Your special celebration Heyday Friday newsletter

Important memories, fascinating cultural insights, clever artistry, and an invaluable hack to do with zips in this week's newsletter

Hello!

I realise this isn’t the cheeriest way to start a newsletter, but I recently had a horribly sad week which involved three funerals (two of them on the same day). Two were old friends - though not remotely old enough to be dying yet - the other the son-in-law of a friend who left behind a wife and three young children.

The two dear friends were both ill for quite some time and as a result were able to have considerable input into the funeral services they wanted. Indeed one of them had, in his typically organised and you might even, lovingly, say pedantic, way quite literally planned the entire thing, even vetting his brother’s moving eulogy (he apparently gave it the thumbs up, saying “I’m glad I won’t have to sit through it though.”)

The eulogy at the other funeral was given by my friend’s oldest friend, who began by apologising that being American he might not have the same sensitivities as us more reserved Brits, and then proceeded to share one of the most affectionately funny eulogies I can remember, perfectly encapsulating our friend’s wonderful intelligence and wit.

The reason I mention all of this is that this Monday (May 26th) is the third annual Celebration Day, an event created as an opportunity for us to “honour and celebrate the lasting impact of those who have inspired and shaped us”. Which is exactly what I’ve done in this week’s blog.

It isn’t an exhaustive list, but it does feature these very important (to me) people

as well as two other significant women who were responsible for nurturing two of my lifelong passions. You can find out who they all are by CLICKING HERE.

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WORDS OF WISDOM

Here’s what actress Helena Bonham-Carter says about the idea behind Celebration Day

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This is lovely Heydayer Sangita. CLICK HERE to discover how she plays a part in helping people preserve their special memories. The background is a clue.

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THIS WEEK I’VE BEEN……LISTENING TO

Thanks to Heydayer Jo for this marvellously interesting and entertaining recommendation. This Cultural Life is a classy podcast from the BBC in which the presenter, John Wilson, talks at fascinating length to leading artists and luminaries from the worlds of film, television, theatre, music, writing and more about the people and experiences that have shaped their creative lives.

The insights Wilson draws from his subjects, and the wide range of his own cultural expertise makes for compelling conversations that cover everything from the mundane to the existential.

Amongst my favourites are the sculptor Anthony Gormley who describes the mediation technique he spent years honing and which enabled him to endure the lengthy process of using his own body as a mould for the vast majority of his work; the prolific Chilean author Isabel Allende who explains why she always starts a new novel on the exact same day each year and Bafta and Golden Globe winning actor Bill Nighy who might actually be the supreme exponent of witty self-effacement.

You can listen to This Cultural Life on BBC Sounds

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FRIDAY FUNNY

Here’s an example of Bill’s wonderfully humorous humility

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GOOD TO KNOW

Broken zips were always the bane of my life until I discovered this trick. Try it, it really does work!

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WHAT’S MADE ME HAPPY THIS WEEK

Whilst I appreciate this may not be art on quite the same cultural level as explored in this week’s podcast recommendation, it did made me inordinately happy admiring and enjoying how clever it is. I think the way the egg ‘cooks’ is my favourite. What about you?

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That’s it for this week. When you’ve read THIS WEEK’S BLOG I’d love to know who you’ll be remembering this Celebration Day and why.

Before I go though, apologies for the shocking typo/spelling mistake at the end of last week’s newsletter. I do know the plural of fly is flies, not flys, honestly.

Have a lovely bank holiday if you’re here in the UK (I would have a teeny moan about the fact that the weather is forecast to be rainy, but honestly our reservoirs and gardens need it so much, I can’t), and if you fancy leaving a little like heart by way of appreciation it helps makes Heydays visible to more people, which is cause for celebration in my book.

See you next time.