Simon Hester

@hairygit @AmandaPCraig Well said sir! Although I only look at favourite paintings once 😉

@AmandaPCraig I’d no more consider *not* re-reading a favourite book than I’d consider not re-listening to my favourite music.

Yes! but - BUT - rereading allows for a deeper pleasure, noticing small but important details, savouring dialogue , plot pacing, particular words. It’s not just the first headlong rush that matters.

Are Chinese people in Britain chased down the street for what Beijing does to Uighurs? Are Russians here hunted for Ukraine? Are Afghans attacked over how women are treated back home? No. But Jews are singled out, blamed, and targeted for Israel. The hypocrisy isn’t even subtle.

Absolutely. Me too.

Pass it on if you feel the same.

@JamesAHogg2 Ron Goodwin! One of the great film music composers and so underrated.

Let joy be unconfined. The end weekend is almost upon us! I know I’ve posted this a few of times before, but I couldn’t give tinker’s cuss. It’s such a joyous banger of a tune. In fact, I’m going to start playing this every Friday, Just in case you’re not aware, it’s The Miss Marple Theme by the great Ron Goodwin. Good morning.

@SummrWrites Books don’t have to be about anything. Like real life, the narrative merely unfolds, with its loose ends and ambiguities, and you draw what lessons you will.

I’m not saying that your daughters shouldn’t read Wuthering Heights, but I am saying that hopefully before they do, you will have helped them grow an immune system that will be able to recognize it for the garbage that it is.

@SummrWrites It is an excellent book - though dark. A cautionary tale of where hate, envy, cruelty and obsession will lead you. The end gives hope for the survivors of the next generation of this dysfunctional family in finding healthy love and relationships going forward. A must read!

@abbythelibb_ Heathcliff - a man who had a hope of redemption through the love of Cathy. Once it was snatched from him the only reason left to live was to take himself and others to hell. Thankfully the next generation may break the cycle.

I've been holding back for weeks, but I can no longer. WUTHERING HEIGHTS IS NOT A LOVE STORY. ANY ATTEMPT TO TELL IT OR EXPERIENCE IT AS A LOVE STORY IS WILDLY WRONG AND UNHEALTHY. I'M BEGGING YOU ALL TO STOP THIS.

Next Thursday, I’m in London to hear Bruckner’s 8th symphony. I often find Bruckner difficult, but I’ve recently been inching towards an appreciation. Should I listen to some recordings now to familiarise myself better with the symphony? Or should I just let it hit me on the day?

@hairygit @shauntranslates I suspect it’s unadaptable. If a film was ever to get near the bleakness of the book it would be a very unappealing watch. Heathcliff works on the page but to meet him on the screen would be a shock!

@shauntranslates I can't really get too worked up over it. It's just the latest in a long line of adaptations, most of them now forgotten. The novel will remain.

The more I read the more I fear you might all be right about that Wuthering film.

I really don’t get this. As long as no-one is barred from going somewhere, and as long as they don’t face hostility once they’re there, what’s the problem?

The government's alleged neutrality on Assisted Dying means that ministers can evade explaining how it will be delivered. If the Bill passes, won't it require a complete rewrite of NHS constitution and an overturn of medical ethics? Surely the principles of do no harm and improving health - or indeed extending and/or enhancing life - no longer apply? Doesn't all this change if the NHS runs an assisted dying service, with doctors expected to administer lethal substances to bring about death? Ministers need to be clear and not evasive about the big-picture consequences.

Some reasons people might apply for an assisted death, according to Kim Leadbeater and Lord Falconer:

This is Eugenics. Killing the sick, elderly, weak and the poor - because you can. This is not a Britain I recognise. The only real point of our country is to protect and care for our sick, elderly, weak and poor. 💔

@hairygit Two of the greatest pieces of chamber music ever written!

In the Musical Museum, Brentford, waiting for #Maiastra concert featuring string quintets by Mozart (K516) & by Brahms (Op111).

A bit tough, but I avoided tears in today's Assisted Dying Bill debate. I used the example of when my father died - how a lot of people who are given terminal diagnosis, maybe only months to live, worry that they'll be a burden to their family. They might opt for assisted dying/suicide out of guilt. Another example I used was the story of a young suicidally depressed man I worked with, who did a lot to prevent him taking his own life. This Bill would let him do it - and congratulate him for making that choice.

NATIONAL EMERGENCY - SAVE JURY TRIALS Once Lammy / Starmer get away with reducing jury trial by 50% it will be a short and greasy slope to the 95% cut he originally wanted, before the backlash, and before long our sacred, ancient and trusted system of jury trial will be a distant memory. 4119 signatures are just not enough. Tens if not hundreds of thousands of people have viewed and liked and supported X, LinkedIn and other social posts opposing jury trial abolition. But still not enough signatures to force even a response, let alone a debate!!! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE sign this petition and share it In every platform, by text, whatsapp, email and every other way you can. This is an existential battle to save the criminal justice system as we know it - make your voice heard - sign and circulate now! petition.parliament.uk/petitions/7514…

If you sign only one petition this year, please sign this one. Don't let them remove the right to trial by jury. It is the last part of the system we can completely trust. #SaveJuryTrial #NoToLammy petition.parliament.uk/petitions/7514…

Last night on @BBCNewsnight a message for when you’re standing up for the people of Iran and still have some culture war nonsense going on inside your head. #IranianRevolution2026

@richvillodas The day you realise you are incapable of following the Sermon on the Mount is the day you become a Christian.

I propose we move from “you can’t be a true Christian if you vote for ________” to… You can’t be a true Christian if you don’t follow the Sermon on the Mount.