Sunday, July 14, 2013

David Tennant By KATE MURPHY Published: July 13, 2013 (NEW YORK TIMES SUNDAY REVIEW)


David Tennant is a Scottish actor whose work ranges from his critically acclaimed performances as part of the Royal Shakespeare Company to roles in various popular BBC television programs including “Dr. Who” and “Broadchurch,” which premieres in the United States next month.

READING “A Brief History of Britain 1066-1485,” by Nicholas Vincent, because I’m getting ready to be in Shakespeare’s “Richard II.” I learned that he was married to a 6-year-old, which was a revelation, and there’s some question of whether or not he was gay. It can be a good reason for not researching anything and just using the script because you can’t bend the character to the historical accuracy of his life, necessarily. It can be a bit distracting but equally regularly it can enliven something and make something make more sense or give you a new way into something.

What I keep returning to when I have a bit of free reading time is Hunter Davies’s book about the Beatles. The Beatles are a relatively recent passion of mine. So I have been gradually swotting up and becoming all the more fascinated by them as a creative force and as four individuals. I think it’s always interesting to set those two things against each other — try and find where among four ordinary blokes the overlap creates genius.



LISTENING Johnny Marr’s “The Messenger.” He was the guitarist in The Smiths. He’s always been sort of regarded as the king of a certain type of credible indie-pop. On this album, he’s kind of let loose. It feels like he’s allowed himself not to be pretentious.

Also “Desert Island Discs” is a BBC radio show, which invites people who are forerunners in their fields to talk about eight records that they’d take to a desert island. People reveal all sorts of things about themselves that they don’t elsewhere. You get an insight into a variety of high-achieving people, I suppose, and what makes them tick.


2 comments:

B Reading said...

thanks for posting, I'm a big fan of DT.

Karen V. Wasylowski said...

Me too!