Just some of my favourites;

Movies (as opposed to Films)
Gone With The Wind
The Wizard Of Oz
The Princess Bride
Cabaret

Favourite Singers
Nancy LaMott –I was lucky enough to see her in a benefit concert in New York months before she died, too young at 43. A warm, rich voice, and impeccable phrasing, there’s not a track she recorded that isn’t a joy to listen to.
Michael Ball – doesn’t always show the best taste in his choice of song, and definitely no taste in clothes, but if you could make love to a voice, his would be the one.
Mario Frangoulis – Greek/Italian classical cross-over who actually knows how to sing a popular song. Doesn’t hurt that he’s a bit of a hunk to boot.
Rosemary Clooney – the late and great, just sang ‘em straight and clear, no frills. My Dad’s favourite singer, and I finally cried for losing him when I saw her in concert in San Francisco and she unexpectedly sang his favourite song.

Foreign Films
All About My Mother (Spanish)
House Of Flying Daggers (Chinese)
City Of Lost Children (French) (thanks NN)
Tears of the Black Tiger (Thai)
Suryathai (Thai)


This Year’s Best Films
Latter Days
dot the i
Mr & Mrs Smith
Kung Fu Hustle

Musicals
A Little Night Music
The Secret Garden
Most Happy Fella
Cabaret
Nine

Drinks
Beer – Cascade
Scotch, single malt
Vodka (straight or martini)
Muscat (so very much better than port)

Actors (foreign)
Gael Garcia Bernal ( Bad Education, Motorcycle Diaries, dot the i)
Takeshi Kaneshira (Fallen Angels, Anna Magdalena, House of Flying Daggers)
Rodrigo Santoro (Carandiru, Love Actually)
Jesadaporn Pholdee (Dan Brierly, Iron Ladies)

Unforgettable Stage performances
Diana Rigg, Night and Day, London 1979
· A combination of skill and presence, completely dominating an otherwise forgettable play. She spent most of the play reclining upstage idly flipping through a magazine, yet somehow you looked at her a split second before she said a line, then your focus went back to the other actors.
Judi Dench, Kiss of the Gorgon, London
· Sheer unadulterated talent, based on a technique so solid I don’t think she can put a foot wrong. A difficult play, three time-frames simultaneously on stage, with Dame Judi’s character in all three at once, yet her performance never left you in any doubt where you were in the play and what was going on. Emotionally shattering at the end.
Glenn Close, Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles
· Brave, beautifully judged performance, on the brink of being over the top all the way, totally sympathetic frightening display of the decent into murder and madness.
Matthew Broderick, How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, New York
· Another almost over the top performance, beautifully based physically, the whole thing done on the balls of his toes, slightly hunched shoulders, always looking for, and grabbing any opportunity, turning a potentially unlikeable character into a charming rogue. Coincidentally co-starring as his on-stage romance, his off-stage partner Sarah Jessica Parker.
Zoe Caldwell, Masterclass, New York
· A performance that did go over the top, but only when the character would have done. The closest I can ever get to seeing Maria Callas live, but it was an evocation, not a recreation. Funny, sad, selfish, spiteful, tactless, and so very tragically alone.
Marlene Dietrich, in concert, Melbourne
· There wasn’t a look, a phrase or a gesture that wasn’t precisely planned and inalterable, not an audience reaction that could have been anything but what she intended, but something magical happened every time she did whatever it was she was doing. If ever a goddess walked on this earth . . . .

Food
Almost anything Thai
Avocado
Almost anything Chinese
Sticky Date Pudding with caramel sauce.

Places to visit
New York
My best friend’s house

Holiday destination
Jomtien Beach, Thailand
· A broad sweep of beach, deck-chairs and umbrellas. With wonderfully wicked Pattaya only10 minutes and half a world away.
Puerto Galera, Philippines
· White sand, coconut plantations, more stars in the sky than I ever thought could exist, and bamboo huts right on the beach for about $10.00 a night, waking up to kids splashing in the waves 5 metres away, chickens scratching under the floor, and nothing to do all day but eat, drink and laze around. Bliss, sheer bliss.
Waikiki, Honolulu
· Paradise. Perfect climate, stunning beach, great bars, and shopping, shopping, shopping, all that American materialism can offer.