A play entitled The Death of Margaret Thatcher has hit the London stage, speculating about the impact of the former prime minister's passing.
Conservative titan Thatcher, 82, prime minister from 1979 to 1990 and Britain's only female prime minister, radically changed the nation during her 11 years in power, transforming the woeful economy into a powerhouse.
Playwright Tom Green's show examines why Thatcher remains a controversial figure in Britain.
PHOTO: AP
Green said he was inspired to write the play after Thatcher was invited to tea by Prime Minister Gordon Brown last September. She is hardly a popular figure in Brown's governing Labour Party.
The playwright contrasted her political rehabilitation with the public promises to celebrate her death made by some left-wing figures.
"I am 37, so definitely one of Thatcher's children," he said.
"Unless you were one of her fans, she was a monster, and yet that seems to have changed. The strength of feeling about her is part of Thatcher's iconic status.
"It will be interesting, when she does die, to see what society makes of it. But this is not an essay or a polemic. I would not even characterize it as anti-Thatcher."
The play features, among other characters, a miner who vows to walk from the north of England to spit on Thatcher's grave, and a newsreader who sees the chance to announce her death as a career break.
The play's producer June Abbot said: "We were worried about the title at first, but this puts Baroness Thatcher's death on a par with events such as the death of John F. Kennedy or Princess Diana. She provokes such emotion.
"It is about how people are affected by her death in different ways. None of them talk about whether they were for her or against her."(AP)
一齣名為「柴契爾夫人之死(暫譯)」的音樂劇在英國倫敦上演了,這齣劇碼推測了英國前首相柴契爾夫人去世後將帶來的影響。
英國保守黨鐵娘子柴契爾夫人,現年八十二歲,一九七九至一九九○年間出任英國首相,也是英國唯一的女性首相,其在位十一年間,徹底地將當時經濟萎靡的英國轉變成經濟強國。
劇作家湯姆.格林的作品檢視了柴契爾夫人在英國備受爭議的原因。
格林說,去年九月英國首相戈登.布朗邀請柴契爾夫人喝下午茶後,引起了他寫這齣劇的動機。柴契爾夫人在布朗帶領的工黨中其實是很不受歡迎的人物。
這位劇作家將柴契爾夫人的政治生涯復甦和左翼份子公開承諾要慶祝她的死亡做對比。
「我今年三十七歲,足以當她的兒子,」他說。
「除了支持者以外,在其他人眼中她是位殘忍的領導者,不過情況似乎已經改變了。對柴契爾夫人的那種情感上的力量,是造就她象徵地位的因素之一。」
「當柴契爾夫人真的過世時,了解社會大眾如何看待它將會很有趣,但是這齣劇既不是論述文也不是一場辯論,我甚至不會將它視為是一部反柴契爾夫人的作品。」
劇中角色包括一名發誓要從英國北方一路走到柴契爾夫人墓前吐口水的礦工,和一位將播報柴契爾夫人過世消息視為事業轉捩點的新聞主播。
製作人茱恩.亞伯特說:「我們一開始很擔心這齣劇的名稱,不過這也表示柴契爾女爵的過世和美國總統約翰.甘迺迪或黛安娜王妃去世的事件一樣,足以激起大眾的情緒。」
「這齣劇是關於柴契爾夫人之死對民眾的各種影響,並沒有討論支持或反對她的立場。」(美聯社/翻譯:楊鴻泰)
A: Also, police seized seven pornographic videos featuring minors that entertainer Mickey Huang purchased in his hard disc. B: That’s just outrageous! A: His ex-girlfriend entertainer Little S and some others are calling for a legal amendment to increase the penalty. B: The buyers and sellers should both be punished heavily. A: But the porn sellers’ Web sites are mostly overseas, so they are hard to catch. A: 此外警方也在黃子佼的硬碟裡,查到7部他買的未成年色情片。 B: 真是令人火大! A: 他的前女友小S等人,還呼籲修法,加重相關的罰則。 B: 購買者和販賣者雙方都該重罰。 A: 不過色情網站大多設在海外要抓也不容易吧。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
A: Entertainer Mickey Huang’s #MeToo scandal has kept snowballing. B: Didn’t Huang just escape prosecution on several sexual misconduct charges due to a lack of evidence? A: He has now been accused of raping a woman identified as "Miss K." B: It’s like one trouble follows another! A: His decent “persona” in the showbiz has totally collapsed. A: 藝人黃子佼的#MeToo事件真是沒完沒了。 B: 他的性騷擾案不是因為證據不足獲得不起訴? A: 但他又被某位「K小姐」指控性侵。 B: 天啊,真是一波未平,一波又起! A: 他在娛樂圈的優質「人設」都崩壞啦。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
Jumping rope has long been considered an excellent form of exercise. It not only burns calories but also improves cardiovascular health and __1__ core muscles. Anyone who has used a traditional jump rope, though, knows that it requires a certain level of skill and coordination. However, with the development of the cordless jump rope, this is __2__ the case. The cordless jump rope is an innovation in the fitness industry that has gained popularity in recent years. As its name suggests, it doesn’t have a cord connecting the two handles. Instead, each handle features a short cord with a
Let’s explore another delicacy primarily known to Tainan locals: floating milkfish in thick soup. Despite its peculiar name, this dish is another Tainan specialty that showcases the popularity of milkfish, which is made into fish paste and served in thick soup. Unlike the version with tutuo fish, which also adds other ingredients to its thick soup, the floating milkfish version primarily features the “floating fish” itself in its thick soup, ensuring that the fish paste remains the star of the dish. 讓我們來探索另一道台南人熟悉的美食:浮水魚羹。這道菜名奇特的美食,再再展現了台南虱目魚料理的多樣。浮水魚羹是用虱目魚漿做成的羹品,雖然和𩵚魠魚羹一樣是羹湯,但不像𩵚魠魚羹會在湯中加入其他食材,而是讓虱目魚漿成為這道料理的主角。 peculiar (adj.) 獨特的;古怪的 The belly of a milkfish is considered the most