courting ritual in Basildon in January too.

...the admirable Twang posted a review a couple of days ago, but as you ask my opinion...

It was much better than I was expecting - I had only read a couple of reviews: 'great swashbuckling adventure/not sure about the CGI' type reviews.

Spielberg really does know how to film an adventure romp. It's like Indiana Jones, and after a while you don't notice the CGI/motion capture (which IS very impressive!), you just go along with the story and bask in the cinematic sweep of it all. And you don't need to have read the books either (Mrs H hasn't and she enjoyed it). In fact, in a way, you'd have less baggage if you hadn't: because - like The Lord of the Rings - no film version can EVER compare to the books!

For book fans, though, there's lots of wonderful details, passing references to other books - especially in the terrific conventionally animated title sequence. There's a nice homage to Herge himself at the very start of the film proper - he's a street artist who draws a picture/caricature of the CGI Tintin, and it looks exactly as he is in the books - and the artist is exactly how Herge looked in real life. Only fans would know that, of course...

These kind of affectionate fan-focused references are typical of Peter Jackson in particular.

In a nutshell: it's great fun, brilliantly realised. Bar perhaps one out of place adult innuendo in Capt Haddock's dialogue (in the scene where Tintion retrieves a key from a sleeping sailor), a noble and worthy companion to the books, with changes in the spirit of the books (necessary to flesh out the tale for the different medium). But nothing will replace the brilliance of Herge's art.

Which is exactly what the job title says. Anything that requires a bit of physical work, in the cold, by someone who can look after themselves.

A quick list of stuff I did: Refuelling skiplanes; digging out fuel depots; keeping runways clear of snow; loading and unloading planes; co-piloting skiplanes; providing hourly weather reports; shifting stuff from here to there; cooking; driving a skidoo; watching out for killer whales & leopard seals for the divers; setting up GPS transmitters; catching and measuring Antarctic skua chicks.

In my spare time - skiing, walking, climbing mountains, whale-watching, photography, reading, and generally reflecting on how lucky I was to be there.

Once you've done a successful season you go into the Antarctic Employment Pool, which sends a form each year to ask if you want to work there again. I'm concentrating on training as a Physics teacher for the next couple of years, but if I can take the time out after that I'll go back.

Whether it was the guys setting up for the Killer Whales or the divers doing under ice filming ( crikey !) you can't help but admire their efforts. I didn't know whether to laugh or boo during the whale/seal bit. To think some people would see the BBC destroyed to appease some foreign owned tax dodging media empire.

talking about his job as the first controller of BBC2. What a boring career he's had.