HAPPY HALLOWEEN

...Or, if you're a Goth, MERRY CHRISTMAS!


Oh, I'm off to see The Rocky Horror Show tonight. Swish!

If you want a laugh to to Ben Baker's page and check out his new show. He's very, very funny and you should give him a whirl. Go whirl him HERE.

UrRrGggGGhhH!
(The noise a zombie makes)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, H!

27 NON-CONFORMIST, GLORIOUSLY ECCENTRIC, YEARS.
LONG MAY YOU SAIL ON THE QUIRKY SEA OF RYE

Random FYI #1

I'm really crap at applying nail varnish. I've got it everywhere BUT my nails! Kudos to the ladies and gentlemen that do this full time.


And I did this between costume changes:

A - AVAILABLE: To the right person, yes.

B – BIRTHDAY: 14th December

C - CRUSH: Everyone is crushable

D - DAD'S NAME: David Harry Bate

E - EASIEST PERSON TO TALK TO: Stephanie. Lord knows, she's lent a sympathetic, non-judgemental ear to my masses of hang-ups. I Thank Blogger for allowing me to make such a great, supportive friend. Whatever happens, I hope she and I will be friends for a long, long time.

F - FAVORITE BAND: Sigur Ros

G - GUMMY BEARS OR GUMMY WORMS: Bears. They bounce here, there and everywhere...

H - HOMETOWN: Quarry Bank

I - INSTRUMENT: Drums or bass. I'm not very good at either but that doesn't stop most people from forming bands.

J - JUGGLE: I can juggle a little. It depends on my mood, the moon and what I'm juggling. I can't, for example, juggle cats or clowns. Small balls or items of fruit are easy enough.

K - KILLED SOMEONE: Would I be here doing this if I had? Knowing the British 'justice' system I probably would. I haven't killed anyone and I wouldn't want to. For some people it's harsher to LET them live.

L - LONGEST CAR RIDE: That day I went to Hell and back. I can't really answer this one.

M - MILKSHAKE FLAVOUR: Chocolate

N - NUMBER OF SIBLINGS: One younger brother and Sister. Both are far more grounded in relative reality than I am.

O - ONE WISH: To write films that get made that people will enjoy.

P - PERSON WHO CALLED ME LAST: My Mom to catch up on any film-related gossip and see if I was eating right.

Q. QUICKIE: I can't remember. I'm sure the next one will be a quickie too.

R - REASON TO SMILE: I have lots and they're usually incredibly trivial. I've just been looking at my cousins wedding pictures. My little niece and nephew are on there so it was a vertiable smile jackpot. I'm not sure about the pictures of me dancing, however.

S - SONG YOU LAST HEARD: Ryan Adams--Blue Hotel. I'm listening to The Hype Machine while I do my things on the computer.

T – Yes please. Milky and fun.

U - UNKNOWN FACT ABOUT ME: I'm secretly married to Natalie Portman for tax and kudos purposes. I think everyone knows waaay too much about me already. I'm fairly open.

V - VEGETABLE YOU HATE: Spinach is pretty horrible. Popeye was a liar; it didn't make me strong, it just made me heave.

W - WORST HABIT: Apparently, I apologise more than humanly nessicary for anything, everything and whatever else. I also have a habit of putting myself down for cheap laughs.

X - X-RAYS YOU'VE HAD: Quite a few, mostly for check up purposes. I used to get horrible side pains which turned out to be stress-related. I have pretty bad anxiety issues that I really should try and sort out properly.

Y - YOUR NUMBER OF CONTACTS ON MYSPACE: 180+ I get a lot of bands asking me to add them and I'm too nice to say no. It makes me look popular though.

Z- ZODIAC SIGN: Sagittarius........Wikipedia says...
Individuals born under this sign are thought to have a dynamic, ethical, humorous, generous, open-hearted, compassionate, and energetic character, but one which is also prone to pridefulness, foolishness, impulsiveness, impracticality, and superstition.

As my nine-to-five tries to pull me in one direction, the film pulls me further into another. Guess what's going to win? Guess what I've been concentrating on? Hmmm.....talk about your no-brainers!

Things are going well between myself and the would-be director. I worry that I will jinx it by blabbing about it too much to too many people. It's kind of like meeting someone new; things are going well but at any moment they could stop calling you for no apparent reason, thus making you appear foolish to the people you bragged too. So far, the chemistry is there and things are progressing.
My ideas seem to be welcome and worthwhile. The only really changes I've had to make thus far are tweaking the various parts of the script that contain references that are too British.

Other stuff:

* I'm concerned about a friend of mine who is having a rough ride with his girlfriend. She has been incredibly unfair of late and has exposed me to the dark side of relationships that I really don't miss. Is it so hard to take care of someone when they've had a rough day? It's really not is it? That's why you hook up with people; to care about someone other than yourself. My friend is doing a lot of caring and getting next-to-nothing in return. This worries me because he's a good soul who deserves something wonderful.

* The new Albert Hammond Jr record 'Yours To Keep' is a real gem. It's been on endless rotation since I brought it. That doesn't happen all that often. Give it a whirl if you get the chance.

* I'm going to see Neko Case at The Glee Club. Swish.

* It's been good to hear from Steve. I miss living with that guy. He was a ball of fun and there was never a dull moment when he was around. I miss watching wrestling on Saturday morning, Furiously competitive games of Amped 2 and our late night/early morning chats on the stairs. The reason there hasn't been another 'Guns and Buns' day this year? Steve isn't here. It's that simple.

Anyway, how the devil are you good, good people?

Matrimony and all that

This past weekend saw our family tree extended as my cousin got himself married and stuff. He's always been an inspiration and I've always looked up to him. Their wedding was both fun and educational. I learnt a lot about American matrimonial customs and took advantage of the free bar.
I loosened up enough to slow dance with a nice girl from Seattle, shoot the breeze with whoever wanted to make my acquaintance and dance to my cousin Dan's band. Natually, my adorable niece stole the show both at the wedding and the mini-holiday that bookended it. I love her enough to participate in a variety of embarrassing games at her behest (And win a badge out of pity) and throw myself into a large pool of plastic balls over and over again with reckless abandon.
My Gran took me aside at the wedding and said that she was proud of me. That meant a lot because I was feeling a little weirded out by the whole wedding. A small, nagging part of me was filled with envy and a concern that I will never get a chance to do it myself.
Anyway, my Gran said that the "Normal life" wasn't my thing and that she was proud of me for "taking risks" and not conforming when I didn't have to. if she thinks I'm going to succeed, how can I fail?
The bride's Brother's speech hit home too. He said that his Sister has taught him to "Never settle with anything less". My cousin risked everything to move to another country to start a life with the woman he truly loved. I'll remember that if/when I meet that special someone.
The whole weekend was like something out of 'Garden State'.

Bent Soul Style!

Okay, for those that care enough to keep coming back here; here is the news:

This past weekend I was contacted by a Mr Tom Lewis, editor of such films as The Water Boy, Goal, The Wedding Singer and the recent Jessica Simpson starrer 'Employee of the Month'

Tom Lewis likes 'Bent Soul'...A LOT. The back and forth emails have been very promising.

This is great news to say the very least.

I'm currently busy tweaking the script and making it more palitable for a wider audience. Those who have read and enjoyed the script, will be pleased to know that the back-and-forth banter is still there and it looks like it's in good hands.

The fact that a man of his clout dug the script so much is amazing, the fact that he wants to make it is some wonderful icing.

This is not a late April fool.

I cross all my hearts.

My head is been a blur of late; all these scary, exciting ideas that I can't seem to keep a lid on. Things seem to be chugging along but I'm like "Faster! Faster!" At some point I would love to start appreciating what I have now, rather than what could be in the future.

I was at the gig last night thinking about how I should be getting things done and how cool it must be to present yourself to an audience the way Ed Harcourt did. It made me feel a little lazy. Plus, the music kept giving me ideas of trailers, additional scenes and new stories. It would be nice to switch off sometimes but everything triggers something.

I emailed both 'Bent Soul' and 'Simplicity' interested parties to ask for detailed notes on what needed to be chopped/changed/whatever. I'm going through the drafts a little blind at the moment. 'Bent Soul' 'suffers' from being British so I need to know what references need to be changed to suit possible American audiences.

I need to keep on this because, after every bit of cool news (And last weekends news was the coolest so far), I have this rabid addiction to keep the feeling going. (

I also have the strongest urge to get back into doing silly music with Harry. After listening to Ryan Adams punk stuff, I got nostalgic for the times when H and I would just create something in a few minutes and laugh about it for a few hours.

"Dear, Makers of the movie 'Waiting..'

I would like 90 minutes of my life back.

Whatever,

Christopher Bate"

Hey/Sing Song Saturday

Things have been hella busy. So busy that I've started using 'street' slang.
The week has picked up after a lousy time in the office (and it's never a joy on the better days).
I've had some pretty cool news and I went to a toy shop with my Dad for the first time in 15 years (A HUGE Toys-R-US has opened near me and we were both curious). He saw his eldest son hug a man dressed as a giraffe. I hope you are all well and having good freakends, giraffe-filled or not.

Love and Stuff

Chris "sharp, witty and obtuse dialogue" Bate

Take it away, Chan

Anyone for a game of Rock Paper Scissors?

A Funday Kinda Monday

This past weekend was a busy one. A proper, full-on. what-life-is-all-about, flat-out freakend.
The house party was great fun; pool, darts and PS2 (I played the latter) soundtracked by Blair's collection of punk/ska CD's.
I haven't heard Offspring's 'Smash' for quite some time and I had forgotten how good they used to be. We had a bit of a sing-song and then I got destroyed on Smackdown Vs Raw by all-comers. I thought that was my game and my time to shine but, alas, I was unlucky.

I'm blaming the wine. Yes, it was the wine.

Actually, it wasn't even wine.

It was Lambrini.

Pints of it.

Different flavours.

People mock me for my choice of alcohol but it does the trick everytime.

Everything is a blur after that. The last thing I remember is Gaz putting a blanket over me whilst we all crashed out watching Family Guy season four.

I'd like to thank the hot and talented Sarah for the awesome new banner you see above. Swish, huh?

Mid Freakend Telegram

Have I really not made a post since Tuesday? Sheesh.

There is a reason for this. I wrote it down somewhere. I haven't been home since Wednesday because my Thursday night didn't stop and I've crashed on a couple of sofas. That trend will continue until tomorrow night when I can finally sleep in my own bed.

Thursday was pretty crazy. A pound a pint means that you can get Kerplunk drunk for very little money. Jeepers. Plus, I got there three hours before everyone else so I just sat in the corner, drinking and writing in my notebook. I managed to write a short script which, after I've deciphered the increasingly erratic short-hand, will type up and post somewhere.

I bumped into the girl I was seeing and that only confounded me further. Ladies, as much as I love you, you're very hard to read and this girl is a few chapters short of a good book.
I'm trying to date someone, not play treasure hunt.

Anyway, I spent a great deal of time talking about 'The Edge' and by 'Edge' I don't mean the chap from the overhyped stadium band u2, I mean the edge people lose when they give in to the 9 to 5 and dull partners. Like most people, I get all 'the world is mine' when I'm drunk...In a good way.

I'm more :) than :(

I was described by a good friend as 'restless' which, as silly it sounds, made me smile because I used to be referred to as 'generic' (In my relationship days)

I ended up killing zombies until the early hours. 'Dead Rising' is a great game. You can whack zombies with handbags and shoes. I wish I could do that to the people at my local mall.

Yesterday, a few hours of work stalled the fun stuff but it resumed after work when I went out with my awesome co-workers; Blair, Spicer, Portman, G-Money (His idea) and Dom. It was great to hang out with these chaps after work and it us all wonder why we a) haven't done it before and b) do it more often. A furiously competitive game of table football at the fifth bar caused us to commit to meeting up more often. Swish.

My friend Tom picked me up and I went to his house to catch up. I don't see all that much of Tom anymore and that bugs me. I used to blame his girl but that's lazy. She's sweet and I'm probably envious because, well, nothing is really sticking for me and they're happy with their young love and their i-mac.

Wine and banter finished the night off nicely.

Tonight, I'm going to a house in the middle of nowhere to G-Money's house with some of the chaps from last night, Aaron and whoever else tags along (One of whom used to be in 'The Grimleys', a short-lived 'comedy' about the area in which I live)

It's Crazy Horse.

I hope you are having a good freak end. Remember to eat well and hug your friends as and when the moment pleases ye. There's nothing wrong with spreading love, just diseases.

Love and Judo-Chops,

Chris

Nuclear Wessels

Blair and I try to recite the famous line from Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

Jinx makes a blink and miss cameo.

Fear of Cartoon Rabbits and Modern Hollywood

Last night, I was too tired to do anything after a packed weekend and a rock and roll, Ryan Adams Sunday. I decided to drink tea, veg out and try to relax. This is hard for me because I always like to be doing something. If I'm not writing or trying to 'forward myself' I feel like I'm letting myself down.
Last night, try as I might, I couldn't do anything except drink tea and veg out. My one regret about this is that, in my state of fatigue, I ended up watching a programme called 'The Fabulous Life of Hot Young Hollywood' which taught me a whole bunch of things, one of which was that I'm glad I'm not part of Hot Young Hollywood.
The programme contained Paris saying 'That's Hot' a lot (She even had a scooter that said that stupid catch phrase when she turned the handle bars). Honestly, Can you imagine me on your T.V screens, wearing stylish clothes and running 'Swish!' into the ground? If that ever happens, run up and slap me.

Hard.

I had to flip channels before I heard anymore on clothing lines, 'bling' and young Hollywood empires.

There it was, on Film Four, THAT DAMN RABBIT FILM...

..Watership Down..

People say that Bambi haunted them, the harsh parts of 'The Lion King' but they are NOTHING compared to the misery that is Watership Down. I remember sitting down to watch this 'childrens' flick when I was about three. I was horrified by the violence, horror and 'Bright Eyes' by Art Garfunkel (Which still gives me chills) I was so distraught that I dropped the hot soup I was eating all over my lap.

I have refused to watch that film ever since.

People (Including my ex) have tried to get me to watch the film again and I've always refused.

Last night, I saw a snippet of it and realised that, despite being older, it's still a horrible, depressing film. I actually saw the part that really got to me as a kid (Apart from the end *Shudder*): a wounded rabbit, trapped in a tunnel filled with his dead friends and family.

Suddenly, 'The Fabulous Life of Hot, Young Hollywood' didn't seem that bad.

Ryan Adams @ Shepherds Bush Empire

Despite being tired, sick and battling the usual band of heckling pricks, Ryan and his merry band rocked. They played these songs:

Tears Of Gold
Blue Hotel
Goodnight Rose
Cold Roses
Arkham Asylum
Nightbirds
Meadowlake Street
Mockingbird
Mellow
Let It Ride
Stella Blue
Magnolia Mountain
Easy Plateau
Dear John
A Kiss Before I Go> Wharf Rat>egyptology

London was fun. Thanks again to Stephanie for a great day in the city.

I'd write more but I'm so very tired. I got back from London at 3:30 this morning and I had to be at work for 9. Travelling takes it out of me...and I have a cold.

Nurse me somebody.