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Pipedown (campaign)
The Pipedown Campaign for Freedom from Piped Music, or simply Pipedown, is a UK-based environmental campaign founded in 1992 by the author and environmentalist Nigel Rodgers that opposes the practice of playing background music (''piped'' music) in public establishments. It has links with the sister group in Germany (Lautsprecher aus [loudspeakers out]) and other countries. In Scotland there is a sister group Quiet Scotland, so named because the term "piped music" sounds too similar to "Bagpipes, pipe music" to Scottish ears. The campaign fights background music in public places such as hospitals, libraries, swimming pools, pubs, shops and restaurants. Its literature describes unwanted piped music, also often called elevator music, "Muzak" or canned music, as any music piped without pause through a room or building where people have gone for reasons other than to listen to it. It emphasizes that it does not distinguish between different types of music, saying that all music is de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The UK includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland, and most of List of islands of the United Kingdom, the smaller islands within the British Isles, covering . Northern Ireland shares Republic of Ireland–United Kingdom border, a land border with the Republic of Ireland; otherwise, the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel, the Celtic Sea and the Irish Sea. It maintains sovereignty over the British Overseas Territories, which are located across various oceans and seas globally. The UK had an estimated population of over 68.2 million people in 2023. The capital and largest city of both England and the UK is London. The cities o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aldi
Aldi (German pronunciation: ), stylised as ALDI, is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 12,000 stores in 18 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946, when they took over their mother's store in Essen. The business was split into two separate groups in 1960 that later became Aldi Nord (initially Northern West Germany), headquartered in Essen, and Aldi Süd (initially Southern West Germany), headquartered in neighbouring Mülheim. In 1962, they introduced the name Aldi (a syllabic abbreviation for "Albrecht Diskont"). In Germany, Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd have been financially and legally separate since 1966, although both divisions' names may appear as if they were a single enterprise with certain store brands or when negotiating with contractor companies. Each company is owned and operated independently, but they do have contractual business with one another. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Claire Tomalin
Claire Tomalin (née Delavenay; born 20 June 1933) is an English journalist and biographer known for her biographies of Charles Dickens, Thomas Hardy, Samuel Pepys, Jane Austen and Mary Wollstonecraft. Early life Tomalin was born Claire Delavenay on 20 June 1933 in London, the daughter of English composer Muriel Herbert and French academic Émile Delavenay. Education Tomalin was educated at Hitchin Girls' Grammar School, a former state grammar school in Hitchin in Hertfordshire, at Dartington Hall School, a former boarding-school in Devon, and at Newnham College, Cambridge. Career * In 1974 she published her first book ''The Life and Death of Mary Wollstonecraft'', which won the Whitbread Book Award. Since then she has published: * '' Shelley and His World'' (1980) * ''Katherine Mansfield: A Secret Life'' (1987) *''The Invisible Woman: The Story of Nelly Ternan and Charles Dickens'' (1990) NCR Book Award, Hawthornden, James Tait Black Prize. Now a film * '' Mrs Jord ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jake Wallis Simons
Jacob Timothy Wallis Simons (born 1978 or 1979) is a British columnist, broadcaster and foreign correspondent. Born in London, he graduated with a first class degree in English from St Peter's College, Oxford, before completing a PhD in creative writing at the University of East Anglia in 2009. He writes a regular column for ''The Telegraph'' and his work also features frequently in the ''Spectator'' and the ''New York Post''. He also writes regularly for the ''The Jewish Chronicle'', of which he was formerly Editor, and maintains an online newsletter. Previously, he was a freelance features writer for the ''Times'' and a broadcaster for BBC Radio 4, presenting documentaries and appearing on ''From Our Own Correspondent''. He then joined the ''Sunday Telegraph'' before leaving to become Associate Global Editor at the ''Daily Mail''. He has won a number of prizes for his journalism, including a Webby award and a European Newspapers Award for his 2014 long read for the ''Telegrap ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prunella Scales
Prunella Margaret Rumney West Scales (''née'' Illingworth; born 22 June 1932) is an English retired actress. She portrayed Sybil Fawlty, the bossy wife of Basil Fawlty (John Cleese), in the BBC comedy ''Fawlty Towers'' and Queen Elizabeth II in Alan Bennett's '' A Question of Attribution'' ('' Screen One'', BBC 1991), for which she was nominated for a British Academy Television Award. She was also twice nominated at the Laurence Olivier Awards, in 1980 for ''Make and Break'' and in 1990 for ''Single Spies''. Additionally, she appeared in the documentary series '' Great Canal Journeys'' (2014–2021), travelling on narrowboats with her husband and fellow actor Timothy West. Early life Scales was born in Sutton Abinger, Surrey, the daughter of John Richardson Illingworth, a cotton salesman who served as a lieutenant with the Wiltshire Regiment in the First World War, and with the Auxiliary Military Pioneer Corps in the Second World War, and Catherine, née Scales, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mark Rylance
Sir David Mark Rylance Waters (; born 18 January 1960) is an English actor, playwright and theatre director. He is known for his roles on stage and screen, having received numerous awards including an Academy Award, three BAFTA Awards, two Olivier Awards and three Tony Awards. In 2016 he was included in the ''Time'' 100 list of the world's most influential people. In 2017 he was made a knight by Queen Elizabeth II. He was the first artistic director of Shakespeare's Globe in London, between 1995 and 2005. After training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, he made his professional debut at the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow in 1980. He appeared in the West End productions of ''Much Ado About Nothing'' in 1994 and ''Jerusalem'' in 2010, winning the Olivier Award for Best Actor for both. He has also appeared on Broadway, winning three Tony Awards: two for Best Actor for '' Boeing Boeing'' in 2008 and ''Jerusalem'' in 2011, and one for Best Featured Actor for ''Twelft ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Simon Rattle
Sir Simon Denis Rattle (born 19 January 1955) is a British conductor with German citizenship. He rose to international prominence during the 1980s and 1990s, while music director of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (1980–1998). Rattle was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic from 2002 to 2018, and music director of the London Symphony Orchestra from 2017 to 2023. He has been chief conductor of Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra since September 2023. Among the world's leading conductors, in a 2015 ''Bachtrack'' poll, he was ranked by music critics as one of the world's best living conductors. Rattle is also the patron of Birmingham Schools' Symphony Orchestra, arranged during his tenure with CBSO in the mid-1990s. The Youth Orchestra is now under the auspices of charitable business Services for Education. He received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music in 2001 at the Classic Brit Awards. Biography Early life Simon Rattle was born in Liver ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Philip Pullman
Sir Philip Nicholas Outram Pullman (born 19 October 1946) is an English writer. He is best known for the fantasy trilogy ''His Dark Materials''. The first volume, ''Northern Lights'' (1995), won the Carnegie Medal(Carnegie Winner 1995) . Living Archive: Celebrating the Carnegie and Greenaway Winners. . Retrieved 9 July 2012. and later the " Carnegie of Carnegies". [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joanna Lumley
Dame Joanna Lamond Lumley (born 1 May 1946) is an Indian-born British actress, presenter, author, television producer, activist and former model. She has won two BAFTA TV Awards for her role as Patsy Stone in the BBC sitcom ''Absolutely Fabulous'' (1992–2012) and was nominated for the 2011 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for the Broadway theatre, Broadway revival of ''La Bête (play), La Bête''. In 2013, she received the Special Recognition Award at the National Television Awards and in 2017 she was honoured with the BAFTA Fellowship award. Lumley's other television credits include ''The New Avengers (TV series), The New Avengers'' (1976–1977), ''Sapphire & Steel'' (1979–1982), ''Sensitive Skin (British TV series), Sensitive Skin'' (2005–2007), ''Jam & Jerusalem'' (2006–2008) and ''Finding Alice'' (2021–present). She also as played Elaine Perkins in ''Coronation Street'' in 1973. Her film appearances include ''On Her Majesty's Secret Service (film), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Julian Lloyd Webber
Julian Lloyd Webber (born 14 April 1951) is a British solo cellist, conductor and broadcaster, a former principal of Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and the founder of the In Harmony music education programme. Early years and education Julian Lloyd Webber is the second son of the composer and music educator William Lloyd Webber and his wife, Jean Johnstone (a piano teacher). He is the younger brother of the composer Andrew Lloyd Webber. The composer Herbert Howells was his godfather. He won a scholarship to the Royal College of Music in 1968 and completed his studies with Pierre Fournier in Geneva in 1973. Career Lloyd Webber made his professional debut as a cellist at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, in September 1972 when he gave the first London performance of the cello concerto by Sir Arthur Bliss. Throughout his career, he has collaborated with a wide variety of musicians, including conductors Yehudi Menuhin, Lorin Maazel, Neville Marriner, Georg Solti, Yevgeny Sv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stephen Fry
Sir Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator and writer. He came to prominence as a member of the comic act Fry and Laurie alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of Fry & Laurie'' (1989–1995) and ''Jeeves and Wooster'' (1990–1993). He also starred in the sketch series ''Alfresco (TV series), Alfresco'' (1983–1984) with Laurie, Emma Thompson, and Robbie Coltrane, and in ''Blackadder'' (1986–1989) alongside Rowan Atkinson. Since 2011 he has served as president of the mental health charity Mind (charity), Mind. In 2025, he was Knight Bachelor, knighted for services to mental health awareness, the environment and charity. Fry's film acting roles include playing Oscar Wilde in the film ''Wilde (film), Wilde'' (1997), for which he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama, Golden Globe Award for Best Actor; Inspector Thompson in Robert Altman's murder mystery ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alfred Brendel
Alfred Brendel (born 5 January 1931) is a Czech-born Austrian classical pianist, poet, author, composer, and lecturer who is noted for his performances of Mozart, Schubert and Beethoven. Biography Brendel was born in Wizemberk, Czechoslovakia (now Loučná nad Desnou, Czech Republic) to a non-musical family. They moved to Zagreb, Yugoslavia (now Croatia), when Brendel was three years old and he began piano lessons there at the age of six with Sofija Deželić. He later moved to Graz, Austria, where he studied piano with Ludovica von Kaan at the Graz Conservatory and composition with Artur Michel. Towards the end of World War II, the 14-year-old Brendel was sent back to Yugoslavia to dig trenches. After the war, Brendel composed music as well as continued to play the piano, to write and to paint. But he never had more formal piano lessons and, although he attended master classes with Edwin Fischer and Eduard Steuermann, was largely self-taught after age 16. Aged 17, Brendel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
