SYDNEY INSIGHTS #8 - DARLING HARBOUR

DARLING HARBOUR 1900

It may be hard to recognise her, but this is indeed what Darling Harbour used to look like for many years. The only feature you can recognise that is still in existence is the Pyrmont Bridge, which once carried vehicles across it.

It is situated along side the Sydney CBD as it borders Chinatown, Cockle Bay, and Pyrmont which lie to the west of the city.

Prior to its current use much of the land had been the site of the NSW Railways central marshaling yards and freight consolidation centre. But towards the end of the 1970s it was deemed to be inefficient and it was decided that it should be moved, and the land used for other public purposes. 

These recommendations were acted upon and by the mid-to-late 1980s, when the area had become largely derelict, it was redeveloped as a pedestrian and tourist precinct as an initiative of then New South Wales Minister for Public Works, Laurie Brereton. 

Darling Harbour became a precinct for pedestrian accessible recreational facilities and included the Sydney Exhibition Centre, Harbourside Shopping Mall and the Chinese Gardens. Its immediate surroundings were administered independently of the local government area of the City of Sydney, by a New South Wales state government statutory authority, the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority, which still currently maintains the site.

DARLING HARBOUR - HARBOURSIDE

However things are changing for this precinct and major renovations are currently taking place. The Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre site is being replaced by the new International Convention Centre Sydney (ICC Sydney), scheduled for completion by December 2016. The new site will include a 40,000m2 exhibition facility.

The Monorail which links Darling Harbour with the city and runs along the Pyrmont Bridge will soon be torn down as well. Plus there will be a major overhaul of the East Darling Harbour site to be name Barangaroo by 2020 so this place will certainly be alive and kicking by then.

But Darling Harbour still remains Sydney's back veranda and is growing everyday and the major attractions such as the Maritime Museum and the Wildlife Park and Aquarium certainly draw the crowds. It now has the Imax Cinema and several restaurants along the Cockle Bay wharf and the Sydney Entertainment is still at the Chinatown end as well as Paddy's Markets and the Chinese Gardens. 

If you are with good company and are fairly cashed up you can possibly spend the entire day in Darling Harbour, but if you have kids they will get bored as soon as your cash runs out.

Take a look at it this weekend

J G S 

TOPICAL SOAPBOX MONDAY #8

What was in the headlines this week?????

WATERHOUSE vs SINGO

Here is a picture of the current problem in the Australian Racing Industry this week. The one on the left is Gai Waterhouse, described as a genius, even after the bust up, by the man on the right - millionaire media mogul John Singleton. In the middle of them is the major issue between them both, a horse you might say. But no it's the other end of the horse that you can't see, namely Tom Waterhouse.

No need to show you his face as he is in your lounge room every five minutes. Actually no, here's a pic of him you may not recall when he was known as the B grade celebrity Tom ...who? on Dancing with the stars.

Maybe this was the result of a failed audition for Bondi Rescue???

I better be careful, this man sues many.

Whether we will ever know the truth about inside trading or conflicts of interest this is a very business-savvy bloke who owns the largest betting operation in Australia. You don't get that success without a bit of pedigree, and look at the history of his parentage in the book making department. He certainly wears a fine cotton suit.

Gambling ruins lives, so forget the slogans that give the responsible "Bet Sensibly"message after telling you the Sharks are a value bet at $2.05. Great value that is for Tom because they actually lost. Feeding off the addictions of others is a pretty scabby way to earn a fortune but that's apparently what punters want. The only way to see the back of this guy is to stop betting with him.

As for Singo and Gai, life will go on, but the problem is not about Singo and Gai, it's all about Tom Waterhouse and Singo has had enough of him.

SO HAS THE REST OF AUSTRALIA!



Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott reject calls for gay marriage vote before election

So they both don't want a referendum at the election, Julia says that it should be handled in Parliament with a conscience vote and Abbott doesn't want anything to cloud over his proposed crowning glory.

Fred Nile wants the referendum because he is certain it will be a NO vote, bearing in mind there has only been one YES vote in Australian history and that was to give the Aboriginal people the right to vote in the 1970s! See how progressive we really are as a nation! Are we really that behind the times?

Julia Gillard notes that our 15 year old's are 2 years behind the reading levels of their Asian equivalent but we are decades behind as a nation.

A referendum will probably return a NO vote but even if it did deliver a YES vote what will they do about it?

It's not the constitution that needs to change anyway, its just the Marriage Act. They can begin to change this now if they wanted to but Abbott doesn't want to risk losing the votes of those opposed to it and so he refuses to allow the conscience vote 'before the election'. If you are a coalition voter, demand him to change his position or threaten to remove your vote.

They all say elections are about local issues but that's rubbish if you turn your back on one of the biggest and most topical local issues, the one about equality. Mr Abbott asked today this question and I put it to you in this context. "Do you want three more years of this?"


WEIRD HEADLINES - SHOCKING OR NO SURPRISE !!!!

SHOCKING

Rover Draws Penis on Mars
Shocking that it's now drawing boob's on Venus

Eyewitness recounts brawl on Mt Everest
Shocking that it wasn't caused from spilt beer

$1.5million Compensation Payout for a Man Scared of Frogs
Shocked that he was also scared of money, such a vicious cycle :-)

NO SURPRISE

Spice Girl Gerry Halliwell to join Australia's Got Talent
No surprise, I hear it's hard to get work in the UK at the moment

Cookie Monster Tried To Scam Photo Cash
No surprise, I hear it's hard to get work on Sesame Street

Paralysed Man learns how to have Orgasms from Caressing his Thumb
No surprise, I hear it's hard to get work in ... WTF?

That's the weirdness in the news from here and afar

J G S

NRL SUNDAY REVIEW ROUND 7

The Knights were the biggest winners over the weekend only being matched by the high-flying Roosters back on Anzac Day.

The Knights rolled a struggling Titans side 30-6 on home soil this afternoon.

Anzac Day kicked off with a very strong display from the Roosters who have replaced the Bulldogs in the NRL Top 4 from last year, the others being Storm, Rabbitohs, Sea Eagles. The Dragons have had the wood on the Roosters in recent times when their traditional Anzac game was held but it was totally reversed this year with a 34-10 victory. It also ended The field goal streak of Jamie Soward who, incidentally, looks so much better in head gear.

The Storm fought off a very strong Warriors side in Melbourne later that night and had to come from behind to beat the New Zealanders 28-18 and maintain their unbeaten run this year. Are they really that good or is that just perception? When a team is considered brilliant do people question them or accept them? Billy Slater is a brilliant player, does that mean he wouldn't deliberately use his foot in the face of an opponent to fend them off? Cooper Cronk is also a great player, does that mean he never throws a forward pass? There is a murmur that the Melbourne Storm are a protected species, my question is that perhaps no one questions them because they perceive them as simply too good to ever be at fault. Your thoughts?

The round continued Friday with a brilliant display by the Rabbitohs in a big game that saw them down the highly fancied Manly team 20-12. They deserved the win as they out played the Sea Eagles, but it seemed pretty clear that Manly were more interested in damaging the players than playing football.
Greg Inglis was targeted all night and was more than 'roughed up' by Manly. It prompted me to ask, were they trying to get him out of the game with an injury. Now that it is becoming clear that Referees are not prepared to send off or sin bin players for obvious breaches, are we starting to see the re-emergence of the hired goon? We hear today that the NRL are going to look into using the sin bin for repeated offences. Are you telling me that it doesn't already exist? If that's the case then what a pathetic mess the NRL has gotten itself into, and where is the Players Association with occupational health and safety? Surely we are not going to wait and see how many spear tackles Greg Inglis can take before his spine breaks or worse? Richie Fa'aoso should not have remained on the field after doing the same thing on the same person twice, and if there is nothing in the rule book that can allow that to happen then shame on the NRL. If there is a rule that can allow this then shame on the Referees and Daniel Anderson. Then there's Steve Matai who has been suspended 10 times already for high tackles and is up on another charge this week. He somehow gets allowed to keep playing in our competition after being guilty and continuing to administer this illegal type of football. There should not only be suspensions but there needs to be greater consequences and rehabilitation for repeat offenders because if they continue to perform on this scale they should not be allowed in our game. What is it going to take? This is not about justice, this is about safety!

In other games, Cowboys downed the Raiders 30-12, and the Broncos downed the Tigers 20-10 in a game that looks set to be far more costly for the Tigers with season ending injuries for two of their players. Not great considering existing injuries as well.

Lastly, I am extremely pleased to report that the Bulldogs are back in the winners circle again finally after a fairly comprehensive 24-8 victory over the Cronulla Sharks.

It was interesting to hear just how ridiculously inaccurate the Channel 9 commentators were on this game, continually praising the sharks performance and constantly criticising that of the Bulldogs and foreseeing a apocalyptic comeback in the second half constantly.

But what the Channel 9 crew may not have known was that the Bulldogs performance taking place was the most dynamic and energetic effort they have put in all year. They must have read my blog of course as I spelt out everything that needed to happen to improve the side and it was all implemented.
(ha ha)  :-)

Barba stopped throwing his 30 metre passes to Perret, Ennis stopped pleading for penalties in the play-the-ball and hence they were done at lightning speed gaining huge yards. Williams was not kept on the field for 80 minutes and Pritchard was in the starting line up again.

I have been extremely critical of Tony Williams and it was not without reason, we bought a lame duck. But it was very pleasing to finally see him being more proactive out there today and showing some good strength. He is not just a decoy anymore and seems to be starting to do his bit. He just needs to be a little more proactive about keeping onside. Not because he was the only one off-side, but because he gets noticed more than the others for good reasons.

It might have been an ugly effort but the win was created in the first half and forged in the second. The half time scoreline of 12-2 saw a 18/20 completion rate to 12/19 of the Sharks and only 2 errors to the Sharks 11. These errors were often bombed tries for the sharks and so everyone naturally assumed that they were the better team and should be miles in front. But in games you have to remember if the try is not scored it does not count and coming close does not make you the better team. It is the actual scoring that makes you the better team.

The game also brought up my pet hate in football in regards to penalties - Taking a penalty shot for goal or not. I believe one hundred per cent that you should NEVER take the two points unless it's within the last 10-15 minutes of the game, or half, and will serve a significant or purposeful gain. Taking a sure two points instead of going for the try does nothing for a team's strength and status in a game. It's not an advantage, its a consolation. It tells the opposition that you don't think you will score with 6 tackles from that spot, and if its within range of a kick, then that's usually 6 tackles in a very good position. Not only that, it then sends you back down to your half from a kick off with only 33% of the possible score you may have gotten by backing your self to do what the aim of the game is - score a try. Sure, you may not score the try if you go for it, but the possibilities that can stem from that far outweigh that of the kick for goal. It tells the opposition you intend on breaking them. Good football begins and ends upstairs in your mind and so much depends on conquering the spirit of your opposition.

Anyway, the Sharks have a battle this year, we all know that and no one wants to kick a team when they are down. There's a lot of good players on that field and hopefully the club can hold it together over the remainder of the season.

Just the Western derby to go tomorrow between Panthers and the Eels in a game only their fans probably give a stuff about :-)

That's my NRL review for this week. See you at ANZ on Friday night.

J G S

TV TALK #7 - MY FAMILY SEASON 7

Series Seven of My Family brings 10 more episodes of the Harper family.

The long running plot lines created in the beginning of the shows inception begin to reach their conclusions in this season and you can begin to see how the writing is going to be limited once this season concludes.

Instead of new characters being created we start to see the return of previous guestys and most of them are in the same roles as their previous appearances with one or two exceptions.

Grace Riggs returns, Susan's mum, and she has a new husband called Brad and Susan's art dealer friend James returns for one episode.

But the best episode of the Series by far is Episode #78 Susan Of Troy, when the whole family appear on the UK's The Weakest Link with Anne Robinson.

The series begins with Kenzo's father finally being identified when he appears in the first episode of the series. There's a lot of weddings in this season apart from the unseen marriage of Grace and Brad, Susan and Ben renew their vows and Abi and Roger finally tie the knot. As the season draws to a close Susan begins her menopausal phase.

The final episode of the series is the usual Christmas special where nothing goes right for the Harper's.

Here's the list of episodes...

Episode #74 The Ego Has Landed
An unusual request from a couple whom Susan and Ben met on holiday leads to chaos in the Harper household, and Susan finally discovers who Kenzo's father is.

Episode #75 Four Affairs And A Funeral
A death in the dentist's chair is not very good for business, but, as Ben discovers, it isn't very good for your private life either.

Episode #76 Once More With Feeling
Susan wants to renew her wedding vows with Ben, which is no problem for him. Ben's problem is that she also wants him to renew his vows with Susan

Episode #77 Dutch Art and Dutch Courage
Handsome millionaire art collector, James Garrett, re-appears in Susan's life and Ben feels jealous when the two of them share a hotel bedroom.

Episode #78 Susan Of Troy
Michael succeeds in placing the whole family on The Weakest Link, but Anne Robinson is about to raise more difficult questions than expected.

Episode #79 One of the Boys
Roger's mother visits London to meet future daughter-in-law, Abi. Meanwhile an old drinking mate from Ben's youth has changed much more than he had expected.

Episode #80 Abi Ever After
It's the day before Roger and Abi's wedding but, for this accident-prone couple, until the marriage is solemnised, anything can happen and probably will!

Episode #81Breaking Up Ain't Hard To Do
Susan learns two of her old friends are having marital problems, and in an effort to help invites them round for dinner. However, a blazing row soon escalates between the troubled couple, which causes friction in the Harpers' own marriage when they decide to take sides.

Episode #82 Life Begins At Fifty
Susan is accused of shoplifting and as if the forgetfulness, mood swings and night sweats weren't enough of a problem, she also has to put up with Ben's defending her.

Episode #83 Ho Ho No
Susan takes a delighted Ben to the peace of a country hotel for Christmas day. But he gets a nasty shock when she arranges for the rest of the family to turn up.


For a treat, here is the WEAKEST LINK EPISODE...

EPISODE #78 Susan Of Troy


Enjoy more My Family

J G S

GARDEN PALACE BOOK UPDATE #7

Behold the Dome of the Garden Palace!

Well not exactly, it's a Cupid statue.

This fountain stands today on the exact spot the 30 metre wide Dome of the Garden Palace stood over 130 years ago in 1879-1882.

The Garden Palace is the inspiration for my new adaptation of my first novel which I am currently revising between a busy schedule.

I'm about halfway through Chapter Three now in what has been a very slow process.

Chapter Three is now the introduction to the major venue of the building, the Palace Theatre and in the original book our central character was already an usher by night in the theatre whilst learning to be a tour guide by day in the same venue. In this new version, Max is new to the whole building and is learning both roles simultaneously under the one position Ambassador, Garden Palace.

So to mix it up a bit, instead of it being a mere training session in the Palace Theatre, we have thrown in an unexpected preview of an opera that the new recruits have to handle on their first day of training. It causes quite a stir and quite a few laughs hopefully.

The chapter introduces some pivotal characters to the story and also fleshes out some deeper backgrounds of existing ones.

I'm really enjoying this process, but yes it is taking far too long for my liking but in the end I know this story will be bucket loads better than the original.

The book is also growing in size considerably so even on that scale it will be better value alone :-)

Who wants first dibs at optioning the film rights? ha ha

Stay tuned

J G S

GRIPE OF THE WEEK #7 - STUPID SHOES

BEHOLD THE STUPID SHOE!

The stupid shoe is the latest method women are choosing to completely screw up their bodies.

But this style above is quite timid compared to other varieties of super high heels that are being worn all over the world. Take a look at some even crazier styles...

THE 8 INCHER

THE "AS-WORN-BY"
LADY GAGA'S

THE BALLET HEEL
















Seriously?

Women, please tell me, tell everybody, why the hell are you wearing these shoes?

If you ARE a ballet dancer and want to extend the pain into your social life then fair enough.

But as a previous usher, I can tell you, ballet dancers, on the whole don't age well physically.

But even that first shoe, that now looks basic against these monstrosities, is getting commonly worn and mostly by girls who haven't even mastered old fashioned heels.

In fact, i suggest you go back to the old paint tins and string stilts we used to make as kids and work on your balance first.

I have seen many girls stack it in these heels, particularly on stairs. Your brain has no idea how to adjust to your unnatural dimensions. It's like cutting a cats whiskers and expecting it to instantly adapt.

You are all fools if you honestly think this is necessary and you are in for some serious medical bills in the not too distant future. Both for the joint replacements and for the broken bones from all the stacks.

How apt is this lovely pic that's currently doing the round of Facebook

Come on girls, go back to ordinary heels, they will still screw your joints up, but at least you wont fall as much. :-)



Oh and yeah, if you must wear them, best not to go with the mini skirt.

Hello Naomi.

Heed this warning :  you are a danger to yourself girlfriend!

And anyone else you fall on to.

Be excellent to each other.

J G S

HISTORY WEDNESDAY #7 - LEST WE FORGET

Australian History would not be complete without documenting the occasion that is Anzac Day.

Anzac is of course the Australian New Zealand Army Corps and the day is celebrated on April 25 in both sovereign nations.

The day commemorates the first campaign that led to major casualties to both countries in World War I, 25th April, 1915.

The ANZAC force landed at Gallipoli on 25 April, meeting fierce resistance. What had been planned as a bold strike to knock the Ottomans out of the war quickly became a stalemate, and the campaign dragged on for eight months. 

At the end of 1915, the Allied forces were evacuated after both sides had suffered heavy casualties and endured great hardships. The Allied casualties included 21,255 from the United Kingdom, an estimated 10,000 dead soldiers from France, 8,709 from Australia, 2,721 from New Zealand, and 1,358 from British India. 

News of the landing at Gallipoli made a profound impact on Australians and New Zealanders at home and 25 April quickly became the day on which they remembered the sacrifice of those who had died in war.

The actions of the Australian and New Zealand troops during the campaign bequeathed a powerful legacy. 

The creation of what became known as an "Anzac legend" became an important part of the national identity in both countries. 

This has shaped the way their citizens have viewed both their past and their understanding of the present

Let's not lose sight of why we will put tools down tomorrow and stop work.

Let's remember how significant we are in the world and what sacrifices we have made to grow as a proud and peaceful nation.

Lest We Forget.

J G S

SYDNEY INSIGHTS TUESDAY #7 - TARONGA ZOO

One of my most favourite places in Sydney is Taronga Park Zoo and I have until recently, made an annual passage across the harbour and strolled down the hill viewing all the exhibits.

The only way you should do Taronga Zoo if you are South Side is to catch the ferry across from Circular Quay to Mosman and then ride the Safari Cable cars up to the top then weave your way down.

But Taronga Zoo was not always harbour side and Sydney's world famous zoo began life out at Moore Park in an area called Billy Goat Swamp that now houses Sydney Boys and Sydney Girls High School. This very first zoo opened way back in 1884. But this zoo outgrew its land mass and so the animals all moved, literally, across the harbour and Taronga Zoo as we know it today opened on 7th October 1916.

The zoo only became the education and conservation focused zoo we know today after a critical review in 1967. Before that we had monkey circuses and elephant rides, but these were replaced with Friendship farms and a Seal Theatre.

In 2000 a new elephant enclosure was built and 5 Asian elephants were purchased amid great controversy and resulted in the animals being quarantined for some time. They eventually made it to the zoo and the first elephant to be born at Taronga occurred on the 4th July 2009 called Luk Chai.

Since then a new attraction has been constructed and opened called the Great southern Ocean in 2008 housing marine animals from that part of the world.

Today there are around 340 species at Taronga Zoo and over 2,600 animals in attractions such as the Nocturnal House, African Safari and many other habitats.

Go for the animals and enjoy their friendliness and share their lovely view of Sydney

J G S

TOPICAL SOAPBOX MONDAY #7

Bomb suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev 'brainwashed' his young, All-American bride, Katherine Russell

Look out America! They're coming to brainwash your children! Get the Reds out from under the bed because the Muslims are converting your daughters and breeding with them so they can take over the United States and rename it the Islamic States!

Don't let this happen to your 'All American Girls' (whatever that is, look it up on Wikipedia, you will probably find it under Racism.) Katherine Russell was a good young American Girl who studied hard and had a future but now look at her. Her All American looks covered up in Islamic robes and now she is the widow of a terrorist with a 3 year old suicide-bomber-to-be!

Danger! Danger!

This could happen to your daughters if you don't stop being nice to Muslims and start to vilify them and remove them from your country!

More Bullshit propaganda, first Kim Jong Un and now these alleged bombers.

Seriously folks are you really buying this rubbish sensationalism? What the hell are the media doing? The fear they are inciting in the American public is far greater than any terrorist organisation has ever done. Americans, last time I looked, were made up of many kinds of people including Muslims, and they do not deserve this obvious quest for fear and hatred directed at them because of their faith.

Grow up USA!


Victims To Go To The Police : Churches

"TWO of Australia's largest churches say it's up to the people who were sexually abused as children to go to the police."

Is it any wonder so many people were victimised by Catholic Priests when this was the attitude of the churches? 

I am not a religious person but I was brought up to believe that the church was there to look after the parishioners, a sort of community based on collective belief and faith.

But every story you read about the past just illustrates that the church was there to look after themselves and not the parishioners, in particular the young ones.

So much is thrown at Politicians for breaking promises, but these bastards broke the trust and the hearts of people who were innocent and believed in them.

My question is why do people act like it's over? Where there's repressed men, there should not be children.


WEIRD AND THE WONDERFUL STORIES

SHOCKING

UNDERWEAR THAT ZAPS WOULD-BE RAPISTS
No-brainer, this is shocking.

1950 UFO MEMO TO FBI DETAILS CLAIM OF ALIEN BODIES
I'm shocked Americans would even slightly believe in UFO's

BACON FLAVOURED CONDOMS CREATED
I'm shocked it took so long, how do you like your eggs?

NO SURPRISE


TOPLESS HAIRDRESSERS SET UP SHOP IN BRISBANE
No surprise the clients are miners and truck drivers

BERLUSCONI SUSPENDED UNTIL MONDAY
Isn't this what got him into trouble in the first place?

COPS BARK LIKE DOGS TO CATCH SUSPECTS
No surprise, they've been oinking like pigs for years 

:-)

J G S

BLOG REPORT #1

J G S :-)

Hello, that's me in a random selfie on a Cityrail train.

In lieu of a regular round of NRL, this Sunday's blog is a summary and review of the new format I created for my Blog.

The new format for my Blog has now been in existence for 6 weeks and I have really enjoyed keeping up with it and covering items that are both important and of interest to me.

What is interesting is the popularity of particular blogs and where the viewers are coming from. No doubt that I have friends around the globe and now viewers from countries that baffle me as to how they found my blog.

I post my blog notices on Twitter and Facebook and recently through Google+ and that's it.

Anyhow I thought I would share my stats with you today and invite you to cheer on your countries rank in the blogs viewership.

Naturally, I am from Sydney and so when the blog began there was a huge majority of viewers from Australia. When I launched this new format of the blog back on March 9, Australians made up 81.4% of my audience. Of the remaining 18.6%, the US audience made up 12.9%. The other 5.7% included viewers from UK, Ireland, South Korea, Germany, Malaysia, Qatar, Sweden and Canada.

The first week of the new format saw the following results

18.4% Monday ----- Topical Soapbox
16.7% Wednesday - History
15.8% Thursday ---- Gripe of the Week
14.0% Tuesday ----- Sydney Insights
12.3% Saturday ----- TV Talk
11.4% Sunday ------- NRL Round Review
11.4% Friday -------- Garden Palace Book update

Over the weeks there was several changes and some particular blogs received big view numbers.

The top 10 individual blogs were.

1. Marriage Equality - Gripe #6
2. Australian Entertainer Arrested - Topical Soapbox #4
3. Central Station - Sydney Insights #5
4. Gowings Department Store - History #6
5. The Con - Sydney Insights #4
6. Hyde Park - Sydney Insights #3
7. Queen For Gay Rights - Topical Soapbox #1
8. Roosters - NRL Review #6
9. Bad Manners - Gripe #4
10.Julia Gillard - Topical soapbox #3 / Sharks - NRL Review #3

Overall the viewership of my blog progressed weekly as follows

Week One - UP 6.1%
Week Two - UP 9.5%
Week Three - UP 9.3%
Week Four - UP 11.2%
Week Five - UP 8.4%
Week Six - UP 10.2%

After 6 weeks the pages viewership is as follows and its comparison to Week One

17.6% Monday Topical soapbox (Down 0.8%)
16.2% Tuesday Sydney Insights (Up 2.2%)
16.1% Thursday Gripe of the Week (Up 0.3%)
14.4% Wednesday History (Down 2.3%)
14.2% Sunday NRL Review (Up 2.8%)
10.3% Friday Garden Palace Book Update (Down 1.1%)
  9.8% Saturday TV Talk (Down 2.5%)

This could be due to the day of the week or the subject matter. Not sure really.

Australian viewers were listed as 81.4% before we started this format.
The changes week to week were as follows:

Week One --- 79.8% (Down 0.6%)
Week Two --- 78.7% (Down 1.1%)
Week Three - 77.9% (Down 0.8%)
Week Four --- 77.2% (Down 0.7%)
Week Five --- 75.6% (Down 1.6%)
Week Six ----- 73.0% (Down 2.6%)

TOTAL - Down 8.4% 

This is a great result as my blogs international audience is growing very fast in recent weeks!
The increase has gone from 18.6% to 27%!
The US have always held the second largest slice of the viewership initially with 12.9%
The changes week to week for the US were as follows:

Week One --- 13.0% (Up 0.1%)

Week Two ---14.0% (Up 1.0%) 

Week Three - 13.7% (Down 0.3%) 

Week Four --- 13.7% (0.0%)

Week Five --- 14.1% (Up 0.4%) 

Week Six ----- 14.7% (Up 0.6%)

TOTAL - Up 1.8%

This is a solid result but in a different light the increase is less than a quarter of the overall increase for the international viewership.

As a result we saw big increases in other countries audience.

The Top 10 countries overall in viewership and their increases are below.

73.0% Australia ----- Down 8.4%

14.7% USA ------------ Up      1.8%

 5.3%  Germany ----  Up      4.5%

 2.5%  Russia --------- Up      2.5%

 1.5%  UK -------------- Down 0.4%

 1.1%   South Korea -- Up      0.1%

 0.5%   Ireland ---------- Down  0.5%

 0.5%   Romania ------- Up      0.5%

 0.3%   Malaysia -------- Down 0.1%

 0.3%   France ---------- Up      0.3%

Other countries that have been in the top 10 during the previous 6 weeks were:

Indonesia - Canada - Sweden - Qatar 

Other countries that have appeared in weekly top ten periodically were:

South Africa - Denmark - Turkey - Bulgaria - Pakistan - Italy - Lebanon - New Zealand - Austria

In terms of number of views, in the 6 weeks this new format has been in existence there has been a total of 1,923 views which is an average of 320 per week!

So thank you very much to all of you who have viewed and shared my blog over this time.

There will be no change to the format for the next six weeks as all topics will be flourishing with content.

Monday Topical Soapbox will continue to serve as a review of current headlines mixed with my own warped views laced with cynicism, wit and blatant subjective opinion. Previous stories that have ticked me off included Schapelle Corby, the Conclave, Politics, Media Moguls, Murderers, Asylum Seekers, Voters, Pedophiles, Enablers, Wobble boarders, Propagandists, Reality TV Talent Shows, and War Criminals.

Tuesday's Sydney Insights will continue to unearth landmarks in this great town that whilst are quite well known have an interesting history and purpose you may not have realised. Previous landmarks have included Mortuary Station, Fort Denison, Hyde Park, The Con, Central Station, and The Rocks.

Wednesday History has been Sydney focused except on one occasion, and it will continue to document historical events in Sydney's relatively short history.  These have included the history of Cityrail, Sydney Trams, Royal Easter Show, WWII Attack on Sydney Harbour,  Gowing's Department Store. We deviated with the history of the Vatican City during the recent Papal appointment.

Thursday's Gripe of the Week will continue to focus on the main source of my angst for the week. These are always topical and prevalent to my experiences and emotions that week. Previous gripes included Cyclists who continue to piss me off, Pedestrians - ditto, Commuters - yup, Bad Manners - hello, Tony Williams - please sack him, and Marriage Equality - get with it people.

Fridays Book Update has been keeping my viewers and fans of my first book up to date with the current revisions necessary to get my book back on the eBook stands. It is a greater task than first imagined and is currently behind schedule. Due to trademark use warnings and a limited premise when taking that into account, the story had to be moved to a new location which meant extensive re-writes. This has provided an upside as the story in general is also getting a once-over and is becoming an even greater book. It is only about 25% revised so a long way still to go.

Saturday's TV Talk is currently reviewing the entire series of My Family - my favourite TV show. There were 11 seasons and we just completed Season Six. The next 6 weeks will see this continue and the final week will be a review of the whole series including my top 10 episodes of all time. There were just over 100 episodes overall. TV Talk will be replaced with a new page for Saturdays once this is complete.

Sunday NRL Review will continue to serve as an NRL wrap-up of the weekly round. Recently the focus has been quite negatively focused on my team the Canterbury Bulldogs, but I do hope that this will turn around in the next 6 weeks. The page only covers the regular NRL season and will not review any representative games. The features of each weekly blog are images of real-life versions of the team mascots for the team which has the biggest win of the week. The five teams so far have been EELS, SEA EAGLES, SHARKS, STORM, and ROOSTERS.

 

I hope you enjoyed this Summary and Review of my Blog and I thank you for your viewership so far.

Feel free to comment on anything posted here and input on the content as much as you like.

Hope to keep you watching and reading over the next 6 weeks.

Thank You

J G S

TV TALK #6 - MY FAMILY SEASON SIX

Season Six of My Family kicks off without Nick but with the Harper's extended family keeping the laughs afloat.

The most notable change in this series is the amount of episodes which has reduced to a total of 8 including the Christmas special.

The best part of the reduced amount of episodes is that the quality of writing is a very high standard and the story lines are as zany and enjoyable as ever.

In the first episode we are introduced to the blossoming relationship between Roger and Abi and the series follows their clumsy and hapless courtship. When Roger speaks his native Welsh tongue to Abi it drives her wild. Even when the words are less than romantic.

ROGER "I have a second tongue"
ABI      "You've been keeping that secret"



Ben also has a very eventful first episode when he joins a secret fraternity known as the Brotherhood of the Cockerel.

Alfie helps him with his rooster moves for the initiation ceremony.

Ben is very excited until he eventually discovers that it's a secret gay men's group.

BEN "Two words, Susan - Gay, Disco!"
SUSAN "Do you want to expand on that?"
BEN "No!"

Other notable quotes from this series are:

RICHARD "I understand your eldest son is a Merchant Banker"
BEN           "Is he ever."

GRACE "It's not too early to have a drink is it?"
SUSAN "Well it wasn't ten minutes ago."

JANEY "I felt something sick in my stomach"
SUSAN "It's called guilt Janey, it's a human emotion"

ABI "The TV isn't working upstairs"
SUSAN "That's because the power is out"
ABI "Can I watch it down here then?"

The full list of episodes are as follows:

#66 Bliss For Idiots
Whilst Ben tries to join the Brotherhood of the Cockerel, Susan has an American author come to their home called Dr Buck who drives Ben up the wall.

#67 The Spokes Person
Hillary Jessop invites herself to dinner and competes with Susan to out do her. Ben starts a war with Cyclists only to discover Hillary's husband Richard is the cyclist that sparked the war in the first place.

#68 Dentally Unstable
When Ben goes away his replacement locum woos all the women in the Harper household, but he is married. Michael hatches a money making scam that involves them all pretending to be members of a family called the "Graylings"

#69 Living the Dream
After scoffing at Roger and Abi for falling for a pyramid scheme called Pyrimus, Ben and Susan find themselves even greater devotees and deeper in than the others.

#70 An Embarrassment of Susan's
Ben buys the house next door as a project for him and Susan to do up only to find squatters move in and lock him out of it. Meanwhile Susan finds the perfect girlfriend for Michael called Suzanne who he is very much into until Ben draws it to his attention that Suzanne is exactly like his mother Susan.

#71 And Other Animals
A stray dog chooses Ben as his best friend and Alfie interprets the dog's thoughts. Ben also has to bargain with a thrift shop attendant for Janey's teddy bear he accidentally threw out.

#72 The Art of Being Susan
Ben is away again and in her new job at the Art Gallery Susan has to wine and dine an art dealer. Meanwhile her mother woos the art dealer's father and embarrasses them all. In the final minutes of the episode Roger proposes to Abi who faints.

#73 The Heart of Christmas (double episode)
Ben pretends to be ill for Christmas but his tests actually reveal that he needs an operation. He loves his own room at e hospital but when it's discovered his health insurance has lapsed he is sent to an NHS ward. Meanwhile Janey has problems getting Kenzo's Christmas present and Alfie and Michael brew a concoction that is meant to make them irresistible to women.

Here is a production shot of the entire cast and production team of series 6

Here is a sample of Series 6

Episode 68 - Dentally Unstable

Enjoy My Family Series 6

J G S

GARDEN PALACE BOOK UPDATE #6

Welcome to the Palace Theatre at the new Garden Palace
                    Opening Night 17th September 1979

                                            Hosted by star of the Australian Stage 

                                             Reg Livermore

Featuring more international stars than there are in heaven!

                         Bette Midler - Helen Reddy - Olivia Newton John

  

And our own Aussie home grown legends!

Peter Allen - Dame Joan Sutherland - Dame Edna Everage

And a cavalcade of the finest local talent including

                   Debbie Byrne - Johnny Farnham - Marcia Hines

                And many more amazing Australian artists

As we welcome the return of the completely re-built masterpiece 

SYDNEY'S

GARDEN PALACE

(Now wouldn't that have been some concert!)

Stay tuned folks, as that is, literally, only the beginning!

J G S