Wednesday Writer – Hugh Grant

It’s Wednesday again, which means it is time to get to know another WordPress blogger. This week’s interview is with Hugh Grant – no not the actor, but the blogger.

HUGH, WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO DRINK WHILE WE ARE CONDUCTING THIS INTERVIEW WITH YOU?

Let’s make it a beer mate.

COULD YOU TELL US YOUR BLOGGING NAME AND THE NAME OF YOUR SITE PLEASE.

Hugh Q Grant – not the actor – and my site is called FLY ON THE WALL.

WHEN DID YOU START BLOGGING?

Just before Christmas.

I have only been blogging for a couple of months. Years ago I tried something like this, well, it was more of an online journal, but I had about two views in a year. WordPress is a lot more lively than I expected it to be.

WHY DID YOU START BLOGGING?

Lockdown Three was about started, with London being put into Tier 4. Christmas was cancelled for London and the South East of England. I had the idea that doing a bit of writing would take my mind off what was a completely dire end to 2020. The only thing I regret is that rather than writing fiction, I have ended up just having a moan about stuff going on too often than I would like. I’ve never thought of myself as a negative person, but I can see in my posts that I have been grumpier than I realized.

I am am surprised at how much the blog has kept my interest up. But then, we are still in a National Lockdown, so not much has changed.

WHICH IS THE MOST POPULAR POST ON YOUR SITE?

It’s bizarre but it was a bit of a rushed post that I typed out about showing my parents the blog I had set up and making the turn of the year a fresh start. I emailed them a link and they started reading through my posts. My Dad said I sounded fed up. He was right. So since then, I try to make the effort not to let every post turn into a grumble.

New Year, New Dawn

My parents both have an optimistic nature. It made me realize how much it is affecting me not being with them. It’s been a battle to keep my spirits up sometimes.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT BLOGGING?

So far, the best thing about blogging has been the communal events. I’ve been taking part in Jim’s Song Lyric Sunday ever since I came across it. It’s not just about the music. It’s about having a little chat with other people.

The best communal event I found literally saved the end of last year for me. Caramel’s Cocktail Club was all about bloggers cheering each other up during a time when a lot of us were stuck at home on our own during the holidays.

FOOD THAT MAKES YOU SMILE?

A mug of strong tea and a bacon butty would bring a smile to my face any day. I have been trying to make the switch over to vegetarian bacon and I’m getting used to it, but occasionally the real stuff has ended up in my shopping basket.

IF I WAS GOING TO SEND YOU FLOWERS AS A THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME INTERVIEW, WHAT WOULD THEY BE?

No need to send me flowers mate. If you want to know what kind of flowers I like though I will tell you – daisies. They make me think of school. Lunchtimes, laying in the grass which was dotted with tiny daisies, buttercups and dandelions.

There’s something about them that makes me smile.

DO YOU HAVE A SONG? – ONE THAT FITS YOU AS A PERSON OR YOUR LIFE?

Do you know a band called The Charlatans? I’m going to pick their song “One To Another”. Don’t ask me why thought mate. Memories. It brings back memories.

DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOU ARE GOING IN LIFE?

If you are asking me where I want to go in life, where I want my life to end up, I can give you the answer. I just want what most people have wanted for thousands of years. I want to find a girl and settle down. I want to have a family and a home. I want to play football in the park with the little ones and help them with their geography homework. I want to be still married myself when I see my kids old enough to walk down the aisle and get married themselves.

But although that’s what I want, I don’t think I am anywhere near that ideal. Part of that is my own fault. In the past I think work, making time for my mates and just being too fussy were all reasons why I ended up drifting apart from and breaking up from previous girlfriends. This world seems to make it harder than ever to have those basic ideals in your life. But the pandemic has made me appreciate that finding someone to share your life with is not something that should drop to the list of priorities. So next time, I am going to give it my all.

WHAT MESSAGE DO YOU WANT YOUR BLOG TO TELL THE WORLD?

I have a few messages to tell the world. One is – that facemask you are wearing on your chin, it’s supposed to cover your nose and mouth. Also stop worrying about when you are going to be back partying and on the beach in Spain or Greece. Just accept we are still in the middle of a Pandemic.

But I know that people have found this time tough. I suppose my message to the world is – what have you learnt matters most? What have you learnt about being prepared for economic downfalls? What have you learnt about keeping yourself sane when you can’t socialize or spend your free time doing the things you’ve always enjoyed?

I think that if we have not learnt anything then we are going to struggle in the future when challenges come along. If we have learnt from this past year, then we should be stronger and more prepared for future trials…and don’t make any mistake, this world is in a mess – there will be more trouble ahead.

I am sure that all this survival of the fittest crap is going to prove false. It is going to be good and right that triumph. It might not seem that way, but I have seen so many times this year that there is something far more powerful than governments, scientists or big business who is preparing good people for the future. I think it’s obvious that surviving the mess that man is making is going to depend on being a good person, not in our own eyes, but in the eyes of whoever it is that judges us all. I think he is probably watching people more closely than ever at the moment to pick up on their attitudes. I wonder who he wants to take care of this planet?

____________________

Hugh, thanks for answering the interview questions I sent you. It’s very interesting to get to know more about you. I am not sure about vegetarian bacon though – it sounds so wrong!

I think a lot of us can relate to you, sometimes this pandemic has made us feel lower than we would usually feel. I think sometimes we need to have an outlet for those negative feelings. But from your final message to the world, I can tell that deep down you are a positive person who wants goodness to conquer. I think that most of us want the same thing.

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