reetings once again from Northallerton, Leeds and London. A shorter letter this Christmas – perhaps reflecting a (slightly) less frenetic year. Philip didn’t manage to find a way to return to work in Luxembourg so has spent the entire year back in the UK and driving each day to the office in Wilton.

Although the main SAP project is still on hold, he has picked up a system upgrade project for the USA which required 2 trips back to our old stomping ground near Richmond Virginia. Most of our travels this year have been separate but Philip and Nola started off the year together with a lovely short break in Rome. We saw most of the famous sights although couldn’t face the 2km queue for the Sistine Chapel! The New Year’s festivities themselves were pretty impressive with huge crowds and fireworks in every piazza.

Theatre-wise Nola, was thwarted in her directing this year because the play she had picked suddenly had all amateur rights withdrawn; the production had to be cancelled. So instead, she went back to the boards for Billingham Players and sang two solos in an all-female show called Song Birds and also played a role in a straight play called Glorious.

Oliver continues to grow an ever-wider set of contacts in the record and music broadcasting industry and is now hosting a weekly, late night radio show that goes out in the London area and over the Internet. He and his girlfriend Claire seem very comfortable together and this year they enjoyed a couple of short breaks towards the east of Europe (Berlin and Ljubljana).
We are all well and looking forward to being together and having fun over the Christmas period and hope that you will be able to do the same.
Love and best wishes
Nola, Philip, Amy and Oliver

Philip was partly involved in Song Birds too – not performing but videoing each night and editing the whole show into very successful DVD. In fact video work has been very heavy for Philip this year. As well as the Billingham show, he filmed four live events in Luxembourg. Two were theatrical performances, another a choir concert and finally an Art “Happening” at the Family of Man Exhibition at Clervaux. On top of that he agreed to make the video for the wedding of his niece, Amanda.

Musically Philip has gone back to his trumpet playing with North Yorkshire Orchestras and his Brass Quintet. He has also decided to get involved with an amateur operatic group actually in Northallerton. His theory was that it could provide yet another musical outlet and the possibility to drink without driving! With the videos and also some training course in Brussels, Philip has had plenty of excuses for trips back to Luxembourg and has managed to keep up with his friends there. Nola also spent a week at the annual theatre summer school (which has now moved just over the Luxembourg boarder into Belgium). She has also been to see a lot of theatre, the highlight of which was going to London with Amy to see Ian McKellen in King Lear (not a hobbit in sight). They also made a visit to the Globe – something Nola has wanted to do for some time. Amy is still doing well in her job with the Northern Ballet and invites us so see all the productions when they are in the area (every ticket counts). She also made her own directing debut this year, not for the ballet company of course, but for a Leeds theatre group, doing Harold Pinters’s Betrayal. She is also busy planning a big birthday bash for her 30th in January.