#today programme

'Andrew Scott has addressed the comparisons between his character in Sherlock and his new role in Netflix's Ripley.

The upcoming series, adapted from Patricia Highsmith's 1955 novel The Talented Mr Ripley, will follow Scott's titular character as he scams his way to a life of riches in 1960s Italy.

While some have compared Ripley to Scott's villainous character Moriarty in the BBC's Sherlock, which he played between 2010 and 2017, Scott believes the two are completely different.

"It does feel different [to playing Moriarty]. As Moriarty I felt like I was playing a villain and for some reason I retreat against calling Ripley a villain," the actor explained while speaking on Radio 4's Today programme.

"He's an anti-hero and it's up to me to make the audience know what it's like to be Ripley, not to be a victim of Tom Ripley. We should empathise with him. He is the protagonist in this."

Scott went on to say that Highsmith's novel actually makes you "want to root" for Ripley, adding: "This is a man with enormous talent living in stress where his neighbours are rats.

"He is unseen and can do what he does in order to survive like so many people do and then he lands in this world where people are less talented than him and have no qualms in calling themselves artists.

"The message is, 'If you dismiss certain factors of the community, something becomes rotten in state of Denmark'".

Created by The Night Of's Steven Zaillian, Ripley also stars Johnny Flynn (Emma) as Dickie and Dakota Fanning (The Watchers) as Marge Sherwood, who fall victim to Ripley's manipulation.

'Andrew Scott has played many a villain down the years but in Netflix‘s Ripley he is trying to draw the line, and he has rejected comparisons with his BAFTA-winning turn as the evil Jim Moriarty in Sherlock.

Speaking on the BBC this morning, the All of us Strangers star said he will use the eight-episode TV series version of Patricia Highsmith’s novel to convince the audience that Ripley is so much more than a con man.

“It does feel different [to playing Moriarty],” he told the Today program. “As Moriarty I felt like I was playing a villain and for some reason I retreat against calling Ripley a villain. He’s an anti-hero and it’s up to me to make the audience know what it’s like to be Ripley, not to be a victim of Tom Ripley. We should empathize with him. He is the protagonist in this.”

Highsmith’s gift in her novel is to “make you root for him,” Scott added.

The psychological thriller, in which Ripley was famously played by Matt Damon in the 1999 movie, sees the eponymous character hired by a wealthy man to convince his wayward son to return home from Italy. But Ripley’s introduction to Dickie Greenleaf’s leisurely life abroad is the first step into a complex life of deceit, fraud and murder. The TV version stars Johnny Flynn as Greenleaf and Dakota Fanning as Marge Sherwood.

Scott, whose credits include Fleabag and Pride, said themes of class will come to the fore in the TV version.

“This is a man with enormous talent living in stress where his neighbors are rats,” he added.

Nigel Farage, on or around the 23rd of July this year (2023)

On the Today Program, being interviewed by Nick Robinson.

He said that he was not interested in running for politics -- that he wasn't going to do it again. It was about 8:20 in the morning -- I was driving to work and was hitting the main part of the traffic, which is why I remember the time.

Nick Robinson was teasing him and Farage was quite put out about it and snapped at him -- Farage was quite insistent that he wasn't going to run for office again.

Peter Hobday

Veteran BBC presenter and journalist Peter Hobday died last week aged 82.

He is probably best known for his presentation of Radio 4′s morning (mainly) news programme “Today” from 1982 to 1996.  He was one of the few presenters of that programme to get the balance right between politeness and challenging interviewees.  He knew that the two are not mutually exclusive.  There’s more onhttps://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-51189449

The picture above is from the first edition of financial magazine Money Box presented by Peter and Louise Botting (left of picture) in 1977.  All good wishes to Peter’s family and friends.

On BBC Radio 4's Today program this morning, some American said that Elizabeth Warren was "making a name for herself".

She fraudulently claimed for years that she was Native American, and was daft enough to produce evidence that showed she was whiter than most, and less than 1% Native American.