AE on Telly News (NEW CONCEPTS)

[Wile E. Coyote]

The Golden Globes has been cancelled, because nobody was going to watch. Sorry that should read "because they are implementing transformational change." They need a bit more time to work out who is going to give out the globes and to whom, without appearing racist. This will hopefully avoid previous winners giving their awards back. Still, this is a tricky one as the run-in for a major US movie is about 2.5 years.

Wiley confidently predicts that the next winner of a globe will be a foreign language film. Get your bets on early.

[Wile E. Coyote]

Wiley can't help thinking that in earlier times performers would have kept on going during a pandemic to try and keep the nation's spirits up, much in the same way they continued to make films and entertained the troops during the war. "The show must go on." That was it. Since when did stars become bed-wetters?

[Wile E. Coyote]

There seems to be a tad more concern that a BBC journalist manipulated Earl Spencer to secure a interview with Princess Diana than when a BBC journalist tried to manipulate Lucy Brown to run a Tommy Robinson expose. Could it be that "journalistic fair play" does not extend to all?

Why they feel the need to do this when Lady Diana wanted to do a piece and, when there was plenty of juicy material, they could simply Google about Tommy/ Stephen is an interesting point. They could have simply secured the story by normal journalistic approaches, such as approaching and researching. Lady Diana would have accepted Martin's offer whilst Tommy would have done what Tommy does.

Do journalists believe they have to take risks and break the law a la Bernstein and Woodward for a piece to be considered worthy?

[Mick Harper]

The Pursuit of Love (BBC1)

I read this as a young swain (or it may be because of an Evelyn Waugh connection a little later) and greatly enjoyed it as, I think I remember, a serious if frothily comic novel. I am sure I would have remembered if the author had used such an appalling plot device as missing one's London train at the Gare de Nord, sitting on one's suitcase in tears and one being rescued by a passing rich French duke, the 'most wicked man in Europe'.

But my brother once had a suitcase nicked at the Gare du Nord so you never know.

[Grant]

Even more extraordinary is that Emily Mortimer, daughter of John and Penelope, didn’t realise that if you keep interrupting the drama with a spoken narrative explaining things, it ruins the story. As every writing teacher says “Show, don’t tell.”

[Mick Harper]

I keep being offered Penelope Mortimer's The Pumpkin Eater on Talking Pictures TV, I keep checking it out, I keep giving up as soon as Richard Attenborough comes onscreen as the psychiatrist because I can't get him as Christie in Ten Rillington Place out of my mind. I can't watch Ten Rillington Place because he always seems to be the Cockney lad who Noel Coward gives compassionate leave to because his mum has been bombed out and is looking for somewhere to stay temporarily in Notting Hill where that nice Mr Christie has... (now watch on)

[Hatty]

Just looked up pumpkin eater to get the low-down and found it means 'cheater' in urban slang.

They don't say which comes from which but I came across a rather grim nursery rhyme, Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater, first published in 1797, in which Peter apparently murdered Wife No. 1 though he may not have been unfaithful to her

Peter, Peter, pumpkin eater,
Had a wife but couldn’t keep her;
He put her in a pumpkin shell
And there he kept her very well.

Peter, Peter, pumpkin eater,
Had another and didn’t love her;
Peter learned to read and spell,
And then he loved her very well.

[Wile E. Coyote]

It's a nursery rhyme just about eating, preserving and cooking pumpkins. You sing a long as you do it.

Helps if you can read the recipe.

Presumably the Cockney Rhyming slang "cheater" came later, and then somebody had the bright idea of combining the slang with a grim interpretation, urban legend.


Nursery rhyme.....Cockney Rhyming Slang.......Urban Legend.....it will soon become a dateable nugget of history.

How could you Hats?

[Wile E. Coyote]

[Wile E. Coyote]

This constant inventing, combining all sort of clever nonsense to bolster up a failing chronology has to stop.

Quite soon graduates will believe that the Battle of Hastings actually occurred.

Then where will we be?

[Mick Harper]

I blame Hatty for most of it. She's got form, she ruined several of my books and a couple of DVD's. Possibly this new one too. I'll know when the sales figures start coming in.

[Boreades]

That's all very well, but the burning question is :-
Why did we get Nul Points (again)?

Was it just a crap song (again)?
(or)
Why do we keep entering crap songs?
(or)
Do all the other countries still hate us that much?

Graham Norton will be phoning you for your AEL-adjusted scores shortly.

[Mick Harper]

This is indeed an important AE matter. Well done, Borry. Ask Mr Norton to introduce himself, nobody here has heard of him but your recommendation is recommendation enough. First some facts: the worldwide popular song industry is ranked nationally as follows:
1. USA
2. UK
3. That's it. If any other country features, people can't stop talking about it.

Now go figure.

[Boreades]

[Wile E. Coyote]