Diaryer

The Emirates, Premier League, 28th December 2010

The feeling walking to the game was of lambs to the slaughter. Our record against top teams, and Chelsea in particular, so poor that a beating seemed inevitable. But it wasn’t to be. Wenger made changes and every player worked themselves to the bone and, apart from one minor lapse for their goal, remained focussed on the job in hand for 90 minutes. Chelsea were not the Chelsea I know and hate, they looked passionless and disjointed, but the joy at beating a rival in this way was unbridled.

Imperial War Museum, 27th December 2010

Whilst it may not sound too exciting, the Imperial War Museum’s exhibition on the rationing of food during the war was actually very entertaining. It gave you a good understanding of the amount of effort that was put in to making sure Britons ate the right foods, generated minimum waste, ate healthily and used our own resources as much as possible. It left me wondering why we don’t still put in that effort. 

If you’ve been to any other holocaust exhibitions then the Imperial War Museum’s exhibition may not tell you anything new, but it’s presented well and contains some shocking moments. 

The Tate Modern, 05/12/10

I admit, I knew next to nothing of Gaugin before this exhibition. And if at first his paintings don’t suggest an interesting person, he, like his work, is deceptive. Often you’d look at a picture without too much of a reaction before realising something strange, dark or obscene in the background or detail. Intriguing.

Though not Mike Leigh’s best work - every single character seems to be a bit too much, and it’s all so unglamorously 90s - Career Girls is still a decent enough way to spend an evening. It’s a little film that packs soft punches, most notably through Andy Serkis’ weirdo turned bitter character.