Today's Happiness Experiment entry

The most beautiful Valentine's card from U

Lunchtime chat with Andy Phillips of Channel 4 Radio

A class opening goal from Berby in Prague

Today's Happiness Experiment entry

Walking round in a T-shirt at this time of the year - today's T: my Gil Scott-Heron one from that great Jazz Caff gig (Gil, hope you're peaceful wherever the fuck they've put you)



Watching the Big 4 start to come together under an autumn sun



Thinking about Steve

In the picture - yesterday's Happiness Experiment entry

Going to the pictures with my gal - Michael Clayton with George Clooney



Kick-off meeting for Medicine Men Online with Zam, Livio and Mike - very excited about this one



Walky talky via the Tate with Jonathan Holmes - a quick epic burst of John Martin

44 - yesterday's Happiness Experiment entry

Getting a card from the enfants terribles depicting a scene from DV8's Cost of Living film (commissioned by Jan Younghusband at Channel 4) - we all saw the film in the evening on the big screen at the Channel 4 Arts 25th Anniversary season at the Barbican



Meeting Malcolm Garrett at BAFTA, designer of Buzzcocks record sleeves and fellow student with Pete Saville in Manchester in the good old days



A birthday dinner outside the Barbican by the fountains, heron and reeds at sundown

Star spots #332

05/09 Jeremy Isaacs
06/09 the Irish fella from The IT Crowd
(ages ago) the curly haired geek from The IT Crowd
06/09 Victor Lewis Smith
(all in the office)

Star Spot #566 - Big Macs

Kevin McCloud of Grand Designs (at Channel 4)

Gus McDonald of Right to Reply (at Channel 4)

Empire of the Senses - Wednesday's Happiness Experiment entry

The launch of the Empire's Children website and series at the screening room of the Charlotte Street Hotel with its just-right red leather seats



Walking in the rain in a Mayfair mews



Revisiting Soho - echoes of those Solus days

A Numbers Game - yesterday's Happiness Experiment entry

Testing Human Footprint interactive - life in numbers



Finishing a good novel - Restless by William Boyd - partly by the Home Office building whose coloured glass features come into their own in bright sunshine



Watching Jazz Dispute on Germ

Not crap - Yesterday's Happiness Experiment entry

Brainstorming with Stuart Cosgrove and Tana Wollen - came up with Everything's Crap



Chewing the fat with researchers at Researcher Development Programme drinks



Bathtime with D the urchin

How you listen to music

"I can never hear lyrics. I've got a real dyslexia with lyrics."
Paul Abbott, scriptwriter of Channel 4's 'Shameless' on Desert Island Discs

It was interesting to hear this throw-away remark (I missed it when I listened to the first broadcast last weekend), interesting because I have a similar relationship to song lyrics. Strange for a lover of Dylan and similar but I really struggle to engage with lyrics in a whole or analytical way. They're more like part of an audio collage to me. Glints of light, a diamond spinning in the dark.

A good rounded choice from Mr Shameless punctuating a raw, honest, insightful and illuminating interview:

1.Good Vibrations
Performer The Beach Boys
Composer B Wilson-M Love

2.Ode to Billie Joe
Performer Bobbie Gentry
Composer Gentry

3.Sweet Soul Music
Performer Arthur Conley
Composer Conley/Cooke/Redong

4.Imagine
Performer John Lennon
Composer John Lennon

5.Children of the Revolution
Performer T Rex
Composer Marc Bolan

6.Town Called Malice
Performer The Jam
Composer Paul Weller

7.Video Lullaby
His son Tom Abbott with his band Kid4077

8.The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
Performer Roberta Flack
Composer Ewan MacColl

Record: Town Called Malice
Book: Complete works of Arthur Miller
Luxury: Writing pad and pencils

Particularly like his One Record - it's an explosive song, brilliantly exploited in 'Billy Elliott' - a kicking the wall song. Yes, really kicking. He zooms in on it as an expression of creative anger, constructive shouting, exactly as his writing is.