The Good Samaritan

The Good Samaritan in the Grand Staircase of St Bartholomew's Hospital, painted by William Hogarth (as it doesn't look so, the photo was taken without using flash)

Main message first, Günter's operation went well this morning and his voice sounded quite cheerful on the phone. He seems to think the accident and his hobby over, though.

Thanks to Eckart, Günter was visited in the hospital already and got some reading matter.

Meanwhile I visited St Bartholomew's Hospital, Englands oldest hospital, founded as part of a priory in 1123. I took part in the weekly guided tour and therefore gained access to the Grand Staircase and the Great Hall.

William Hogarth offered to paint the staircase free of charge as he hoped that he could build up a new reputation as a painter of large scale paintings. His idea failed and he's still best known for his satiric drawings on every day life, busily propagandising against the drinking of gin.

In the priory's former Romanic church, St Bartholomew-the-Great, many film scenes were filmed. Among others, the scene in which Hugh Grant didn't marry his girl friend in Four Weddings and a Funeral.


In its 58th year, The Mousetrap by Agatha Cristie is the World's longest running theatre play. I was lucky to get a cheap ticket for tonight's performance. During the applause, the actors pleaded everyone in the audience to keep the knowledge about who committed the murder to ourselves, and so I will.