Scary Shadows

Welcome to South Manchester on a Friday afternoon on Hallowe’en where the weather is not to bad – a little cloudy but rain free. 

Regular readers will know that I am not a fan of the hype that is Hallowe’en. To me it is too commercialised and American and I don’t want endless kids knocking my door saying “trick or treat”. 

I don’t mind the horror aspect of it though. Last night, for example, I watched a documentary called “Uncanny” which was really creepy and talked about a man who was being haunted by the “shadow man”, a seven foot tall figure who had no features and was described as “blacker than black” with no facial features at all, a kind of powerful-looking menacing and sinister entity that kept appearing to him after his father’s death. You could have dismissed it as imagination had several of his friends and family not seen this thing as well. 

It creeped me out and I had to watch an hour or two of comedy before I went to bed so that I could sleep easier. 

Now that is what Hallowe’en is about to me - being scared and watching scary movies and shows, not kids dressing up and asking for sweets. I guess I am the Hallowe’en equivalent of The Grinch or Ebeneezer Scrooge. I don’t care. America is welcome to this weird tradition. 

So what am I doing tonight to avoid these kids?

I’m going to Manchester city centre to have a beer and then watch, arguably the world’s greatest Abba tribute act, called “Bjorn Again” with Mrs PM and some friends. They come from Australia and have been touring the world since the late 1980’s. 

I am a closet Abba fan so I think it will be very enjoyable, certainly better than constantly answering the door to kids all night. 

Let’s answer some silly questions from Sunday Stealing, shall we? 

1. What was the last thing you laughed at?

I laugh a lot actually but the last thing I remember laughing at was excerpt from a Laurel and Hardy short that I spotted on the internet this morning. The clip was from “Helpmates”. You can watch the whole thing below but the excerpt I laughed at was two minutes from the 8 minute mark:

I love Laurel and Hardy. 

2. Who among your friends/family "gets" your sense of humour?

Mrs PM and my kids get my sense of humour as do quite a few friends. Most people I know love the typical British humour that pervades a lot of our comedy shows. We have a unique sense of humour in my country that some foreigners just don’t really get at all. The only nation that comes close to our humour is Australia because as big as the friendly rivalry between our two nations, they share our sense of humour almost exactly.

 I love comedy and I can appreciate humour of other places, like the US for example, where they have some really good comedy shows. For example, Mrs PM and I are currently enjoying “Parks and Recreation” from the America, an older show that I had only discovered this year. It is funny. 

Here is some British humour for you. 

3. What jewellery are you wearing at this moment?

Unless you count a watch as jewellery, the answer is none. 

4. If you could offer one bit of etiquette that everyone should follow while dining out, what would it be?

I’ll offer several (because I am a rebel).

Do not talk while chewing. 

Chew with your mouth closed.

Do not drink the finger bowl. 

Do not flick peas at other diners. 

Do not lick the plate clean. 

5. What's the first thing a guest would notice when they walked through your front door?

The Gene Simmons Cat picture hanging on the wall: