Skippy dies by Paul Murray

Book group book.  It was OK but FAR too long.  Set in a posh boarding school in Ireland.  Skippy is one of the pupils and he dies at the beginning and then the book goes up to the events that led up to this.  There is drug taking , child abuse, floozies, bullying.  And too much graphic sex.  At the end I found it a bit unsatisfactory

Merchant of Venice

We went to see this in the newly refurbished theatre in Stratford.  It was updated to Las Vegas and it worked very well.  Lancelot Gobbo was an Elvis impersonator and he had a very good voice.  Portia stole the show.  She managed to get that intonation of those girls in the Hills and they did the chosing of the boxes like a game show.  Patrick Stewart was  Shylock and he came across as pretty sympathetic.  Antonia coming across as the baddie