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Merry Dotmas by @mawbius

Alex Mawby (2)

 

 

 

 

 

By Alex Mawby

 


What a wonderful time of year. Time to relax. Time to reflect. Time to catch up with everyone and everything I’ve been neglecting since starting at SCA.  

Time to get my dots. 

Now I should explain, my interpretation of a dot is particularly wide. Every hole is a goal, the more vulgar amongst you might say. 

So in no particular order, here’s a couple of cultural niknaks I’ve managed to pick up this Yuletide. 

***

So Marc asked us to watch a film we would never consider watching and, somehow, up until now I have managed to completely dodge the global phenomenon that is Disney’s Frozen. And given my day job that’s no mean feat.  

Finally this Christmas I caved in and watched it for the first time.  

Now that’s how to make a kids film. 

Perhaps not quite up to the standard of some of my childhood faves (Toy Story, episodes of Only Fools and Horses on VHS) it’s instantly clear why this film works so well. 

More than anything it proves once and for all that kids appreciate a bit of darkness in their entertainment. Elsa nearly murders her loveable kid sister on multiple occasions, yet she’s still one of the most sought after costumes in the Disney store.  

Everyone loves an anti-hero. 

I did a bit of research and it turns out that, on average, in a children’s animated film there is 2.5 times more death than a film aimed at adults.  

Nemo’s Mum, Simba’s Dad, Elsa and Anna’s parents.   

Kids are dark man. 

***

Another of Marc’s briefs for Christmas was to go and spend time in a shopping centre. To observe the native consumer (sorry) in its natural habitat. 

This was a pretty easy one for me, as I’ve already become recently obsessed with one store in particular. 

Liberty of London. 

It was on the night of the Christmas Light Switch-on in Regent Street.  
We’d missed the actual moment of illumination. Ben Stiller’s face was already shining above our heads as we ploughed through the milling crowds and choral performances of ‘Let It Go’.  

Suddenly, there it was. A wood-beamed behemoth, somehow ripped from the pages of Macbeth. 

I almost think I prefer the approach to Liberty more than actually going inside. It just feels magical. 

Not to say that inside doesn’t have its fair share of wonder. 

The ground floor, with its vast selection of overpriced kaftans and absurdly impractical hats, is best. The famous Liberty prints are suspended above your head like beautifully stitched sails, as you gaze up at the galleries of shoppers on the floors above.   

Everything is made from wood. Proper wood. Oak or something. Not MDF. 

The shop assistants are helpful and genuinely interested in your purchase (or at least very good at making it seem that way).  

And the design of the place. It’s just beautiful. Here’s a brand who thought beyond Gill Sans for their typography. 

I ended up buying my grilfriend her Christmas present in there. She didn’t like the colour and it didn’t fit properly, but if I’m honest she’d already missed out on half the gift anyway. 

Don’t go to the Coors Ice Bar to sample a brand experience. Go to Liberty.

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