October Blues

The sun and light of Venice is already a distant memory. The recent rain has left us rather soggy on this Welsh hillside. Rather the sun and the cold than the wet and there are a few days of that on the way. We have just booked a couple of days in Prague to celebrate our anniversary next March. Beginning to see a bit more of the world these days.

One current problem is people's inability to read or understand what they are looking at. There seem to be too many people locally who don't know the difference between TV/Repair Services and TV & Film Production in Yellow Pages. I get regular calls asking me to tune in or repair a TV or VCR and, last week, it was the supply of a widescreen tv for a pub. Even the fact that it says "voice-over" after my name doesn't seem to deter them.

My "Santa" season is warming up. I was the voice of Father Christmas for 22 UK Radio Stations last year and this season has started quite well. Last week's work included 10 UK radio commercial voice-over sessions and two for the USA, a Tannoy announcement, some welcome messages for a company in Dubai, nominee announcements for the British Society of Magazine Editors Awards and a narration for a Dutch firm among other bits and pieces. Next week I have rather a sad voice-over to narrate - more about that next week.

Venice

After a hectic September and no let up in October I went to brush up on my Italian accent in Venice for a few days - such a beautiful city. If only I could use that to justify the expense to the Inland Revenue. The weather was good, as was the food and wine and the views. I can thoroughly recommend a wander among the streets, alleys and pavements - something different around every corner.

My last two days of the week involved voice-overs for a Hearing Protection programme, some on-hold messages, six radio commercial sessions and a narration for a Christian Ministry working in the Sudan. the most interesting new lead to come in is a Show Intro for a professional Drag Artiste.