John Barrowman talks...

I'm sitting here smiling. I just watched the videos put up on YouTube by a fan called dspothotspots, to whom I owe hugs and chocolate. She was at the reading John Barrowman and his sister Carole did a few days ago - right before San Diego Comic Con - in Los Angeles. Only they didn't do a reading, they did a question and answer sessions because "we like to talk".

He talked about the CERNE Torchwood radio show, and the next series of Torchwood, and his coming album - which sounds terrific. Among other things, it will contain "I Am What I Am". Carole told about how he had her ambushed by a Dalek on the Torchwood set.

The YouTube links:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

And a bit that I loved beyond words. Barrowman said:

We don't see Captain Jack as openly gay. I kind of wish we'd move on from calling ourselves gay, and don't get me wrong, I'm proud to be a gay man... I'm proud to play Captain Jack, the whole omnisexuality of him, and the fact that he has a relationship with Ianto but still fancies other people. The British public really don't care, I mean, they look at it as just another relationship.

More Doctor Who fun...

More fannish fun: I watched The Music of the Spheres, which was shown at the Royal Albert Hall today, with the Doctor Who Proms 2008. I particularly liked the beginning: seeing the Doctor writing music on the floor. That had such endearing charm.

It's all just one of those charming British traditions.

And accompanying it - on the BBC site - an interview with Russell T Davies, and of course I watched this evening, and voted. At last they same more Sound of Music songs, but I particularly enjoyed the section in which they were singing Andrew Lloyc Weber songs. Jayme sang "I Don't Know How to Love Him" from Jesus Christ Superstar, Elicia sang "Memory" from Cats, and Janna sang "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" from Evita.

My love of musical theatre is riding high right now.

Mamma Mia!

I went today to see Mamma Mia! with maaseru. Loved it thoroughly. I thought everyone in it was great, including Colin Firth, whom I seldom like. But I may have to revise that opinion.

It drove me nuts that Amanda Seyfried, who played Sophie, looked so familiar. I couldn't place her until I looked her up on IMDb. She's the girl who played the murdered Lily Kane on Veronica Mars. I guess it was that thing about playing a live person instead of a corpse or ghost that threw me off.

I loved Meryl Streep - I've never seen her in a role like that. Loved the Greek island setting - I fell in love with Greek islands when I saw The Moonspinners at an impressionable age and that was that. Maybe I should buy a hotel and learn to sing.

Good moment today...

I had one really wonderful moment today.

I was watching Mamma Mia! and needed to go to the washroom, but didn't want to miss anything in the movie, so I snuck out of the theatre in mid-song, trying to make it really fast.

Then realized after I'd crossed the length of the auditorium and walked down the hallway that I'd done all that - what, twenty metres? thirty? - without even remembering I had a bad ankle. Walking quickly, no pain, no lurch to my step, and if I was limping I didn't notice.

I haven't taken an unselfconscious step since March. And there I was, walking as if nothing was wrong.

When I remembered, of course, I realized I was still (or again) limping a bit - there was probably a stiffness or pain that reminded me - and the ankle has been extremely swollen for the past few days. That hasn't changed.

But... I hope I'm right in thinking that every few days I am still seeing changes. Improvements. Thursday and Friday were sort of discouraging, through increased ankle pain; today was extremely encouraging. Onward and upward!