Huanglong – Land of the Yellow Dragon

The Minshan Mountain Range is situated in the north of China’s Sichuan Province.  An area of outstanding natural beauty it is home to a four kilometer stretch of travertine landforms and pools.  Even in its home country the place is relatively little-known. Yet Huanglong, literally Yellow Dragon, is a place of wonders.

Image Credit Flickr User La Citadelle

Over the millennia the springs around this small crease in the mountains have deposited limestone which has built up to create a series of pools – over 3,000 of them - which extend to almost four kilometers in length.  The chain of pools are said to resemble a huge golden dragon, which gives the place its name.

How Abba's "Thank You for the Music" Really Happened...

 
I guess some comedy sketches are way funnier if you know the context. So a new sketch from the UK’s Mitchell and Webb Are Not Helping about Abba is pretty brave, given the shrinking demographic that might get this.  Never mind, I’m part of that demographic and found this hilarious so all you young people scratching your collectve head can just jog on…

The sketch centers around the creation of the song “Thank You for the Music” – one of Abba’s greatest hits of the greatest hits of the band Abba (that was translated directly from the Swedish).  In it, Bjorn introduces the song to a sceptical Agnetha – watch the rest to see what happens.

The End of England? Welsh National Theatre Reimagines Glyndŵr’s Uprising with Owain & Henry

Michal Sheen is already famous for his outstanding performance of stirring dramatic monologues.  This taster for the Welsh National Theatre’s production of Owain & Henry promises more of the same…

Owain & Henry retells the story of Owain Glyndŵr’s 15th-century uprising against Henry IV in powerful blank verse. Written by Gary Owen and starring Michael Sheen as the last Welsh-born Prince of Wales, the play begins in 1400 when Glyndŵr (one of my father’s heroes) is declared an outlaw by the English crown. Rather than submit, he sparks a rebellion that gathers Welsh, English, and French allies, culminating in a march on Worcester. With Glyndŵr’s forces holding the high ground and outnumbering the English, the battle’s outcome could mean not only freedom for Wales but also the fall of Henry’s rule - and perhaps, as the play provocatively suggests, “the end of England.”

I think I might go and see this… Watch the preview below.

Spaceman: Award-Winning Sci-Fi Short Film

Spaceman has been making waves on the festival circuit, earning Best Sci-Fi and Best Short Film at the Harrogate Film Festival, as well as being selected for screening at the prestigious Aesthetica Short Film Festival.

This poignant and visually arresting short film tells the story of a family sharing their final moments together before an asteroid collides with Earth. With striking visuals and an emotional core, Spaceman offers a moving reflection on love, loss, and the things that matter most when time is running out.

Spaceman is a testament to the power of short-form cinema: compact, heartfelt, and unforgettable.

Majara Residence: The Colorful Dome Village of Hormuz, Iran

Approaching the small island of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf by boat, an entirely unexpected sight greets the eyes: a series of colorful, interconnected domes of different sizes. Perched at the southern tip of Iran, the island is sparsely populated, little visited (even though many of its 6,000 residents rely on tourism for their living), and somewhat overlooked by the rest of the country. So, have a group of aliens, looking for a quiet corner of our planet, landed and made their home here? The truth is a little more down-to-earth than that — but just as fascinating. Image - Wikimedia

The domes are, in fact, an accommodation complex, created to help solve a problem. The island relies on tourism but has a lack of places for visitors to stay. Known as Majara Residence (from the Persian word for adventure), the gateless community is made up of 17 suites which can hold close to 100 guests, plus cafés and restaurants.

Tyneham - The Ghost Village (Report from 1970 by Bob Langley)

In September 1970, UK viewers of the BBC’s Nationwide were treated to an unusual sight: presenter Bob Langley taking a dip in the calm waters of Worbarrow Bay, on the Dorset coast. One has to wonder whether his dip was included in his report as a result of fan male (he would probably have been referred to as “rather dishy” in 70s parlance).  Regardless, at the time, this was something few civilians could experience (the dip, not the presenter). Access to the bay was restricted for most of the year, as it lay within the Ministry of Defence’s Lulworth Ranges.

Just inland stood Tyneham, a village frozen in time. On 17 December 1943, the residents of Tyneham were told to leave, their homes requisitioned for military training with the promise they could return after the war. They never did. By 1970, when Langley reported from the scene, Tyneham had already been deserted for almost three decades, its people still (quite reasonably in a very British sort of way) campaigning for a return that would never come.

Did they get their village back? Sadly, no. The MOD retains control of Tyneham and its surrounding countryside to this day. Public access is now easier than it was in 1970, with more weekends and holiday openings when the ranges are silent. Farming never returned, and the landscape has become a haven for wildlife, with chalk grassland and coastal habitats thriving in the absence of modern agriculture. The village church and schoolhouse have been preserved, serving as poignant reminders of a lost community.

As for Bob Langley himself, he remains very much with us. Known to UK audiences in the 1970s and 80s as a broadcaster on Nationwide and Pebble Mill at One, he later reinvented himself as a novelist. His thrillers and adventures, such as The War of the Running Fox and Falklands Gambit, show a storyteller’s eye for intrigue. It’s a long way from that seaside dip in 1970, but Langley’s work - like Tyneham - endures.

Watch Bob Langley’s 1970 report below.

Rainy Story

A beautiful seaside town, glorious weather – but then comes the rain.  This beautiful short by Talisman Animation poses a question – what if the rain wasn’t just weather? What if rain is a boy? And there we have it – I do love it when animators (in this case Anton Dawson) keep things simple.  Rain as a boy – then a meeting with a girl who just happens to be a magical knitter. OK, that last bit might confuse you – and hopefully intrigue you as well.

Watch this gorgeously hand-crafted little piece of joy below.