It's Mike Leigh!


I apologise for the blurry photo, but the event was being filmed, and it's not easy taking a decent shot from the front row without appearing on TV being thrown out of a theatre for breaking the no-photography rule. Oh, and if you're thinking that Mike looks more feminine than you expected, I should add that he's the one on the left.

Anyhoo, Lisa and I successfully attended BAFTA: A Life in Pictures (featuring Mike Leigh) (and Amy Raphael) at The Dome last night, and I'm proud to say that we stayed til the end. Which is all the more surprising when you consider that the programme described it as a "definitive career-length interview", implying that it might last for thirty-five years.

It was a lot better than The Brighton Moment anyway, mainly because we had allocated seats in the front row, with plenty of leg room, which shows the value of getting up early on the day the tickets went on sale.

I found Mike Leigh a curious character. Lisa described him as looking like one of the Seven Dwarves, and if so, then he's definitely Grumpy. I found what he said interesting, but he came across as a slightly cantankerous old man who doesn't suffer fools gladly. Which immediately put him at odds with about half the audience.

My main complaint was that most of the people who stood up to ask questions seemed intent on proving just how intellectual they were by asking something dull, pretentious and irrelevant. One person just wanted to know Mike's views on the British education system. Frankly I couldn't care less what he thinks of the National Curriculum; I just want to hear some Secrets & Lies from the set of Vera Drake. But as Lisa said afterwards, I'm more Heat Magazine than the Times Literary Supplement. Which must be why I love Naked.