Others celebrating or quietly crying in their beer at the passing of another year include: Jackson Browne (one of my favourite singer-songwriters who will be 72), Sharon Osbourne (who was actually born on the same day as me: not sure what that says about me), Sean Lennon (born on his father's birthday), David Cameron (former Prime Minister who will be 54 - no comment other than to say he said glowing things about Hethersett), Brian Blessed (an astonishing 84), Roddy Llewellyn (one time boyfriend of Princess Margaret who is 73), Labour politician Jess Philips who will be 39, athlete Steve Ovett who will be 65 and many more.
No longer with us are Who guitarist John Entwistle who would have been 76, Donald Sinden (he of the wobbly jowls who would have been 97) and Carnival of the Animals composer Camille Saint-Saens who would have been an impressive 185.
Apparently people born on October 9th are charming, sociable and compassionate but prone to indecisive, narrow-minded and complacent behaviour in unfavourable circumstances. So now you know what you are dealing with.
It's an incredible thought that by the law of averages there will be approximately 180,822 people in the UK celebrating their birthday today. As you may know I am a season ticket holder at Carrow Road. The ground holds approximately 27,000 fans (when they are allowed in of course). There are four parts of the ground and therefore an average of 6,750 fans in each stand (that's if the ground is full and I know some stands are bigger than others but what I'm trying to say here is if we were all at a game on October 9th or any other day for that matter your or my birthday is not unique). That means the number in each stand celebrating a birthday will be approx 6,750 divided by 365 which is around 19 people. The stand we are in is divided into six segments so between three and four people in your segment will be sharing your birthday. That's the anorak maths done for today.
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Yesterday in Hethersett, we finally got Anne a new bike (well actually it was a secondhand one). My wife is to cycling what I am to swimming. Put me in a pool and I don't so much swim as thrash around and then sink. Put her on the bike and she wobbles around quite a lot. More Anne Burton than Beryl Burton. I probably need to explain that one. Burton was my wife's maiden name. Beryl Burton, as those of a certain age may remember, was a top female cycle racer and world champion in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. Mind you the two Burtons were born within 15 miles of each other so maybe there is/was a connection.
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With my weekly tennis session wiped out yesterday, we got the bus to Wymondham - always a good trip for body and mind. It may be an ever-growing town but it still has a village feel about it. We had coffee and scones at the Mad Hatter's Tea Shop where we chatted to a couple about Tudor novels and other literature.
We expected the rain to stop, but it didn't and, by the time we were on the bus ready to set off for home, it absolutely threw it down. The B1152 was awash with water and the bus sprayed water across the paths. Thankfully nobody was walking along or they would have been drenched.
On the bus we were talking to what I call "a good old Norfolk boy" who wanted a mardle. I find my accent changing depending on who I am talking to. At times it can be reasonably posh and at other times I lapse into broad Norfolk. It just depends who I am talking to and about what.
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Yesterday I mentioned my love of quiz programmes and this week on The Chase there was a question about songs that featured the name James Dean. Sadly the contestant didn't get the correct answer stating that she had never even heard of James Dean.
So being an anorak I decided to look into some of them and found the following list on the internet.
Walk on the Wild Side ( Lou Reed: "Jackie is just speeding away, Thought she was James Dean for a day).
Vogue ( Madonna: "Greta Garbo, and Monroe, Dietrich and DiMaggio, Marlon Brando, Jimmy Dean, On the cover of a magazine).
American Pie ( Don McClean: "Now for 10 years we've been on our own, and moss grows fat on a rolling stone. But that's not how it used to be, when the jester sang for the king and queen, In a coat be borrowed from James Dean, in a voice that came from you and me)."
His 'n' Hers ( Pulp: "She asked me what made me frightened, and I said I'm frightened of Belgian chocolates, I'm frightened of pot pourri, I'm frightened of James Dean posters, I'm frightened of 26 inch screens)."
James Dean ( The Eagles: "You were the lowdown rebel if there ever was, Even if you had no cause)."
Electrolite ( REM: "Hollywood is under me. I'm Martin Sheen, I'm Steve McQueen, I'm Jimmy Dean)."
American Boy ( Chris Issak: "I'm no James Dean baby, But you know I care, If you ever need me, I'll be there, always there)."
Eggs On Plate ( Iggy Pop: "Why did you leave your sticker on my, $42 and fifty cent suite, In James Dean's bed?)"
Under the Gun ( The Killers: "Stupid on the streets of London, James Dean in the rain, Without her it's not the same)."
Peach Trees ( Rufus Wainwright: "And I really do wish you were here next to me, cause I'm going to see James Dean, There I will be Under the peach trees with him).
Those were the ones listed but I'm sure there are many more and two that came to my mind were:
Rock On by David Essex which has the lyrics "Still looking for that blue jean, baby queen Prettiest girl I ever seen. See her shake on the movie screen, Jimmy Dean
(James Dean)
and
Jim Dean of Indiana by Phil Ochs which is an entire song about Dean and pretty much a biography of his life in song:
It was on an Indiana farm in the middle of the country
Growin' in the fields of grain, Jim Dean of Indiana
His mother died when he was a boy, his father was a stranger
Marcus Winslow took him in, nobody seemed to want him
The hired man sang like a storm, sometimes he'd beat him
'Cause he would never do the chores, he was lost in dreaming
He never seemed to find a play with the flatlands and the farmers
So he had to leave one day, he said to be an actor
Once he'd come back to the farm with starlets from the stages
They locked themselves inside his room, the people turned their faces
A neighbour ran from the movie house, chickens they were scattered
He swore he saw upon the screen, Jim Dean of Indiana
He played a boy without a home, torn with no tomorrow
Reaching out to touch someone, a stranger in the shadow
The Winslows left for the movie town, they drove across the country
They hoped that he would stay around and they hoped he would be friendly
He talked to them for half an hour but he was busy racing
He left for the Grapevine Road, they left for Indiana
Then Marcus heard on the radio that a movie star was dying
He turned the tuner way down low, so Ortense could go on sleeping
It was not until they reached the farm where the hired man was waiting
The wind rushed silent through the grain, it was just as they had told him
They buried him just down the road, a mile from the farm house
That is where I placed a flower for Jim Dean of Indiana.