Andrew Marr

Diary – 17 December 2011

This is the time of year when we all need an epiphany or two. Mine came last week driving near Seville, where I’ve been filming. Far away, across the valley, I saw a vision. There was a tall figure, bathed in radiant light — light which both shimmered in two huge wings, yet also seemed to cascade upwards. The angel of the south? No, it turns out, not quite a Pauline moment. This was a solar tower onto which hundreds of mirrors beam sunlight, the rays turning water into steam and producing energy. It was very beautiful. It’s rare at my age that you see something you’ve never seen before and gives you a prickle of optimism.

Up to Bridlington to talk to David Hockney about his huge new RA show coming up in January. He makes an interesting point related (inevitably) to smoking. Having virtually criminalised the weed, the Americans have become addicted to pills. It’s true that the biggest difference between US commercial TV and ours comes in the ad breaks. They are relentlessly pushing pharmaceuticals of all kinds, to calm you, cheer you, impress your loved ones and make the sun shine more brightly. The result, posits Hockney, is a general mental slowing-down and zonked quality in the US. ‘It used to be like this,’ he says, snapping his fingers repeatedly, ‘fast, fast, fast’. No more. Maybe if the West wants to recover its mojo, the first thing to do is throw away the pill bottle.

Mind you, I say this as a Scot with a bleak streak, who believes in a bit of pain to get you through the day. Running in the park recently I fell head over heels (literally) after hitting a tree-root, and whacked my ribcage.

Already a subscriber? Log in

Keep reading with a free trial

Subscribe and get your first month of online and app access for free. After that it’s just £1 a week.

There’s no commitment, you can cancel any time.

Or

Unlock more articles

REGISTER

Comments

Don't miss out

Join the conversation with other Spectator readers. Subscribe to leave a comment.

Already a subscriber? Log in