The "Brit a Day" series

What does a months-long parade of attractive British men have to do with fiction, you might well ask? These gentlemen have inspired some lovely scenes, part of the life I live in my head. Over time, some of these scenes reach out to one another and begin to form a story. For the present, each one of these pictures provides a writing prompt for me, a way to keep me writing with a sense of passion and narrative, even when the stories are not yet fully formed.



Friday, August 31, 2012

A Brit a Day [#873]

I'm thinking that my choice of this gif as today's post requires no explanation, correct?

My body temperature feels like it's about 103.

Thursday, August 30, 2012

A Brit a Day [#872]

I'm very fond of promoting Henry Ian Cusick in his non-Desmond roles because a type-cast actor often translates into an out of work actor, and we don't want that.  Here he is in an earlier role, sexy, dirty, incredibly naive William in the independent film 9/tenths.

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

A Brit a Day [#871]

I actually don't love this picture--the scarf looks so much like a badly tied necktie with a T-shirt that it just screams "wrong!" at me--but I have to do something with it, so I'll just leave it here.

Screaming at the Spike Scream Awards.  I just saw what I did there, hahaha.

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

A Brit a Day [#870]

Alas, I would follow this edict if I could, every chance I got.  Art found online by my friend Jacqueline.

Monday, August 27, 2012

A Brit a Day [#869]

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Benedict Cumberbatch.  I want one of whatever [s]he's drinking.

Sunday, August 26, 2012

A Brit a Day [#868]

From "Mr. Rickman Goes to Brooklyn"......

Saturday, August 25, 2012

A Brit a Day [#867]

Brit or not, our policy here at ABAD is that pictures of Chris Hemsworth with little India Rose Hemsworth, once they are found, MUST BE POSTED.  Big handsome guy + tiny baby = melt me to a puddle every time.

Friday, August 24, 2012

A Brit a Day [#866]

Whenever I'm shown this photo that Tom Hiddleston posted on Twitter--to prove that he had finally washed Loki out of his hair--all I see are laugh lines, the graceful kind that come from genuine laughter.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

A Brit a Day [#865]

Sometimes I like to remind people of Ian's performance as Jesus in 'The Gospel of John.'  And sometimes I think I am going straight to hell for posting this picture.

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

A Brit a Day [#864]

I've been reading Albert Speer's lengthy autobiography "Inside the Third Reich."  One thing that makes the book tolerable [I'm not a big fan of books by crooks] is that Speer is no apologist--he may not have been a sycophant to the extent of some of the others in Hitler's entourage, but he freely admits that he allowed himself to be an idiot disposed by denial and wishful thinking.  At least that's what I'm hearing.

But getting beyond that, I must say that the book is fascinating, and my jaw is sore from all the dropping at the extent of Hitler's megalomania.  Um, really, people around the Fuehrer, did you not notice what was going on?  Could you not see that it would end badly?  Does it really take the hindsight of a time lord to do that?

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

A Brit a Day [#863]

I'll just put this piece of beautiful cross-fandom art from Alicexz here to totally mess with your heads.

Monday, August 20, 2012

A Brit a Day [#862]

Must. Love. Brooding. British. Men.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

A Brit a Day [#861]

 
[Above]  The scene as it was rehearsed.

[Below]  The scene as we will always think of it..
Thank you, tumblr friend, for your marvelous gif.

Saturday, August 18, 2012

A Brit a Day [#860]

Cassandra Austen was Jane Austen's sister, and I made her acquaintance through the wonderfully disturbing movie 'Miss Austen Regrets.'  Here is Cassandra's rendering of Henry IV for her sister's manuscript "The History of England."  If you are wondering why Prince Hal's dad looks so ill-suited for life in the 14th century, read on--

The two Austen girls were also tutored at home in drawing and the piano. In 1791, Cassandra produced a series of circular illustrations of British monarchs for Jane's manuscript The History of England, which are noted to have resembled members of the Austen family more than royalty. [Wikipedia]

If you' d like to read more about the Austen girls' manuscript, go here--

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_History_of_England_(Jane_Austen)

A Brit a Day [#859]

Uh-oh, where did Friday go?  .....this one is for Friday.

OK, if you haven't listened to Tom Hiddleston reading the Tennessee Williams' short story "Kingdom of Earth", then here it is.  It's audio only, so put on your headphones, turn off all external stimuli, pull up the covers [you'll be kicking them off soon enough], and get ready to drop your jaw.  Once you get past the fact that Tom's pitch perfect American accent makes him sound a lot like Matt Damon, it's really quite pornographic.  I tried to imagine sitting in the theatre during this staged reading, and I literally had to squirm.  Tom is a braver man than you may have realized, to be able to sit on a stage alone and deliver these lines.

Have fun!

http://youtu.be/pdjcWxhPJz8

Thursday, August 16, 2012

A Brit a Day [#858]

Well, apparently I missed the boat [or the plane] by not having ABAD post #815 be 'Lost'-related.  And I could have easily done so since it was a Thursday, HIC's usual day.

I underestimated the significance of the number 815 to the 'Lost' fandom, but I won't let it happen again--yesterday was 8/15, and rumor has it [a rumor repeated by 'Lost' exec Damon Lindelof] that it was 815 days out from the 'Lost' finale airing.  So in honor of such, here, feel the love for all things 'Lost', especially Henry Ian Cusick, in the account below--or read the article from 2/2010 at the link:


This batch of young gals was in seventh heaven at all the cheek-to-cheeks they managed to achieve with so many LOST stars. Another tall fellow with a camera and I both promised to mail them a CD burned with all our photos. Henry Ian Cusick was a surprise to me; on LOST he looks so scruffy, bedraggled, and generally grubby but in reality he is a very VERY handsome man. Some quasi-drunken 20-something lads at the rear of the crowd noticed this as well and were making comments (whether inspired by envy or desire, I am unclear, but this was the same crew offering their hotel room numbers to Evangeline Lilly). Except for looking startled for a moment by one rather lustful-sounding male catcall Henry Ian Cusick took it all in stride with very good grace. He, like Terry O'Quinn, Jorge Garcia, and (to the extent she was allowed by the staff) Evangeline Lilly, really expended quite a bit of time and energy interacting with the crowd.

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

A Brit a Day [#857]

Here is Matt Smith when he was on Top Gear.  Have I ever mentioned that Matt was on Top Gear?  I was lucky enough to stumble upon his episode on BBC America On Demand a few months ago.  Probably not still there.  But if you've never seen his segment, search it out on Youtube or something.  It is pure Matt, down to earth and utterly chuffed at the same time.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

A Brit a Day [#856]



Bring on the chibis!  I hear ya, little Loki, I want my Nutella too.

All credit to these artists who post on Tumblr:  these pics aren't mine.

Monday, August 13, 2012

A Brit a Day [#855]

Credit to the creator of this multiple image of Benedict Cumberbatch--it's not mine.

The cheekbones that would cut your hand are certainly softened by the wearing of spectacles.  Do eyeglasses soften everyone's face?  Just in case, I'll keep mine on.

Sunday, August 12, 2012

A Brit a Day [#854]

Here's a link to an article that will make you love Alan Rickman even more than you already do...yes, it is possible.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/gloucestershire/content/articles/2005/07/14/potter_hotel_feature.shtml


"But on the last night Richard Harris, Kenneth Branagh and Alan Rickman did have a bit of a session. I think Rickman and Branagh regarded it as sitting beneath the feet of a master. He [Richard Harris] was very much into story telling and they were soaking up every bit of information."

Darryl was fascinated with the relationship between Kenneth Branagh, Alan Rickman and veteran screen legend Richard Harris, adding:

"That was interesting because they were almost in awe of him. He was obviously a great, great star and that was fascinating to see that they were like little boys [in his presence]."

Saturday, August 11, 2012

A Brit a Day (#853)

Sir Ken and all the porn that appeals to us women of a certain age--the scruff, the open shirt, the hand with a wedding ring. Thank you, Wallander!

Friday, August 10, 2012

A Brit a Day (#852)

This is how I always think Tom Hiddleston looks .....even when he doesn't.

Thursday, August 9, 2012

A Brit a Day (#851)

Henry Ian Cusick and his lovely wife Annie.

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

A Brit a Day [#850]

By special request--Matt Smith in a breezy summer-weight dress, a nightgown, or a slip, I honestly don't know which.  Garments tend to lose their function when they lose their form.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

A Brit a Day [#849]



                                              by linda marie anson

                                                by vimessy

It's Hiddles in extra fine fan-art form again, and this week I chose four excellent manifestations of four equally excellent characters:  top to bottom, Captain Nicholls, Loki Laufeyson, Prince Hal, and King Henry V.  One could argue that the last two are the same character--we who've seen 'The Hollow Crown' just got lucky, it's not always that way.

Monday, August 6, 2012

A Brit a Day [#848]


Somebody's tumblr [not mine] paired these two items.  Not safe for those who are prone to weeping.  Seriously, what a beautiful poem, with a narrative aimed directly at John Watson's heart.

Sunday, August 5, 2012

A Brit a Day [#847]

Something came up yesterday that caused me to think of this picture, and I thought 'What the heck, I'll post it for Sunday'.

Saturday, August 4, 2012

A Brit a Day [#846]

 
I've often wondered who was the object of Bruce Wayne's intense gaze in this still [above].  Now, thanks to Sheisdelirium on Tumblr, I know that it is Harvey Dent.

Friday, August 3, 2012

A Brit a Day [#845]

I have over 200 pictures of Tom Hiddleston saved on my computer now, and it is actually a source of anxiety that I am supposed to pick just one or two to post on Fridays.  But both the GIF of the hair people messing with him and the promotional photo from 'The Hollow Crown' are pretty sweet, real stand-outs.

He's quite wrapped around Miss Tearsheet, there.  And here I thought all the snogging was just for show.


Thursday, August 2, 2012

A Brit a Day [#844]

I was taken for a stroll down memory lane recently by an article I read online asserting that Desmond is a remake of the character Doctor Who.  This screen cap from 'Happily Ever After' was used among the supporting documents, and it caught my fancy because I don't think I've ever seen a still from this scene that didn't have the fish-eye lens look.  MRI's are cramped spaces, so that's understandable, but I much prefer the proportions of Desmond's face in this shot before he enters the chamber.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

A Brit a Day [#843]

Matt Smith, uncharacteristically restrained.

Looking at this wonderful headshot, it's hard for me to process that I have pictures of him [from a theatrical production] wearing women's undergarments.