Swansea!or,I am increasingly bald!or,Too Much Television!

Last week the British Mathematical Colloquium was held at lovely Swansea University. I say lovely because, although Swansea itself is somewhat thrillfree, the university is situated right next to an expansive beach. I forcibly recreated the Summer 2005 vibe by making people join me on the beach for a ramshackle game of ultimate frisbee. This, despite the rising tide steadily eroding the pitch/court, was something of a success that, coupled with my knowing how to find the pub, made some people think that I was the whirling centre of all things social -- an accusation that anyone who really knows me can easily dismiss. The talks were really quite variable, which was a shame, but hardly surprising given the nature of the BMC. There was still enough good stuff -- and nice people to talk to -- to make it worthwhile.

Someone with a camera took some photos during the conference, and on the right you can see an especially lovely one of me. We Sheffield folk do indeed leave marks. Followers of the previous link will see that this brings us squarely to the post's second subject: my increasing baldiness. One day I will shave it all off (well, I will shave the remainder off), but I am wary of the reaction. Although lots of people think it would be just fine, others desperately want me to do it for reasons of hilarity, while others (whose opinion I dismiss) think it would be very ugly indeed. What do you think?

Finally the most important topic of all: Television. Since moving to Sheffield I now have i) a living room, ii) digital television, and iii) a housemate who also likes the telly. Together, these things mean that I spend an unhealthy amount of time in front of the box. The latest catastrophe reared its ugly head on the comments to the last post. This is Any Dream Will Do which I'll try to explain:

Each week Graham Norton introduces a troupe of hand-picked "Josephs" (singing dancing posing prettyboys) each of whom sings a song to impress "The Judges" (a leering Denise Van Outen and three other somebodies from musical theatre), "The Lord" (Andrew Loyd Webber propped on a gold-spangled throne like a malevolent dogfaced marionette) and of course "you at home". Votes are cast and one Joseph gets binned. Rinse and repeat.

Of course this sounds like horror stacked upon horror. I suppose it is. But somehow each element is carried off with something approaching charm and the whole thing adds up to a very enjoyable bit of telly. Plus you get to shout at the ones you hate.

Why is this my life?