Saturday 25 July 2009

Middle Ditch 33



A Bit Of A Do
In Memory of Paul Hart

Jim, Minton and the Bishop reminisce about Alan.
Lady Annabel reveals a long held secret to Susan and Anna.

This episode features in order of appearance

Monique Caddy as the Announcer
Rowena Kitchen as Lady Annabel
Janine Caddy as Libby
Brian Hinton M.B.E. as Randolph Minton M.P.
Sorani Mkandawire as Anna
Sue Tarrant as Susan
Jay Ramsay as Bishop Ramsay
Keith Walton as Jim
Christina McLaughlin as the Announcer

Editing and sound effects by Helen Hardy and David Caddy
Written and directed by David Caddy and Jeremy Drake

49 comments:

cherie said...

wow, i am addicted! i've listenes to several middle ditch episodes already, and find them fascinating! quaint accent and quite an array of characters! thank you, monique! i shall be on the lookout for what happens after this....

•°°• IcyBC •°°• said...

Interesting episode! I love the part where "you're going to be charming"! Have not heard that expression before..I'm going to use that :-)

Charles Gramlich said...

Randy has a "usual charming self? Hum. I'm not convinced.

Middle Ditch said...

Thanks Cherie, such a lovely compliment.

I just listened to it myself Icy BC and I also smiled when this line was said. I wonder whom of the writers though of it.

Charles, I'm afraid, when in his office or at parliament, Randy has to be his usual charming self otherwise he would be quickly booted out. It's only in the presence of Annabel or others who are more familiar that he can let rip.

Thank you all for listening and commenting.

jmsjoin said...

That was excellent all around loved the Randolph character. Monique, Trice just came in and loved it. I think we have another one hooked! Excellent!

jed said...

I am sure that Randy can be quite a charmer when it suits him. We fortunately get to know his wider and uglier self.

It's good to remember Paul as he would have contributed storylines and much else to Middle Ditch.

Middle Ditch said...

Jim, great news. The more listeners the better. Yes, Randolph is excellent and I'm really grateful when I can get him to record. He is a very busy man and not always available.

Hi Jed, I have to agree with you and yes, Paul is missed greatly. His stories were usually fantastic and we have used some of them.

Leigh Russell said...

They say that charming people are really just manipulative. I can't say I thought of Randy as charming, but in real life people have lots of different sides to them - it all seems to fit together to me. I love the weirdness of the characters.
I hope you had a good afternoon in Bath, Monique. Sorry we didn't spend more time together but I was preoccupied with the bookshop business - it's quite tiring - and once we'd finished, we didn't have time to hang around. Next time I'll try to plan things better!
I'm enjoying the poems - they're challenging.

Devin said...

cherie-I am addicted too! I hope MD runs forever:)! sending love and hugs to all of you from Arizona-this was a great episode!

X. Dell said...

I think it's a wonderful tribute to Paul that you shed some light on the strengths of his character. Contrary to what we saw of him in life, Alan seemed quite clever in many things--except when it came to John and Sarah. Paul did the character pround, though, and I remember him fondly.

You know, sometimes I think Jim's not really getting any phone calls. He just wants to stir up the cauldron a bit. Good luck getting him a ringtone.

Anonymous said...

Another goody and a great tribute too. I hope you had a fab look around and time in Bath Monique. I loved it there when I was over last (10+ yrs ago now). Must be time for another trip.

Lily said...

Monique, I am closing down one of my blogs, because I have too many blogs. You have registered there as a follower and have probably also commented there, so this is why I am letting you know that here's another one of my blogs, which features the same sort of pictures (nature of Scandinavia plus my books and art-work).

This is the link, in case you are interested:

http://aboutmynewshop.blogspot.com/

I hope you will enjoy it and might consider becomming a follower there instead.

greetings from Scandinavia, Sarah Sofia

diana said...

very good, very good ..
i enjoyed this episode tremendously ..
listened to it twice last night as a matter of fact ..
:)
XO

Middle Ditch said...

Hi Leigh, it was great seeing you. I had a wonderful, but tiring, time in Bath. I'm pleased that you are enjoying David's poems.

Thanks Devin, I realize I really have to visit your blog again soon.

Middle Ditch said...

Hi X.Dell,

Yes, Paul was a multi-talented man. A gifted athlete, artist, musician, bandleader and actor. He based Alan on local barmen that he knew and drew on his love of story telling in pubs. He was quite naive when it came to affairs of the heart though!

Jim has experienced vibrating in his pocket and is seemingly experimenting on a variety of quieter ringtones!

Middle Ditch said...

Hi Aggie,

Good to hear from you and I am glad that you enjoyed this episode. We enjoyed Bath. The Roman Baths were extraordinary, although we did not like the impersonal and limited audio guides that you get now.

You must visit again though. It is a beautiful town.

Hi Sarah Sofia,

Thank you. I wrote down your new blog address and will visit you soon.

Middle Ditch said...

Hello ~~~~~~~~~,

Thank you for listening and commenting. There are plenty of old episodes to listen to and new ones on their way. There is a new episode online every three weeks.

:)

darkfoam said...

oh ... those wiggly waves are me ..
foam..
usually when i use that account i try to remember to identify myself ..

David Caddy said...

A Bit Of A Do, Tickety-Boo!
Smiling Faces, Warm Embraces.

Yes, Minton is quite two-faced and moody. Although we seldom hear his smarmy and charming self, it's there and will seep through over time. He's a double-dealer on the side. He will suddenly switch tone from the negative to positive without warning as he sees the main chance. In this instance he is moody and struggling to smile as he is reminded of Bishop Ramsay's success in relation to his own. He needs more than a drink, he needs the bottle!

Middle Ditch said...

I had a suspicion that it was you foam but I was not sure.

And the bottle he took David much to the chagrin of Lady Annabel and poor Libby suffered as a result.

Rick said...

"Jim has experienced vibrating in his pocket..." I'll leave you to rephrase that one!

Anyway, I love these episodes more each time I listen to them because it's sort of like spying on a really, really interesting family. You'd better keep writing these forever.

BTW, I know everything is supposed to be free on the internet, but I'd actually pay to listen to these.

Middle Ditch said...

Rick, you are just too kind. Thank you so much for those inspiring words.

Reader Wil said...

Hi Monique! I don't like snails either but this year there aren't many around. I just added a video about snails by David Attenborough to my post.

Unknown said...

Tank you, honey
Kisses

fizzycat said...

Liked the 'rather small 'comment about the sandwiches!'I'm an MP' also made me laugh.
On the subject of slugs, apparently they hate metal scouring pads ( set around plants). This theory will be tested out very soon and reported soon on the blog if it works.

Leigh Russell said...

I don't know how you keep going like this, Monique. You're so prolific! And it must take a lot of work putting all this together. I'm so impressed. If you ask me, you're bound to be snapped up one day by an intelligent radio producer. In the meantime, I'm off to try and find you on facebook. I've just joined and I'm not sure how it works...

Middle Ditch said...

Hi Reader Wil, I will have a look at that video soon. I seem to remember the clip.

Cibele, you are most welcome.

Fizz, sound advice. I must try this out soon.

Hi Leigh, thanks for the compliment and yes, at times at can be very hard work. The recording sessions are always fun. It is the editing and adding sound effects which can be pretty exhausting.

I found you on FB before you found me. I will invite you shortly to join the Middle Ditch group there.

Thank you all for visiting and commenting.

Dr. Russell Norman Murray said...

The MP does sound like some of the MPs I have heard on British radio and t.v., well done.;)

Pat said...

Thanks for your visit - now I understand who Leigh meant by Monique.
What fun! I'd love to hear my story dramatised. I should live so long;)

BernardL said...

Very sharp exchanges in this episode. I think I have the characters down to the point I could read the dialogue without tags and get most of them right. :)

Rick said...

Just a note to tell you how much I admire your organizing skills, Monique. In another life, you could have been a business baron. Who knows... maybe this will turn into a wildly profitable enterprise!

Monique said...

How right you are Thekingpin. Brian has that kind of voice.

PI thank you for commenting.

Thanks for the compliment BernardL.

Rick, who knows! Anything is possible, but wildly profitable? I doubt that very much. A nice thought though.

Richard said...

Off topic: that cat was actually hunting birds :). She wasnt showing lonelines at all, she was like a black shadow among the breakwater rocks. Quite a sight.

Middle Ditch said...

Hi Richard, the way she looked on that photograph, to me at least, was pure loneliness. Cats and birds eh? Even after a catastrophe like an earthquake that is still the most important thing in a cat's mind. Catching birds.

Unknown said...

Partial script was sent. I feel bad about not having it all set but it's in your email inbox.

Unknown said...

Oh, I have this set to fit into one part.

Middle Ditch said...

Thanks Ricardo, received and soon I will have a look.

fizzycat said...

Lol about little presents! The cats might be retiring but they can still produce a good furball when needed!

Middle Ditch said...

Fizz, I'll bet!

Dr. Russell Norman Murray said...

We are not at Westminster...LOL, a place to misbehave.

Middle Ditch said...

Hi Satire, Middle Ditch is a place to misbehave indeed.

Commander Zaius said...

Awesome! Just returning the visit from site. I will come back.

Middle Ditch said...

Thanks Beach Bum and welcome to Middle Ditch, quirky tales of village life.

janine said...

middle ditch is great, i can listen to all the episodes now im on the internet. hi mum. xxx

Middle Ditch said...

Oh my Janine! What a surprise this is! Thank you for commenting and I shall see if I can find your blog!

David Caddy said...

Hi Janine,

Thanks for commenting. I am so pleased that you can hear all the episodes now!

jed said...

Good to see you here Jan.

Janice Thomson said...

You never seem to run out of new and interesting ideas - these episodes are great - one naturally leads into another.

Middle Ditch said...

David and jed, thanks for this lovely welcome to Janine who plays Libby.

Janice thanks for the compliment. I must say though that you are not running out of ideas either as I always find a lovely surprise when I go to your blog.