http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk Politics, celebrities, interviews, opinions, travel, and more... Tue, 18 May 2010 16:07:47 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2010/01/31/ruth-padel-on-derek-walcott-%e2%80%98dirty-tricks%e2%80%99-and-the-worst-mistake-of-her-life/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2010/01/31/ruth-padel-on-derek-walcott-%e2%80%98dirty-tricks%e2%80%99-and-the-worst-mistake-of-her-life/#comments Sun, 31 Jan 2010 18:46:52 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/?p=281 How totally unboring it must be to be Ruth Padel, and that’s quite apart from the recent hoo-ha that prompted her resignation, last May, from her short-lived stint — what should have been a five-year triumph reduced to a mere nine days — as Professor of Poetry at Oxford. Her interests are so varied and extensive — she is as passionate about the natural world, both exotic (alligators, tigers, now cobras) and commonplace (the domestic habits of the urban fox), as she is about filling the “poetry-shaped hole” she believes we all have. Related posts:

1. Lady Antonia Fraser’s life less ordinary
2. Edge of darkness
3. Kay Saatchi on life after Charles Saatchi

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2010/01/31/ruth-padel-on-derek-walcott-%e2%80%98dirty-tricks%e2%80%99-and-the-worst-mistake-of-her-life/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2009/07/16/the-many-lives-of-rebecca-miller/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2009/07/16/the-many-lives-of-rebecca-miller/#comments Thu, 16 Jul 2009 15:13:29 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/?p=209 Photo: Mark Harrison About five minutes into the interview, Rebecca Miller starts to cry. We had been talking about writing, and I read out a line from the end of one of her short stories about different women’s lives which touched me. Louisa, a painter who has a complicated relationship with her mother, has come home to lick her wounds after an emotional collapse in New York. The family are around the table and her mother is drinking, as usual, which enrages the daughter, but when she looks up, “Her mother was looking at her with such love that Louisa could hardly bear to see it: it was like looking into the sun.” Related posts:

1. Peter Hall – my memories of Harold Pinter and Samuel Beckett
2. Oh, what a roguish and pleasant slave
3. Even Lloyd Webber isn’t sure why Phantom of the Opera is his biggest hit

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2009/07/16/the-many-lives-of-rebecca-miller/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2009/03/25/british-press-awards-2009nominations/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2009/03/25/british-press-awards-2009nominations/#comments Wed, 25 Mar 2009 20:46:57 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/?p=177 Interviewer of the year Cole Moreton, Independent on Sunday Decca Aitkenhead, The Guardian Elizabeth Day, The Observer Ginny Dougary, The Times Lynn Barber, The Observer Robert Chalmers, Independent on Sunday Related posts:

1. The Times is shortlisted for 11 British PressAwards
2. Felix Dennis: ex-addict, poet – and murderer?
3. Paul Foot named journalist of decade

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2009/03/25/british-press-awards-2009nominations/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/11/02/arianna-huffington-the-superblogger/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/11/02/arianna-huffington-the-superblogger/#comments Sun, 02 Nov 2008 11:54:27 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/?p=141 Vince Bucci There’s a perfect Arianna moment during our long interview in the heat of the Los Angeles summer, when I ask her whether she’s seen Swing Vote, a highly topical film that had just opened in America, starring and bankrolled by Kevin Costner. “Yes,” she says. “I am in it…” Pause. “I play myself.” Related posts:

1. Destiny’s daughter
2. I asked her whether she felt immortal. No, she answered
3. Ruth Padel on Derek Walcott, ‘dirty tricks’, and the worst mistake of her life

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/11/02/arianna-huffington-the-superblogger/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/10/25/heston-blumenthal-the-alchemist/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/10/25/heston-blumenthal-the-alchemist/#comments Sat, 25 Oct 2008 22:33:27 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/?p=147

How friends Ferran Adrià and Richard Hamilton inspire each other

One Paston Place

Allium

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/10/25/heston-blumenthal-the-alchemist/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/07/06/lady-antonia-frasers-life-less-ordinary/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/07/06/lady-antonia-frasers-life-less-ordinary/#comments Sun, 06 Jul 2008 20:56:14 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/?p=134 Lady Antonia Fraser adjusts her pearls, gazes out of the french windows opening out to the garden, and tells me to f*** awf. This, five minutes into our interview, comes straight after her waving a two-fingered salute at Private Eye. Related posts:

1. Ruth Padel on Derek Walcott, ‘dirty tricks’, and the worst mistake of her life
2. Kay Saatchi on life after Charles Saatchi
3. Edge of darkness

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/07/06/lady-antonia-frasers-life-less-ordinary/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/07/05/the-gentrification-of-irvine-welsh/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/07/05/the-gentrification-of-irvine-welsh/#comments Sat, 05 Jul 2008 14:25:07 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/?p=136

Ruth Padel on Derek Walcott, ‘dirty tricks’, and the worst mistake of her life

The new romantic – Interview, Nick Cave

Secrets of a sexual innocent

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2008/07/05/the-gentrification-of-irvine-welsh/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/05/12/culture-vulture/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/05/12/culture-vulture/#comments Sat, 12 May 2007 14:17:29 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/05/12/culture-vulture/ Photo: Mark Harrison Australians, in my experience, however deeply transplanted, still crave the cerulean skies and bright light of their birthplace ­ which is why it is unexpected to find Clive James, on the sunniest of English spring mornings, in a curtain-drawn lair of such impenetrable gloom that the atmosphere seems to fizz with electricity from all the wattage. Or, perhaps, that's just the effect of his personality. Related posts:

1. Educating Piers
2. Edge of darkness
3. Hostess with the mostest

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/05/12/culture-vulture/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/04/07/educating-piers/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/04/07/educating-piers/#comments Sat, 07 Apr 2007 12:48:20 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/04/07/educating-piers/ Photo: Mark Harrison The Penis on Legs – aka Piers Morgan – is resiliently handling my barrage of offensive, tabloid questions. It’s just as well that’s he’s so robust since two days after we meet he gets fired again; only this time it’s for charity, Comic Relief’s celebrity The Apprentice, where we see Morgan enjoyably insulted by the likes of Maureen Lipman (responsible for the aforementioned penis jibe), Alastair Campbell, and later, Graham Norton’s: “Piers Morgan – what an easy person to hate” is greeted by whooping cheers from the audience. Related posts:

1. Culture vulture
2. Ginny meets Dolly
3. Being Graham Norton

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/04/07/educating-piers/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/03/06/for-the-sake-of-integrity-keep-the-pr-meisters-at-bay/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/03/06/for-the-sake-of-integrity-keep-the-pr-meisters-at-bay/#comments Tue, 06 Mar 2007 12:22:18 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/03/06/for-the-sake-of-integrity-keep-the-pr-meisters-at-bay/

Educating Piers

David, Kimberly, Boris and Petsy: it’s showtime

Culture vulture

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2007/03/06/for-the-sake-of-integrity-keep-the-pr-meisters-at-bay/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2006/09/17/the-voice-of-experience/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2006/09/17/the-voice-of-experience/#comments Sun, 17 Sep 2006 22:48:24 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2006/09/17/the-voice-of-experience/

Enough, says Amis, in Eagleton feud

The incredible lightness of Salman

Where are the Muslim mothers for peace?

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2006/09/17/the-voice-of-experience/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2005/08/20/the-incredible-lightness-of-salman/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2005/08/20/the-incredible-lightness-of-salman/#comments Sat, 20 Aug 2005 20:13:40 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/?p=15 Ginny Dougary Salman Rushdie has emerged from the dark Satanic years, happier and more buoyant than he has been in decades. Here, he talks to Ginny Dougary about the war on terror, wonderful women – and why he thinks Joanna Trollope is cool. Related posts:

1. Where are the Muslim mothers for peace?
2. The voice of experience
3. I asked her whether she felt immortal. No, she answered

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2005/08/20/the-incredible-lightness-of-salman/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2005/04/13/david-kimberly-boris-and-petsy-its-showtime/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2005/04/13/david-kimberly-boris-and-petsy-its-showtime/#comments Wed, 13 Apr 2005 15:57:03 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2005/04/13/david-kimberly-boris-and-petsy-its-showtime/

David Blunkett: The Musical

Who is David Cameron?

David Hockney on why iPhones are the future for art

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2005/04/13/david-kimberly-boris-and-petsy-its-showtime/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2004/06/26/daddy-cool/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2004/06/26/daddy-cool/#comments Sat, 26 Jun 2004 23:03:44 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2004/06/26/daddy-cool/ Ginny Dougary He may be pushing 80, but writers don't come cooler than Elmore Leonard, with Hollywood players from Tarantino to Malkovich beating a path to his door. Ginny Dougary meets the crime master Related posts:

1. Secrets of a sexual innocent
2. Culture vulture
3. Lady Antonia Fraser’s life less ordinary

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2004/06/26/daddy-cool/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2003/07/05/edge-of-darkness/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2003/07/05/edge-of-darkness/#comments Sat, 05 Jul 2003 10:19:19 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2003/07/05/edge-of-darkness/

I stand in terror on the edge of the ice. What have I got myself into?

Lady Antonia Fraser’s life less ordinary

Ruth Padel on Derek Walcott, ‘dirty tricks’, and the worst mistake of her life

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2003/07/05/edge-of-darkness/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2002/05/27/secrets-of-a-sexual-innocent/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2002/05/27/secrets-of-a-sexual-innocent/#comments Mon, 27 May 2002 20:00:16 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/?p=12 Ginny Dougary Greengage Harris tweed jacket. Matching-coloured eyes which glisten with merriment as though he is enjoying an ongoing private joke. An imposing nose, flared nostrils over unsensual lips which become coated in white at the corners when he has been talking for too long. Pleasant old-timer's voice, punctuated by lilting rises; the mellowness of the delivery slightly at odds with the sharpness of his mind. Long, tapered fingers. Not a nail-biter. Clicks them occasionally when attempting to summon a recalcitrant word. Steady hand as he fills our glasses with water. For someone who has suffered from nervy conditions since boyhood - psoriasis, and a stammer that returns at times of crisis - he is strikingly still and self-contained. Hard to prick the mask of inscrutable affability. A hearty laugh which belongs to a larger, thigh-slapping man. Trousers? Shirt? Shoes? Blank. Related posts:

1. Edge of darkness
2. Daddy cool
3. The gentrification of Irvine Welsh

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2002/05/27/secrets-of-a-sexual-innocent/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2000/02/26/paul-foot-named-journalist-of-decade/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2000/02/26/paul-foot-named-journalist-of-decade/#comments Sat, 26 Feb 2000 14:57:42 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/?p=39 Paul Baldwin The Guardian writers, Paul Foot and Clare Hollingworth, were yesterday honoured for their campaigning journalism in the annual What the Papers Say awards at London's Savoy Hotel. Related posts:

1. British Press Awards 2009:nominations
2. Enough, says Amis, in Eagleton feud
3. The fine art of extracting an interview bombshell

]]> http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2000/02/26/paul-foot-named-journalist-of-decade/feed/ 0 http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/1999/03/27/the-new-romantic-interview-nick-cave/ http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/1999/03/27/the-new-romantic-interview-nick-cave/#comments Sat, 27 Mar 1999 11:29:32 +0000 Administrator http://www.ginnydougary.co.uk/2006/05/30/the-new-romantic-interview-nick-cave/

Mitch Winehouse on the torment of Amy’s self-destruction

How do you pen a song for the Brighton Festival Fringe?

Ricky Gervais in his most ‘postmodern’ interview ever

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