What I’m watching
Nicholas and Alexandra
I read and liked Robert Massie’s book about a good man in over his head as tsar; not a bad film

• Good anti-war message.
• Favourite people: the Orthodox priest who tried to lead a peaceful protest (which was gunned down) and Alexander Kerensky in the Duma. Both were real historical figures: Kerensky, who ruled Russia briefly before Lenin took over, ended up living in Palo Alto, California.
• Tom ‘Dr Who’ Baker plays Rasputin. Listen carefully to others’ dialogue and you’ll twig Rasputin wasn’t a monk (he was married). Baker looks perfect in the rôle but there’s some unintentional humour: he obviously doesn’t know Russian.
• I look rather like Dr Botkin.