Every year, we give over all of December (and usually most of January) to a series called ‘Shadows and Reflections’, in which our contributors share highs, lows and oddments from the past 12 months. Today it’s the turn of Benjamin Myers.
2022 has been a time for smallness — seeking pleasure in the mundane things or the minutiae of existence, whenever possible. Slowing, stopping, looking.
Early in the year I bought an ultra-violet sauna tent, in which I sit for 20 minutes each evening, sweating myself into a salty pool while contemplating the day. I recommend it.
Aside from that, other things that I have enjoyed and appreciated this year include: Rudston Monolith (circa 1600BC); opening the curtains; bees; The White Lotus (seasons 1 and 2); Paddy Pimblett’s video blog; Red Exposure by Chrome and the return of Futurismo record label; daily meditation; Yorkshire tea (brewed long and black — what I have coined The Yespresso); The Ruby Cord by Richard Dawson; Wanting You To Want Me: Stories From The Secret World Of Strip Clubs by Bronwen Parker-Rhodes & Emily Dinsdale; feeding the neighbourhood pheasant named Tiberius; the five albums released in 2022 by King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard; discovering the writing of Claire Keegan; The Newsreader; green grapes; Eggs, Beans & Crumpets by PG Wodehouse; Ladies & Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains (1982), Arctic Summer by Damon Galgut; Rachel Reeves; In Fabric (2018); the women of Iran; putting on my bright red Franz Beckenbauer vintage tracksuit; Go-Kart Mozart at The Trades Club in Hebden Bridge; Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny and Girly (1970); Dave Davies’ tweets; planting poppy seeds; The Harbour Bar in Scarborough; wasps; the erotic 80s series of You Must Remember This podcast; The Quietus; Adam Buxton; ‘3 Minutes To Midnight’ by The Streets; ‘The Natural Urge’ by Unthank: Smith; Seachange Festival at Totnes in Devon; literary agent Jessica Woollard; Unman Wittering and Zigo (1971); Fear Fear by Working Men’s Club; Glenda Jackson; Damian Abraham’s Turned Out A Punk podcast; planting an apple tree; Out Of The Blue (1980); UFC; Muse, Odalisque, Handmaiden by Rose Simpson; tiger balm; squirrels, Greg Heinimann’s book covers; Confidence Man live everywhere; Nidderdale in North Yorkshire during the heatwave; My Brilliant Friend (the series); Helena Bonham-Carter; Marina Hyde in The Guardian; my new David Hockney poster bought from Salt’s Mill, Saltaire; The Silence Of The Girls by The Shining Levels; Bru-C live at Reading festival; tap water; To The End Of The World by Rupert Everett; planting a plum tree; Jason Williamson’s tweets; Melville House book publisher; Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971); Gwendoline Christie; Radio 4Extra; Gwendoline Riley; ‘Everybody’s Talkin’ By Harry Nilsson; Weird Walk fanzine; massages at The Banyan Tree; Andrew Lincoln; several kittens; Bad Sisters; Crass; shovelling up piles of dead leaves into a mulch pile at the end of the garden which one will hopefully be inhabited by hedgehogs; Going Mad In Hollywood by David Sherwin; Autobibliography by Rob Doyle; King David Hartley of the Cragg Vale Coiners; Offbeat: British Cinema’s Curiosities, Obscurities and Forgotten Gems ed. Julian Upton; unexpected parcels from Cally Callomon; The Social in London; Ron Rash; Worcester cathedral; ‘Schizophrenia’ by XXXTentacion; The Souvenir (2021) and The Souvenir II (2022) and everything by Joanna Hogg; Talking Pics; Mogwai; Naga Munchetty; ‘Rainbow River’ by Vashti Bunyan; Top Boy; Ben’s Vintage Clothing shop in Folkestone; Cobalt Chapel’s Spotify playlists; Shane Meadows; Tim Key’s audiobook narration of The Perfect Golden Circle; mid-period Fugazi; Sight & Sound magazine; the Better Known podcast; Nicholas Lezard in the New Statesman; Kirsty Wark; Iggy Pop on Instagram; ‘Military Procedures’ by Splint; From The Oasthouse with Alan Partridge podcast; Boulder by Eva Baltasar; Pam & Tommy; Jack Lowden; The Shards by Bret Easton Ellis; Germany; Northern Earth magazine; ’21 Seconds’ by So Solid Crew; Bob Mortimer; Nicola Sturgeon; One Romany Summer (1977); the writings of E.M. Forster; The Centre For Folklore Myth and Magic in Todmorden; ‘Macho Music’ by Peter Gordon & ‘Blue’ Gene Tyranny; Bowie’s jungle phase; ‘You Will Never Work In Television Again’ by The Smile; The Book Corner in Halifax; Vanessa Redgrave; Old School by Tobias Wolff; the statue of Les Dawson in Lytham St Annes; ‘Stargazer’ by Shelagh McDonald; cod-reggae; Noel Coward; second-hand flight-suits; thinking about Malcolm McDowell’s face; a rowing machine; ‘The Man Who Couldn’t Afford To Orgy’ by John Cale; Backlisted podcast; the art prints of Black Lodge Press; Mark E Smith’s leather jacket(s); ‘Goin’ Up The Country’ by Canned Heat; White Rabbit Books; joining the Labour Party; England’s Green by Zaffar Kunial; Google street view; Stewart Lee’s Snowflake/Tornado; James Johnston’s paintings; The Comet Is Coming; books about cokehead Hollywood film producers; outdoor swimming at [LOCATION REDACTED], Ten Thousand Apologies: Fat White Family And The Miracle Of Failure by Adelle Stripe and Lias Saoudi; Michael Socha in Skint; kingfishers; Fireside Stories by Trevor Beales on Basin Rock Recordings; planting acorns; spiders; The Instant by Amy Liptrot; spiders’ webs; Bluemoose Books; watermelons; Thin Lizzy; desolate reservoirs; Angela Rayner; Glow On by Turnstile; Al Pacino and Gene Hackman in Scarecrow (1973); Ever Fallen In Love: The Lost Buzzcocks Tapes by Pete Shelley with Louie Shelley; new socks; Saul Adamczewski’s drawings ‘Danke Schoen’ by Wayne Newton; Geoffrey Burgon’s soundtrack to Brideshead Revisited; farm shops; ‘The Equestrian Statue’ by The Bonzo Dog Band; a solitary mouse running across the porch one evening.
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Benjamin Myers’ latest novel is ‘The Perfect Golden Circle’ (Bloomsbury).
His next novel ‘Cuddy’ will also be published by Bloomsbury, in March 2023.