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Quoted on the BBC

I was pleasantly surprised when a friend from India told me that she had heard my name mentioned during a BBC World Debate on the role of the media in development. As I don't normally have many reasons to blog (or lack the necessary motivation to blog assidiously), I decided to use this fact to write up a new entry on my blog.

For those interested, the debate can be listened to here: (fast forward to 10:50 if you want to skip the beginning bit)

Quote is based on a report that I co-authored this summer on the role of the media in crisis states.

Other than that, I presented a paper I wrote on the role of local NGOs in Eastern Congo at a USAID conference last week, and it was generally well received.

Think I might actually be doing something useful at the moment, though there is always more work to be done!

Oh Yes Baby!!!

It's here. It has landed. First one to die loses Part VII has hit computer screens world wide. Despite initial rumours that the Director, Reg Noyes, wanted to have a flashy premiere in Leicester Square, the grassroots community got what it wanted, FOTDL back to basics - > YouTube will yet again be the access point through which the millions of fans worldwide can get the first glimpse of this epic masterpiece. The St. Donats Weekly Observer has already hailed it as the best Welsh film since Twin Town.

Don't wait, watch it here!

Blogging as a way of life

So yes, I appear to be rather bad at this whole blogging affair. Not sure whether the problem is time, dedication, or stimulation, or a combination of the three, but I have been unable to sit down properly and write about events in my current life. Basically, I came back from a lovely time in Umbria, central Italy, where I relaxed for an entire week, visited some old-school towns and villages, savoured the great food, wine and ice-cream and basically had a jolly great time.
Since then, it's been a combination of working hard and playing hard. Plenty of things to keep me busy at work at the moment, need to wrap up an annual report for DFID, rewrite a paper that I will be presenting to a conference in Washington, as well as organise a load of meetings for the next month or so. However, did manage to go surfing two weeks ago, waves were a bit messy, but still managed to catch a couple of decent ones. Always great to be in the water again, and wish that there were better surfing spots which could be reached easily from London...
That's pretty much my update. Also, for those interested, I saw the edited version of FOTDL Part VII: Flashback, and it's looking good. The director is still tweaking some bits here and there, but it should be hitting the small screens soon. Continue watching this space!

Filming finished

The filming for First One to Die Loses VII has finished, and the producer/director/auteur is currently working his Welsh ass off to get it all done for the premiere. So far, there is talk of having two premieres, one in Wales (where the shoot took place) and one in a swanky up-market venue in London. Should be something to keep a look out for, it will be BIG!

I drove down on Thursday 3 August in the afternoon (left work early) and made it down to West Wales in under 4 hours, which, coming from London and during peak times, was pretty impressive. I am still waiting for DVLA letters to come through the post to tell me that they have some interesting footage of that trip.



Anyway, arrive there, had fantastic dinner with the cast, sat round the fire preparing next day's shoot, and then on Friday we shot all of my scenes in one go. Some of the fighting between myself and Flash del Montay (played by Harri Grace) got pretty messy, but the footage looked great. I moonlighted as a Black Mamba in a couple of the scenes as well just to make up numbers. All in all, it was a fantastic shoot and I cannot wait for the result. In the meantime, check out http://www.firstonetodieloses.org.uk for more pictures, rumours and information.

After the Friday shoot, I drove back down the M4 in order to prepare for my adventure in Italy. More about that to follow suit.

Filming today and tomorrow

The first scenes for the highly anticipated First One to Die Loses Part VII start today. I will once again be reprising the part I played in FOTDL IV as the poker-playing, whiskey-swigging mafia boss The Don. Expect more explosions, car chases and high-quality fight scenes. More information about First One to Die Loses can be found here [www.firstonetodieloses.org.uk]. Part I-VI can be viewed directly on the website, or on YouTube (search for "FOTDL").

Happy viewings

So, what's this blog all about

As many will have realised, this blog, currently in its 6th day of existence, lacks a clear goal. At the moment, it consists of a random selection of photo's and very little text explaining what it's all about. However, I think that this is partially the beauty of a blog, it can contain the random expressions of texts, pictures and thoughts, without necessarily leading to a higher perceived goal. Having said that, solving the crises currently affecting such a large part of the world's population would be a pretty honourable goal, yet currently highly unrealistic. Therefore, this blog will endeavour to explain, explore and inform the world about my life and adventures.

Enjoy life!