More updates for 'Pattie-Shop Diaries'

Hi, everyone.

I'm feeling a little bit bad (with my sickle-cell), but I thought that I'd update you.

Mike & Gerrard have got in touch (following last week's 'Decibel' gathering), and given me news:

They said that a couple of the people from the Arts Council had got in touch, and want to arrange a meeting to sort out funding for 'Pattie-Shop Diaries'.

I think their plan is to get a grant for something called 'R & D' (Research & Development) in order to get the songs recorded and, at least part of, the show rehearsed and ready for an 'invite-only' performance.

I think they are planning to have a meeting with Arts Council in their London offices within the next few weeks, to set those wheels in motion.

Also, the director that they spoke to at Decibel has got in touch with them;
they said that they had sent the songs and synopsis, for 'Pattie-Shop', and she, in turn, has now sent them her c.v., and reviews of her recent work.

They have asked me not to divulge her identity as yet (as conversations are in their formative stages), but she's very experienced, extremely enthusiastic about the piece, and seems to have lots of great ideas.

It all sounds so EXCITING !

Uncle Seymour says that, with 'the arts', you always have to be a little bit cautious but even he's getting quietly optimistic.

I haven't mentioned anything to Mum, Marcus, or Patience yet..........

Mum would say something like:

"......... and who would want to hear about some mad, Black Family in Brixton ?"

Marcus (being so secretive) probably wouldn't want anyone 'knowing his business'.

If I told Patience, the whole world would know anyway ...... she's like the B.B.C. .........
'Brixton Broadcasting Corporation' !

I'm not sure how Dad would take it ...........
I'd like to think that he would be proud but ......... you never know !

I think that I'll wait a while before I tell them.

Anyway ...... hopefully, there'll be lots more exciting things happening soon and, when they do occur, then I might let the family know (as well as you guys).

Now, if only my sickle-cell 'crisis' would calm down ......... !

Bye, All.

Much Love,

Lillian x

Mike & Gerrard's Decibel 2009 Manchester trip

Hi, Everyone.
I'm really excited!
I've just switched on my computer, and I've got a long e-mail from Mike & Gerrard.
They got back last night from 'Decibel 2009', the arts-fair in Manchester.
It seems that it went really well.
This is what they sent me:


'Hi, Lillian.

It's Mike and Gerrard here.

We just want to tell you what happened at Decibel in the last couple of days.

We arrived in Manchester (by train) on Wednesday afternoon armed with our flyers, dvd promos, presentation script, and expectations for 'Pattie-Shop Diaries'.

We (eventually) found the hotel, changed, collected-up our promotional material, and then made our way to the the Town Hall (location for our presentation and the 'central hub' of information for the 'Decibel' team).

We said 'Hi' to the organisers (Natasha, Ruth & Sophiana were especially great), gathered information, had our pictures taken for the 'Decibel Board-of-Fame', and then proceeded to put our leaflets into the 'pigeon-holes' of selected delegates.

(We could see, from doing this, that there were quite a few very interesting-looking potential targets in attendance, many of whom we knew)

We then went off, got some food, and went to see a few performances before going back to the hotel to prepare for the next morning's presentation.

We had decided to use a slide-show and the short trailer (which were on the dvd that The Fabulous Rasconrad had supplied us with), in conjunction with a prepared speech that we were both going to read from.

In the morning, we made our way to the Town Hall @ about 8.30am (our alloted time for presentation was 10.45am).
After a little prep with the technicians, and mediators Natasha Graham & Sarah Holmes(in order to make sure our pitch was under 5mins), we felt we were ready.

The other 3 'pitchers' did their thing and we were last to go.

It was a 'full-house'(about 200 delegates & fellow artists);
we made our way to the front, checked with the techies (so that they could cue the slide-show),started our presentation and then .......

MINI DISASTER (!) ...... the slide-show froze.

We continued (keeping a rueful watch on the projection-screen), and thankfully the
slideshow corrected itself.

We then introduced the promotional trailer and then .....

MAJOR DISASTER (!) ...... the dvd glitched and would not play.'

N.B.
LILLIAN'S NOTE:
UNCLE SEYMOUR ALWAYS SAYS :
'ON STAGE, NEVER WORK WITH ANIMALS, CHILDREN, OR TECHNOLOGY !'
I CAN SEE WHAT HE MEANS, NOW.

'Anyway, after what seemed like ages (probably only about 20 secs), the dvd started working, and all the delegates seemed to really enjoy the trailer;
we completed the speech/request for money & help, and got a huge round of applause.


Gerrard @ Decibel Mancester 2009

Afterwards, we were inundated with people congratulating us on our pitch and offering us help and suggestions.

We had a few theatre/venues wanting the piece, a highly experienced DIRECTOR expressing strong interest, and many people from 'Arts Council' suggesting an imminent meeting to arrange funding.

We were only due to be there for the day, so we had a couple more meetings (not least a long, lovely, & very productive one with the prospective Director), met a few people who have been very helpful in the past (Ben Evans, Raidene Carter, & Felix Cross to name but 3), and then departed for London, arriving back at about 10pm.

Decibel 2009 was (from our viewpoint) very well organised;
big props to all the Decibel- XTrax team who were working so long and well.
Special thanks to Sophiana and Ruth (who were understandably showing signs of 'wear & tear' whilst smiling & keeping everything together).

It was certainly a very good experience for 'biggerthanME' and, we feel, a fruitful and productive turn-of-events for 'Pattie Shop Diaries'.

Needless to say, we shall be following up all these leads and keeping you informed.

Hope you and the family are well.

Speak soon.

Mike & Gerrard. x'


Well, it all sounds VERY exciting.
I've tried to phone Mike & Gerrard to congratulate them, but there's no answer......
maybe they're still sleeping.

Anyway, it looks like 'Pattie-Shop Diaries' might actually get made ...... WOW !

I told Uncle Seymour about the e-mail and he was just interested in whether or not he could get to play himself.
I told him that, maybe he was too OLD to play himself (!) ........
He laughed and suggested that that was MY affliction (not his) and, on the contrary, he'd always been too YOUNG and, furthermore, would continue to be so !

I love Uncle Seymour ...... he's just so DRAMA !!!

Anyway, I've got to go.

I'll let you all know what's happening, in the 'World of Pattie', as soon as I do.

Bye for now.

Much Love,

Lillian x

Mike & Gerrard's prep for 'Pattie Shop' Decibel pitch

Hi, Everyone

It's been a really exciting day (despite the rain).

Mike just called, and he told me the updated news.

He said that he spent the day with RasConrad (who designed the website and directed and editted the trailers), and has come away with a fabulous dvd that has the 'Pattie-Shop' trailer and photo/slideshow on it.

Gerrard & Mike are going to use them to aid in their pitch for 'Pattie-Shop Diaries' when they go up to 'Decibel 2009' in Manchester tomorrow.

'Decibel' is the official annual networking 'trade fair' for the arts, and Mike & Gerrard are lucky enough to have got a 10minute pitching slot.

Anyway, I hope that they can find people to fund, or aid, 'Pattie Shop', and to take it to the next stage.

They certainly seem to be optimistic.

I'm quite excited.

I'll keep you all posted.

Much Love,

Lillian xxx

Lillian's formal introduction 2 Pattieshopdiaries Blog

Hi ............. my name is Lillian, and I want to introduce my blog to you.
I also want to introduce my friends to you:
Mike Scott-Harding (who's a brilliant singer), and Gerrard Martin (an amazing dancer).





Together they are known as biggerthanME, and they do different types of arts shows.
I met them in June 2008 when I went to see a show that they did called 'Rage & Breathe' at Oval House Theatre in SW London.

It was a 'multi-media dance/theatre piece' ......... at least that's what it said on the leaflet.
It had Gerrard (with some his own choreography) and 2 other dancers.
It also had Mike playing guitar and singing, and it had recorded music, and a film projected on a screen at the back ........ I think they made the film themselves as well.
It was really good !!
I went with my Uncle Seymour who's known Mike for years.
Being a Christian, I was a bit nervous that the subject matter seemed to be about homosexuality.
But, having seen it, I thought it dealt with the topics of urban alienation, love, loneliness, and sexual-identity quite well.

The music was good, and so was the dancing.
Afterwards, Uncle Seymour introduced me to Mike And Gerrard.
Actually, I spoke to Gerrard first ..... he's really cute, if a little old for me (lol).
Anyway, I told them that I really liked their work and it was a shame that more people weren't there to see it.
They seemed quite positive, though, and said 'that's just how the arts are sometimes ......!'.
(Hmmmmm ........ Uncle Seymour seems to say the same thing, so that's why I'm never going to get into it!
I'm just going to study hard and get a good, stable career, please God)

Anyway, I asked them what they were doing next, and they didn't seem to know, so they started asking me some questions about myself.
So , I began to tell them the story of me, my life, and my diary.
Occasionally, they would look at eachother, as if they were 'sizing me up'.
I told them how it told the story of my family, and our lives working
(and living above) a take-away pattie-shop in Brixton, South London from the mid 1990's.

Now, for those of you who don’t know, what a ‘pattie’ is, its a Jamaican pastry …….
sort of like a ‘cornish pasty’ ….. but with more flavour (lol).
Mike said talking to me was making him feel hungry, but Gerrard seemed really interested in my story, so we swapped numbers and I arranged to meet up with them to discuss an idea.

We said goodbye to Mike and Gerrard (with Mike chastising Uncle Seymour for being a 'stranger'), and left for home, both of us having been thoroughly entertained, and me feeling quite excited.

I'll be honest, I wasn't sure what they had in mind, but they seemed really nice (and very talented) so they came by the shop the next week to 'interview' me.
They said that they wanted to hear all about my life, my family, and my diary and were interested in turning it into a 'play', or a 'music-theatre' piece.
I was flabbergasted !

I mean who would be interested in the diary of a 17 year old Black, Briitsh girl in a Brixton pattie-shop?
And who would make a 'musical' about it?
And who would come to see it?
They just looked at eachother, and then looked at me and said:
"Us !",
"Us !",
and ....... "Them !"
I don't know why but, at that moment, I felt I could trust them so I started to tell them about my Diary.......

I told them how it told the story of me, and my family, running and living above this take-away pattie-shop in Brixton (South London) in the mid 90's.

I started with my Mum, Adassa.

About how fabulous she was ....... how she runs the place …… and the family.
About how strong, smart, and loving she is.
And about how I pray that she gets back all the love that she’s given out.

They already knew my Uncle Seymour

(my Mum’s older brother),
but they still wanted to hear about him from me.

I told them how he was the chef, and co-owner of the place,
and how he used to be in show-business (hence him already knowing Mike).

He’s always got something to say on any topic.

Some people think that he’s a little flambouyant, but he just seems like my Uncle Seymour to me:
‘Fresh and Fabulous’.

Then I talked about Marcus (my half-brother).

Mike and Gerrard seemed quite interested in him.

He helped out with deliveries and collections.
He’s older than me, but sometimes I felt that he’s still had …… issues.

Anyway, his heart’s in the right place …….. even if his head wasn’t, sometimes!

Then I had to mention Jack.

He was Marcus’ ‘friend’.

When I mentioned him, Mike & Gerrard looked at eachother and smiled .......
I suppose he is quite funny, though.

He always seemed to be trying so hard to be ‘black’, and he always seemed to be around.
Sometimes I wondered what he and Marcus were cooking up.

Anyway, he seemed quite nice and, I told them, 'if he makes my brother happy, then he’s ok with me.

Then I went on to discuss Patience.

She helped out in the shop …… serving out food ….. and ……. gossip!
I told her that her mouth would get her into trouble one day.

I told the guys some of the things that she said, and they just laughed .......
they kept on wanting to hear more about her.

She tended to be a little bit …… outspoken.
She liked to air her views …… and other peoples’ news !

How did she put it:

“It’s not gossip ……. the public has a right to know !”

I wasn't convinced but …… well …… she is a friend........ and the guys said that she would 'provide great comedy-value'.


Ah …… then I talked about my Dad …… Zephaniah.

I spoke about how he’d been away for quite a while during my childhood.
Nobody would tell me exactly where ….. or why.

I told them about how he suddenly just turned up, and about how things were never the same again.

I told them that he had come back a 'born-again Christian', and wanted to be part of the family again ........
and how Mum, Uncle Seymour, and Marcus were very wary of him.

I told Mike and Gerrard how excited I was when he came back (especially him having been 'saved').
He may not have been a saint, but everybody can change …… can’t they?

Mike and Gerrard never did answer my question ........ they were too busy writing.

Then they wanted me to talk about me.

So, I started to treat it like one of those 'careers mock-interviews' ...:

'My name’s Lillian.

I help out a little at the shop, but Mum doesn’t let me work there too much.

“Get an education”, she keeps on saying.
“I don’t want yu working in no ‘pattie-shop’ at my age !”

So, as Marcus keeps saying, it’s just ……. ‘church and college’ for me.

Plus, Mum’s a little over-protective, due to my having ‘sickle-cell anaemia’.

But I’ve got too many things to do to let it stop me !

As Uncle Seymour says:

“If you just sit and wait, nothing changes …… just the date!” '

I looked up and I think my stream-of-consciousness seemed to catch them by surprise.
They were looking at me with open mouths.

I said:
"You’ll have to excuse me ….. I tend to get a little passionate about my loved ones".

They told me that it was fine, and that kind of passion and love was just what they were looking for.

They asked how often I wrote in the diary.
I told them that I write in it whenever I can and that all the major events in the pattie-shop are recorded.

They said that they thought that my diary was a 'priceless artifact', and that they could turn it into a great music-theatre piece, and it would become 'a snap-shot of a Black family in South London at the end of a century!'

They seemed quite excited and, even though I thought they were a little crazy, I couldn't help liking them and sharing some of their enthusiasm.

I promised to help them with any information that they wanted and they, in turn, promised to keep me informed about further developments.

They seemed quite positive about things, and left with a smile.

I told Uncle Seymour about the meeting later, and he suggested that I might want to start a blog about the development of the piece.
I told him that I didn't have time, what with all my college-work, church, and writing in my diary.

(I'll be honest I didn't think that anything was going to come of it, especially as they didn't seem to have enough money to put a musical on)

But the 'biggerthanME' boys have really pulled off some miracles over the last year.

They have written the script (well quite a few drafts), written about 12 original songs, assembled potential cast-members and directors, had several read-throughs, gathered interest from several theatres and arts organisations (including Stratford Theatre Royal, Birmingham Rep, Talawa Arts), scripted and recorded a promo/trailer (with the help of a fabulous visual-artist called RasConrad), and are going off to 'Decibel 2009' this Wednesday 17th September to pitch 'Pattie shop' to any delegates who might want to finance it (!).

WOW !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After all their hard work, I just HAD to find time to write a blog about it.

So, after all that, this is my introduction for my ' Pattie-Shop Diaries Blog'.

I shall be keeping you informed of all things 'Pattie' (lol).

As Mike, Gerrard, (and now) RasConrad give me any new information, I shall put it straight in my diary .........
and then I'll put updates in this blog.

After all, The Diary' comes first (lol).

Speak to you all soon.

Much Love,

Lillian xxx

RasConrad Photography

Hey, the picture taken here of me and my diary was done by my good friend, RasConrad. He's wicked with a camera and a real character as well.

INDUSTRY ART FAIR

My friends Gerrard and Mike are preparing to go to Decibel on the 16th Sept for an

industry arts trade fair.

I can't wait to see what they're gonna do.