DODI'S VISION OF CHARIOTS OF FIRE

It is 31 years ago when Dodi Al Fayed had a vision of the movie “Chariots of Fire”.  He found this script for Chariots of Fire on a shelf at Goldcrest and it was covered with dust.  Since nobody was interested in it Dodi knew there was something special in it.

It is about two British athletes in the 1924 Paris Olympics and their struggles. Since it is a real-life story it connects with people straight away.

It was a co-produced by Allied Stars which is a film production company run by Mohamed’s son Dodi, Mr Al Fayed was praised for his investment because it would not have been possible to produced otherwise.

Mr Al Fayed, 83, commented on his son’s greatest achievement in his film production career. He said: “When Dodi first came across the script for Chariots of Fire it had been collecting dust on a shelf at Goldcrest because no one else wanted to invest in it.

“But Dodi was a film-maker of real vision and when he showed me the script I knew it was something very special.

“It was unlike any other film being made at the time: a story of loyalty, determination and standing up for what you believe in, refusing to be knocked down when everyone wants you to fail.

“These were principles Dodi and I shared. Principles I have lived my life by.”

The film Chariots of Fire was a great success and received an Oscar. It is now released again and to be seen on over 100 screen across the UK.

It is such a tragedy Dodi had to die in the car “accident” in Paris where also the still adored Princess Diana had to die. Both families must be heart broken. Although they carry on with their life as best they can but the loss is always there.

ANCIENT OLYMPIC GAMES

ANCIENT OLYMPIC STADIUM 
IN GREECE

The very first games of Olympia were held about 2,700 BC and it was sacred for the Greek religion.

The original stadium is near the port of Katakolon on the Greek Peloponnese. There are still ruins from the Gymnasium where athletes were training naked.  A posh hotel where the officials lived. Tradition will carry on. 

Close by the place where the temple of Zeus once stood and was part of the Seven Wonders of the World. Unfortunately it was destroyed by fire.

THE LIGHTING CEREMONY OF THE OLYMPIC TORCH  AT THE TEMPLE OF HERA

Next to it is the temple of Hera where the torch was lit for these Olympic Games. The Olympic fire was started by the Sun on May 10 on which the torch was lit and carried around till Friday when at the Opening Ceremony the Olympic 2012 fire at London will be lit.

The foundation for today’s modern Olympics was laid in 770 BC. The athletes had really been strong and tough.  They had to run a 186 metre sprint but with full battle gear. This means helmet, leg greaves, breastplate and carrying their shield and spears and weighs about 60lb made in bonze. Not to forget the high temperature of the Sun in August in Greece.

At the ancient Olympic stadium athletes competed in front of 45,000 spectators. They were seated on grassy banks. The word stadium came from the Greek word stadion which meant a unit of 600ft. Therefore the Olympia venue had a stadion length. Over the years it became known as stadium.

Looking at the picture it is hard to imagine and awe inspiring that Hercules was once standing there at the starting line.

Close by there is a museum showing all the wonders of a bygone age. There is a statue of Nike the goddess of victory and Hermes the gods’ messenger. The most remarkable treasure though is two helmets. One Persian and one a Greek general’s. They were worn at the battle of Marathon in 490BC. At the battle the eastern hordes of Darius were defeated by the Athens’ army.

The Olympic games very so important that any wars were stopped and the athletes were able to compete. 

In those days only males could compete as athletes and they had to be free Greeks. Whoever won was crowned with an olive wreath.

To keep the Gods happy during all these five-day events they killed 100 oxen on the middle day.

SHARK ALERT IN DEVON ENGLAND

GREAT WHITE SHARK ALERT 

UPDATE:  25 July 2013 -- In the last few weeks quite a number of killer sharks were spotted off the South Coast of England. It is due to the exceptional hot summer which made the sea warm up more and the herring followed down south. 


UPDATE September 5, 2012

A few weeks ago one was caught on the coast of Devon and a few days ago one at the coastal area of Scotland.

In recent years shark alerts are coming more and more frequent. Again there was a shark alert on North Devon coast.  One of the people was raising the alarm after spotting a shark fin close to the Croyde Bay.

The lifeguards of the RNLI advised people to get out of the water. The fin was seen so close that it was within the “safe swimmer zone.”

The Conservation charity ‘The Shark Trust’ doesn’t think it was a basking shark. Basking sharks are harmless and filter their food. They are called the “gentle giants”.

An RNLI spokesman said: “It’s not unusual for there to be sharks and while this species of basking sharks  is harmless, lifeguards maintain a watchful eye for all aquatic hazards.”

As mentioned earlier sharks seems to visiting British waters more frequently. The Conservationists and experts can’t quite agree to the reason for the increase.

At the beginning of the month, the Cornwall Wildlife Trust stated that the sharks were back in Cornish waters in greater numbers than they had seen them in the last summer.  They counted 28 sightings in June alone. They were basking sharks and they are known to be harmless.

GRETA GARBO

GRETA GARBO  1925

Greta Garbo (1905-1990) born in Stockholm, Sweden. Her real name was Greta Lovisa Gustafsson and she was the youngest of three. Her alluring look made her famous and she became a Hollywood legend in the 1920.

When she was 14 years of age her father died and she had to go out to work.

Garbo worked in a few low paid jobs in Stockholm. The saying is that when she was 16, Garbo had to turn down her first offer staring in a feature film. The reason, she wasn't allowed time off from the department where she was selling hats.

Her first film appearance was in 1922 in a film called Peter the Tramp and she played a bathing beauty.

Then she enrolled for two years at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm. She met a director Mauritz Stiller who taught her how to act in front of the camera. In 1924 Garbo appeared in the film 'The story of Goesta Berlings'.

After that Stiller and Garbo went to Hollywood and were signed up by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1925. She appeared in 27 films. The most memorable ones are 'The Torrent' in 1926, 'Love' in 1927, 'Anna Christie' in 1930 her first talkie, 'Queen Christina' in 1933, 'Anna Karenina' in 1935 and 'Camille' in 1936.

GRETA GARBO WITH HER MOTHER IN 1939

After Garbo became more and more famous, it put a strain on her and Stiller. Stiller was sacked and went back to Stockholm. He died three years later.

After very bad critics for the film in 'Two-faced Woman' in 1941 Garbo decided to retire and she was only 36 yeas old. From thereon she lived as a reclusive and refused any interviews.

Garbo tried to keep away from fame but was voted 'The Best Silent Actress of the Century' in 1950.

Greta Garbo died at the age of 84 in 15 April 1990 and she was cremated. After a long legal battle her ashes were sent to Stockholm and buried there. She was very wealthy because of wise investments along Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills and left her $20 million to her nice Gray Reisfield.

GRETA GARBO'S GRAVE

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