The BBC commentary said it all - abject. Hammered. Individuals not a team. What went wrong? Top English players went out to the worst English result in a World Cup. Ever. Yes, the second England goal was stolen. That was an outrage. But there was no defence. Precious little offence. Germany outclassed England when it mattered in South Africa. In four years time, hopefully, lessons will have been learned. This great nation deserves players worthy of the world-class heart of its fans. Germany, meanwhile, could go all the way.
THAT HANDSOME MAN A PERSONAL BRIEF REVIEW BY TODD SWIFT I could lie and claim Larkin, Yeats , or Dylan Thomas most excited me as a young poet, or even Pound or FT Prince - but the truth be told, it was Thom Gunn I first and most loved when I was young. Precisely, I fell in love with his first two collections, written under a formalist, Elizabethan ( Fulke Greville mainly), Yvor Winters triad of influences - uniquely fused with an interest in homerotica, pop culture ( Brando, Elvis , motorcycles). His best poem 'On The Move' is oddly presented here without the quote that began it usually - Man, you gotta go - which I loved. Gunn was - and remains - so thrilling, to me at least, because so odd. His elegance, poise, and intelligence is all about display, about surface - but the surface of a panther, who ripples with strength beneath the skin. With Gunn, you dressed to have sex. Or so I thought. Because I was queer (I maintain the right to lay claim to that
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