Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Unusually for him, Benjamin Britten suffered from a bout of writer’s block while he was composing The Prince of the Pagodas. The solution came by chance when he heard the haunting, complex music of the gamelan in Bali during a world tour and immediately declared his problems solved.
Britten did indeed go on to complete his only full-length score for ballet, but he never had much affection for it. The work turns up in the theatre from time to time, but the music has become most familiar in the form of a suite that he extracted from the full score.
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This release is only the full ballet’s second complete recording, as Britten’s own cuts 20 minutes of music. As his longest work for orchestra, The Prince of the Pagodas deserves attention and this fine recording will now be the place to go.
In designing his two-hour-plus score, Britten looked for inspiration to the master-composer of ballet, Tchaikovsky. He similarly divides up the music into danceable, bite-sized numbers, guaranteeing fast-moving musical variety, but the deeper emotional pull of Tchaikovsky’s ballets is missing.
The score’s strongest suit is its use of the orchestra. With its biting woodwind, growling brass and orchestral clarity, The Prince of the Pagodas is Britten through and through, and the gamelan-like sounds in the “Kingdom of the Pagodas” scene show the big influence the trip to Bali was to have on his music. The Hallé, under its new principal conductor Kahchun Wong, plays superbly and the recording on the Hallé’s own label brilliantly captures Britten’s coruscating sounds.
★★★★☆
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‘Britten: The Prince of the Pagodas’ is released by HalléConcerts Society
A FISH and chip shop has launched its own fun festive feast — a deep-fried Christmas dinner.
Turkey, sprouts, pigs-in-blankets and stuffing balls are all battered and served on chips along with tubs of rich gravy and cranberry sauce.
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A fish and chip shop has launched a deep-fried Christmas dinner
However, revellers trying to get in shape for office parties are warned the £15 blow-out weighs in at a belt-busting 1,500 calories.
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And that is before those with a sweet tooth add a battered mince pie with warm custard or a Bailey’s– infused hot chocolate for £4.50.
The mega-meal will be sold throughout December by prize-winning Cromars in St Andrews, Fife.
Owner Wendy Napthine-Frame told The Sun: “We love finding new ways to reinvent classic fish and chip shop dishes and this felt like a really fun, festive way to do that.
“I think it’s going to go down really well with customers.
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“We’ve got battered turkey, battered sprouts, and battered stuffing, topped off with crispy golden chips, cranberry sauce, and a tub of gravy.”
She added: “The only thing we didn’t batter was the carrots because we thought we should leave something healthy on the plate!
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IT’S a real chore parting with hard-earned cash for everyday household essentials.
But there are ways to stop these items from cleaning out your wallet.
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Four cash-saving ways to stop household essentials from cleaning out your walletCredit: Shutterstock
Here’s how to save on life’s more mundane purchases . . .
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BULK UP: It is usually the case that buying more of an item will reduce the overall cost per unit creating savings for you. For example, a 16-pack of toilet roll usually has a lower cost per roll than when you buy a four-pack.
Get into the practice of looking at the unit cost of an item rather than the price to help compare the true value of pack sizes. You can also save five per cent by buying in bulk at Wilko.
Selected toiletries, sanitary and cleaning products are included in the offer but the amount you need to buy varies by item. In some cases you need to buy six-packs to qualify whereas others it can be eight.
READ MORE MONEY SAVING TIPS
REFILL: If you buy cleaning products that come in spray bottles, look to keep the original packaging and buy a cheaper refill when finished.
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For example, Tesco’s antibacterial cleaner refill is 75p which can be used to fill any old spray bottle you have.
SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE: You can save by signing up for repeat deliveries through Amazon.
This is also a useful way of squeezing out extra value if you’re too short on space to bulk buy. To unlock up to 15 per cent off prices of items you will need to schedule five or more deliveries or you can get ten per cent off with up to four repeat orders.
The service is available on a wide range of items including pet food and fizzy drinks, as well as household essentials.
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THE PRICE IS RIGHT: It can be worth buying more of an item when it’s on a special offer and keeping it stored away, rather than buying simply when you run out, especially if it is an item that is rarely discounted.
All prices on page correct at time of going to press. Deals and offers subject to availability.
Deal of the day
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Sausage dog mid-wellies, £25 at The Original Factory ShopCredit: tofs.com
MAKE a splash with these sausage dog mid-wellies, down from £45 to £25 at The Original Factory Shop (tofs.com).
SAVE: £20
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Cheap treat
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Holy Moly’s new range of sauces and dressings, £1.50 at Sainsbury’s with a Nectar cardCredit: Sainsburys
TRY Holy Moly’s new range of sauces and dressings, including peanut satay and smoky chipotle. They are £1.50 at Sainsbury’s with a Nectar card, down from £2.20.
What’s new?
BLACK forest hot chocolate and frappe are available in Costa from today as part of the chain’s Christmas menu which includes new snacks and treats too.
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Top swap
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Sheepskin mittens, £45 from John LewisCredit: John Lewis
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Primark mitts, £5.50Credit: Primark
KEEP your hands toasty with these sheepskin mittens, £45 from John Lewis. Or let less cash slip through your fingers by buying the Primark mitts, £5.50.
SAVE: £39.50
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Little helper
GIVE your household reminders, or even motivation messages, with this wooden letter board, £6 from Flying Tiger.
PLAY NOW TO WIN £200
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Join thousands of readers taking part in The Sun Raffle
JOIN thousands of readers taking part in The Sun Raffle.
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Every month we’re giving away £100 to 250 lucky readers – whether you’re saving up or just in need of some extra cash, The Sun could have you covered.
Every Sun Savers code entered equals one Raffle ticket.
The more codes you enter, the more tickets you’ll earn and the more chance you will have of winning!
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