Alec John Moore

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp is seen by some as the best British movie so far. Interesting that A Canterbury Tale and Went the Day Well? are also quoted above. I've watched the former a couple of times in the last year and I do like the way the stereotypes are crafted. I don't know if I could get to ten but I think my favourite of all time must be Seven Samurai. For poignancy I would have to go for Bicycle Thieves and, slightly out of left field, Etre et Avoir. The Purple Rose of Cairo is my favourite Woody Allen film but I haven't seen many of his more recent ones.

Interesting stuff. I find facebook great for keeping in touch with people I met at college who are now living in the far flung reaches of the planet. My family is a bit like that too and it's great to see what my nephews and nieces are up to. It can be quite funny too. One of my fb friends is Korean and she posts a lot - in Korean. The online translation is either quite funny or downright confusing. I use fb a bit to make direct contact with my family in Scotland when I go up for a visit. That's very handy. I've started using twitter more recently for work and that can be very helpful in picking up on reports on and developments in my sector. I also use twitter for informing me about my personal interest - local food production. I've got lots of information and connections on that with twitter. It can be time consuming and I try to use it carefully. I do like the discipline of saying what you want in 140 characters.

Thanks for the links, badger. I love the idea of foraging and guerilla gardening. I wouldn't be so down on the planners, mynamehere. I have spotted some deliberately planted fruit trees on the Surrey Canal path as I whiz past on my bike. Will make a point of stopping to examine them more closely and report back. It would seem to be part of the Burgess Park Master Plan to have foraging trees/bushes including hazel, cherry and even mulberry. If you look around this forum you'll find a couple of community initiatives regarding fruit trees such as East Dulwich Orchard Collective and Matham Grove Street Orchard. If there is anyone else who lives of Tyrrell Road reading this, would you be interested in trying to establish a street orchard? Alec

Hi What, you are wondering, has this got to do with East Dulwich? While I don't know of any children being trafficked from Malawi to East Dulwich, I do know a bit about the problem in Malawi. You might remember my thread from a couple of months ago about trying to empathise with those living on the equivalent of ?1 a day. http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?20,878276,page=1 Thanks to everyone who read the thread and contributed their comments - and a particular thanks to those who made a donation. I took that challenge because I am interested in the issue and I wanted to raise awareness of it and raise funds for my organisation - Salvation Army International Development. A lot of my work involves managing a grant we have for our anti child trafficking work in Malawi. Follow this link to find out more about the work and the Radio 4 appeal we have going out this Sunday. http://www.salvationarmy.org.uk/uki/idNews We managed to get the writer and broadcaster Rhidian Brook to present the Radio 4 appeal and it was an interesting challenge writing the script for radio. Going to "old" Broadcasting House for the recording last month was fun, too. Child trafficking is a real problem in Malawi and many other parts of Africa and Asia. In terms of child abuse it clearly isn't always as extreme as the treatment meted out by the Lord's Resistance Army where children are "recruited" as soldiers. I've seen something of the psychological trauma that results from being forced to herd cattle all day, alone, with little or no food. I've also seen the ways in which children respond to care and attention, the chance to play and go to school. Things we tend to take for granted for our children in East Dulwich. If you get the chance have a listen to the appeal. I look forward to seeing your responses. Best wishes Alec

Do please tell the people what would be commercially viable and show your workings, please.

Jeremy - that's true I suppose but I'm not aware that they are obliged to increase their patient list beyond their capacity to manage the demand.

As far as I'm aware Melbourne Grove is separate from the 2 DMCs I know of - Chadwick Road and Crystal Palace Road. The Crystal Palace Road DMC and the waiting times to get an appointment there have been discussed at length on various threads. There seems to have been a change a few months ago but it's not clear to me why we have to wait so long, what, if anything, is being done about it and whether or not it is deemed acceptable by DMC or the relevant part of the NHS. ETA: http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?5,820674

Hi Picking up on the discussion about what we eat on a daily basis across the world, I wonder if any of you have seen the news reports about Martha Payne, the Scottish schoolgirl who started a blog about her school lunches and was then forbidden by her local authority to take photos of her school dinners. Links below to a news report and her blog: http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/bulletin/third_sector_daily_bulletin/article/1136844/nine-year-old-girl-raises-82000-marys-meals/?DCMP=EMC-CONThirdSectorDaily http://neverseconds.blogspot.co.uk/ She has been raising funds for Mary's Meals which provides meals for schoolchildren in Malawi. Interesting to see how the actions of Argylll and Bute Council have raised the profile of her efforts and caused an increase in support for what she is doing. Alec

Another way of measuring filmgoing interest amongst the ED public would be to have an overview of what exists currently: http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?6,899966 Alec

According to this http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/business-theory/strategy/business-failure.html one third of new business start ups fail - so that means that two thirds succeed. They point out that the key reasons for failure include poor marketing, cash flow etc. It's also interesting to note from other research that most start ups are individuals trying to turn a hobby into a business and these are often business types with low capital and running costs. The problem with a multi use arts centre, Sue mentioned the previous thread on EDF, is that they have large capital and running costs. Being the Arts they need to be subsidised by the state and that is less likely to be possible in today's economic climate. However, bars seem to do well enough in ED so maybe the way forward is Montpelier or Roxy but with an existing venue in ED such as the Mag. I know it has Cinema Paradiso but I get the sense that what people want is something more regular and more cinema-like. I know, easy enough for me to say sitting here at my 'puter but to refer to The Times 100 website, if the right type of research is done then an entrepreneur should be able to find out what the barriers to "cinema-going" are for the target audience in ED and take on the creative challenge of dissolving those barriers to make going to see a film possible as well as desirable.

Perhaps Yossarian could set up an online survey to measure the interest in a local cinema in a slightly less unscientific way than this thread provides. However, to contribute to the anecdotal evidence, my experience of seeing Catfish (was it fact or fiction?) with a friend at Roxy involved a nice meal and a bottle of wine while watching the movie in a cabaret setting. It was very enjoyable and the, albeit small, venue was packed and it was a weekday evening in winter. I know that the "proper" cinema experience is meant to be more immersive - darkened room, lost in the sound and images etc - but the opportunity to share the experience in a less formal way is also enjoyable and suits those who want to discuss the experience afterwards over a drink, for instance. I'd support such a venture in ED since I really like the idea of being able to walk to and from the venue.

Hi Yoss Would you consider something like these cinema bars; http://www.whirledart.co.uk/ or http://www.roxybarandscreen.com/ I've only been to Roxy in Borough High Street and it was a great experience. I see that pablogrande has been in touch. S/he started a thread along similar lines a while ago. I'd be interested to hear your views on the members/cinema bar idea since it seems to be a good solution to the capital costs of establishing a "regular" cinema. Alec

I would go for a point and shoot by Samsung - more pixels for your pound - from ebay. If your daughter gets serious about it then she can upgrade but if she doesn't then it's not such a waste of money. The main thing is to get into taking pictures and seeing them on the screen, editing and manipulating them etc. So, access to a computer with a "user friendly" photo management programme is also important. Looking forward to seeing some of the results of her efforts in due course. Best wishes Alec

There's one along the road from us in Tyrrell Road: http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&tab=wl Doesn't seem to be a problem but the gardens are big on that block.

Hi There's the Wednesday night book club that meets in the Clockhouse on Barry Road: http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?6,819992,page=2 and Green and Blue Book Club that meets wherever it can find a nice quiet spot in a local pub that does reasonable priced nice food and wine. Last time we met in the Mag and discussed Pat Barker's first novel Union Street. Next meeting is on 5th June at 7.45 for 8.00 in the Mag when we will be discussing Changing Places by David Lodge. http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?6,454804,880256#msg-880256 Alec

Point taken, Civil, I was using your post to get my message across!

Hi Alan and Civil The organisers say that "the challenge provides a glimpse of what it is like to live on ?1/day ? a challenge that is faced by 1.4 billion people in our world today." It is somewhat tokenistic but it does make you think a bit about the issue and provides an opportunity for committed individuals such as me to raise awareness beyond my colleagues, family and friends. It would be too complicated to calculate all of the costs of living in London and, clearly, ?1 wouldn't get you very far for a day. There's a lot of discussion on the forum about food and where to buy it and the importance of convenience has come back to me during the last few days. I could probably have got more for my ?5 had I spent more time shopping around and I know that if I had combined mine with another's ?5 then we would have had more choice between us. Even that is an opportunity not available to many poor people throughout the world.

Hi, this is my last day on https://www.livebelowtheline.com/me/alecleggat and I wanted to say thanks to those who have contributed to this thread and particularly to those who supported me by making a donation - still not too late. Just follow the link above. I don't want to sound self righteous but I think I did rather well. I managed to have a fairly healthy diet using good basic ingredients - apart from the UHT milk, perhaps - and didn't suffer unduly from hunger. Neither did I bulk up on cheap carbohydrates. Of course, I missed the variety and the ability to have pretty much what I wanted when I wanted it. I missed tea and coffee and I didn't like feeling headachey and light headed but that was short lived. I do like the idea of living a more ascetic life but with the temptations and responsibilities of a modern middle class way of life then that is quite difficult. Alec Perhaps some of you will join me next year and we can pool our resources as well as share our thoughts on living below the line.

Buying willow trees was one of the reasons for shopping at Morrisons. They also do the basic pasta 9p cheaper than Sainsbury's.

The weekly food shop is done at Sainsbury's, Dog Kennel Hill, and I sometimes top up at the Co-op on Lordship Lane. I usually buy our milk from Barry's on Barry Road - it's convenient and I like to support that shop - and I sometimes get stuff from Tesco at the Elephant which is near the office. I got some of my LBL shopping from Morrison's because I wanted to see if they had any willow trees - they did, only ?2 for a corkscrew willow - and I like their fish counter. Your point about flavouring is a good one. I think my LBL diet is fairly nutritious if a bit bland. Although I have been using thyme from the garden for my bean stew, a lemon could be used to flavour the food and drink, perhaps.

A peerless example such as you, paragon, would have little room for improvement. Let me know how you get on.

I added some of the tinned tuna to my bean, barley and pasta stew last night, plus some yogurt. It was a lot tastier. Although I'm not particularly hungry, I find I am missing the opportunity to just take something from the fridge or fruit bowl and snack between meals. Tea and coffee I also miss. Mint tea is a good subsitute but it doesn't satisfy in the same way. I wanted to respond to Alan Medic's question about whether or not I'd be at work during the challenge. Colleagues have been complaining about feeling light headed and/or having headaches. I've found this too and it may be adjustment to the change in diet but it makes me realise that many people who have limited diets and the associated problems have to work long hours as day labourers or in their field and some have to walk several kilometres to the nearest source of clean water. I only have to sit at my desk, write emails, attend meetings etc.

There's very little leeway on a pound a day. It's fair to say that most people in developed countries have some disposable income that they can spend on "treats". Most people can and will go without something to pay for something else but the limits of a pound a day - even if its only for five days - really focus the mind on those essential luxuries that we take for granted. I've just said to my colleagues that at least we don't need to worry if there's milk in the fridge for a cup of tea. Most of us are just drinking water or, in my case, picking some fresh mint from the garden and having an ascetic herbal tisane. Incidentally, one of the consequences of this self enforced frugality is headaches. This may be to do with caffeine withdrawal.

Bizarrely, I couldn't finish my porridge this morning. I've allocated too much of my budget to porridge oats it seems. Still, I've put what's left in the fridge and I can have it after dinner as pudding! I could mix in more of the yogurt but I need to be careful to leave some for the next couple of days. Interesting discussions at work today where some of my colleagues are taking part in LBL and others are looking on curiously at lunch or promising to take the challenge next year. I can understand people being wary and finding the idea of having to make a shopping list and count every penny a challenge. But that's the point. If I had bought my pasta from Sainsbury's rather than Morrison's I would have had 9p less to spend on onions or flour.

Two like the one in the photo (about 9 inches) and one titchy one. I forgot to say that I added some finely chopped onion, lightly saut?ed. You need to be careful using wholemeal flour in pancake batter since the bran sinks to the bottom and the last pancake can be high in fibre. I could sift the flour and add the bran to the broth mix/pasta gloop. This thread is being quite helpful from a Live Below the Line culinary point of view.