The Steeple Times

Category: MOVERS & SHAKERS

The snakes and ladders of society.

A chronicle of drama, scandal and success in London, Paris, New York and elsewhere

  • Zach Tinker – What’s on your mantelpiece?

    Zach Tinker – What’s on your mantelpiece?

    A 20-question interview with American actor and star of NBC’s ‘Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders’ Zach Tinker

     

    The Steeple Times shares “wit and wisdom”. What’s your guiding force?

    My gut and my heart.

     

    “Don’t get even, get medieval” is, in our humble opinion, a great motto. What’s yours?

    “Kill ‘em with kindness.”

     

    Kerry Katona was considered unacceptable in 2007. Who or what is unacceptable in 2017?

    To be frank, I had no idea who Kerry Katona is so I looked her up. I also searched “Kerry Katona 2007,” but couldn’t find anything besides some stuff about her being on drugs and held up at knifepoint: I feel like I’m getting off track here.

     

    I would say bigotry is unacceptable in 2017. It’s a distraction. There is so much going on right now that could end really badly and that’s where our focus should be, not on looking for someone else to blame because of their colour or gender or religion.

     

    Tony Blair misses being Prime Minister. What do you miss most in your life?

    Only at certain times, but I miss being a little kid: Ignorance is bliss.

     

    What might you swap all your wealth for?

    More wealth. I’m kidding: Probably the ability to fly.

     

    Donald Trump was once a case of: “If you owe the bank a thousand, they close you down; but if you owe the bank a billion, you own the bank”. What’s your view on the state of the financial system?

    I am probably not the one to ask: I’m 23 and just starting to deal with the state of my own economy. But it seems logical that the world is a better place if more people can participate, when we all feel like we have a stake in the outcome.

     

    What phrase or word do you most loathe?

    “The proof is in the pudding” – I’ve never understood what the hell that means. On a more positive and sort of related note,my favourite word is “goop.”

     

    In the UK, some people consider charity to “begin at home”. What’s your view and what causes do you personally support?

    I think: “Charity begins at need” – That seems more relevant, especially with the horrible string of natural disasters that have occurred around the world recently.

     

    From elementary school through college, charity and volunteering was built in to the education curriculum, so that made it easy and I was very involved in with Camp Harmony. It is a well-run programme to support under privileged children from inner cities, the homeless and troubled families. They host summer camps, winter camps, holiday events, do food drives, back to school drives, support mentorships… I volunteered there for five or six years and it’s one of the most incredible and rewarding experiences I’ve ever had. Sadly, I haven’t been very active in that community for the past few years because of my schedule, but to anyone living in Los Angeles, I couldn’t recommend the programme enough.

     

    The judge in Law Abiding Citizen states: “I can pretty much do whatever I want” before being blown up whilst answering her mobile phone. What’s your view on the appropriate use of such devices?

    If the question is: “What is my view on the appropriate use of cell phones that explode?” I would probably say, never. They are crazy dangerous, plus I heard their network coverage is terrible.

     

    When it comes to regular old mobile phones, I think in general, just don’t be a dick. I know that sounds flip, but most of us know when phone use is not okay: Don’t text and drive; don’t talk on the phone in a movie theatre and don’t FaceTime at a funeral.

     

    If you could fill a carriage on The Orient Express, who would be your fellow passengers?

    Michael Jordan, Lincoln, Marlon Brando, Will Smith, Paul McCartney, Frank Sinatra, Eminem, MLK, Louis CK, Dave Chappelle and my mother’s father. He passed away when my mom was seven and I’d like to meet him and say thank you.

     

    If you were unfortunate enough to end up on death row, what would be your last meal and where would you eat it?

    A bucket of Ben & Jerry’s half-baked half-twisted ice cream, my grandma’s Italian chicken cutlets, a jar of Skippy Peanut Butter, a box of Captain Crunch Berries with 2% milk, a PB&J sandwich on whole wheat, and a slice of Susie Cakes’ red velvet cake for dessert. Oh, and a big bottle of lemon-lime Gatorade to wash it down. I would eat it in prison, presumably, since I’m on death row.

     

    What time is it acceptable to consume the first drink of the day?

    I don’t drink regularly, but that’s mostly about fitness. I’m not judging, but first thing after you wake up is probably not the best idea. Otherwise, sometimes a drink is just what the doctor ordered; I get it.

     

    A Negroni, a martini or a cup of tea?

    Tea, but I’ll need two packs of Stevia in there first.

     

    Whose parties do you enjoy the most and why?

    Small ones: I like when gatherings are intimate, where I can have conversations with people and get to know them.

     

    Who is the most positive person you know?

    Probably my step-dad, Ken Karman.

     

    What’s your most guilty pleasure?

    The TV show My Strange Addiction. That show is insane. All those kinds of shows: Intervention, Cops, etc. They’re trash TV, I know, but God are they entertaining to watch.

     

    If a tattoo were to sum you up, what would it be of?

    Hmmm… A piece of chocolate candy, maybe: Sweet with a slightly hard exterior and a soft and gooey inside.

     

    If you were a car, what marque would you be?

    I’d like to say a Ferrari or Lambo, but I’m probably more like a 2005 Mazda Miata or something.

     

    Cilla Black presented Surprise, Surprise. Tell us the most surprising thing about you.

    I almost bit my own tongue off as a child and had to have it sewn back on while conscious and awake.

     

    What’s currently sitting on your mantelpiece?

    There is no actual mantelpiece in my tiny studio apartment, but I do have out on display an award my grandfather received from the NBC television network, a book about Marlon Brando, the graphic novel, Watchmen and a bottle of acne medication (left that out, unintentionally).

     

    Actor Zach Tinker was born in New York in 1994 into a family of directors, writers and producers. He is the first of his family to work in front of the camera and currently appears in the NBC series ‘Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders’ as Craig Cignarelli, a classmate of Erik Menéndez .

     

    Follow Zach Tinker on Twitter at @ZachTinker and on Instagram at @zach_atticus.

     

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVcw6H2MA8E

  • Avoidable Ignominy

    Avoidable Ignominy

    Hillary Clinton clutching the chest of Harvey Weinstein represents a judgment choice as bad as that of Prince Andrew hanging out with Jeffrey Epstein

     

    In 2012, Hillary Clinton was excruciatingly pictured with her hands on the chest of the movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.

     

    The now alleged “violator of women” Weinstein was yesterday described by Heidi Stevens in the Chicago Tribune as someone “contemptible” and “stomach churning.” With such, the image now places Mrs Clinton in the same class as Prince Andrew when it comes to bad choices as to who to be photographed with.

     

    Avoidable Ignominy – Hillary Clinton clutching chest of Harvey Weinstein represents a judgment choice as bad as Prince Andrew hanging out with Jeffrey Epstein.
    Prince Andrew with Jeffrey Epstein in Central Park, New York in 2011 (after the latter’s release from jail)

     

    Whilst a picture of the Queen’s son strolling in Central Park with the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein after his release from jail will continue to haunt him, it seems Weinstein’s alleged violations against women date back decades and were also extremely well-known.

     

    What on earth was Mrs Clinton thinking? Surrounded by advisers and no doubt warned off, the allure of money can plainly only be the answer. If it stinks, it stinks and plainly the now failed presidential candidate chose to ignore just that.

     

  • An Excess of Alexa

    An Excess of Alexa

    ‘Mail on Sunday’ get a little beyond carried away with their latest toady description of Alexa Chung

     

    ‘Fashionista’ Alexa Chung, as we’ve suggested previously, is probably a perfectly nice person. However, though she’s lauded by the metropolitan elite, nobody in Newcastle likely gives a damn and frankly, on that basis, we cannot fathom why she generates so many column inches.

     

    In an article in today’s Mail on Sunday, ‘showbiz reporter’ Lily Waddell listed Miss Chung as:

     

    “Fashion royalty”

     

    “The belle of the ball”

     

    “The biggest designer name of the moment”

     

    “A style maven”

     

    “A starlet”

     

    And finally: “A fashion genius”

     

    We would go as far to suggest that this is quite possibly the worst example of toadiness we’ve seen in months. Could Ms Waddell have been after a free outfit?

     

  • Hammering Harris

    Hammering Harris

    Two works by paedophile Rolf Harris withdrawn from auction whilst one of a baby remains for sale online

     

    In the wake of his conviction in 2014 for abusing women and girls as young as 8 years old, many of the frankly crap paintings by the repugnant monster Rolf Harris were burnt by those who’d bought them.

     

    On Saturday, however, the Sunderland Echo revealed that an auction house in East Boldon, Tyne & Wear had listed two works by the evil jailbird and were due to sell them today with estimates of just £20 to £40 and £50 to £80.

     

    In response to questions on what made the convicted paedophile Harris’ works worthwhile to auction and who the likely buyer would be from The Steeple Times, Boldon Auctions did not answer. A spokesman for the firm simply remarked: “No, sorry, withdrawn and collected by client” and refused to comment further.

     

    Elsewhere, on the Preloved.co.uk website, an especially inappropriate signed work by Harris is being marketed. Titled ‘Innocence’, the signed print is one of 695 and shows an image of a baby. Why on earth anyone would want such on their wall is beyond comprehension.

     Hammering Harris – Two works by paedophile Rolf Harris withdrawn from an auction in Tyne & Wear whilst one of a baby remains for sale online.

  • Hero of the Hour – Farhad Neda

    Hero of the Hour – Farhad Neda

    Farhad Neda rescued his disabled mother from the 23rd floor of the Grenfell Tower; they are the only survivors from the penultimate level of the building

     

    Whilst others headed upwards tragically wrongly thinking a helicopter would rescue them, 23rd floor resident of the Grenfell Tower 24-year old Farhad Neda realised the best course of action was to get his disabled mother out.

     

    Ignoring the advice of his neighbours, Neda – a mechanical engineering graduate and former hotel receptionist originally from Kabul, Afghanistan – hoisted his mother above his shoulders and completed a 240-foot descent to safety. He had to negotiate bodies in the stairwell and on reaching safety, both he and his mother lapsed into comas.

     

    Neda – whose father sadly died after jumping from the burning inferno – told Channel 4 News last night that it was a “miracle” that he and his mother were the only people to survive from the level of the 24-floor building where they lived. He is a genuine hero and should be saluted as such.

     

  • Gaining a Lambo (or five)

    Gaining a Lambo (or five)

    Convoy of five yellow Lamborghinis spotted cruising around Kensington and Chelsea

     

    Someone once said: “Work until you feel a Lamborghini is cheap” and plainly the owner of a convoy currently in London has exactly that attitude.

     

    Pictured here on Brompton Road opposite the former premises of La Brasserie, a fleet of five yellow examples of these supercars has been seen driving around Kensington and Chelsea in recent days. Plainly, if indeed the vehicles belong to one owner, here is a man living by the opposite mantra of Oscar Wilde’s: “To lose one parent may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness.”

     

    Truly, however, most people would argue such a noticeable convoy to be nothing other than ostentatious. Get them parked!

     

  • Hero of the Hour – David Cornwell

    Hero of the Hour – David Cornwell

    Novelist David Cornwell (AKA John le Carré) speaks sense on the elite, Brexit and Donald Trump

     

    David Cornwell – better known as the novelist John le Carré – gave a rare interview in yesterday’s The Sunday Times. In it, he spoke candidly and revealed his beliefs that Brexit is something he “despises” and that Donald Trump “is such a horse’s arse.”

     

    In the interview Cornwell told the paper’s Bryan Appleyard:

     

    “Surely the definition of a decent society is: one, how it chooses its elite; and, two, how it looks after its losers. Now we choose our elite horribly badly and, as long as private education commands the scene, don’t talk to me about levelling the playing field — the social contract is bust in this country.”

     

    “We’re getting people who start their political careers at university and go in as special assistants to MPs, like those ridiculous people who were advising May [Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill]. We are run by the wrong elite.”

     

    “I understand why people who are socially deprived, with the safety net taken away from them and treated as second-class citizens, have every right to vote for some other dream. I understand that, and I understand it needs a desperate remedy, and fast, but Brexit isn’t the answer.”

     

    Of Trump, he added:

     

    “The Russian-Ukrainian money trail is the one that, combined with collusion in Russian electoral tampering, will, with luck, nail him.”

     

    Cornwell is spot on all scores and we salute him.

     

    ‘A Legacy of Spies’ by John le Carré is out on Thursday (Viking, £20). Pre-order from Amazon for £9.50 by clicking here.

     

  • Picture of the Week – The Lack of Appeal of ‘The Half Biscuit’

    Picture of the Week – The Lack of Appeal of ‘The Half Biscuit’

    Facebook group mocks racist online abuser Viscount St Davids as he returns to the clink

     

    On Friday, the dimwitted ‘half biscuit’ 4th Viscount St Davids – also known as amongst other things Rhodri Philipps and Baron Strange of Knockin – was returned to jail after attempting and then dropping an appeal against a sentence for malicious communications.

     

    Thrice bankrupt Philipps, whose sentence of 12 weeks could have been extended if his appeal had failed, was rightly slapped with increased costs by Deborah Taylor, the recorder of Westminster sitting at Southwark Crown Court, and later mocked on Facebook by the group ‘Pants to Brexit’. We share their image here and suggest it summary of what decent people everywhere think of the views of this reprehensible bigoted scumbag criminal.

     

  • Congratulations Bill

    Congratulations Bill

    ‘Songwriter to the Stars’ Bill Martin to perform for first time at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe; he will enlighten his audience about his successful career

     

    Glasgow born Bill Martin MBE – whose chart topping hits have included Congratulations, Puppet on a String and Shang-A-Lang – is performing a nightly show at The Dome during this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe this August.

     

    Pop songwriting legend Martin, who has worked with amongst others The Bay City Rollers, Cilla Black, Elvis Presley, Sandie Shaw, Midge Ure and Ken Dodd, will “tell the untold stories behind working with some of the biggest names in the music industry.”

     

    Of his Fringe show, five times Ivor Novello winner Martin – whose autobiography Congratulations, Songwriter to the Stars will be launched at the end of the month also – told The Steeple Times:

     

    “I have been writing songs for a long time and throughout my career I’ve had the honour of working with many musical icons – and with that comes a lot of anecdotes.”

     

    “I was the first Brit to write a Eurovision winning song back in 1967, and since then I have never looked back. I’m proud of having had number ones in every country in the world and this is an achievement that will continue to keep pushing me.”

     

    “Those who know me will be able to tell you that I don’t hold back and therefore my show will be a bit of a reveal-all of what it was like working with the biggest names in the business, especially during the Sixties and Seventies when the music scene was really vibrant.”

     

    “This is the first time I have appeared at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and I can’t wait to get started. Over the past few years I have travelled the world on Cunard cruise ships with the show and now it’s time to bring it home to Scotland.”

     

    To book tickets, priced at £12.50, to the nightly (excluding Mondays) event click here. The show runs until 27th August at The Dome, George Street, Edinburgh, EH2 2PF and is an hour long (8.15pm to 9.15pm).

     

  • Calmed Down Cameron

    Calmed Down Cameron

    David Cameron snapped ‘Hugging a Corbyn’ after he’s revealed to have a ‘Calm Down – It’s Only a Recession’ in his kitchen and a £25,000 shepherd’s hut in his garden

     

    David Cameron is plainly enjoying life to the full. Not only has he been rewarded with a huge literary advance after walking away after calling the disastrous and divisive Brexit referendum, but now he’s got time to sit in a shepherd’s hut in his garden and attend posh music festivals.

     

    Not for ‘Call Me Dave’ will it be necessary to put in a presence in a wheat field in Norfolk to support Theresa May and her garden gnome-like hubby at the forthcoming ‘Conservative Ideas Festival’, but instead him and ‘Sam Cam’ are now able to find time to attend parties at Christie’s and holiday in Miami, Florida.

     

    Cameron – who was widely criticised for having a sign in his kitchen that reads: “Calm Down Dear, It’s Only a Recession” – spent time this weekend at the Wilderness Festival at Cornbury Park in Oxfordshire. He was spotted drinking, smoking and even got snapped with his arm casually wrapped around an art consultant named Lucy Edwards. For him it seems, it’s no longer “Hug a Hoodie” but now instead “Hug a Corbyn.” In the picture, Ms. Edwards sported a ‘glitter coat’ emblazoned with a heart complete with the Labour leader’s name.

     

    Calmed Down Cameron – David Cameron snapped ‘Hugging a Corbyn’ after he’s revealed to have a ‘Calm Down – It’s Only a Recession’ in his kitchen and a £25,000 shepherd’s hut in his garden
    David Cameron pictured in his Oxfordshire kitchen; the ‘Calm Down – It’s Only a Recession’ sign is circled to his right
    Calmed Down Cameron – David Cameron snapped ‘Hugging a Corbyn’ after he’s revealed to have a ‘Calm Down – It’s Only a Recession’ in his kitchen and a £25,000 shepherd’s hut in his garden
    In purchasing the sign, Cameron, shown here with his £25,000 shepherd’s hut, was plainly inspired by the late, great Michael Winner