a song very similar in style to that of The Monkees ... which is oddly topical .

Because I've been really busy with work recently, and because today is a Bank Holiday, I'm actually going to take a little break, and not post a review today. In fact, I'm going to shock myself and not even write one for Monday either, because that's also a bank holiday! Instead, for today, I'll write a few words about Easter in Sweden. Today is Good Friday, or Långfredagen as we call it. "Long Friday", the day when Jesus got captured and eventually strung up on a cross. Back in the day, you weren't supposed to do any work on this day, but instead just reflect over the suffering of Christ on the cross. No wonder they called it "long" Friday, because how long must it have felt for all the kids who didn't want to sit still? Nowadays, it's just a red letter day, meaning it's a day off work. Kids are on their Easter holiday - one week, either the week before or after Easter - and the weather might or might not remind anyone of ...

Remember mad libs? Where all you get is a list where you're supposed to fill in a type of word specified and in the end, it puts those words into a story that's just ... well, mad. I found a place online where you could do them, and thought I'd try one about the Perfect Man. Here's how it turned out, with the words I put in highlighted ... My "Dream Man" should, first of all be very beautiful and gaunt . He should have a physique like Richard Armitage , a profile like Toby Stephens , and the intelligence of a cat . He must be polite and must always remember to purr my cup , to tip his radiator and to take my nose when crossing the street. He should move darkly , have a yellow voice, and should always dress smugly . I would also like him to be a black dancer, and when we are alone he should whisper grand nothings into my mouth and hold my tall hazelnut . I know a biscuit is hard to find. In fact the only one I can think of is the Squeeze . LOL! Trul...

They're back! Series four of Horrible Histories comes to CBBC soon, celebrating with a whole week of historical shenanigans! Keep your eyes peeled 9 - 13 April. Quoth the BBC Press Centre : In series four, viewers find out how historical figures such as Dick Whittington and Robert the Bruce get on pitching movies about their life story, and which Historical Apprentice teams will find out they’re fired. There are also more magnificent musical interludes including Victoria and Albert’s love ballad, Charles Darwin with a Bowie-esque rock tune, and a new Battle of Britain RAF Pilots boy band. Each episode features a mirthful mix of sketches from across the ages, from Slimy Stuarts to Rotten Romans, and is hosted by Rattus Rattus the talking rat. Death returns to quiz the recently deceased on the manner of their demise in Stupid Deaths, and King Henry VIII has a go at raising some much needed funds by taking part in a daytime TV show Cash in the Abbey. Hands up everyone who ju...

It's that time again! Today, we put the clocks forward one hour - in fact, by the time we've woken up today, it will have happened already. In Christian mythos, it's the day where virgin Mary was told she was to become the most famous teenage mum in two millennia. In Sweden, this is called Jungfru Maria bebådelsedag . At some point, this was known as Vårfrudagen (day of our lady), but through some sort of Chinese whispers, it morphed into Våffeldagen (waffle day). Bit of a difference, really. [ Source ] Traditionally, you'd have Swedish waffles with whipped cream and jam. Preferably straight from the waffle iron, so they're crispy and hot. For some reason, my mum has never quite understood why hot, crispy waffles are nicer than cold and spongy ones. They're not pancakes, after all. (Mmm, cold pancakes!)

I wish all music videos were as adorable as this one. :) I may have posted this one before, I don't remember. Worth seeing again, though. Speaking of Fatboy Slim, I couldn't find a version that would allow embedding, but having legendary actor Christopher Walken in your music video is pretty darn epic , so go check it out!

Well, what a week! I haven't had much time to look at other posts, let alone respond to comments here, but that means that FanstRAvaganza 3 is far from over. While the actual event is over now, the posts are still there to read and to comment on, and that goes for all the participants, not just myself. Thank you all for stopping by and reading what I've had to say. I've tried to mix business-as-usual with FanstRAvaganza, which means a lot more work, but it's worth it. Big, humongous thanks to the organising crew behind this year's event, and amongst those, I'd like to give honourable mentions to Servetus , who has done the nigh impossible here and managed to herd cats organise bloggers, and to CDoart, for keeping track of all the posts . Thanks also to all fellow participants, old and new. You're all awesome, and it's going to be lots of fun catching up with everything in the weeks, and probably months, to come.

Today's Tag Teams: Last, but definitely not least! Freeform: Agzy shares with us her favorite Armitage paper doll • Ana Cris examines Lucas North's tattoos through Maori tattoo culture • Jas Rangoon premieres her new John Bateman fanvid • In fandom , jazzbaby1 thinks RA fandom is just groovy! • C.S. Winchester asks "naughty or nice?" in a picspam • Mrs. E.B. Darcy thinks about Armitage's future after TH to wrap up the Hobbit chain • Jo Ann offers the last King Richard Armitage post, on Richard III and the Tudors • In fanfic , Maria Grazia reviews and compares works by the authors she's interviewed • Gratiana Lovelace wraps up the event with a guest post by Melissa the Mouse! • Links to all FanstRA 3 posts appear here at the end of the event! This post is not inspired or based on anything in particular, but it's my last actual discussion topic of F3. I have had a thought for a while now, after reading in various online newspapers about ...

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Even though I'm not Irish this time around, I still like to observe St. Patrick's Day. And as is traditional for me on the blog, here is an Irish song. This rendition of Óró, Sé do Bheatha 'Bhaile is from a 2002 live performance of traditional songs by Sinéad O'Connor. I really like her version of it. If you've seen The Wind That Shakes the Barley , it's sung by the characters.