Mrs Merton used to say, "let's have a heated debate" - it seems the whole "Fuck it, you can come in" and gay issue has almost got us on her sofa (apologies for those who have never heard of the tongue in cheek chat show this side of the pond)
Anyway, it's got me thinking - I had dinner with a bunch of people I never spent more than 5 minutes with last night - 6 very different people than I would normally gravitate toward and our conversation touched on every topic from football to homosexuality and everything in between. In fact it was very Level 5.
And as I drink my Earl Grey this morning I wonder, if we could invite anyone to dinner who would they be. I was in London Town last week Hence the pics of Liverpool Street Station - they make a great tryptic, but I can't get them to line up side by side) and had a Brick Lane curry with 6 good friends, but I wonder if we could invite 6 people (alive or dead) who we have no real chance of dinning with, who would they be.....answers on a comment please
Here this morn are my six 'never gonna happen' dinner guests:
My grandma Elsie - she was so so warm, she died when I was out of the country and I never got to say goodbye, there is so much I would like to say to her - she would be sat beside me
Joan of arc - i would want to know more of those voices she heard...
Tom waits - surreal, off the wall - love his story telling, oh, and he could play the piano too
Mike yaconelli - my dear late friend, many times I have wanted his councel of late, sadly I have it no more
Desmond Tutu - I would give good money to see him smile and hear his infectious laugh
Helen mirren - oh my lord, i have had more than a crush on this woman since puberty, she can act a little too
So (now on my 3rd cup of earl grey), I wonder who you would invite...
ps, talking of dining with lovely people Jude sent me this pic of Mr Lawson and me having dinner, he was in Brick Lane on monday - as pip would say, he is beautiful
21 comments:
John the Baptist,
Lady Isabel Burton(1831 - 1896), Bono,
Mike Yaconelli,
Jo Brand,
Shane Claiborne.
hhhmmmm....I am going to have to think about the dinner invites.....so I will be back...
BUT....I love these shots...I know you are completely surprised by this! :)
Have a wonderful, relaxing Sunday Paul!
patti smith
michael donaghy
michael stipe
anne lamott
mata angelou
bruuuuuce
(do we just get to have 6?)
but actually i'd prefer to have a chat with them one at a time. or it could just be a really long dinner.
Since I feel it's "gonna happen" you will notice I haven't included Billy Joel in my list. :)
Gee....this was a difficult task given the parameters of one dins....I would like to propose a series of dinners.
My first night dinner party would include:
Mary Poppins....who is more complex than we realize. I wanna know some of her withheld secrets. I mean, don't you want to know if anything ever happened between she and Bert? What is really in her past? Maybe she was an original graduate of Hogwarts? Who knows!
Emma Thompson....she is such a bright witty light who seems to be so curious and full of passion. I want a chance to share a bottle of wine with her, to listen to her unravel her thoughts on whatever topic is piquing her interest at the time.
Jane Austen....for both Emma and I. I want to hear all about the real goings on behind the scenes of her novels. She has much more to say about Mr. Darcy in particular, because, he is based on someone she may have been in love with herself.
Anne Tyler....I love how she writes about everyday life and the internal conflicts of her characters. She is my modern day novelist inspiration. I want to ask her questions on writing and learning how to plan a novel etc.
Mary Magdalene... to offer her a receptive audience so that she can tell her stories. I think this woman would have many insightful tales to tell.....and if she's ready to spill......I'm there for her! :)
ps. i may post another later :)
and the photo of you and mr. lawson? you are both beautiful. It's a lovely picture of two friends who seem very comfortable with one another. it makes me smile.
Hmmm - well perhaps the late King Hussein of Jordan; Gertrude Bell; Nasser; Oriana Fallaci; Jimmy Carter and Tony Benn. (And three of these people I've had the privilege of meeting in person).
good choices
julie, john the baptist and jo brand, now that's a dinner date I'd like to be a fly on the wall for... (plenty of Oaky Chardonnay for Yac)
anna, thanks, i love that station - something timeless, something about journey and possibility... look forward to seeing who you'd have for dinner
mr t, that's an intense list - can you imagine the conversation - sounds like a dinner for eternity where you get a private bruuuuuce gig!
dana, great choices, but have you noticed you have no men to your dinner....
paris, which 3? Carter would be high on my list also...wonderful human
i can think of so many more though! i want a big mad intense party! you can come too! and giles fraser. tolstoy. germnaine greer (how did i forget her the first time?!). nick hornby. will self. dawn french. my granny. dorothy day. james alison. doctor who (the christopher eccleston one)....
to be honest though i'd probably end up drinking too much and saying stupid things to all of them in turn. what a hangover that would be. imagine embarrassing yourself in front of all the people you've most wanted to meet! (pessimist? moi?)
Yes, I purposefully listed 6 lovely and talented ladies.....
here's my boy list...
John Irving....I love his twisted sense of humour and the fact that he chooses BIG issues to tackle in his novels.....Cider House Rules and A Prayer for Owen Meany are in my top 10 fav. novels of all time. Plus he's a hottie.
Harry Chapin....he had so much more to do for world hunger.....I've often wondered what would've been had he lived to fulfill his goals.
Robin Williams...because he is one big open FEELING....I love how his brain works and he makes me laugh.
Nelson Mandela........for many many reasons..........most importantly I want to be in the same room to see him smile.
Roddy Doyle.... I LOVE his writing and his sense of humour. He created some of most favourite fictional characters...
and.......drumroll....
Colin Firth.....I would ask him to dress as Mr. Darcy. And, I may ask him to hang out a little longer than the rest!
you two crack me up
shirley, i know what you mean about brain going MIA when you meet someone famous...Doh!
dana, Mr Darcy eh? I don't know a woman alive who didn't fall for mr firth in that role. Mandela nearly made my list - can you imagine both him and tutu laughing together?
Could I get a rule clarification? May I please invite George Clooney for 6 different dinners? :)
in magic land, yes, of course - but if you couldn't who would the other ignored guests be.....
I like Skye's idea!
And I love Mr T's idea too of a mad intense party.....I'm all for it. Throw my choices into the mix as well......and a few more...can we invited Shrek? What's a party without an ogre?
My choice of Mr Darcy....I did hesitate to include him knowing that I would perhaps have dinner interupted by the throngs of other women vying for his attention. But I figured I would arrange to have this dinner in a secret locale, somewhere in the Alps. So, I think I will arrange this separate from Mr. T's bash.
ps....yes, Tutu and Mandela....it would be wonderful to see them together.
Harrison Ford-I like his acting roles and would love to talk to him about Star Wars,Indianna Jones etc
Dan Brown-I'd like to thrash out the Jesus/Mary marriage stuff with him
Schindler-he did amazing stuff for the Jews and I'd like to meet him
JK Rowling-I'd ask what happens in the next Harry Potter book!!
CS Lewis-millions of questions for him...
Damon Hill-Its all in the eyes!! and to talk about driving that fast!!
have been back a few times to re-view yr gorgeous pics of Liv St Stn... brings back many happy memories of Brick Lane, remind me to tell you a funny story about bombay sapphire, greenbelt and Liverpool Street...
dana, Shrek is welcome, though I reckon donkey would have to accompany him - a bit like inviting Oliver Hardy without Stan Laurel - you think?
always, great list - mr ford, and mr hill, onve had a girlfriend who used to go weak at the knees just at the mention of his name - goodness knows what she would have been like if she had met him and looked into his dreamy eyes...
hi Maggi, i was really pleased with the pics - got lucky! look forward to hearing the story next week...
Sylvia Plath, James Frey, Shakespeare, Ellen MacArthur, Plato and Great Aunty Helen - the stubborn woman wouldn't let me see her as she died of throat cancer and there were so many things I wanted to say.
Your sepia is beautiful!
The contrast of the picture and that caramel color really calms me.
These pictures have an infared quality to them as well.
Krista Tippett (wonderful theologian podcast-presenting woman from speakingoffaith.org)
Desmond Tutu
My friend Trendy Wendy from Canada - she's always good in conversation.
My equally delightful friend Ben-The-Star from Australia who drips appreciation, empathy & active involvement in listening.
The Persian poet Rumi. But only if he promised to be our on-site-poet and write Sufi-inspired songs for us and teach us all how to be whirling dervishes.
My other Australian friend Andrew - he enjoys good conversation so much that he shines.
Yup, some of them are a bit 'local' (to use a League of Gentlemen phrase), but to have all of these around a dinnertable together would surely be a bit of a fantasy.
And of course Mog would be present - making the ceremonial tour of the more comfortable laps.
which one of those guys is you? is one of those guys really you? wow.
Thich Naht Hanh
Whoopi Goldberg
Kurt Vonnegut
Leonard Cohen
Annie Dillard
Pablo Neruda
Neil Finn
Joni Mitchell
Paul Simon
Madeleine L'Engle
Abp Desmond Tutu
Jesus
(I thought of asking for Coleridge, as there are lots of things I'd like to ask him, but if his reputation is anything to go by I wouldn't get a word in edgeways...)
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