Monday, March 11, 2013


There is snow lying in Drummond Place this morning (for only the second time this winter, I think) and news reports speak of traffic disruption hither and yon. So, no Strathardle today and probably not tomorrow. I am scared of going but would like to get it over with. 

Knitting went badly last night – approaching the shoulder and neck shapings of the Relax, I thought it a good idea to check the stitch count. Something is wrong and today’s job is calm counting. Partly for that reason, partly because the television was stammering rather badly, perhaps partly from too much laetare, I didn’t entirely engage with part 1 of “Shetland”. There was not much knitting in what I saw. The treeless landscape is very impressive.

I am sure the BBC will export it in their own good time.

Was it really photographed in January? The characters keep talking about Up Helly Aa, but it doesn’t feel dark enough. Last week we watched a rather interesting 5-part thriller called “Mayday”. One of its merits was that the English countryside had absolutely been caught in that glorious 1st of May moment.

I have heard from the Raveller who had engaged to sell me two skeins of Into the Whirled from her stash – one Manchester and one Pakokku. Now she says she won’t – the package is on its way, as a gift.

Rugby

I watched only a few moments of yesterday’s match – England-Italy at Twickenham. I assumed England would win 137-3. The English team must have made the same assumption. They won, but only by 18-11, a narrower margin than the Calcutta Cup match. Viva l’Italia!


5 comments:

  1. I think that Shetland was filmed last summer and that they had to recreate Up Helly Aa in July! I'm not sure what season it is supposed to be but I wouldn't think much archeological digging happens in Shetland over the winter.
    I enjoyed the TV but preferred the book.

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  2. I'm not sure that Shetlanders would be flattered by their portrayal in "Shetland" - inbred, heavy drinkers....I enjoyed seeing Kate's Peerie Flooers hat, however. I don't know whether you watch "Call the Midwife"? I was amused to see the whole team doing a bit of knitting, then sewing up a huge blanket of crocheted granny squares. Magic!

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  3. Lots of snow in South and West Edinburgh this morning. Despite gritting (apparently) most of the roads look like farm tracks, and on my way to work this morning a sharp shower of hail soon turned the main road white again... Best stay at home until it clears - driving conditions are not good. It's snowing hard out west still...

    I watched 'Shetland' last night too - and spotted lots of not-quite-right things. The light is definitely wrong for mid-Jan, and Willow is right about archaeological digs. Not enough daylight for that in winter; digs tend to happen in the summer when students are on holiday and there is a lot more light in the long, long days and nights of simmer dim...

    Then of course, there were all the curlew in the background - not generally known for piping in the winter...

    Despite many visits, I've never heard Lerwick referred to as 'Lerrick', but Bressay is always 'Bressa'... and, I was perplexed by all the shots of St Ninian's Isle (on the west side of mainland), when Bressay is on the east, just across the sound from Lerwick where Perez lives. There was a lot of knitwear, but most of it seemed to be in green/khaki rather than the hoped for fair isle. I spotted Kate's hat too! It looked grand...

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  4. i was excited to watch SHETLAND last night (via my lovely VPN connection). i wondered about the timing of Up Helly Aa ... it seemed wrong but i was knitting and didnt bother to look it up on the 'net. i loved the scenery and would not have known what was being shot but wondered about the accents - do you think they altered the speaking to be more understandable by us non-shetlanders?

    am looking forward to conclusion tonight.

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  5. Like Shandy I was disappointed to see the midwives twitching knitting needles and magically producing crochet squares. What is more, they should have been crocheting them together, not sewing.
    Oh and also, OH says that, back then, motor scooters had to have front numberplates.
    That said, the series has been reasonably good on the period detail, though I question the flesh-colour stockings and brown shoes.
    Are IKnit still keeping a knitting on film list?

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