The Saturday briefing
IS THERE anything you are desperately yearning to know? Are there any pressing factual disputes you would like us to help resolve? This is the page where we shall do our best to answer any questions you throw at us, whatever the subject.
CAN you explain the difference between normal acting and the method school of acting?
Edmund Perks, Ivybridge, Devon METHOD acting covers a range of techniques first introduced by the Russian actor/director Konstantin Stanislavski in the 1920s which emphasised the art of experiencing emotions by really getting into the nature of a character.
Part of this may involve the actor trying to live the life of the character off-stage as well as on-stage.
The best known quotation about method acting was spoken by Sir Laurence Olivier to Dustin Hoffman during the making of the 1976 thriller Marathon Man.
Hoffman was a passionate method actor and the story goes that at one stage he stayed awake for three days and nights to portray his character who had also done so.
Seeing him weary and haggard, Olivier said: “Try acting, dear boy.”
HAVING just watched a clip of a debate in the House of Commons on the news I was wondering why when Theresa May or another MP stands up to speak some Members also stand.
Kim Philpotts, by email THEY’RE trying to catch the Speaker’s eye. Especially at Prime Minister’s Questions, most of the question spots are booked and allocated in advance. But other MPs still have a chance to be called by the Speaker. Standing up is an indication that they wish to speak and they hope the Speaker will call on them.
WHEN my son and daughter-in-law come to stay they keep the bedroom light on all night so they can read if they want to. Apart from the waste of electricity I feel their eyes need the rest that darkness gives them. Is there research to back up my instinct?
Mrs M Robinson, Reigate, Surrey YOU are quite right but it’s more than just needing to give the eyes a rest. There is a group of cells in our brain called the suprachiasmatic nucleus that responds to light and dark. That’s what tells us to wake up when it’s light and increases cortisol production that increases our energy. Artificial light at night can disrupt sleep by unnaturally boosting cortisol.
Also, and perhaps even more importantly, darkness boosts our production of melatonin which lowers blood pressure, glucose levels and body temperature, in all cases leading to a better sleep. All forms of artificial light, including light bulbs and computer or tablet screens, interfere with melatonin production and restful sleep.
So you have my full blessing in advising your son and daughter-in-law to turn off the light and go to sleep.
CAN you please tell me where the term “gaffer” comes from when talking about someone in authority?
Ron Digance, by email IT may sound like a piece of modern slang but the word “gaffer” dates back to the 16th century when the term was generally applied to an elderly man who was deserving of respect. It may have originated as a contraction of “grandfather” or “godfather”.
IN snooker what is the origin of the term “Chinese snooker”? Why Chinese?
Derek Kavanagh by email THE only explanation I’ve seen of this suggests it is a derogatory reference to the supposedly short stature of the Chinese.
A Chinese snooker is not a proper snooker, where the cue ball is obscured from the object ball by another ball between them but occurs when the cue ball has a clear view of the object ball but is right in front of another ball making cueing very difficult; and even more difficult for a short player as the shot has to be executed with the cue high above the cue ball.
All this is very rude to the Chinese by I know but as I said that’s the only explanation I have seen. CAN you tell me who is the young black woman who seems always to sit at Jeremy Corbyn’s right elbow during Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons? I have never seen her make a speech and nobody I have asked knows who she is.
Mrs J H Downer, Sidmouth, Devon SHE is Dawn Butler, shadow minister for women and equalities and for diverse communities and MP for Brent Central.
In 2015 she was one of the 36 Labour MPs who nominated Jeremy Corbyn as a candidate in the Labour leadership election.
The official parliamentary record Hansard credits her with 89 spoken references since 2015, including an eloquent speech on UN International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on March 21, 2017. DID the late James Bond actor Sir Roger Moore invent the Magnum ice lolly? J Rhodes, Leeds NOBODY is sure about this one. The story goes that in an interview in the 1960s Roger Moore was asked whom he would most like to meet and put one question to.
He said that he would like to meet Mr Wall and ask him, “Why don’t they have a choc ice with vanilla inside that I had as a child and put it on a stick?”
After the interview appeared he is said to have received a call from the makers of Wall’s ice cream who sent him a cake with plain chocolate on the outside and vanilla ice cream on the inside.
This story has been verified by close friends and relatives of Roger Moore but Wall’s have said they have no evidence to support it. I HAVE just read your Ten Things You Never Knew About Mosquitoes. Can you tell me the best and worst holiday destinations to visit abroad if you want to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes?
A Atkinson, Enfield, Middlesex BRAZIL, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand have the highest number of mosquito species but all of Africa, South America and Asia have most of the mosquito-borne diseases.
Generally speaking, the tropics and temperate regions are the places to steer clear of.
As regards the best place to avoid mosquitoes there is one clear answer: Iceland is the only country without mosquitoes (though the regions of the Faroe Islands and Antarctica are also mosquito-free).