From Light Beginnings, Glory Came

IT WAS a year with a welcome arrival and a tragic departure. Vladimir Ashkenazy, who becomes the Sydney Symphony's principal conductor and artistic adviser next year, returned in November for another single-composer festival (Elgar) and coaxed from the orchestra its best playing as well as an outstanding performance of the First Symphony and an anguished reading of the Cello Concerto by soloist Jian Wang.

Snap Reflex In Koala Drama

IT was a missed meeting with a friend that led to Simon Marlan wandering around Blackbutt Reserve on an afternoon in November.

Dude, Where's Our Nuclear Waste?

SOME people are careless with radioactive stuff. North Korea, with its nuclear tests, is one example. Another is Homer Simpson who, in the opening credits of The Simpsons, leaves a nuclear plant with a green radioactive rod lodged in his shirt. Now there's Cadbury Schweppes, which in late November lost in Melbourne two pieces of radioactive equipment that remain at large.

Market Falls Less Severe In Victoria

VICTORIAN-BASED companies fared better on the sharemarket last month than those based in most of the other mainland states, according to the Deloitte stock index for November.

Helfgott Brilliant

Helfgott brilliant My wife and I are grateful for William Verity's article (Mercury, November 18), alerting readers to David Helfgott's Shine On piano recital at Mittagong Playhouse on December 8.

Harbour Lovers Unite

Harbour lovers unite I had a feeling of dread and desperation after reading Paul Myjavecs letter (Saturday, November 29) about developing Wollongong Harbour.

Climate Debating Points Subtracted In Short Term

Accusing a scientist of falsifying data is a grave and professionally damaging charge, about the worst one can make. Michael Duffy was careless and wrong to allege that Rajendra Pachauri, the chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, "fudged" climate data during his recent public lecture in Sydney ("Truly inconvenient truths about climate change being ignored", November 8).

Play Founders On Padded Script

THEATRE BELLE'S LINE Old Fitzroy Theatre, November 30 Until December 23

November Lake Macquarie Named After Governor Lachlan Macquarie. Area: About 750 Sq Km. Population: 183,139

NOVEMBER LAKE MACQUARIE Named after Governor Lachlan Macquarie. Area: About 750 sq km. Population: 183,139

Mercury Soars Hard And Fast To Greet Summer

THE summer heat has arrived after a drier-than-average November that yielded Newcastle's coldest day in 20 years.

Expanded Trio Does Some Grand Seraphic Repertoire Work

SERAPHIM TRIO Melba Hall, November 28 www.seraphimtrio.com

A Standout Performance

MSO CHAMBER PLAYERS Iwaki Auditorium, Southbank November 30 www.mso.com.au

Gilham Does Have Support From His Extended Family

I write to correct some inaccuracies in the article about Jeffrey Gilham ("Guilty of killing parents, 15 years on", November 29-30).

Keep Historic Harbour

Keep historic harbour I read with interest the letter from Paul Myjavec (Mercury November 29, re Wollongong Harbour).

Towering Moments Of Power

SYDNEY SYMPHONY MICHELE CAMPANELLA Sydney Opera House Concert Hall, November 28

A Courtly Night With Two Queens In One

QUEEN C Belvoir St Downstairs November 28 Until December 21

Lack Of Transparency

Lack of transparency Wollongong Harbour Consultative Committee chairman David Fuller calls community groups such as ROC and the wider public, such as the 300 who attended a public meeting, as "naysayers"(Mercury November 26).

A Fluffy Bunny That Needs Sharper Teeth

RABBIT Wharf Theatre, Sydney Theatre Company, November 27 Until January 18