I am s-ee-k to death of Albert

Reading David Kennedy's book of poems from Salt, "The Roads" , and drawn in by a poem at the grave of someone I'd not heard of - Anton Walbrook at St John's in Hampstead.

A little investigation turned up the Good German Officer from Colonel Blimp, an Austrian half - Jewish actor who fled to England and was in many of the afternoon matinee films people like me remember from their childhood Sundays. He died in Bavaria but had asked to be buried here in London.

An interview with him is here

He had been a number of Austrian and German heroes -- Johann Strauss, Ludwig 1, Prince Albert, acted in La Ronde, The Red Shoes, even as Esterhazy in J'Accuse.

I won't break Kennedy's copyright by reprinting his poem here; suffice to say it's a grower (like his whole volume) , available from Salt Publishing, and Anton's ghost gives utterance.

Note to self: DK also dedicates a poem to Jack Beeching. It ends with him drinking with the fictitious Australian poet Ern Malley. Priceless.

So today at 44 I discover for the first time Walbrook, Beeching and Malley. Education by poet.