Journal – November 2002

Here are some more extracts from my journal. You know what to expect by now – university work, socialising, CDs, DVDs, gaming, TV, etc. This hasn’t been a very eventful month, but there are a couple of interesting top 100 lists, and my favourite moments from Children In Need, among other little bits and pieces. So I hope you enjoy!

Monday November 4, 2002

Another week at uni has started, so far it’s still going fine. And I got some DVDs today: Red Dwarf Series 1 and Die Hard 3, so that’s even more to watch.

I’m still doing well on GTA3 too – I’ve opened Shoreside and I’ve done all the jumps and found all the packages (thanks to a walkthrough from the net, but only for the final one or two of each, I don’t cheat that much!).

And Lonnie Donegan died today aged 71. I only know him because my parents like some of his music, but he was quite good from what I’ve heard of it.

Other than that, we’ve had plenty of fireworks here over the past week already, even though Guy Fawkes Night isn’t until tomorrow.

Tuesday November 5, 2002

There are a lot of fireworks going off nearby for Guy Fawkes Night. It’s now 8:50pm as I write this, and they’ve been going on since at least 6pm.

I’m enjoying the first series of Red Dwarf that I’ve got on DVD. And the DVD for Die Hard 3 has an audio descriptive commentary on it, which is designed for visually impaired people like myself. In the gaps where there is nobody talking, a guy gives a description of what is happening, or of what is about to appear on the screen. It’s a really good idea.

Friday November 8, 2002

Another week over. I’m halfway through this first term at uni already! Only 5 weeks until we break up for Christmas. Still, I’ve got plenty of work to do until then, including 2 essays which have to be in within that time. So far, no problems.

I had a bit of luck today! I met up with my best mate in Exeter, as I often do on Fridays. As we were going back off to our final lessons of the day, we walked past a National Lottery kiosk and he decided to buy a scratchcard for fun. I can never be bothered to do them usually but, for some reason, I gave him £1 and asked him to get me one as well. So he goes off and gets 2 cards – guess which one of us won something! Me!!!! Ok, it’s only £19, but it’s better than nothing! It’s enough to get a CD or DVD, certainly. It’s a strange amount because of the nature of that particular scratchcard game, as all the prizes end in 9’s, from £9 up to £9,999.

It’s my mate’s 18th birthday on the 13th, so next weekend me and a few others are going to go bowling with him followed by a meal to celebrate. We’ll be going to a restaurant called On The Waterfront, whose speciality is pizzas. I mentioned them in this journal a few months ago, they’re great, and we’ve been there quite a few times before. I won’t be away for long though. I’ll just be staying over on the Saturday night.

There’s still one or two fireworks going off but it’s pretty much over. From fireworks, the next thing is Christmas – and the shops are ready! There’s cards, CDs and calendars out already. And there are so many calendars – everything from Will Young and Gareth Gates, to John Wayne, to bull terriers and other pets, and even one for chilli peppers! If you like something in particular, there’s a calendar for it for next year!

Saturday November 9, 2002

It’s 50 years of the UK pop charts. Queen have (again) topped a chart of pop fans’ favourite #1 singles of the last 50 years, conducted by BBC Radio 2. Here’s the top 100 (some numbers are repeated because of equal numbers of votes):

Tuesday November 12, 2002

Yesterday I bought a few more things. I got the CD of the new Queen musical – We Will Rock You – and it’s pretty good. It was hard to imagine how Queen songs would sound on the stage, but they’ve done a good job. I also got the video of the new Only Fools and Horses episode that was on last year – If They Could See Us Now.

The new Extended Lord of the Rings DVD is out today (2 discs for the film with 30 minutes extra, plus 2 discs for 6 hours of special features!), but I won’t have time to get it until about Thursday.

Saturday November 16, 2002

Children In Need raised over £13 million last night, which is a record for them. They don’t stop there though, they keep taking money through the year – the total for last year’s appeal reached over £25 million.

BBC Radio 2 raised a lot of money by doing a charity auction. People could ring up and bid for special things, such as an offer for Will Young (the Pop Idol winner) to go and sing to a group of 30 people in a private performance. That was sold for £52,000! He also went and sang to a girl in her home as a result of a competition on Friday, and he performed on the show (he’s got a single out from which all profits go to Children In Need).

The show itself, for those who don’t know, is a 7-hour telethon, with all sorts of acts. The news, weather and sports presenters from the BBC did a Rocky Horror spoof, performing the Time Warp and Sweet Transvestite. The Eastenders cast did a version of Michael Jackson’s Thriller. The We Will Rock You cast were also there, with Brian May and Roger Taylor performing as guests. They did Another One Bites The Dust, We Will Rock You and We Are The Champions (which they had to do an encore for!). Alice Cooper, Rod Stewart, Will Young, Ms Dynamite and the Moscow State Circus were other guests, plus there were many more, so there was something for everyone to enjoy.

Sunday November 17, 2002

I’m back after meeting up with my mates yesterday, some of whom I hadn’t seen for a while. We did try going ten-pin bowling, but it was fully booked when we arrived, so we couldn’t have a game unfortunately. Still, they had a bar, so we had a couple of drinks and a good chat.

Then we went on to the pizza place – On The Waterfront – and their pizzas were lovely as usual. We had 3 big 16″ pizzas between the 6 of us. We didn’t manage to finish them, but we did take the leftover slices away, as they put them in a box for you. It was a fun night for my mate’s 18th birthday, and it was good to see some old friends again.

Monday November 18, 2002

I bought a few more CDs today. I got The Who – The Ultimate Collection (3 CDs), The Best Air Guitar Album In The World… Ever! Volume 2 (2 CDs), and The Best of Bond (all the themes to the James Bond films to date to celebrate the 40th anniversary, not including Die Another Day). I’m listening to the James Bond compilation at the moment, it’s good.

Friday November 22, 2002

Uni’s going fine, just 3 weeks left now. I’m going to finish a 3,500 word essay this weekend that has to be in next week. Apart from that, the CDs I bought were good, and I’m going to watch my extended edition of Lord Of The Rings this weekend too, so I’m looking forward to that.

Monday November 25, 2002

I’ve finished the assignment that has to be in this week. I now have to do a Tax one by the end of term and a Management Accounting one for the new year.

I bought a couple of DVDs today – The Very Best Of Have I Got News For You (over 3 hours!) and Blackadder’s Christmas Carol. The extended edition of Lord of the Rings is great. I haven’t watched the extras or listened to the commentaries yet though, it’ll take a while to get through them all.

And finally, the BBC recently ran a poll to find the 100 Greatest Britons. The BBC defines a Great Briton as: “Anyone who was born in the British Isles, including Ireland; or anyone who lived in the British Isles, including Ireland, and who has played a significant part in the life of the British Isles.” And there’s quite a mixture of names in the list:

  1. Sir Winston Churchill
  2. Isambard Kingdom Brunel
  3. Diana, Princess of Wales
  4. Charles Darwin
  5. William Shakespeare
  6. Sir Isaac Newton
  7. Elizabeth I
  8. John Lennon
  9. Horatio Nelson
  10. Oliver Cromwell
  11. Sir Ernest Shackleton
  12. Captain James Cook
  13. Robert Baden-Powell
  14. Alfred the Great
  15. Arthur Wellesley,
  16. Margaret Thatcher
  17. Michael Crawford
  18. Queen Victoria
  19. Sir Paul McCartney
  20. Sir Alexander Fleming
  21. Alan Turing
  22. Michael Faraday
  23. Owain Glyndŵr
  24. Elizabeth II
  25. Stephen Hawking
  26. William Tyndale
  27. Emmeline Pankhurst
  28. William Wilberforce
  29. David Bowie
  30. Guy Fawkes
  31. Leonard Cheshire
  32. Eric Morecambe
  33. David Beckham
  34. Thomas Paine
  35. Boudica
  36. Sir Steve Redgrave
  37. Sir Thomas More
  38. William Blake
  39. John Harrison
  40. Henry VIII
  41. Charles Dickens
  42. Sir Frank Whittle
  43. John Peel
  44. John Logie Baird
  45. Aneurin Bevan
  46. Boy George
  47. Sir Douglas Bader
  48. Sir William Wallace
  49. Sir Francis Drake
  50. John Wesley
  51. King Arthur
  52. Florence Nightingale
  53. T. E. Lawrence
  54. Robert Falcon Scott
  55. Enoch Powell
  56. Sir Cliff Richard
  57. Alexander Graham Bell
  58. Freddie Mercury
  59. Dame Julie Andrews
  60. Sir Edward Elgar
  61. The Queen Mother
  62. George Harrison
  63. Sir David Attenborough
  64. James Connolly
  65. George Stephenson
  66. Sir Charlie Chaplin
  67. Tony Blair
  68. William Caxton
  69. Bobby Moore
  70. Jane Austen
  71. William Booth
  72. Henry V
  73. Aleister Crowley
  74. Robert The Bruce
  75. Bob Geldof
  76. The Unknown Warrior
  77. Robbie Williams
  78. Edward Jenner
  79. David Lloyd George
  80. Charles Babbage
  81. Geoffrey Chaucer
  82. Richard III
  83. J. K. Rowling
  84. James Watt
  85. Sir Richard Branson
  86. Bono
  87. John Lydon
  88. Bernard Law Montgomery
  89. Donald Campbell
  90. Henry II
  91. James Clerk Maxwell
  92. JRR Tolkien
  93. Sir Walter Raleigh
  94. Edward I
  95. Sir Barnes Wallis
  96. Richard Burton
  97. Tony Benn
  98. David Livingstone
  99. Sir Tim Berners-Lee
  100. Marie Stopes

Friday November 29, 2002

I bought the new SchoolDisco.com album yesterday – End Of Term Party. I haven’t listened to it all yet, but it’s good so far. That’s the 4th album they’ve done, and their compilations have some great songs on them.

There isn’t much else to report at the moment. I’ve got 2 weeks to go until the end of term, and I have to do a taxation essay by then. That won’t be a problem though, I’ve got all the information I need. I handed in my first assignment for a different subject yesterday, so I’m glad that’s out of the way.

Author: Glen

Love London, love a laugh, love life. Visually impaired blogger, culture vulture & accessibility advocate, with aniridia & nystagmus, posting about my experiences & adventures.

2 thoughts on “Journal – November 2002”

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