Al Pacino, in a dance scene from Scent Of A Woman; the music, the couple, their tentative, vulnerable shared amusement and finally a burst of spine-tingling action. For a blind retired Lieutenant Colonel, he does remarkably well, which makes me want to capture the moment all over again. And again…

Niles and Daphne don’t spring to mind as perfect Tango partners. Not until you add a red dress (Daph) and a tux (Niles) and concoct a deliciously sexy narration throughout a dance that is traditionally zipped lips. Here in this marvellous clip, as opposed to the next with Al Pacino, no one can deny that two [...]

Just an excuse Writing historicals could just be an excuse to indulge in fantasy – it’s often the case that when describing our heroine, we can drop the name of a look-a-like, for instance Veronica Lake. How gorgeous was she? Smooth, smart and absolutely self-confident about her looks. Consequently, my latest centre stage character, likes [...]

The movies prove it true A sultry summer evening in May with the maybugs bouncing against the window and not a breath of air. My keyboard should be icing over as I’m describing the freezing cold February of 1919, a year after the Great War, with Britain emerging from the nightmare of the battlefields. I’m [...]

A sultry summer evening in May with the maybugs bouncing against the window and not a breath of air. My keyboard should be icing over as I’m describing the freezing cold February of 1919, a year after the Great War, with Britain emerging from the nightmare of the battlefields. I’m amazed once again that my [...]

Amazon.co.uk Widgets Underneath the lamplight, by the garden gate…these words always send shivers down my spine. I can hear Marlene’s husky, haunting voice and that accent so clearly in my head. Because celebrity meant just as much in the 1920’s as it does today, more so perhaps, with the arrival of talking motion pictures, I [...]

Reflecting back to the twenties; at about this time in 1926 preparations were ongoing for the first Cup Final at Wembley Stadium between Manchester City and Bolton Wanderers. Provisions included 50,000 bottles of beer, 1,500 bottles of whisky, 30 tons of minerals, 700lbs of tea, 25,000 ham rolls and meat pies, 12,000 packets of biscuits, [...]

Mr Bean must be the funniest man on earth! Everyone I know loves him; my 91-year-old mum, my grandchildren, Mrs Next Door and Mr Over-the-Road. When an awkward silence threatens, just mention Mr Bean and the conversation lights up. I even know a dog that won’t leave the TV screen if he spots that lonely, shifty, [...]

New website and visuals I’ve been working with my web designer today and it’s been great fun. He’s building a new, very visual carolrivers website. I’ve selected three YouTube videos to give an idea of time and place and we’ve been running through as we go. I’ve loved watching the amazing assortment of vids which [...]