char1ie

Getting kicked in the fracas sounds painful.

I don't live in Melbourne Grove. And I wasn't involved in the previous incarnation. I also don't approve of residents associations unless they are set up for a reason. And I think this forum is a much easier way of discussing local issues. Charlie

In what way is discussing staff at Cafe Nero not staying on topic? Charlie

It died a death. As it was principally run by one individual, who managed to get the bus route moved to a different street, once the individual in question relaxed, nobody else took over the drive. Maybe you should take up the reins Marcus? But then a residents association is nothing without a cause. Charlie

Barry Rhode Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > But if I did feel like a cuppa I'd go to a place > where I'm likely to build a rapport with the staff > which want to be there in the long term It's funny you say that because the lad that has been working in Cafe Nero for a while is the most friendly, happy and charming member of staff that I've come across in East Dulwich, better than the moody, morose and indiferent staff in Chandelier and Blue Mountain. Charlie

It is a great pub. It won the best bar in ED award. The food's good, the staff are good, they coo over Max when I bring him in (and he's welcome at 14 months old), the dog's cool, punters are happy and good looking, music not too loud, open late, beer's good, measures are good, glasses are chunky, decor is right without being pretentious, you can always get a seat, it has a good atmosphere at any time of the day. Charlie

It's actually about ?3.50 for a pint in the Bish. Smoked haddock starter followed by venison chile con carne is a winner for me. And the menu does change regularly. A great local boozer with food. Charlie

I love Cafe Nero coffee. It's great. And so are their chocolate muffins. Charlie

The Wire. Legendary. Best thing on TV ever. Season 5 starts early next year I think. I've just watched the first series of The Riches - Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver as travellers that steal cash from their family, go on the run and end up borrowing the identity of a rich family, living in their house, becoming a lawyer, etc etc. Superb! Go on, download it. 13 episodes. Looking forward to Series 2. Also I love Lost. Series 4 starts in January - the most ridiculous TV series ever getting less and less logical and more and more pointless. Still good though. Charlie

Changing the clutch can be an engine out job, so time consuming. I would have a look with a google search to see what other owners' experiences have been. But it doesn't sound like it's too expensive to me. Charlie

The Bourne films were great. I really enjoyed Die Hard 4.0 on a plane the other day because it is so ridiculous, silly and predictable I just found it superb. Charlie

Go and find one in a shop. Watch it for a while, click it's little buttons, turn the sound up, then go home and order it online if you still want it. Or go to Richer Sounds at London Bridge and just buy the one that looks the best. I wouldn't order online without seeing it in the flesh. Charlie

Lady Vengeance wasn't as sharp as the other two but it looked great. It seemed to be trying too hard to labour the point. Still had me riveted. I liked Save the Green Planet - demented and funny and just strange. Thanks BarryMarshall I will check out Spring Summer Autumn Winter ... and Spring - looking for download now. Brotherhood is the completely over the top melodramatic war film. Massive budget and it looked great but was too much on the family drama I thought. Of course if we're talking Asian films generally we should have a new thread but I have to mention my fave film ever. Number 1 best movie of all time: Kung Fu Hustle. Genius! Hilarity. Comedic mayhem. Mad Hong Kong lunacy. Slapstick, digital effects, great visual jokes and loads of references to kung fu films of the past. Shots: http://www.hkcinemagic.com/en/images/docs/large/kung-fu-hustle-drole-de-couple_3b6c2f95ecfab261687c69411d76d4ee.jpg http://www.hkcinemagic.com/en/images/docs/large/kung-fu-hustle-poursuite-bip-bip4_0ac17d274a8c96950e8a66a858c3a7f8.jpg http://www.hkcinemagic.com/en/images/docs/large/kung-fu-hustle-maitres2_ec46adc63d74d77790a516859a7f5397.jpg http://www.hkcinemagic.com/en/images/docs/large/kung-fu-hustle-yuen-woo-ping4_1c7949b4ab8c70450b496361d147a0f1.jpg Don't resize the images Piers - they're fine. Charlie

Is anybody on the list into Korean films? My Sassy Girl, 3 Iron, Old Boy, Sympathy for Mr Vengeance, Bittersweet Life, The Host, I'm a Cyborg But That's OK, The Art of Fighting, Crying Fist, Memories of Murder. All excellent. But a few of them are completely amazing: I'm a Cyborg but That's OK features a woman in an a mental asylum surrounded by an assortment of great characters. She has her grandmother's false teeth, which allow her to talk to machines. Her kleptomaniac friend in a cardboard rabbit mask agrees to steal her conscience so that she can kill the guards and staff with weapons built into her hands. Inventive, crazy, funny and very smart. Sympathy for Mr Vengeance is about a deaf mute with blue hair who kidnaps a girl to pay for his sister's kidney transplant. The kidnapper doesn't hear the girl drown during a very moving trip to the lake and we get to watch the girl's father endure the autopsy, police investigation and his efforts to track down the anti-hero. Incredibly original and very cool. 3 Iron features a young man that breaks into empty houses and stays the night, doing laundry and clearing up. When he breaks into a house where a battered wife is hiding they continue to live this strange lifestyle as a couple. The woman's husband tries to get her back, challenging their love for each other. Also very very original and beautiful. Strangely enough, two of these films feature lead characters that do not say a word. They are all amazing. The Korean film industry is so creative, well funded and bright. Charlie

And I have just downloaded American Gangster and Cocaine Cowboys - boys viewing this week once the wife has gone to bed. Anybody seen them? Charlie

mockney piers Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I figured we've the two music threads, at least > two footie ones, a gaming thread, but so far no > film one. > > Soo, thought I'd kick it off after having seen > This Is England last night. > Gripping, powerful, understated and brilliantly > acted, this is by Shane Meadows who gave us Dead > Man's Shoes which isn't for the faint hearted but > well well worth a watch. > > Anyone seen it, or anything good of late? I didn't like it. It didn't explore the issues enough and didn't really develop. There was a lot of menace and it was faily obvious that the older character newly released from prison was a violent psycho. But so what? Not enough tension or smart story telling. Dead Mans Shoes is just horrible. Violent, miserable, very believable and unpleasant. Going downhill from there film-wise would be Irreversible (http://www.imdb.com/find?s=all&q=irreversable&x=0&y=0) a film so graphically violent and nasty that I had to switch off half way through just before a violent rape. On a lighter note, The Counterfeiters was totally excellent - the lead character, a jewish forger that survives the camps through his involvement in a Nazi dollar/pound forgery operation is superb. A simple film told really well and without the cliches that you'd expect of films of the holocaust. Charlie

Goodbye Green and Blue. If the service had been better the first time I went in I may have been in again. As it is, one bad experience is enough to convince me never to go back there. Celestial is a nice shop, very well stocked with decent gear. And the staff are friendly. And they do not have an attitude problem because you are not familiar with all the bread they stock. Charlie

Can you not post pictures here so we can see it? And prices? Charlie

It's all Greek to me. Charlie

They came over to value my house the other day. 2.5% = ?24,000. For what exactly? Parasites! Scum! I told the guy that they should get rid of their minis. He said he's trying. He also told me that as staff increase their sales they get better, unbranded cars. Boycott the fuckers! Charlie

My mate Cathy had a hard time with her son recently. She way pregnant and her five year old was asking how the baby got into her tummy. "Mummy and daddy made it then it went into mummies tummy" "like a cake?" They had been making a cake that morning. "Yes, like a cake." "So will you have a giant cake poo and the baby will be there?" etc etc. Charlie

I guess Steve isn't making as much as he'd like and is thinking about a new project, expansion or a refurb or refit at the GC. Mid-life crisis? Charlie

I haven't missed the point Mark. Operating a business and the strategy behind that operation are one and the same. As Steve mentioned in an earlier post, how do Weatherspoons sell a pint for ?1.73 when the pub next door sells the same thing for ?3.67? Your example is a bit simple. Two businesses with the same overheads and wholesale costs can easily price differently. "how much you pay for something against how much you sell it" is determined by your strategy. Look at Easyjet vs British Airways. Both fly to Ibiza but I can get the Easyjet seat for ?29 where the BA seat costs ?189. Generally both airlines have similar costs - same plane, same airports, same fuel, same staff numbers. Different strategy. Charlie

I lost my father last year. Did you leave him on the 8.32 from Victoria? He's dead! Not lost. And I am starting to think about sex education. My son is only one but one day he'll want to know about his penis and what to do with it. Has anybody ever just been honest about sex and the penis? I don't think so. All we hear about is winkles, front bottoms, the stork, babies in mummies tummy, etc etc. Can I just tell him about sex? Do the Sacndinavians just come out and say what all your bits are for from an early age? Or the Dutch? The English certainly can't. Charlie

scor46 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > The question was posted to find out what people > think or really know about the ?Great British > pub?? Why are the majority of pubs so expensive > yet Wetherspoons can charge so much less than > everyone else? This is not a pop at any pub or > supermarket chain, it?s a real question. You'd be the best person to tell us about that Steve. If you need pointers I guess for Weatherspoons it is about a strategy of low cost, multi-locations and discount prices. For somewhere like Lewis & Clarke the aim is trendy, central, well-located with great lighting, friendly staff and 'exotic' drinks and cocktails. High prices, high costs, very high start-up cost. Business strategy guides your decisions. Are you a local boozer (CPT), a high street trendsetter (Black Cherry), gastro (Palmerston), student hang-out (Inside 72), etc. Once you have decided what your strategy will be then the decor, service, prices, service, product choices and music must all fit. If your choice of strategy is right and you make the right decisions then you will succeed - like all these boozers are doing. If your pub or bar is a local boozer trying to be a gastro, or a trendsetter that doesn't quite work, then you are screwed. Tell us about your strategy. Charlie