Notebook Letters 11

Good gangsters made in Italy

Richard- I largely agree with your point when confined to Hollywood gangster films, but Italy made some excellent gangster and police films in the 1970s. They were often directed by and starring the same people who made horror films and many were superb, eg Go gorilla Go! and the violent professionals. Richard, Southend

The best gangster film? Try king of New York starring Christopher Walken. Matt, St. Albans

Vortex; Teletext page 817; 21st of May, 2009; 6/6.

* The first silicone breast implant was carried out on a dog called Esmerelda.

* Regular chocolate eating could keep you thin.

* ernest hemingway cried after he was forced to shoot his injured cat.

10 things we didn't know last week; Ceefax page 129; 30th of March, 2012; 1/3.

* Male dolphins are bis*xual.

* Private vehicle fuel tanks in the UK can hold three or four times more petrol than the nation's petrol stations.

* Mario Balotelli's mum lives on the Shameless council estate.

* Don Draper smokes herbal cigarettes.

10 things we didn't know last week; Ceefax page 129; 30th of March, 2012; 2/3.

* albert einstein's brain was not particularly large.

* Nearly six million cats and dogs in Britain are obese.

* Visiting Olympic athletes, coaches and officials will be banned from marrying while they are in Britain.

10 things we didn't know last week; Ceefax page 129; 30th of March, 2012; 3/3.

Even if Tinchy Stryder isn't a chav, the tools from N-Dubz who are also on Number One definitely are, especially the prize idiot in the stupid hat. It's music for crowds in Ess*x shopping centres, keeping them happy while they purchase their weekly supply of lard and that week's copy of OK. Disco Stu

Maximo Park only debut at No. 6, despite being No. 1 in the midweek chart? That's very disappointing. I think it's great, especially Calm. nimrod

The Void; Teletext page 825; 22nd of May, 2009; 1/7.

Everyone else's parents seem to have better taste in music than mine. joy division? Fleetwood Mac? All I inherited off mine was an inbuilt and shameful love of Bananarama and The Bangles that I can't shake myself out of.

As for great album covers, two white police officers chasing two black teens down Bedford Stuyvesant on the sleeve of The Roots' Things Fall Apart: no pic has suited a title better. Dboogie

The Void; Teletext page 825; 22nd of May, 2009; 2/7.

Following the recent topic of who lives in the remotest region, where's the best place to grow up? I'm from Huddersfield. Manchester, Sheffield, leeds and bradford were less than an hour away, and the town itself had some decent venues. In my late teens and early 20s it was gig heaven. Seb Barker

Justin Furstinfield, the singer from Blue October, looks just like Divine. And the sarah palin double in their video looks so good. Shaun Letts

The Void; Teletext page 825; 22nd of May, 2009; 3/7.

I only caught the last two songs from the last Later Live this week, but The Pretenders were cool and classy. Chrissie Hynde was in great voice, with the band sinuous. Then came the total letdown of Kasabian. Bad move putting them on after, as their hollowness was cruelly exposed. Simon Ellis

I've only just discovered Sonic Youth thanks to their new album The Eternal. Can Voiders point me as to which one I should get next, please? Angel Eyes

The Void; Teletext page 825; 22nd of May, 2009; 4/7.

Wouldn't it be nice to turn on a TV or read a newspaper without seeing lily allen's face? She's always there on the radio too. And I agree with Indiegirl that Kasabian are utterly rotten. Toastersgalore

Peter Green-era Fleetwood Mac is truly inspirational, proper earthy blues. Rambling Pony is tribal and soulful. I agree with the Voider praising Big Country, Chance, Save Me and Eden are always on my compilations. D McMillan

The Void; Teletext page 825; 22nd of May, 2009; 5/7.

On Channel 4's mildly amusing Big Bang Theory, Sheldon- the really geeky one with mild OCD said he didn't know who Radiohead are. Poor research by the writers there. These are the guys in real life who know exactly who Radiohead are. DJ Gordy

The Horrors are really different from Interpol. As for Gavin's claim they're ripping off joy division, I'd instead draw comparisons with Bunnymen, J&MC, My Bl*ody Valentine and Neu. Zee

The Void; Teletext page 825; 22nd of May, 2009; 6/7.

Quotations of the week

By John Earls

"I'm definitely warming to douglas hogg." Serge Pizzorno admires the grandness of the tory mp who had his moat cleaned on expenses.

"I was like Bugs Bunny walking in the room." eminem admits some fellow rehab patients were freaked out when he joined them for treatment.

"We want to give Springsteen a run for his money." Billie Joe Armstrong says Green Day's gigs may last four hours.

1/6.

The week ahead in radio

Colin Murray has his last Radio 1 show on Thursday (1opm) before he's replaced by Nick Grimshaw.

Kasabian, Manic Street Preachers and The Veronicas are on Dermot O'Leary (R2, Sat, 3pm).

Tori Amos is on Radcliffe & Maconie (R2, Mon- Thu, 8pm). Rita marley, Jimmy Cliff and Brian Eno discuss Island Records in a two-part documentary (Sat, 10pm).

2/6.

The week ahead in TV

Grace Jones is on jonathan ross (BBC1, Fri, 10.35pm).

General Fiasco are on The JD Set (C4, Sat, 12.30am). Friendly Fires are on Sound (BBC2, Sat, 1.35pm).

The Saturdays are on the first of new behind-the-scenes-show Being (C4, 1pm). Freshly Squeezed (C4, Mon- Fri, 7am) has The Veronicas, Tommy Sparks, Little Boots, September, Pet Shop Boys. Phoenix and Pixie Lott.

3/6.

The week ahead in gigs

The Twilight Sad, Cursive and The Aliens are among those playing Stag And Dagger Festival from Friday.

Manic Street Preachers tour from Tuesday, the same day as Jason Lytle. Patrick Wolf starts touring on Friday, as does Beyoncé.

Gossip tour from Wednesday, with Eagles of Death Metal playing from Sunday. Tours already going include Future of The Left, Morrissey and Maximo Park.

4/6.

Champs of the week

AC/DC Proving that rock & roll is still noise pollution, their gig in Munich could be heard 12 miles away, according to residents. You wouldn't get that from a Ray LaMontagne gig.

Pat Walden In 2005, Babyshambles had their instruments confiscated at an impromptu house gig by police after moans by neighbours. The instruments are now being donated to a youth group. Rather than complain, guitarist Pat is giving them a talk.

5/6.

Chumps of the week

Ash Having said they'd never release another album, they're releasing 26 singles- one a fortnight for a year. Good work so far. But, at the end of the series, the best of sham will be compiled into an album. Talk us through the logic of that again?

Liam Gallagher Starting a fight in an empty room, Liam interpreted a gushing comment by Tom Clarke as thinking he meant Oasis are past it. He really doesn't take compliments very well.

6/6.

Teletext page 824; 22nd of May, 2009.

Ladyhawke's great show in Birmingham this week was somewhat overshadowed by Tommy Sparks' awful support. Here is a man who makes Simon Le Bon look chrismatic.

His songs made him sound like he's fronting a Bucks Fizz tribute band. He joked that he was going to cover Nirvana- not funny- before finishing by murdering Stardust's Music Sounds Better With You. Somebody stop him, please. Secondalibi

The Void; Teletext page 825; 23rd of May, 2009; 1/7.

Many Voiders may scoff, but the Manics' controversial new album does disturb me a little bit- it does resemble a child's bl*ody and confused face, too much so for comfort. I've no qualms about it being shown uncensored in stores. I can look away. Fighting Torque

I know it's been out forever, but Live At Abbey Road by Elbow is a perfect show by a genius band. Walter Sobchak

The Void; Teletext page 825; 23rd of May, 2009; 2/7.

I'm probably the most squeamish person alive, but the Manics' sleeve looks like someone's been careless with jam and toast. Not scary. Attilathehood

Ash, the band who professed they were never going to release 26 singles before compiling the best of them into an album. Call me cynical, but this smacks of fleecing their fans in the highest order. Save your money- Ash were finished a decade ago. Matt Connor

The Void; Teletext page 825; 23rd of May, 2007; 3/7.

Dboogie may think he had it bad with his parents' love of Lionel Richie, but mine was into Tina turner: not the great '60s stuff, but her awful '80s songs. My dad was only into '30s crooner Al Bowlly. Maybe this explains my love of Lady GaGa and Antony And The Johnsons. Absurd Trousers

How to have a trip to Japan ruined: go two weeks without hearing any Lady GaGa or lily allen, only to get bombarded on the last day. Tyler Durden

The Void; Teletext page 825; 23rd of May, 2009; 4/7.

It's a shame the hearing-impaired Nahid can only judge musicians on their visuals. Most of us don't have to worry about the dancing skills of artistes, nor their make-up and size. Sound is all that matters. mondo

It's no surprise that Michael Jackson has put back the dates of his London gigs. It'll be the first of many disappointments for his deluded fans, culminating in his performances. If he doesn't cancel them. John Ox

The Void; Teletext page 825; 23rd of May, 2009; 5/7.

Top 10 worst album covers

1) Saxon Saxon
2) Lock Up The Wolves Dio
3) Hot Space Queen
4) dehumaniser Black Sabbath
5) Invisible Touch Genesis
6) Look What The Cat Dragged In Poison
7) Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow Rainbow
Eight) By The Way Red Hot Chili Peppers
9) Supertramp Supertramp
10) Rush Rush

Vince McRaincoat

The Void; Teletext page 825; 23rd of May, 2009; 6/7.

Are In Rainbows, Kid A and even Thom Yorke's solo album The Eraser radically different? No. Radiohead haven't evolved this decade. Suede and Pulp were superior, with more variety. Gerard Tremors

Mudhoney are playing a tiny leeds venue on my birthday in October, I'm seeing The Northwestern in a couple of weeks and The Wildhearts in September. This is really shaping up to be a vintage year for gigs. The Doc

The Void; Teletext page 825; 25th of May, 2009; 2/7.

If Angel Eyes wants to investigate Sonic Youth, I recommend Dirty. It's both ear candy and a sonic assault on your senses. Johnny Kickdowndoors

The teenage son of a friend drums in a band who do covers of led zep, U2 and, er, Jacko. He told me they were looking for a bassist, and I jokingly told him they should consider copying The White Stripes and not use bass. He said he'd never heard of The White Stripes! Simon Franklin

The Void; Teletext page 825; 25th of May, 2009; 1/7.

I'm tempted to see Todd Rundgren perform A Wizard A True Star, as it's one of the greatest albums ever and he deserves our eternal admiration. But he also produced Bat Out of h*ll, the worst album ever made apart from any by Queen, so Rundgren also deserves our eternal admiration. DJ Gordy

Anyone wishing to discover Peter Green era Fleetwood Mac should get the 6CD box-set Blue Horizon Sessions, a great snapshot of the time. Frankie Bamford

The Void; Teletext page 825; 25th of May, 2009; 3/7.

Do only geeks listen to Radiohead? No. The type of music you listen to doesn't reflect your personality. You could have the coolest collection going and still be a complete twonk. The Edgar Broughton Fan Club

Pit is bemused by supermarkets banning the Manics album there, where blood-spattered meat is displayed. I don't see the paradox, but then I do find beaten children more disturbing than a joint of beef. Jonno

The Void; Teletext page 825; 25th of May, 2009; 4/7.

The Who are better live than on record, as Peter says, but to use Who's Last as an example is a schoolboy error. It doesn't even have keith moon on it. Live At leeds is the best live album of all time, with the greatest drumming. It's awe-inspiring. Eddie Smith

Daydream Nation is generally considered to be Sonic Youth's best album, but Evol, Sister, Dirty and Bad Moon Rising are also essential. I also love the Ciccone Youth side-project. Tom violence

The Void; Teletext page 825; 25th of May, 2009; 5/7.

I love Paolo Nutini, but I'm worried that he appears to be morphing into Spider from Corrie, judging by his Candy video. C Brown

Live, Kasabian play as if their lives depends on it and their tunes burst with energy. They're better than mediocre fashion bands any day. Sharpe

Bands better live than on record? Rammstein, especially on the Volkerball DVD. Matthew O'Callaghan

The Void; Teletext page 825; 25th of May, 2009; 6/7.

Viewers unveil favourite flicks

My fave films of all time in order are beetlejuice, Ed Wood, Horse Feathers (Marx Bros), Singing In The Rain and Modern Times (Chaplin). C, Bristol

Top five films: High Fidelity, Once, Diner, Pulp Fiction, The Ice Storm. Connor, Derry

The Abyss, A Few Good Men, Dirty Dancing, My Cousin Vinny, goodfellas and many John Hughes films are among my favourites. Yvonne, Glasgow

Vortex; Teletext page 817; 25th of May, 2009; 1/6.

Favourite all-time films mulled

My fave films ever are The Shawshank Redemption, poltergeist, alien and aliens, Halloween, Enter the dragon, jaws and The Mist. Ray, Shrewsbury

Mine are: alien, Blade runner, The Usual Suspects, Far From The Madding Crowd and Star Wars. Rosie, Andover

To pick only five different films is difficult but I'll go with: Platoon, a clockwork orange, Memento, 2001 and Trainspotting. Faris, Putney

Vortex; Teletext page 817; 25th of May, 2009; 2/6.