The wonderful Dolly Parton

Dolly Parton was a big part of my childhood and something of an icon in our family. We listened to quite a lot of country music in those days, and Dolly was a firm favourite—especially “I Will Always Love You” and “Jolene,” two songs I have loved ever since. Her popularity only seemed to climb as the decades passed, until she became one of the rare figures in an increasingly divided America whom almost everyone could agree on. Much of that affection came from her personality: her warmth, humour, generosity, authenticity and wonderful ability never to take herself too seriously. I was deeply saddened today to hear that she has died at the age of 80. She felt like one of those enduring presences who would somehow always be there.

Edit

I Will Always Love You

 

Jolene

 

Working 9 to 5

I also love Whitney Houston’s version of “I Will Always Love You,” which transformed Dolly’s gentle country song into one of the great vocal performances in popular music. It came about when Kevin Costner suggested the song for The Bodyguard after another choice fell through. Whitney’s soaring rendition became a worldwide phenomenon and introduced Dolly’s remarkable songwriting to a vast new audience.

Favourite movies: Tuner (2025)

I really enjoyed Tuner. It's an immensely entertaining film that blends genres remarkably well, combining crime thriller, romance, drama and comedy into a story that feels fresh and original. The premise of a piano tuner with extraordinary hearing being drawn into the world of safe-cracking is clever, and the film makes brilliant use of sound to immerse you in his experience. The performances, particularly from Leo Woodall and Dustin Hoffman, are excellent.  I also loved the ending. It ties together the film's themes in a satisfying way and finishes on an emotional, bittersweet note that really stayed with me.

Favourite line

• Niki White: Tuning a piano is about creating harmony out of chaos, and to do that you've got to be comfortable with imperfection.

Favourite scene

• The bittersweet ending where he plays stunning piano to her. His closing line: "E-flat is out."

The amazing Lyrebird

The superb lyrebird is one of Australia’s most extraordinary birds: a shy, secretive creature of the forest floor with an almost magical gift for mimicry. It can reproduce the calls of other birds with remarkable precision—and sometimes even human-made sounds such as camera shutters, alarms and chainsaws—folding them into its own elaborate song. While the laughing kookaburra is officially NSW’s bird emblem, the lyrebird is the emblem of the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, and it feels every bit as symbolic of the Australian bush. I have seen them several times in the Royal National Park, usually slipping quietly through the leaf litter or suddenly revealing themselves among the ferns, and every encounter gives me a real thrill.

Edit

Nostalgic South African adverts from the past

Here are some adverts from the 80's that are enmeshed in my memory and the fabric of my childhood.

Cremora "It's not inside, its on top!"

   

Timotei "It's so mild, you can wash your hair everyday"

  

Cadburys Lunch Bar "Mac Atini Makatini"

  

Chomp "You'll just have to grow some more kid"

   

Jan Spies Cremora

  

Castrol GTX: "A can of the best"

 

Blackcat Peanut Butter

Vaseline intensive care

Redro

Hooked on classics

On our Zululand trip, through Antony, I rediscovered the album Hooked on Classics — one we listened to over and over on childhood car journeys in the 1980s. Dad absolutely loved it. The moment it started playing, the nostalgia came flooding back. It really was a phenomenon at the time, becoming one of the bestselling classical crossover albums ever and introducing a whole generation to classical music through its catchy disco-style arrangements.

 

The Dance

I love this country song sung by Garth Brooks. It epitomises how I feel about my relationship with Ally.

The Dance

Lookin' back on the memory of

The dance we shared beneath the stars above

For a moment all the world wasn't right

How could I have known that you'd ever say goodbye?

And now, I'm glad I didn't know

The way it all would end, the way it all would go

Our lives are better left to chance

I could've missed the pain

But I'd had to miss the dance

And holding you, I held everything

For a moment, wasn't I the king?

If I'd only known how the king would fall

Hey, who's to say, you know I might have changed it all

And now, I'm glad I didn't know

The way it all would end, the way it all would go

Our lives are better left to chance

I could've missed the pain

But I'd had to miss the dance

It's my life, it's better left to chance

I could've missed the pain

But I'd had to miss the dance

Meeting fellow adventurer Matt in the wilderness

I met a wonderful video blogger called Matt in a remote part of Ash Island in Newcastle. He was out kayaking and I was birding. He asked me to star in his video. I've adjusted the video below to start at our interview. Always lovely to connect with a fellow explorer and nature lover.

Pure nostalgia: Acting in school plays at St Georges

One of my greatest joys in high school was acting.  Like my grandfather, I really liked to act on stage and I took part in several school plays.  Here are the ones I remember best.

Oliver!  (Aged 8)

I played the part of the one of the orphans in Oliver and various other roles I cannot remember. I loved the music, especially the song "Food, Glorious Food!"

A movie poster from the movie version of the musical "Oliver!"

Playing Huckleberry Finn in "Tom Sawyer" (Aged 12)

I played the part of Huckleberry Finn in the school stage production of Tom Sawyer. This was a major school production and it was many, many hours of work but I enjoyed every minute of it.  My most vivid memory was having to smoke a pipe on stage in one of the scenes.  I used my Gramp's pipe and he taught me how to smoke it!  Those were obviously the days when smoking had not yet been vilified.

Playing an elderly spinster in "Hijack" (Aged 15)

Because our school was male only, I did have to play a few female roles and I reluctantly admit I was pretty good at it.  My highlight in this regard was playing the part of an elderly, prim and proper spinster on a plane who foils a hijack attempt.  I studied my grandmother's mannerisms for hours to get inspiration and I really gave it my all.  I was really chuffed when I won an acting award for the role.

Playing Spokesperson A in "Us and Them" (Aged 16)

This was a play with a profound message and though I was worried it wasn't going to be good (so much so I asked mum and dad not to come), it turned out to be a triumph. It was directed by Graeme Allen, a student from the year above us (the son of my Sub-B teacher), and he did a great job.

Playing Pharaoh in "Joseph and his Technicolour Dream Coat"  (Aged 17)

I decided to leap out of my stereotype as a female "actress" with avengeance  in my final year.  I applied for the role of Pharaoh in Joseph and his Techni-coloured Dream Coat.  I had to cycle onto stage on a bicycle in a cycling suit with a padded crotch and grab a microphone and sing an Elvis Presley type song while gyrating my hips. I had a ball doing it and it made me popular through out the school which I hadn't experienced since Prep School.  The only embarrassment about the whole thing was having to perform on the 3rd night when my grandmother was in the 2nd row.  I made the gyration of my hips a little bit more subtle on that night.

Favourite songs 2025: Señorita

Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello singing "Señorita"  Such a sexy song!!  

Favourite songs 2025: Save Your Tears

I discovered the joys of both Ariana Grande and The Weekend this year.

Favourite songs 2025: Popular

From the musical "Wicked"

David Attenborough

Gavin has done a wonderful video about David Attenborough for one of his Upschool lessons. I love it. One of my ultimate role models.

Favourite songs 2025: Laufey

I'm totally in love with the voice and music of Laufey, an Icelandic singer I have discovered. Not only does she compose her own songs, she is a very accomplished cellist (an instrument I love too) and often plays it in her songs.  Her music is both timeless and retro. It makes me feel deeply nostalgic.

.

The amazing sand sculptures of the Pufferfish

How incredible. Humans are by no means the only artists on planet earth.

 

Birds of Paradise

Nothing makes me sense the benevolence of the universe more than scenes like these.

Favourite songs: What a Wonderful World (Louis Armstrong)

I love this song so much. The video is lovely too.

Agnus Favourite music: Dei - The Armed Man: A Mass For Peace

Absolutely stunning music from Karl Jenkins.

 

Favourite songs 2024: Good Luck Babe!

Chappell Roan at her best.

Gavin's amazing course: Write a book to change the world

Gavin has created so many amazing courses on Upschool but the one that has captured my imagination the most is his "Write a book" course where he teaches kids to create a book using Canva. He organised with Canva, the great online design site that Jo loves so much, to give away free Canva subscriptions to every Upschool student. So many sublime, creative books have been created by children throughout the world, available to be viewed and ordered via the Upschool Library . The course has been so successful that Canva even made a very generous offer to buy Upschool! 

 

Favourite songs 2024: Birds of a Feather

I love this song by Billie Eilish