Globe December 2013

Globe Magazine Gibraltar

DECEMBER 2013Nº 131

GLOBE MAGAZINE DECEMBER 2013 7

Front Cover : The Christmas LightsPhotography by: Dominique Martinez-Lopez www.gibraltarfocus.com

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Globe Magazine Gibraltar

The views and opinions expressed by contributors to this magazine may not necessarily represent the views of the publishers.

CONDITIONS: Globe Magazine cannot accept responsabi-lity for the claims, goods or services of advertisers. The pu-blishers make every effort to ensure that the magazine’s contents are correct, but cannot accept responsibility for the effects of errors or omissions.

Nº 131 DECEMBER 2013

CONTENTS

CREDITS

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ARGUS GROUP BERMUDA REINFORCES ITS COMMITMENTWITH GIBRALTAR

LA MAMELA FIRM BELIEVERS IN THE HEALTHY MEDITERRANEAN DIET

THE NEW 2014 SUZUKI SWIFT 1.2L

TALK ABOUT TOWN FINALLY RETURNS TO OUR SCREENS

DANCE IN THE NEW YEAR WITH THE X-IT

FRENCH WINES ARE BACK MONSIEUR

JEAN-CLAUDE BOISSET WINERIES

JEAN-CLAUDE BOISSET – THE WINES SAMPLED

CHARITY STARTS AT HOME

BLOOD BROTHERS

HOSTING A CHRISTMAS DINNER

‘FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS’ KICKS OFF THE FESTIVE SEASON

THE BEST RECIPES OF OUR CUISINE

WHAT’S HAPPENING DOWN TOWN?

A CHRISTMAS DECORATION

THE DEVIL’S TONGUE

THE NEW BUZZ…..GIBRALTOGRAPHY

MISS PHOTOGENIC: JAMIELEE RANDALL

SO CONSEQUENTIAL AN ACT: 50 YEARS LATER JFK CONSPIRACY THEORIES ENDURE

ONE ON ONE WITH GINO SANGUINETTI

BEHIND THE IRON KNIGHT OF MALTA

WINTER CLUB WEAR

CHARLES DICKENS AND CHRISTMAS

ERRATUM In last month’s edition of Globe magazine, there was a mistake made concerning the photograph inserted at the bottom right-hand corner of the advertisement for ‘Bingo Imperial’ in which two ladies appear. This photo was not taken at the place being ad-vertised and the ladies did not give permission for it to be used for the said advertisement. Globe magazine apologizes for the error and the upset caused to these ladies.

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The Chairman of the Argus Group in Bermuda, Ms. Sheila Nicoll, emphasised the Group’s com-mitment to its presence in Gibraltar, which has been marked with a fur-ther investment in its premises on the Rock.

Speaking at the inauguration of the newly refurbished offices at Regal House, Ms. Nicoll said it was nine years since the initial investment in Europe had been made, and the Ar-gus Group was delighted with ope-rations in Gibraltar. She said there were many similarities between Gibraltar and Bermuda, namely a rich heritage and British history, but another important likeness was

Argus Group Bermuda reinforces it’s commitment to Gibraltar

the commitment to good regulation and well-run institutions. She said Argus’s commitment to Gibraltar was plain to see, with this recent injection of investment in the local premises.

In the presence of the Minister for Housing, Traffic and Technical Ser-vices, the Hon. Paul Balban, the Mayor and other Group Executi-ves from Bermuda, namely CEO Ms. Alison Hill and Chief Financial Officer, Mr. David Pugh; Ms. Nicoll praised the General Manager, Mr. Tyrone Montovio and his team for their commitment to Argus opera-tions here in Gibraltar.

Staff and invited guests enjoyed drinks and canapés as they mingled and viewed the newly refurbished offices.

Argus Group Chairman, Ms. Shei-la Nicoll and General Manager Gibraltar, Mr. Tyrone Montovio at the reception to inaugurate the new Argus & WestMed offices in Regal House.


Good and healthy eating is a wise tradition, which is being lost due to the increase of an ac-celerated and inconsistent lifes-tyle. The harmful effects of lack of time and our ever-increasing purchasing power have allowed us the possibility of resorting to the so-called “fast food” in too many occasions, which makes for the progressive worsening of the quality of our diet, having obvious and clear repercussions on our health.

La MamelaFirm believers in the healthy

Mediterranean DietAt La Mamela, we recover the tradition of eating properly. The freshest and best quality pro-ducts are bought on a daily basis for chef, Mario Perez, and his staff to prepare the most appeti-zing, healthy and delicious dis-hes that one can imagine.

Eating out due to work com-mitments has become a fre-quent requirement within the confines of the business world. But, contrary to popular belief,

business meals need not go aga-inst the principle of a healthy and well-balanced diet.

La Mamela, or the ‘the fresh fish restaurant’ as they like to be known, are firm believers and providers of the healthy Medite-rranean diet.

Defining and understanding the Mediterranean Nutrition and Diet is not easy because there are several countries that bor-

der the Mediterranean Basin. Still, the traditional diets from the people living in countries like Greece, Spain and Southern Italy have been studied extensi-vely over the past several years.

This is due to the notably low incidence of chronic diseases and high life-expectancy rates attributed to these populations, who eat traditional Mediterra-nean diet foods. The traditional Mediterranean diet delivers as


much as 40% of total daily calo-ries from fat, yet the associated incidence of cardiovascular di-seases is significantly decreased. As a mono saturated fatty acid, olive oil does not have the same cholesterol-raising effect of satu-rated fats. Olive oil is also a good source of antioxidants. Eating oily fish a few times per week also benefits the Mediterranean

people by increasing the amount of “Omega-3 fatty acids” - so-mething that the rest of the deve-loped societies don’t get enough of.

Eating red meat sparingly, however, seems to also increase health. There is a general con-sensus among health profes-sionals that the Mediterranean

Diet is healthier than the North European and American diet because more fish, grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and olive oil are consumed.

WHY IS EATING FISH HEALTHY?

Fish is a high-protein, low-fat food that provides a range of

health benefits. White-fleshed fish, in particular, is lower in fat than any other source of animal protein, and oily fish are high in omega-3 fatty acids.

Since the human body can’t make significant amounts of these essential nutrients, fish are an important part of the diet. Also, fish are low in satu-

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rated fats commonly found in red meat, called omega-6 fatty acids.

We should all be eating more oily fish: according to recent studies since they are an essen-tial source of protein, vitamins and minerals. More importantly the fish in this group (including mackerel, sardines, anchovies, herring and tuna) are rich in omega-3 essential fatty acids.

Essential fatty acids cannot be manufactured in our bodies

so they need to be consumed as part of a balanced diet. The unique benefit of essential fatty acids is their ability to form long-chain polyunsaturated fats that are used by the body for a whole range of functions, chiefly in cell repair, which maintains healthy reproductive, nervous and cardiovascular systems.

REDUCES THE RISK OFDEVELOPING PROSTRATE

CANCER IN MEN

Furthermore, research has

found that eating foods like salmon packed with essential omega 3 and fish oils can help prevent blindness in old age. The key oily fish ingredients can protect against the leading cause of blindness, age-related macular degeneration or AMD. In fact, eating oily fish, like sal-mon, tuna and mackerel, at least twice a week could prevent the onset of the disease, substan-tially slashing the risk of both early and late stages of this con-dition. Regularly eating oily fish has also been found to ward

off Alzheimer’s disease, reduce the risk of developing prostra-te cancer in men and keep the heart and cardiovascular system healthy. So please allow us one last word of advice: dedicate more time to yourself; get together with family and friends, or with clients, and rediscover the pleasure of good and healthy eating. At La Mame-la, we will help you achieve this.

For Reservations, phoneLa Mamela on: 200 72373

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The New 2014Suzuki Swift1.2L

With its vibrant personality, the Suzuki Swift is a fun and affordable super-mini

The new 2014 Suzuki Swift brings to the compact car segment a blend of eye-catching good looks, Japanese quality and European-inspired dri-ving dynamics, excellent handling and 60 mpg-plus fuel economy from the 1.2 L model; it has the individua-lity to attract the most discerning of super-mini customers.

Suzuki’s Swift hatchback, which is now on its 2014 Model Year, has had a facelift for this updated version and as expected, we have a revised front bumper, L-shaped LED daytime running lights on the fog-lamp hou-sings, fresh 16-inch wheels, LED-type high-level brake lamp, and get this...

The 2014 Suzuki Swift features Suzuki’s newly developed ‘DUAL JET ENGINE’, which balances perfor-

mance and economy, Suzuki claims. Well, what’s it all about Suzuki’s new ‘DUAL JET ENGINE’? Suzuki im-plemented the dual injection system on its 1.2L petrol engine and it works by increasing vaporization, making combustion more efficient. It chan-nels fuel to two intake ports instead of only one per cylinder.

Aside from that, Suzuki’s ‘ENE-CHARGE’ system and ‘ECO-COOL’ was also implemented for the 2014 rendition. ‘ENE-CHARGE’ provides a regenerative braking system that converts kinetic energy during dece-leration into electricity stored from its lithium-ion battery, which is used to power the vehicle’s electrical com-

ponents while ‘ECO-COOL’ is an air-conditioning system that keeps cool air flowing even when the engine is shut off by its idling stop system, relying on the fan that blows air over a cold sink in the air-conditioning system’s evaporator into the cabin.

With the ‘DUAL JET ENGINE’ and the ‘ENE-CHARGE’, fuel economy is now up to 26.4kmpl, making it the most fuel-efficient of the 1.2L class.

The distinctive styling and spacious interior are complemented by a com-prehensive specification. All models feature front, side and curtain air-bags, radio/CD player, remote cen-tral locking and immobiliser, electric front windows and mirrors, steering wheel-mounted audio controls, tin-ted glass, front fog lamps, electric heated door mirrors and manual air



conditioning. The 1.2L model gains keyless start, automatic air conditio-ning and 16” alloy wheels.

1.2-LITRE PETROL ENGINE

Suzuki Swift is engineered to excel in urban driving or on twisting cou-ntry roads. Its petrol engine, a 94PS 1.2-litre has been selected for strong performance at low and mid-range engine speeds.

The new Suzuki Swift 1.2L is one of the cleanest petrol engine Super-mi-nis on sale, with emissions lowered at 116 g/km. In terms of performance, the new Suzuki Swift comes with a 1.2 L engine, with Dual ‘VVT’ incor-porated, producing 94 horse power at 6,000 rpm, with a maximum tor-que of 118 Nm at 4,800 rpm.

The engine delivers enjoyable dri-ving characteristics, with the Suzuki Swift 1.2-litre dispatching 0-62mph in 11 seconds. Top speed is 109mph. This performance is matched by strong fuel economy easily exceeding 50mpg in the combined cycle driving for the manual transmission model. Economy rises to 56.5mpg for the new 1.2-litre model, upgrading on the previous 1.3 litre unit by 7.8mpg.

GLOBAL OUTLOOK,

EUROPEAN FOCUS

Suzuki Swift was the first product of Suzuki’s radical innovation program to strengthen its position as both a leading compact car manufacturer and one of the world’s foremost mo-torcycle brands. It introduced new ideas and design thinking that will define many more new Suzuki mo-dels in years to come.

Suzuki Swift is global in outlook and production - it is built in Japan, Hungary, China and India - but its development has been focused fir-mly on the demands and tastes of the European market in terms of design

and driving characteristics. Indeed, the design team’s first step was to establish a base in Europe, where it was able to gain a valuable insight into the European mindset and draw inspiration from the European envi-ronment. And much of the chassis development and refinement was ba-sed on real-world intelligence gained through extensive road and track tes-ting across the continent.

The result is an innovative, sporty and elegant design with genuine in-ternational appeal. As a new depar-ture in Suzuki design, Swift develops styling themes first seen in the Con-cept-S and Concept-S2 show cars, and demonstrates the company’s desire to develop original interpreta-tions of established market segments.

The stylists deliberately shunned the trend towards ‘one-box’ uniformi-

ty, instead producing a substantive design with a distinct bonnet. Mus-cular, flared wheel arches, bold sills, wheels pushed out to each corner, and a broad-shouldered beltline that continues all the way to the tail lights express the car’s inherent stability and dynamic appeal.

The strong curvature of the nose to-gether with the square cut openings of the wide, deep spoiler and mesh grille add further distinction. The black A and B-pillars create a wra-paround glasshouse effect, and the headlamp housings sweep back into the wings to mirror the shape of the tail lights. The distinctive shape of the tailgate combines with the large rear bumper to give the lower part of the body a solid appearance. At the top of the tailgate, the roof ’s trailing edge is shaped to form a spoiler, im-proving aerodynamics and saving

a valuable 1kg over a conventional bolt-on item.

EASY ENTRY

The 2014 Suzuki Swift 1.2L features keyless entry for simple door unloc-king/locking and engine start-up. With this system, there is no fum-bling to insert a key in the lock or press a remote, all you need to do is have the key in your pocket or bag and press the small black button on the door handle to unlock. Once in-side the car, the ignition barrel can simply be twisted to start and stop the engine. When parked, press the door handle button once and the car will be locked and immobilised.

And to make life even easier, particu-larly when carrying shopping bags or luggage, the tailgate has an electric catch that is released with just a light touch.

ROOM TO BREATHE

At 1,690mm, Swift has one of the wi-dest bodies in its class. This, together with a long wheelbase, allows for a spacious cabin with plenty of space for everyone on board (up to four in the three-door models, five in the five-door) and a generously propor-tioned and practical boot.

The design team set out to create a chic yet functional interior which uses aluminium trim highlights to add an air of understated sophisti-cation. Tight fit and finish of trim together with high-grade plastics contribute to an overall sense of refi-nement and quality.

The front seats offer superior sup-port and hold and have class-leading fore and aft adjustment of 240mm. Driver’s seat height adjustment and a tilt-adjustable steering column are standard features, enabling drivers of all different heights to find a comfor-table driving position. The instrument binnacle is set relatively low to ensure



good forward visibility and reinforce the cabin’s sense of openness. A tri-ple gauge instrument cluster features a tachometer with a needle that rests in the six o’clock position, reflecting sports bike convention, and a digital information display showing time, fuel consumption and outside tem-perature is mounted centrally on the leading edge of the fascia.

The radio/CD player is seamlessly integrated into the dashboard and can be operated using either the one touch push buttons on the unit, or additional controls mounted on the sporty three-spoke steering whe-el. Large, dial-type controls for the heating and ventilation system or, on SZ3, SZ4 and SZ3 DDiS models, the standard air conditioning (and automatic air conditioning on SZ4), are located beneath the audio sys-tem. Storage spaces for mobile pho-nes, CDs and other small items are handily located around the cabin, including a compartment in the ins-trument panel, glove-box, front and rear cup holders (three in total), a seatback pocket, front door pockets - large enough for A4-size road atlases - and a ‘hidden’ tray which slides out from under the front passenger seat.

The ashtray takes the form of a cylin-drical pot which slots neatly into any of the cup-holders. Thanks to its shape, it doubles as another handy stowage point when not needed by smokers. The boot has a 213-litre capacity (VDA) with a practical flat floor, thanks in part to the choice of a torsion beam suspension arrange-ment. Collapse the 60:40 split folding rear seat, and the load area more than doubles to 562 litres. There is also an additional under boot floor storage compartment for added security.

COMPREHENSIVE

AFETY MEASURES

Suzuki Swift 1.2L is robust and well equipped with safety features. The

car’s structure is inherently strong, having been given a Euro NCAP 5 star rating. It features extensive use of high tensile steel and tailored blanks to achieve strength without the pe-nalty of added weight.

It incorporates driver and passenger front and side airbags as standard, together with full length curtain air-bags. These are complemented by brake and clutch pedals designed for less risk of driver leg injury in an impact, front seatbelt ‘pretensioners’ and force limiters, energy absorbing trim, three point ‘ELR’ seatbelts for all seats and child seat ‘ISOFIX’ atta-chments on the rear seat. Each seat also has a head restraint, with those in the rear designed to minimise obs-truction of the driver’s rearward view.

Pedestrian protection measures were given careful consideration at the de-sign stage and helped Suzuki Swift gain a three-star ‘Euro NCAP’ rating, a result that is particularly impressive for a compact car. The bonnet, wings, wipers and front bumper are all de-signed to be crushable and to absorb

impact energy progressively, so redu-cing the risk of injury.

Active safety provisions that can help the driver avoid an accident in the first place include ABS with electronic bra-ke-force distribution ‘EBD’ and a bra-ke assist function, fitted as standard.

A CHASSIS TO MATCH THE LOOKS

Suzuki’s European programme of chassis development has paid divi-dends with Suzuki Swift providing a level of handling that will appeal to the enthusiast as much as to ty-pical B-segment customers, while still achieving a sophisticated and comfortable ride. These qualities are delivered thanks to one of the widest tracks in its class - 1,470mm at the front and 1,480mm at the rear - com-bined with a 2,390mm wheelbase.

The platform, which was newly created for Suzuki Swift, features a front sub-frame to which the stee-ring gearbox, lower suspension arms and engine mounting for the rear are attached. The resulting rigid

structure generates less road noise and a strong feeling of stability.

MacPherson’ strut suspension at the front is matched by a torsion beam and coil springs at the rear. The low unsprung weight of the torsion beam arrangement enables effective control of camber angle and toe-in to deliver accurate and predictable handling, whi-le its space-efficient layout plays a key role in achieving a low, flat boot floor. To round off the driving experience, Suzuki Swift benefits from a steering rack that gives direct and precise feel and a braking system with par-ticularly rigid callipers for enhanced stopping performance.

The Suzuki Swift has come on leaps and bounds over recent years and is now seen as a genuine competitor for almost any car of its size. The tiny di-mensions make it a doddle to drive in town, and due to the wheels being so close the corners, the small Suzuki is great fun in the bends, too. Although the latest Suzuki Swift is 90mm lon-ger than the model it replaces, the real benefit of the extra 90mm is evident when you climb in the back, rear seat passengers get decent le-groom for a car of this size, and your average adult should remain quite comfortable over long distances. Vi-sibility is great, with what seems like a wall of glass wrapped around the car making parking a piece of cake.

Head turning from every angle, the sporty-looking Swift gets attention wherever it goes. Great fuel economy keeps fuel costs to a minimum, whi-le a Euro NCAP 5 star rating means it’s one of the safest cars on the road. Then there’s the Swift’s sharp hand-ling and innate responsiveness, ma-king this compact car so much fun to drive, you might not want to get out!

The new 2014 Suzuki Swift 1.2L can be viewed at Bassadone Motors, 42 Devil’s Tower Road, Tel: 200 79004, distributors in Gibraltar for Suzuki.


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Talk About Town Finally Returns to our Screens

Text by Justine Fava – Cartwright

Photographs by Figgy Photography

(www.figgyphotography.com)

Richard Cartwright and James Neish are friends, work colleagues and from what I could gather af-ter this interview, very much ma-rried to each other! Together they have brought their own magical ingredients to the table to revive the much awaited return of the ever popular local television se-ries ‘Talk About Town’. I chatted to them at Radio Gibraltar, their first home and where their love story

first began.....

What was the idea behind the new Talk About Town?Richard “This new program was in fact going to be called “Richard & James”. Because of the elements of old and young we often tease each other and that would be re-flected on screen. GBC did prefer the old title of ‘Talk About Town’ that ran for nearly ten years from 2002 and that is what we stuck with. The idea is to take segments of the ‘Talk About Town’ of old and include new segments and

new faces”.James “As Richard said, what we wanted was a ‘revamped’ version of the programme because the brand was so well established, we have added some new ideas and as always, we are listening to the voi-ce of the community, young and old”.

We know that the programme has a very established fan base, do you believe there is a pressure to deliver what the viewers ex-pect after the success of the last series?

Richard “There is a bit of pressure to get viewers to understand that it is a new programme and that was then and this is now. The fact that there are two presenters doesn’t make it quite the same even if the format still remains familiar”. James “There is always a little bit of pressure in having a program-me that people love then bringing it back with a new format and making it work because of public expectation. I think that over the weeks people are learning to love just as much the new format. The good thing about it is that it still



retains the audience from the old format but encourages other new viewers as well”.

So what exactly is new about the programme that people haven’t seen?Richard “New for a start is this idiot (leering at James)! Twitter, internet and all that stuff alien to me”!James “The variety of guests, which allow for more points of view to be reflected and a wider range of opinions is also new”.

Richard “New too are some of the old characters that I do which come back during the show and we take it in turns, James will do something of his own one week and I will the next.”James “Something that remains is the response from the commu-nity. People want a programme where we talk about our Gibral-tar. It’s not about party politics, it’s about the little things that matter in our daily lives. It’s a programme about Gibraltar for Gibraltar”.

What has the feedback been like?Richard “The Friday morning after the first programme, I already had several people stop me in the street asking if I had seen something in La Laguna or the chimney stack up at Europa Point for example. We have letters coming in all the time even before the programme started and many emails and pho-ne calls. The feedback is there and positive.”James “It’s also very interactive with people and it allows people to have a voice on their T.V. station

so feedback has been great”.

So what was your thinking be-hind the young and old influen-ces for the programme?Richard “It’s incredible really be-cause it is a thirty year age gap although in my mind, I am 49 in every aspect! I think one of the important things is that if I fall into the trap of calling certain people for the programme, James will suggest we get younger people for an interview. He helps to keep that youthful spin on the show


making it more appealing to a wi-der audience”.James “Despite the age gap, we also share a lot of views in com-mon and the odd glass of wine! We agree on many things and bounce ideas off each other. The young and old influences we bring just seem to work well in how to give it a modern slant”.

What would you say is the ma-gical element, what is it that people are drawn to?Richard “The fun element is

commented on regularly. James is a bit more serious and I am what I am, we have little digs at each other and people seem to enjoy that”.James “I think when we are sat at the cafe and I take on maybe the new side of stories and Richard looks at the casual, this segment is popular but I think it’s still early to say and I think it also depends who the guest is. I think the ‘Lla-nito’ thing is very important and is well received too even with ‘Ex Pats’, who like the aspect of how

we keep very true to our Gibralta-rian identity”

So finally, what is it like being married? Richard “We haven’t had any rows yet! No, seriously, the reason why you make good friends in life is because you click and that chemis-try is important and is a marriage of sorts, I think people pick up on that.”James “Remember, Richard and I have been working together for a long time although this is our first

time on television. A lot of people have commented on the banter be-cause it is not put on and we don’t sit there pretending to be anything but us. Our marriage is a happy one!”

It was very hard to fit in just how much our dynamic duo had to say but to catch more of the ban-ter, local topics and interesting guests, you will have to tune in to GBC every other Thursday night at 9.30pm. Don’t miss ‘Talk About Town’ back on our screens!

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Text by Joe Adambery

Enter The X-IT (pardon the pun). The band consists of Roger Gonzalez on bass, guitar and vocals, John Masca-renhas on keyboards and vocals and Marie Gonzales as main vocalist. The X-IT caused quite a stir this summer playing the BBQ fans at the Gauchos terrace.

Because they bring many years of experience playing as a dance band they have now embarked on hosting a New Year dance at the Catholic Community Centre with all the festive trimmings and an all night long free bar included in the price of £60. What do you get for that money should you venture along to a night of dance and merrymaking?

From 12.30am on arrival you are greeted with a glass of champagne and Cotillion-garlands, noise makers, party poppers, hats and suchlike. There will be hot and cold canapés served from around 2am during the dance breaks and a full English breakfast to round up the night of merrymaking. But what say you we meet the band to tell us a little bit more?

“Traditional dances like all the local bands used to play twenty or thirty years ago were popular for music of the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s. ‘Pasodobles’, ‘merengues’,’ boleros’, ‘tangos’, we do all of that because we have the age” says Roger. But what kind of an audience are they aiming for exactly I thought.

“Well with that sort of music we are aiming for young couples from thirty upwards because the younger people wouldn’t dance to that style of music, they have their own style, they’re very welcome of course “ says Johnny “ But

Dance in the New Year with the X-ItAt first glance the ticket price seems high, but when one considers setting it all up with all the details, from hi-ring the hall, decorating, catering, security and cleaners and bar staff, up to providing the sumptuous English breakfast which will round it all up and then setting asi-de money for charity after taking out the costs- it is a big risk. It is also a noble effort by X-IT if it all pans out and a few local, charities benefit from a few hundred pounds.

“We have put in a lot of rehearsals learning new sui-table songs from Bruno Mars and Marc Antony and others but also bringing up to date old ones. The accent is always on danceable songs” says Johnny as Roger in-terjects “We will be featuring some original songs as well and also songs in French and Italian because we are international in repertoire.”

At that point, Marie the vocalist has a confession to make, “I like singing the old songs better than the new ones , I love singing ‘pasodobles’ and ‘boleros’ and I en-joy watching people dance to the old songs. We were singing these songs at Gauchos last Summer and people responded to them very well, so I’m looking forward to singing even more oldies, as well as, the traditional ‘Conga’, ‘Hokey-Cokey’, ‘Roll out the Barrel’ and all the fun sing -alongs in English and Spanish, too.”

It’s all set then, a traditional New Year dance hoping to get people back to the dance floor and an excited band who are keen to become a legend by embracing the older (not so old) generation and enticing them away from Casemates to the sound of a WW2 song or a pasodoble- how bi- cultural is that? Get your tickets now and dust of your best dance attire and shoes …’Y a bailar’

the older age group up to the 60s and 70s will be familiar to that mix of nostalgia.”

A trio of local musicians are all set to try and bring back the traditional flavour to New Year dances-that is welcome news indeed. They are however com-peting with a new tradition of seeing in the New Year at Casemates Square but there is still merit in keeping the old dancing tradition alive

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French Wines are back, Monsieur!

Wine Tasting Dinner at ‘Le Bateau’ Restaurant with‘Jean Claude Boisset Wineries’ and Courtesy of Lewis Stagnetto

An appreciation of a French wine tasting dinner hosted by ‘Le Bateau’ Restaurant and organized by Lewis Stagnetto at the trendy French themed eatery in Queensway Quay where wines from Jean Claude Boisset were introduced


After a chilled and most wel-come champagne-style Rosé (Louis Bouillot Perle Noir), in his introduction to the wines, Alfred Lavagna from Lewis Stagnetto gave a background to how the wine trends changed locally as the services personnel numbers were being run down. The climate of a newly opened frontier meant local exposure to wines from the hinterland, which coupled with the arrival of wines from the new world, saw a marked decline in tradi-tional demand for French wi-nes. But that’s all changed now and this was why we were the-re, some twenty five of us, all expecting to be impressed and infused too- why not?

The Burgundy region is the most famous winemaking terri-tory in Europe and a boutique winemaker from Bourgogne, who only produces twenty five thousand cases per year and who won the wine merchant of the year title in France last year, deserves our notice and indeed

our esteem, so that’s why these noted French wines have been imported by Lewis Stagnetto and why Edouard Leach, re-presenting ‘La Maison de Jean-Claude Boisset’ (Jean Claude Boisset wines), was in attendan-ce to introduce their wines befo-re each course.

I have to say here that the ma-rriage of the excellent food to

the wines was ‘made in heaven’ as they say; Danny Breeze and his French chef and staff at ‘Le Bateau’ pulled out all the stops to make this dinner a special evening, indeed very close to the French style of wining and dining ‘par excellence’ that you would find in any fancy Bistro worth its ‘ooh la la!’

The first offering of the evening,

a Bourgogne Chadornnay, “Les Ursulines” 2011 by Jean-Clau-de Boisset, is ‘clear yellow very refined and delicate’ and I’m quoting the tasting notes here; I found it refreshing and original too and the nods of agreement round the table as we demolis-hed our ‘Crevettes soufflé’ (king prawns), first course, gave no reason to disagree amongst our-selves - ‘en contraire’- we bon-ded as the golden wine went around the table refilling every glass almost.

‘Salade de foie de voilaille’ (de-licious Pate) was our second course and this was married with a ‘Chablis’ 2011 by Jean-Claude Boisset, whose tasting notes describe a ‘pale gold co-lour with a citrus and white flower nose and very fine aci-dity giving a well balanced fi-nish.’ Far be it for me to argue with that other than to say that it translates to a ‘white’ that you wish you had discovered before. Absolutely refill worthy and las-ting taste.

The Bourgogne Pinot Noire,


‘Les Ursulines’ is a ‘dark red with a ripe fruit nose and a balanced and subtle taste’ that few wines if not French, could match. For main course, we were having a mouth wateringly good fillet steak (‘Beef bordelaise’) and Danny, my table neighbor and proprietor of ‘Le Bateau,’ and a chef himself, was marveling at how his usual pastry Chef had taken this particular menu to heart and was excelling himself with each course.

The fine meat was worthy of a boutique wine and the noble ‘Pinot Noire’ graced the palate with every sip - and there were many sips. In fact, the allocated number of bottles was soon ‘de-canted’ by this informed gathe-ring of diners. That is not to say we were short of wine, it’s a mark of fine wine appreciation that we drank it all! The meal was finished off with an exqui-site ‘Orange and Vanilla crème Brûlée’ dessert.

You really have to go and find out more about the new French boutique wines from ‘Jean

Claude Boisset’ because there is a compelling reason to do so. They are truly special and with Christmas on our doorstep, we always want to put out the best if we entertain in style. But ask Alfred Lavagna, the head of sales or his staff at Lewis Stag-netto, and they will point you in the right direction without any hint of snobbishness or wine mystery.

Remember you are the ultima-te judge of what you taste, but I can certainly vouch for having now pointed you in the right di-rection at the welcome return to the shelves of ‘les vins Francais par excellence’ at Lewis Stag-netto.

Lewis Stagnetto have increa-sed their French wine portfo-lio to include the Jean-Claude Boisset range and they will soon be incorporating another two well known and sort after wines from the Mommessin Winery, ‘Pouilly Fuisse Blanc 2012’ and ‘Fleurrie Rouge 2011’ (Domaine De La Presle), respectively.

MENU

King Prawns SouffléBourgogne Chardonnay "Les Ursulines" 2011

(Jean-Claude Boisset)

Salade de Foie de VoilailleChablis 2011 (Jeau-Claude Boisset)

Beef BordelaiseBourgogne Pinot Noir "Les Ursulines" 2011

(Jean-Claude Boisset)

Orange & Vanilla crème BrûléeLouis Bouillot, Perle Noire Blanc de Noirs Brut


In 1961, a tenacious eighteen-year-old, Jean-Claude Bois-set, founded his eponymous nêgociant winery in Nuits-St.-Georges. An artisan Burgundy producer with an audacious, contemporary style, the winery is housed in a former Ursilines convent where Winemaker Gré-gory Patriat strives for authentic wines in which human inter-vention has been kept to a bare, discreet minimum. Utilizing native yeasts and never more than 30% new oak, the wines are concentrated, well-rounded, and naturally expressive of their terroirs.

The winery embraces the phi-losophy devised by the Boisset family of the VINICULTA-RIST, where the winemaker is as much engaged in the vine-yards as in the cellars, building close partnerships with growers to achieve the highest quality in the vineyards.

Jean Claude Boisset rapidly built up a successful négociant business and bought over other firms who, importantly, had land holdings, as well as, mar-ket presence. Now with the help of son Jean Charles, the family has clearly decided to use its financial and personal clout to produce some Burgundies of top quality. The branch of the company doing this is the Jean Claude Boisset label, and the man holding the reigns is Gre-gory Patriat.

Grégory is one of the best of the younger generation of viti-culturalist/winemakers in Bur-gundy, and has an artisanal, non-interventionist approach to making wine. He arrived at Jean-Claude Boisset in 2002, having spent three years wor-king at top Vosne-Romanée producer Domaine Leroy. Gré-gory acts as a viniculteur rather than as a négociant, as he only buys grapes. He spends a great deal of his time in the vineyards and, over nearly a decade, has built up impressive relations-hips with key growers, who he pays a higher price per hectare, rather than per tonne, to ensure lower yields. Grégory has access to some of the best vineyard parcels across Burgundy, works largely with organic growers, and focuses much of his atten-tion on ‘lieu-dits’, or small, sin-gle vineyards, which accounts for the limited production of his wines. But what he has achie-ved at Jean-Claude Boisset is nothing less than remarkable as recent awards in ‘Wine Specta-tor’, ‘Wine Enthusiast’ and the ‘International Wine Challenge’ confirm.

The ‘Boisset Empire’ has seen fit to pour a lot of money into this flagship venture, and it was something of a risk to hire Gre-gory, but the investment seems to have paid off. He sources gra-pes from vines that are no less than thirty years old, and in his first year rejected around 80%

Jean-Claude Boisset WineriesHis winemaking philosophy is simple. As with many great winemakers, his work

is done mostly in the vineyard, and optimum care is taken to keep the grapesin perfect condition until fermentation

Since 2002, Jean-Claude Bois-set has been transformed by Boisset’s son, Jean-Charles, from a traditional négociant into a viniculturalist, a cross between a viticulturalist and a vinifier.

Jean-Charles set his sights on horing one of the best of the young generationof winemakers to revitalise the Jean-Claude Boisset wines, twenty nine year-old Grégory Patriat.


of the contract grapes that pre-viously were accepted!

His winemaking philosophy is simple. As with many great winemakers, his work is done mostly in the vineyard, and optimum care is taken to keep the grapes in perfect condi-tion until fermentation. For this reason, he will, incredi-bly, destem the ‘grand cru’ grapes by hand, ensuring that every single grape arrives in the vat whole and unscathed. Even the humble ‘Bourgog-ne’ red and white are triaged by 20 people on the sorting tables. From then on, it is a simple six day maceration

for reds, with little plunging, and a natural fermentation. Ageing never exceeds 20% new oak, even in the biggest ‘grands crus’. The hallmarks of his whites are subtle oak fer-mentation, with no battonage and minimal filtration.

The winery, designed in the purest Burgundian tradition, was completed in 2002. Cour-tyard and garden, cellar and vineyard between, it is located in the heart of Nuits-Saint-Georges. In order to display to diversity of the terroirs within Burgundy, 41 wooden vats of varying sizes process batches separately.

Jean-Claude Boisset is going from strength to strength under the stewardship of Grégory Pa-triat, and his wines have recei-ved much critical acclaim over recent years. Key are the entry point Bourgogne wines, which are sealed under stelvin, hand-led in the same way as the ‘Cru’ wines, and made from the de-classified fruit of better Villages to maximise wine quality.

The four decade-old Boisset has 18 wineries, most of which is in Burgundy and the remaining spread across Beaujolais, the Rhone and California. Boisset’s emergence as a wine powerhou-se in just forty years has been

attributed to its ability to pro-duce sustainable large quanti-ties of generic wine with varie-tal character. The firm is also a controversial one for leading packaging innovations in the traditional heartlands of wine-making. For instance, Boisset was one of the first to attempt PET and tetrapak packaging apart from trying out screw caps on bottles.

LOUIS BOUILLOT,PERLE NOIRE BLANC

DE NOIRS BRUT

A Distinctive pale pink in colour with a fine, elegant

mousse and red fruit aromas on the nose; on the pala-te, the wine has excellent

weight, balance and comple-xity, and represents superb

value for money.

Grape – Gamay, Pinot NoirCOUNTRY: FRANCE

JEAN-CLAUDE BOISSET, BOURGOGNE CHARDON-

NAY LES URSULINES, 2011

A Pale yellow colour, it has a fresh, lively nose, with notes of

citrus and a touch of elegant oak. The wine is well balanced with good acidity, medium to

full body and long, mineral finish.

Grape – Chardonnay REGION: BURGUNDY,

FRANCE

JEAN-CLAUDE BOISSET, BOURGOGNE PINOT NOIR LES URSULINES, 2011

A wine, which is intense red in colour with ruby reflections; the open nose shows notes of red fruits, with a touch of spice and vanilla. It is very complex on the palate, with elegant tannins, excellent red fruit intensity that is typical of good Pinot Noir and great length.

Grape – Pinot Noir REGION: BURGUNDY, FRANCE

JEAN-CLAUDE BOISSET, CHABLIS, 2011 DOMAINE DE VAUROUX

Aromatic with clean mineral notes and hints of citrus. The palate is medium bodied with crisp, ‘appley’ acidity, tight, pure fruit flavours of white peach and pears finished with a classic, steely, dry finish. Stylish.

Grape – ChardonnayREGION: BURGUNDY, FRANCE

Jean-Claude BoissetWineries

The Wines Sampled





40 DECEMBER 2013 GLOBE MAGAZINE GLOBE MAGAZINE NOVEMBER 2013 41

Charity Starts at Home

Text by Richard Cartwright

“Oh yes, we’re closed in February because that’s when we go back to Thailand every year to do a little bit of charity work. We arri-ve at villages unannounced and check out which are the most in need.” Feed and Lek inform me

they arrive incognito and mainly head towards the village school to see what’s needed, “We give them some money and other items and they really make good use of what we offer them. We try and help them with their edu-cation as much as possible” Lek says, “In one village school, the-

re is just four teachers for more than 200 children and they have no toys, they make things to play with, out of leaves and branches. Some children have no shoes but they are all so happy...”

Feed tells me, “The eyes are the window of your soul and it shows

with the children, who are always smiling and some places don’t even have running water or elec-tricity.” Feed and Lek travel with a back pack by train from place to place. They also donate food and medicines to temples they may come across in the area and provided one of the monks

For some individuals helping those less privileged than you is an important part of their lives and a num-ber of them do it without fanfares, bells and whistles, they simply decide to get involved and get on with it... At Gibraltar’s favourite Thai restaurant no meals are served during the month of February because Feed and Lek are busy trekking the north east of their homeland (Thailand) helping the needy!

Lek and feed’s form of thanks-giving



with a laptop! “We also cook in hospitals and do whatever we can whilst we’re there. You see,” Feed tells me, “being affluent as we are here, we sometimes don’t

appreciate how lucky we are and what we have. We have been settled in Gibraltar now for eight years and we’ve been going home every year since then doing this

work. We also see our families in Bangkok, of course, but then we head north-east where there is beautiful scenery but which is also the poorest area of the cou-

ntry, to see, who needs our help the most.”

There are others of the 60 mi-llion people that make up the


Thai population, who get in-volved in this kind of work also. Lek points out that at the restaurant, they don’t have any charity tins for donations and

don’t ask for contributions from any company or anybody else either, “Yes, that’s right, it all co-mes from our income at the res-taurant. Whatever we can afford

after expenses we use for our trip and the charity work in Thai-land.” Lek tells me they also help individuals here, on the Rock too and sponsor local sport. Many customers and friends tell Lek and Feed, ‘why don’t you enjoy life and go on a holiday...’ but they insist they prefer to pay back to Thailand and Gibraltar for their success and happy life. “And that’s why we want to help those children as much as we can with their education, which is so important for them to succeed in life.” Feed says they also want to thank their staff for their hard work and efforts also, in helping with the charity: Wendy, Caroli-ne and Atchara and other mem-bers of the Lek Bangkok team.Lek Bangkok will celebrate 10 years on the Rock in little more than a year’s time in 2015 and plan a big event. Lek says, “We’re very happy here and want to wish all our customers and friends a happy Christmas and the best for 2014.”

Things are going well for Lek Bangkok and they’re proud of their service, food they provide and standards of hygiene at the restaurant... Lek proudly says, “All our food is fresh and there’s no warming up in the microwa-ve - we don’t own one! Someti-mes it may be necessary to wait just a little bit longer because food is cooked from fresh on our burners and nothing else...” And Feed also informs me, “We are very proud of our consistent good reports from the Environ-mental Agency, who always give us top marks and although it’s a challenge, our aim is to stay at Number 1!”

However, come February, ‘no food at the inn!!’ because Lek Bangkok Thai restaurant is closed for a month! The Proprietors can only be found somewhere in the hills of north-east Thailand, travelling incognito seeking out needy chil-dren... Is it their annual vacation? No... It’s a yearly vOcation!


44 DECEMBER 2013 GLOBE MAGAZINE GLOBE MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2013 45


Text by Ricahrd Cartwright

Photographs by Figgy Photography

(www.figgyphotography.com)

`Strange bedfellows,’ one could reasonably exclaim! Well, the re-sults of that association, `yelled positively, from the rooftops’ ... Yes, Christian Santos, he of fun filled ‘Llanito’ musicals and Rock Mastering antics joined forces with, ‘most of the time’ serious drama player and head of the art at Bayside Compre-hensive School, Julian Felice, to bring us ‘Blood Brothers’. It was a success! The story goes... Twin brothers born to a one parent working class, poverty stricken mother with already multiple mouths to feed and faced with having her offspring taken into care, is faced with the tempting offer of allowing her middle class, childless employer take on one of the newly born twins as her own. Angela Jenkins, who is also tasked with directing the musical, plays the kids’ hard working mother and Bettina Cary, the ‘will stop at nothing to have a child of her own,’ em-ployer. Consequently, Mickey, played by Julian Felice, is desti-ned to lead a life of poverty and hardship whilst Edward, Chris-tian Santos, is raised with the privileges that an upbringing of relative luxury in a middle class family provides... But the bar-gain struck is to become a secret

Blood Brothers

to be kept forever... but will it remain so?

The story develops from chil-dhood to adulthood and is set in Liverpool. Also in the cast and playing a prominent role is Amee Freyone as Linda, Mickey’s childhood sweetheart, who eventually marries Mickey but becomes attracted to Ed-ward as the story develops when

Mickey ends up in prison... The once inseparable ‘Blood Brothers’ bond becomes uns-tuck as the ‘real’ twin brothers’ lives move on in obviously di-fferent directions. Tragedy is around the corner with an ago-nising ending for all concerned.

It’s an easy to follow, down to earth story played extremely well in this local production of

this very successful West End play, which had a second run from 1988 to 2012 in London’s ‘Theatre Heartland.’ The per-formance carries onstage na-rration delivered by none other than Gibraltar’s top boy band frontman and Radio Gibraltar presenter, Simon Dumas, who doubles up as milkman, gynae-cologist, bus conductor etc in a very unobtrusive way. Much of the narration is delivered in rhyme fashion and in song and Simon performs it all with ex-pression, well paced pauses and great aplomb. He is clearly very much at home on stage.

Mrs Johnstone, played by Ange-la Jenkins, deserves much praise for her professional performan-ce throughout and has a great singing voice too. Mrs Lyons is very convincing, I thought, in her role as middle class hou-sewife desperate for a child of her own. She was assertive and determined to get what she wanted – and did – and I felt she played the part credibly and convincingly. Edward, played by Christian, must’ve been so-mething of a challenge for the generally ‘fun making’ actor and he carried his part of midd-le class child seeking out the naughty boy trends of the wor-king class in an innocent and funny way. Julian, who takes the part of Mickey, was excellent:

I’ve noted in past issues how standards have been improving in many of our musical and other stage productions but I haven’t done much in the way of serious drama, or musical drama productions... Last month’s local production of a London West End hit musical certainly brought me up to speed!


a demanding part with much dialogue, requiring serious ac-ting skills, which he succeeded in bringing to the production. He coped with his singing parts quite well too. Aimee/Linda was superbly cast. Her acting is tops and her non-speaking, listening interactions, which I always feel are tricky and so important to bring off convincingly, were spot on.

Some of the supporting roles were well played too. Royston Capel, Mr Lyons was well sui-ted in the role of well-to-do businessman always eager to keep the wife happy and conso-le her anxieties. Charlie Bishop in his double role as teddy-boy husband Mr Johnstone and Mickey’s degenerate, older

brother Sammy gave us a cre-dible performance throughout, especially in his rascal role. Other supporting actors inclu-ded, no stranger to Santos Pro-ductions, Tanya Santana Mc-Clelland, Ethan Rocca, whose shot up since playing a very young ‘yours truly’ in the Stage One production of, ‘Yesterday When I Was Young’, Paul Rob-ba, Grainne Underwood and the Santos Productions stu-dents. Music was provided live on stage by an excellent band of musicians, which included leader, Chuck McClelland on sax and clarinet, Jonathan Bu-geja on guitar, Atsuko Shimada on keyboards, George Posso bass, and Victor Calderon on drums... And the forever de-manding exercise of getting

sound and lighting right was achieved also. I’ve said in the past, I’m not a theatre critic but I have some experience of productions and of performing on stage and el-sewhere, so here come one or two observations: I thought the overture was effective and well presented by the Santos Production students though I felt was a little long and could have been edited down by 60 or 90 seconds perhaps. Edward’s parents weren’t that posh, they had neutral accents, so I thought Edward’s accent would have become ‘posher’ when he became a resident at boar-ding school and not the other way round. And a tricky one I know, but accents did slip so-

mewhat on occasions but, I have to concede that putting on a Liverpool accent for an ‘am dram’ actor from Gloucester, Norwich or Winchester would be difficult enough, let alone for bilingual Gibraltarians attemp-ting to hold it continually for close on two and a half hours... But, just an observation!

As an amateur production, I think they served the author, Willy – Educating Rita and Shirley Valentine - Russell very well with this local production of Blood Brothers... The local drama fraternity can be proud of what was produced on four successful nights at Ince’s Hall... Many ‘ legs were broken,’ no doubt to provide an excellent show!!



GLOBE MAGAZINE DECEMBER 2013 5150 DECEMBER 2013 GLOBE MAGAZINE

Hosting a ChristmasDinner Party

Entertaining friends and fa-mily in your home during the Christmas season is one of the most popular activities this time of year. Many people choose to host small, informal gatherings in their home, while others plan extravagant dinner parties which are destined to generate more than one urban legend in the community in which they are held. While many of us do not aspire to such heights as those held by the socialites in our community, we would still like to host an unforgettable Christmas dinner party that will

be remembered fondly among our closest friends and family for years to come!

If you are like me, and many are if they would admit it, the thought of all of the work and skill that goes into throwing a successful dinner party leaves you a little weak in the knees and wondering how in the world you are going to pull it all off.

But don’t let the fear of juggling the tasks involved with putting on a dinner party keep you from hosting the event that your fa-

mily and friends will talk about for a long time into the futu-re. It’s really not difficult if you follow a few simple steps and guidelines for putting on a suc-cessful dinner party.

Tips for Planning the Perfect Christmas Dinner Party: Make your list, check it twice, and in-vite, invite, invite. The first thing you need to do when planning a dinner party is to create your guest list. Keep in mind that not all invited will attend. So, if you want to have 50 guests at your party, you will have to invite

quite a few more than that. Send out invitations no less than three weeks in advance so that people will have a chance to RSVP.

Plan to cook your own meal or plan for others to plan it for you. If you are no Betty Crocker, ad-mit it to yourself before signing on to make a large homemade meal. Having someone cater your dinner party or ordering takeaways is perfectly accepta-ble depending on what type of atmosphere you want to create.Remember that buffets are in-formal and a sit down dinner is



more formal. I’m not saying that you are not capable of cooking a large meal for your guests. If you are and want to take on the work load of cooking for mul-tiple guests, then by all means do so. Just keep in mind your li-mitations and time constraints. Doing so will save you a great deal of headache in the end.

Carefully plan your menu. When planning your indivi-dual dishes to serve at your Christmas dinner party, choose dishes that are both delicious and easy to make. Choose recipes that can be made ahead of time or that require just a little heating right before the party to be finished. The last thing you want to be doing during your dinner party is slaving over a hot stove sequestered away from your guests. Another important thing to remember when planning your menu is to never, ever attempt to cook

plates, candlesticks, decora-tions, table cloths, etc. Do not forget your food items from your menu as well.

Shop and clean till you drop. About a week before your dinner party, you should take the time to do your party shopping and give your house a thorough cleaning.

Cook and decorate. Cook and prepare as many foods as you can ahead of time, preferable the day before the party.

Save the day of the party for set-ting up your tables and adding the finishing touches to your décor.

See, hosting a memorable Christmas dinner party is not so hard after all. In fact, I’m sure that you can do it. So, get out there and start planning, and if at any time you feel overwhelmed, simply hire a caterer!

a recipe for the first time. Trust me.

Take inventory. Create a list of

all of the supplies that you will need to host your dinner par-ty. Items may include tables, chairs, service pieces, cutlery,



The Ministry of Culture, in co-llaboration with the Gibraltar Electricity Authority, organised what has been dubbed as the ‘Festival of Lights’ on Friday 22nd November last at the John Mackintosh Square.

In previous years, the switching-on of the Christmas Lights was conducted as two separate

events (The ‘Christmas Lights’ organised by the Electricity Authority at the Piazza and the Lighting of the ‘Christmas Tree’ at Casemates Square organised by the Mayor’s Office) but this year, the Ministry of Culture decided to combine both events as one in order to create a fun evening for the whole family to enjoy.

The entertainment was pre-sented by Rock Masters and the event featured live music,

song and dance, the traditio-nal school choir performing a selection of popular carols, the Christmas lights switch-on, arts and crafts and a very special ap-pearance by Father Christmas with his elves for the enjoyment of the very young, and the not so young members of our com-munity!

The switching-on of the Christ-mas Lights was conducted by Minister of Culture, The Hon Steven Linares, His Worship

the Mayor, Anthony Lima and Tyrone Davies from St Martin’s School.

Following the Switching-On Ceremony, the illuminations, which brightens Gibraltar’s main thoroughfare throughout the festive season, will there-after come on, automatically, every day until the 6th January 2014. This colourful ceremony traditionally sets Gibraltar every year on a cheerful festive mood!

Photographs by Dominique Martinez-Lopez(www.gibraltarfocus.com)

‘Festival of Lights’ kicksoff the Season of Good Will

GLOBE MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2013 55


Christmas Turkey

The Best Recipes of our Cuisine

HOW TO MAKE IT:

1. Remove giblets from turkey. Reserve liver for the stuffing and the rest for the gravy. Rinse inside of turkey, drain and wipe with kitchen paper. Remove wis-hbone by easing skin gently back from neck end. Scrape knife down wishbone then cut down back to remove. 2. To make stuffing: fry the chopped onion in 25g of butter for 5 min, transfer to a large bowl. Finely chop reserved turkey liver and add to bowl with the sausagemeat,

SERVES: 8

PREPARATION: 1 HOUR 30 MIN.

REST: 45 MIN.

INGREDIENTS:

5.4Kg (12lb) oven-ready turkey with giblets,

thawed if frozen

2 onions, 1 chopped and 1 quartered

75g butter

450g premium sausagemeat

225g cooked chestnuts, chopped

1 ripe pear

100g fresh white breadcrumbs

1 egg, size 3, beaten

100g craisins

6 cloves

4 bay leaves

325g rindless smoked streaky bacon

325g Lincolnshire chipolata sausages

100g ready-to-eat apricots

chestnuts, pear, breadcrumbs, beaten egg and craisins. Mix and season well. 3.

Spoon into neck end. Reserve any excess stuffing.Stud the onion quarters with cloves and push inside opposite cavity with bay leaves. Turn the bird over and sew the neck skin under. If necessary, truss bird loosely with foil; cook at 180 C (350 F) for 4 hours. Remove foil, in-crease oven to 400 F (200 C) for 30 min. 4. Meanwhile, using the back of a knife, stretch bacon until doubled in length. Halve widthways. Wrap half the bacon around sausages and remainder around the apricots. Put into a small roasting tin. Roll remaining stuffing into balls, add to tin, cover and chill. 5. To check

turkey is cooked: cut the skin between the leg and breast, insert a skewer into the thickest part of the leg. If the turkey is cooked, the juices will run clear. If not, return to the oven and cook for a further 30 min. 6. Remove turkey from oven, put on to a serving plate. Cover with clean foil and about for clean tea towels and leave to rest for 45 min. 7. Mean-while, remove sausage and apricot rolls and stuffing balls from fridge and cook in the oven for 45 min. Arrange around the turkey with ‘Rosemary roots’. Gar-nish turkey with a bunch of fresh herbs and a few sprigs of rosemary.


GLOBE MAGAZINE NOVEMBER 2013 5958 DECEMBER 2013 GLOBE MAGAZINE

What’s happening down town?

1. Gibraltar National Dance Team 2013

2. Young Ladies dressed as Santa at the ‘Festival Of Lights’ 3. Tony Hernandez taking another Christmas Order at My Wines 4. Gibraltar Day in London 2013

5 y 6. Poonam Rupani orga-nised another of Her Fashion and Costume Jewellery Exhibi-tions at The Kiki Lounge in aid of the Red Cross Charity

7. The wedding of Stuart and Kelly Allen on 7th September 2013 at Tiki Tano Restaurant

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60 NOVEMBER 2013 GLOBE MAGAZINE GLOBE MAGAZINE NOVEMBER 2013 61


ChristmasDecoration

A warm armosphere for this festive seasonTABLE DECORATION

Christmas is a time of cele-brations and reunions with family and friends, and a spe-cial Christmas meal is a must. For such a special occasion, showing off ones culinary talent is not enough. The at-mosphere is so essential, that a well decorated table can turn the most boring meal into a memorable act, thanks to the festive atmosphere created by the candles, the decorated glassware and the fine porce-lain crockery.

In this chapter we would like to propose some easy to make elegant tablecloth sets, which serve as a complement for all sorts of table decoration. In-dividual padded tablecloths will look great on any woo-den table, being it rustic, oak or mahogany. The vivid co-lours of its edging will create a contrast with the streaks of the wood, whether its waxed or polished. As for Damasce-ne tablecloths and serviettes, with elegant floral patterns, they can be modified chan-ging the patterns to those of ones own choice or changing the size according to the table. Refined and original, thanks to the designs being timeless, both tablecloths can be used year after year, until they

turn into indispensable parts of Christmas, thus transfor-ming normal table linen into a sample of exclusive personal design.

DECORATED BASKET

With the idea of combining it with the Christmas garland, this basket combines the red and orange tones of the poin-settias and the chinese lan-terns, as if reflecting the fla-mes of the fire. Try to make sure that the decoration is not excessive, to avoid eclipsing the basket.

TREE DECORATIONS

All the family can participate in decorating the tree, as it is a special occasion that can be enjoyed with even more in-tensity if previously there has been time dedicated to crea-ting the decoration. This is particularly true for children, who are filled with illusion and are proud to show off the objects that they themsel-ves have made. An idea that goes well with the Christmas spirit is to give the tree deco-ration a second meaning for example making them into small presents for friends and family visiting the house, like the small aromatic bags made with cross-stitching.


Amongst the different possi-bilities of edible presents are the sugared almond bundles, that although very simple to make, have a very elegant look to them.

Tree Tub with Surprise Pre-sents Although a lot of effort

is put into the decoration of the Christmas tree, many ti-mes the base is somewhat forgotten. This tree tub with surprise presents is an origi-nal solution that the children will love, specially when they discover the presents hidden in the wood.


Giovanni Bresciano is into his unique detective work once again: this time, to prove his family’s innocence... or is someone amongst his most be-loved relatives not so blameless..? One thing’s for sure, this fifth ‘Bresciano’ mystery, apart from a good read, makes for a great Christmas stocking filler...

TheDevil’s

Tongue


I sometimes wonder if they are not part-time sleuths them-selves! I say this because they seem to have the knack of coming up with original and very interesting plots for our businessman-cum-‘when called upon’ detective Bresciano to solve. Mary Chiappe and Sam Benady – the Rodgers and Hammerstein of the local literary world – are on a marathon, it seems. The mysteries just keep on coming and there’s room for one more I hear, coming up next winter! But that...is next winter.

‘The Devil’s tongue’ kicks off with poor, mentally infirmed Cataliina, who’s being forced to move out of her home and seeks help from the Bresciano family, whom she works for as a home help. Not surprisingly, Bresciano visits his well placed contacts and in no time at all, improves Catalina’s chances of ‘home recovery!’ However, all is not back to normality... Ghosts from the past re-appear determined to get back at Bresciano and his flock.

A man called Rogers returns threatening to ruin Giovanni’s family. It’s not just goods stocked in Bresciano’s warehouse apparently, there is a lifeless body lying in the yard... Yes, it is the expired body of one called Rogers, who will neither dis-turb nor make things awkward for the Brecianos any longer,


but, whodunit? Bresciano’s kindred loved ones certainly have a motive for killing Rogers it seems and detective Giovanni has his work cut out to prove the family’s innocence. There are a number of family members and close relatives to sift through, so will he have much difficulty in providing genuine ‘no guilty’ pleas for each and every one of them? Bresciano is desperate, are they indeed innocent...therein lies the problem and more than a taster, I would think, to want to read on!!

Rogers, Chadwick, Catalina, El Mendi and many others come into play and Bresciano needs to put his investigative know- how into top gear; there’ll be a lot to look into and scrutini-se and detective ‘Bressy’ won’t be biting his tongue, nor the Devil’s hopefully, at the end of his investigative probing...or will he??

‘The Devil’s Tongue’ is on sale locally at £9.99...


Text by Justine Fava – Cartwright

Dominique Martinez is not new to photography as she has been running her family business, ‘Photofinish*, at the coach park for several years. Along with many other photo-graphy jobs she is commissio-ned for, what Dominique does do with her passion and when

The New BuzzGibraltography

Photographs just have to be one of the most personal and unique gifts to receive. Treasured moments captured in time or personalised for a special person in your life or an occasion to remember framed and holding prize of place in your home

time allows, is to constantly find ways to branch out creati-vely and come up with new and exciting ideas to use photogra-phy in different ways.

Some two years ago, Domi-nique stumbled upon a new idea and set about applying so-mething similar in Gibraltar by adding her own unique touch. Over that period, she walked the length and breadth of Gi-braltar looking through her ca-

mera lens in what some might think as an ‘odd’ way. Pictures of Gibraltar are plentiful and have become somewhat or-dinary in that we see many of the same shots but Dominique decided to see Gibraltar in a di-fferent way.......she saw letters. In that time, Dominique found letters in everything from ar-chitecture, paving, metal work, doors, street lights and more. She turned them upside down, placed buildings on their side

and snapped away from all an-gles finding the alphabet in ina-nimate objects. What she crea-ted was an album of pictures that she could later put together to create words, names and sa-yings. The flexibility of this is that each and every frame put together is personal and unique to the client’s requirements and a one off. The combinations are endless and can be tailor made for any occasion and person. From the birth of your child

Photographs bywww.gibraltarfocus.com



to a unique birthday present, retirement present, valentine’s gift, family name and portrait or even in memory of your be-loved pet, you can put together the letters, add your own pho-tos and frame in different sizes and colours. You can apply the same to fridge magnets, trinket boxes and more if you want so-mething else from Dominique’s endless list of choices.

You can buy the photographed letters in stunning sepia se-parately at £4 each and frame them yourself or place an order with Dominique, who will do it all for you less the stress! Pri-ces range from £30 for a 3 letter 40cm frame to £70 for a 9 letter 80cm frame but the prices vary greatly depending on what you would like. Your finished gift is something meaningful, created

with thought and includes that special touch of our very own heritage in every shape of a let-ter found around Gibraltar.

You can place orders with Dominique at her stall in the several market fairs held at different locations locally throughout the year or log on to her Facebook page ‘GI-BRALTOGRAPHY’, take a

look for yourself and place an order there or pop down to the coach park and pay her a visit. Dominique is more than ha-ppy to show you all the options and give you the ideas to make the ordering process a simple one and ultimately giving you a finished product that will no doubt, be held very dear to its recipient and treasured for years to come.

Governor and Lady Johns Mr Picardo boughthis frames at the Elliots





Text by Samantha Acris

Photographs by Jayden Fa

Miss Gibraltar, the Rock’s most anticipated beauty pa-geant, is mainly based on the physical appearance of each contestant. The winner has to have outstanding presence on stage and catch the eye and heart of each judge. What you don’t realise is the amount of personality that these contes-tants can bring out on stage, be it with their body language or just a smile. Picking up the courage to enter already shows a confidence and courageous character, and the whole ex-perience can be mesmerizing and life changing.

Our tight knit environment, which is something we have learned to live with here in Gibraltar, directly affects each of the contestants year in year out. Do these competitions degrade our generation of young women? Or is it a litt-le bit of fun? What does it say about society? Jamielee Ran-dall, this year ‘s Miss Photo-genic , took to the stage “I find the Miss Photogenic relevant to the pageant as I think it is im-portant to show that not only can you do well on stage but behind a camera as well.”Beauty pageants can bene-fit a girl’s personal develop-

ment, poise, and self confi-dence. The experience can open many doors to different career opportunities inclu-ding modelling, acting and singing. It can contribute lasting invaluable personal skills to benefit anything she might do in later life. There

Miss Photogenic 2013Jamielee Randall

Globe Magazine interviews Miss Photogenic, Jamielee Randall

are some good looking girls, who are not beautiful because of their ugly personality and behaviour, while some plain girls are beautiful because of their personality and virtue. A beauty pageant aims to de-velop true beauty, inside and out.

Over the years, we have seen many contestants return to give the pageant another shot, entering the pageant was an encouragement by her fa-mily and friends but Jamielee stressed how this was a once in a lifetime experience and wouldn’t consider entering again. “This was not something I saw myself doing. Because of my height and figure, I was always told to enter but I never paid much attention to this un-til this past year, I thought it’s now or never. It was completely out of my comfort zone.”

Once the night came the-re was no turning back, af-ter weeks of preparation this was it, Jamielee like many of the other participants felt a sudden rush of emotion, the usually questions that would run through anyone’s head, Will I fall? Will I go blank du-ring the interview? Neverthe-less above all this, it disappea-red once she hit the stage, the lights start flashing and the roar from the crowds began. “On the night, I couldn’t belie-ve what I was about to do. The adrenaline rush came over me and stepped in, I was so ner-vous. It’s a scary feeling but at the same time it’s the best fee-ling in the world, knowing that your family and friends are cheering for you and applau-

Photo © Jonathan Mañasco



ding you every time you step foot on stage. It’s a very emo-tional but amazing feeling.”

Never did Jamielee think she would end up taking two awards at the end of the night, Miss Photogenic and 1st Prin-cess. “I did not expect this at all! I am always the one, who hates taking pictures as the outcome in my opinion is not always the best. I am very overcritical about myself at ti-mes, so winning Miss Photoge-nic was a very big deal to me. I have to say the photographer and Art Director deserve as much credit as myself. (Jayden Fa and Guy Baglietto)”

So once the pageant is over and you are just left with the memories or the hustle and bustle of routines, rehearsals and social events how does it affect a contestant? “I believe I am much more confident now. I was always insecure because of the silliest things for exam-ple my freckles.”

As for advice that she offers any young ladies out there

wanting to follow her foots-teps, she says, “to prepare themselves, it may not look like it but there is so much

hard work and determination that goes into the pageant.”For the first time last year, 1st Princess Kerrianne Mas-

setti represented Gibraltar in the Miss International Beauty Pageant, so this year Jamie-lee was encouraged to do the same and participate in this competition, which takes pla-ce in December in Japan. “I will be leaving for Japan first week in December and shall spend most of the month the-re, along with other delegates from around the World. I will be representing Gibraltar on my own initiative along with the help of my main Sponsor, ‘Sorek Group’. This will be the second time the 1st prin-cess gets to take part in the Miss International Beauty Pa-geant. Last years 1st Princess, Kerrianne Massetti has been a great help, advising me on what I will have to do once there and what I should prepa-re myself with.”

We wish Jamielee all the best in Japan at the Miss Interna-tional Beauty Pageant.

CREDITS: Make-Up - Nyree Chipolina, Hair: Kyle Gon-zalez, Art Direction: Guy Ba-glietto



Polls consistently show that a clear majority of Americans believe that Lee Harvey Oswald did not act alo-ne, and perhaps did not act at all, in the murder of the 35th president on a Dallas street on November 22nd 1963. That’s many more than those, who believe the discredited theories that the ‘9/11’ attacks were an inside job and that President Barack Oba-ma was born outside the country and faked his birth certificate!

Part of the lure for conspiracy theo-rists is the irresistible concentration of power that surrounded the crime, held by both the gleaming young president and the forces, from the Kremlin to within his very adminis-tration that would have had a motive.

But another part say those, who have studied the assassination and the conspiracy theories for decades, is the smallness of Oswald himself, the man blamed by the Warren Com-

Half a century has passed since the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, one of the greatest crimes of the 20th century and the most abundant wellspring for conspiracy theorists in the history of the United States

‘So Consequential An Act’50 years later, JFK conspiracy theories endure

Philip Shenon, a former reporter for The New York Times and author of a new book on the assassination, “A Cruel and Shocking Act,” blames four men for spawning “conspiracy theo-ries that are likely to plague us forever.” Among those faulted by Shenon is the slain president’s brother, Robert F. Kennedy, for publicly supporting the Warren Commission’s findings and denouncing the commission in pri-vate. Shenon’s book also finds gaping holes in the government’s investiga-tion. It suggests that the FBI and CIA covered up what they knew about Oswald and that former Chief Justice Earl Warren never allowed the com-mission staff to see the JFK autopsy photos.

A Gallup poll, timed for the 50th Anniversary of the murder in Dallas, found that 61 percent of Americans believe in a conspiracy to kill Kenne-dy, with the Mafia and the U.S. go-vernment the most popular culprits.

mission, the government’s first in-quiry into the killing. “It’s incredibly unsatisfying to believe that this guy, this insignificant person, could have done so consequential an act,” says Jeff Greenfield, who worked for Robert F. Kennedy and has just released a book imagining how history might have played out had JFK lived.

The Warren Commission concluded that Oswald acted alone, but it was not the final word on the assassina-tion. A special House committee had found in 1979 that Kennedy “was probably assassinated as the result of a conspiracy” but was unable to iden-tify another gunman or the extent of the plot.

The mob did it; or the CIA; or Fidel Castro; or Lyndon Johnson; or the Soviets?



That figure is down from 81 percent in the early 1990s, after the contro-versial Oliver Stone film “JFK” fueled belief in a conspiracy, but has never, since the year of the assassination itself, dipped below half.

“All of us have had a history teacher in high school, a professor, who swore there was a conspiracy,” says Joe Us-cinski, a political scientist at the Uni-versity of Miami and co-author of the forthcoming book “American Cons-piracy Theories.”

“Even if it’s a stretch to call it truth, there’s still an information environ-ment that would suggest to a reasona-ble person there might have been,” he says.

Among those people are Secretary of State John Kerry, who told NBC News that “to this day I have serious doubts that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone.” However, he declined to ela-borate beyond saying “it’s a point of view that I have.”

Globe Magazine has examined the conspiracy theories that live on, as vividly and persistently as the president’s memory, beginning with one of the most popular.

THE CARLOS MARCELLO

AND THE MOB THEORY

Finding a reason for organized cri-

me to have plotted Kennedy’s assas-sination is not difficult: Both John F. Kennedy and his brother Robert, the attorney general, were crusading mob-busters, and led the toughest crackdown on the Mafia to date by the federal government. The 1979 House report concluded that organized cri-me “had the motive, opportunity and means to kill the president.” It singled out Carlos Marcello, a mob boss who-se territory included Louisiana, most of Texas and part of Mississippi.

Mob prosecutions soared under Ro-bert Kennedy’s Justice Department, and Marcello was deported to Guate-mala in 1961. There he is said to have slogged through the jungle in Gucci shoes, swearing he would get reven-ge! He was tried two years later in a New Orleans mob case and acquit-ted — on the afternoon of Novem-ber 22nd 1963 — after apparently bribing a juror. “He was incredibly powerful. He was probably America’s most powerful godfather then,” says Lamar Waldron, the author of a new book that makes a comprehensive case for a mob plot. “Marcello con-trolled an empire at least as large as General Motors.”

Waldron’s book includes an FBI ac-count of a confession made by Mar-cello, from federal prison in Texas, to a cellmate and FBI informant in December 1985: “Yeah, I had the son of a bitch killed. I’m glad I did. I’m

sorry I couldn’t have done it myself.” The book establishes Oswald as litt-le more than a fall guy, working as a low-level American intelligence ope-rative and answering to people who-se true allegiance was to Marcello.

Marcello and his subordinates, Wal-dron argues, manipulated Oswald into a connection with a plan by John and Robert Kennedy to stage a coup against Castro on December 1st 1963. The Mafia had learned of the plan because of the CIA’s unautho-rized use of the mob in plots, unk-nown to President Kennedy, to kill Castro, Waldron says. Once Oswald was publicly identified as the suspect in the assassination of Kennedy, the CIA and other agencies had to cover up information, lest the Castro plot be exposed and, in Waldron’s words, “start World War III!”

The Mafia had learned that “unless you have someone to quickly take the blame, someone will put it where it belongs,” Waldron says. In Waldron’s account of November 22nd 1963, Marcello had arranged for two hit men to enter the country from Europe through Canada and carry out the as-sassination. Their identities, and from where they fired, remain unknown. Waldron says, partly because the FBI stands by the theory of Oswald as the lone gunman and has never released the tapes of Marcello’s prison conver-sations with the FBI informant.

MARCELLO DIED IN 1993

The 1979 House report found that the Warren Commission’s investiga-tion was “seriously flawed,” and that its determination that there was no conspiracy was “not reliable.” Among other things, the House committee said, the Warren Commission fai-led to uncover associations between Oswald and Jack Ruby, the man who shot him to death two days after Ken-nedy was killed.

The House committee found “credi-ble associations relating both Lee Har-vey Oswald and Jack Ruby to figures having a relationship, albeit tenuous, with Marcello’s crime family or orga-nization.”

The mob theory holds that Ruby was ordered by the mob to take out Oswald to prevent him from talking. Waldron last week petitioned the White House to order the release of all assassination-related files by the FBI, the CIA and other government agencies. The National Archives, the petition says, refuses to say how many pages of files are being withheld.

After a certain period of time, and that period of time may well have passed, it is totally appropriate for a country like the United States to open up the files on whatever his-tory can … shed light on. I think that everybody would benefit.



One on One withGino Sanguinetti

Aged two and a half, very poorly in hospital sketching away when feeling better... Grandad, Leopold Sanguinetti, a poet and artist, dad, Leopoldo Sanguinetti, baritone singing away to Verdi and Puccini, also an artist; on his mother’s side the-re was music too, she sang Flamenco and ‘Saetas’... There was no debate, the ‘arty streak’ in Gino had positively rooted!


“I must’ve been about six or seven when I actually started to paint. I’d seen a book on El Prado museum and was fascinated and I instincti-vely sensed the deepness of the art in those works. The Renaissance, the Italian artists like Michel An-gelo, Titian, Tintoretto and the Fle-mish painter, Rubens, have been great influences also.” Now in his 50s, Gino has spent a lifetime clo-sely linked to the world of art and music... “Oh yes, even today I’m still very much into my paintings. I tend to paint at night two or three times a week for a couple of hours.” Gino says his style is in the ̀ voice’ in painting and claims paintings `speak’ to you, awakening what’s in your mind and producing what makes each work visible.Despite having spent 13 years

in one of the world’s renowned, cultural capitals, Paris, Gino felt he was well prepared and in tune with what to expect there. “I’d go quite often to the John Mackintosh library where they had a wonder-ful collection of all types of music and library books. After that hea-ding for Southampton University to study Modern Languages – Spa-nish and Italian – also helped, so all of my experiences up until then gave me a `cultural toolbox,’ which well prepared me for what to ex-pect in Paris.” Apart from Gino’s innate passion for the arts his interest in that genre would not be allowed to diminish, not least because much of his time is spent managing the Fine Arts Centre at Casemates where painting exhibi-tions abound! “I’m here most days between eleven and one and three and six.” But preparing for the



celebration of the bi-centennial of Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner’s birth, has taken up much of Gino’s time... “I’ve been working hard putting the whole thing together for many months, between March and August. It’s a project that will display my work accompanied by old and contem-porary music.” To get started Gino performed what for some could be described as a strange ritual in the way he chose what and how to paint each of the great compo-sers’ musical masterpieces, “I had a bowl with all of the 37 composers’ works written on strips of paper. I then blindly chose, at random, one

at a time and painted each one on what inspired me to paint on each of their works.” And the re-sults will be there for all to see... “What I would like is for young and old alike to become interested in the world of Verdi and Wagner through my paintings; I am the filter, if you like. I hope to provoke discussion and debate about mu-sic and painting at the exhibition or wherever. My intention is to get to the` issue’ in each painting and express my emotion through each one of the works shown and if the exhibition inspires just one music or art lover or whoever, that would be great!” Gino has hundreds of

examples of his work at home, some framed and many not, paintings that he’s produced over the many years since his interest and love for the art intuitively first drove him to `sweep’ a sheet of paper or canvas with a fine paint brush, so that’s why at this exhi-bition he’s also showing 15 items from his vast collection, “Yes, they are mostly abstract of some of my past work and hopefully, those too will please visitors to the exhibi-tion.”

Gino doesn’t feel his style has changed over the years but sim-ply goes on and on, perhaps in a

dynamic fashion – always active and perhaps undergoing develo-pment in some form or other. On the often asked question about how to appreciate a work of art as in a painting, he claims it’s not clear cut... `a painting is the who-le work that needs to recognised and your brain will tell you what you see..! Or, as I would put it, in obvious and very clichéd terms, `beauty is in the eyes of the behol-der!!’

Gino’s painting exhibition was on at the Fine Arts Centre up to the 29th of October... It was definitely a cultural feast!






Local author of three novels, Joe Caruana took a break from promoting his latest offering, a historically based fiction novel on the life and times of a medieval Knight whose cru-sade finally brought down the Ottoman Sultan, thus ending the rule of Islam and ensuring that the Christians prevailed in the Mediterranean and be-yond. Chatting to Globe Magazine, the author, whose ancestors were Maltese, said that he was inspired to flesh out in fic-tion an account of the life of a great man in the history of the crusades. A recent review said it was the fight between the Cross and the Crescent Moon. The same review also pointed out that Valleta , the capital of Malta, was named after the main character in Joe Caruana’s story, Jean Parisot de la Valette, a heroic knight born into French nobility, who fought and prevailed in the great Seige of Malta.

“I didn’t go to Malta to research the story for the book; it was a journey I needed to do because it was the land of my ancestors.

with his project by sea, so they developed a large sailing fleet that eventually cost the Sultan a big headache. The knights in fact became pirates and attac-ked the supply shipments and also naval ships very successfu-lly.”

In the review published by The Gibraltar Chronicle, the reviewer seemed struck by the idea that the author was freeing ‘an inner knight’ when he gave rein to the fictional embroidery that gave life to the story…

“Being a romantic at heart, I had never thought of this, but looking deeper at what the re-viewer is hinting at, yes it seems so true. This story is so full of chivalry and romance that I think there is a possibility that I am a knight at heart. I think that I would have liked living in those times. In fact, there were a few sea battles that the Maltese took part in during the siege and in my mind I actually visualized my ancestors diving into the sea with knives and cutting down the Islamic assai-lants.”

The licence that the author has taken with battles and histo-

Behind ‘The IronKnight of Malta’

The author has written this novel with a sentimental feeling about the land of his ancestors, the Maltese people - A people, who have shown remarkable courage

and faith on many occasions in the history of the Mediterranean

In the story as it develops, as soon as the knights were evicted from the holy land in the last of the crusades, at the port of Ac-cre, in time they were given the island of Malta. And at around

the same time, it became clear to the knights that they could not overwhelm the Ottoman Sultan in land battles.They re-alised however that they could do much damage and interfere


rical dates is something that is pointed out in the book’s appendices. In order to em-bellish the story, the battle of Lepanto, where the Sultan was finally defeated, has been mo-ved to an earlier period and a different location.

“I had to choose a sea battle because seafaring and fighting at sea became very prominent for the knights, but I could find very little in historical books although the siege of Malta in 1565 is very well covered. I had to choose a battle and to make it real so I chose Lepanto whe-

re the final destruction of the Ottoman Empire took place under Italian Admiral Andrea Doria and Spanish Admiral Rumaga.”

The history genre, which is now very popular, is the his-tory laced with fiction that allows writers to embellish his-torical events and bring them to the reader in more exciting ways – that is the route that Joe Caruana has taken in this very readable account of Jean de la Vallete, a knight, whose name is held high in the history of the fall of the Ottoman empire.




Charles Dickens and ChristmasAt the beginning of the Victo-rian period, the celebration of Christmas was in decline. The medieval Christmas tradi-tions, which combined the ce-lebration of the birth of Christ with the ancient Roman festi-val of Saturnalia (a pagan cele-bration for the Roman god of agriculture), and the Germa-nic winter festival of Yule, had come under intense scrutiny by the Puritans under Oliver Cromwell. The Industrial Re-volution, in full swing in Dic-kens’ time, allowed workers little time for the celebration of Christmas.

The romantic revival of Christmas traditions that oc-curred in Victorian times had other contributors: Prince Al-bert brought the German cus-tom of decorating the Christ-mas tree to England, the singing of Christmas carols, which had all but disappea-red at the turn of the century, began to thrive again, and the first Christmas card appeared in the 1840’s. But it was the

after more than 160 years, ‘A Christmas Carol’ continues to be relevant, sending a message that cuts through the materia-listic trappings of the season and gets to the heart and soul of the holidays.

Dickens’ describes the holi-days as “a good time: a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time: the only time I know of in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of other people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys”. This was what Dickens described for the rest of his life as the “Carol Philosophy”.

Dickens’ name had become so synonymous with Christmas, that on hearing of his death in 1870, a little costermonger’s girl in London asked, “Mr. Dickens dead? Then will Father Christmas die too?”

Charles Dickens has probably had more influence on the way that we celebrateChristmas today than any single individual in human history except one!

Christmas stories of Dickens, particularly his 1843 master-piece, ‘A Christmas Carol’, that rekindled the joy of Christmas in Britain and America. Today,



Documents

Globe December 2013