It was lovely to see Donna Traynor on the wonderful Derry Girls, we miss you Donna. Saw Downton Abbey during the week. Very disappointing no heart no depth far too many drone shots of sweeping driveways and big front doors.
I thought the acting was wooden with actors walking around all the time through multiple doors and going no where. I must point out I have never been a fan of the television series so my view is a bit jaundiced. Pleasant, however, to sit in the Movie House on those comfortable chairs with your feet up and no where to rush to!
The growth in the garden is phenomenal. We have some yellow irises and over last week I stood and watched them unfurl – is that why they are known as flag irises in some parts of Ireland? Years ago when we were holiday in a cottage in Donegal, a family of friends came to spend the weekend. I went round the fields and picked a big bunch of flags and grasses and put a beautiful display in their bedroom.
The room looked perfect and I was happy to throw open the door and welcome them in to their happy abode. All was well until a very late bedtime. From their room came a scream from our lady visitor. She came dashing out followed by her husband – they would tell you followed by an army of earwigs. It transpired the irises were full of the little creatures and we had a lot of fun catching them in wineglasses and putting them outside in the nearest field.
An earwig may bite, if threatened. Their bites are rarely dangerous and not known to cause any major harm, just a bit of pain for sometime. In fact, the bite feels like a pinch. The pinch is not known to carry or transmit any kind of disease. They are not venomous, but their bite may lead to a secondary infection if the affected area is scratched by nails.
No wonder we ran from these scorpion like insects. Another lovely thing about this time of year is the dawn chorus and if that’s too early for you the dusk chorus can be every bit as beautiful. We have a lot of trees around us and the birds are just dashing in and out presumably building nests and feeding little chicks. But now I read The Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985 protect all wild birds their active nests, eggs and dependent young so we are advised against cutting hedges or trees from the start of March until the end of August. If you believe an active nest is being destroyed or disturbed apparently you can call the PSNI on 101 or report it anonymously through Crimestoppers. So if you are trimming or cutting have a good look in the foliage to make sure the coast is clear.
Different story in RoI where it’s not advice it’s the law.
Section 40 of the Wildlife Act, 1976, as amended by Section 46 of the 2000 Act, provides protection for hedgerows by providing that it shall be an offence for a person to cut, grub, burn or otherwise destroy hedgerows on uncultivated land during the nesting season from 1 March to 31 August.
I was very young when I met BBC’s first woman news reporter and war correspond Audrey Russell. She was in Belfast giving a live commentary on a visit by the Queen Mother when I told her I wanted to be a reporter an ambition since I was four and first broadcast on BBC Home Service. I remember sitting at a round table covered in green baize and when the green light came on I was to say my piece, a message to my father who was returning home after serving in India and I told him proudly that Father Christmas had brought me a dolls house “with real electric lights”.
Miss Russell was impressed! However, she explained that although I heard her on the wireless, she relied on men to build the platform where she stood to see what was going on, engineers to transmit her voice to a control room in London and more skilled people to send her report to the home receiver. “I hope you achieve your dream but always remember, you will be a small cog in a very big wheel.” Wise words I’ve remembered all my broadcasting life.
The BBC is 100 years old this year and they plan to spend £50m to find out what viewers like. You’d think they’d know by now. Radio is still remarkable, television less so. If you’re not interested in cooking, baking, dress making or pointless celebratory programmes you might well turn to Netflix! I guess hundreds of people will be employed to do this research with their wages coming out of our pockets, the results will be interesting however I hope they get the message that it’s unacceptable to deny over 75s free access to programmes.
Quality has dipped in recent times with some very dubious television programming. Naked Attraction for instance. Apparently viewers watch for titillation and a chance to view naked people choosing a dating partner based purely by focusing on their body parts, as does the camera. I wonder what sort of person wants to appear on such a show. It’s been called salacious, a cultural jewel, even funny, one viewer thought it was a health programme. What ever floats your boat.
THE GREEN BOOK
Spring cleaning the desk turned up the BBC’s ‘Green Book’ giving guidelines for light entertainment over 80 years ago. It highlights what was ‘politically and socially correct in Britain’, times have certainly changed and the relics of ‘oul decency’ no longer observed.
Vulgarity for instance. ‘Programmes must at all costs be kept free of crudities, coarseness and innuendo. Humour must be clean and untainted directly or by association with vulgarity and suggestiveness. There can be no compromise with doubtful material. It must be cut.’
Please note Jimmy Carr.
There was an absolute ban on jokes about lavatories, effeminacy in men, immorality of any kind, suggestive references to honeymoon couples, chambermaids and fig leaves.
Politics In The Spotlight
General guidance from a directive issued on 2nd July 1948: ‘We are not prepared in deference to protests from one Party or another to deny ourselves legitimate topical references to political figures and affairs, which traditionally have been a source of comedians material. We therefore reserve the right for variety programmes in moderation to take a crack at the Government of the day and the Opposition so long as they do so sensibly without undue acidity and above all funnily.’
It adds: ‘We must bar altogether anything that can be construed as personal abuse of ministers, party leaders or M.P’s, malicious references to them or references in bad taste.’
Well, that guidance has gone out the window well and truly.
‘Generally speaking the use of expletives and forceful language on the air have no place at all in light entertainment and all such words as God, Good God, My God, Blast, Hell, Dam, Bloody, Gorblimey, Ruddy etc. should be deleted from scrips and innocuous expressions substituted.’ The ’N’ word was also taboo except when referring to Minstrels.
Three years ago Danny Baker was at the top of his broadcasting career but then, for some inexplicable reason, he posted an image on Twitter of a couple holding hands with a chimpanzee dressed in men’s clothes. He added the caption: “Royal baby leaves hospital,” implying a reference to the recent birth of Prince Harry and Megan’s baby son. He was accused of racism and banned by the BBC.
Geographically Correct
Back to the Green Book. The paragraph headed ‘British and English’ makes interesting reading; ‘The misuse of the word English where British is correct causes much needless offence to Scottish, Ulster and Welsh listeners. It is a common error but one which is easily avoided by proper care on the part of the writers and producers.’
Finally a note on alcohol. Imagine, the remark ‘one for the road’ was inadmissible on road safety grounds. Although when you think about it, not a bad piece of advice.
And so it goes on.
More recent is the magazine format advice I was given when broadcasting on BBC Radio Ulster. “Topics: should be varied, stretch imagination, off beat. Interviews: extract information, planning, what is the point, colour and experiences. News: accuracy, check details. Style: simple, direct, straightforward, short words, no fussiness, don’t indulge yourself or try to impress. Topics: head each topic with a label – sports, fashion, Northern Ireland’. This is important especially in sports headlines when an announcer will just go straight into a result without telling the listener which sport it refers too.”
Broadcasting is talking to people who can’t say ‘what?’ and so in my opinion back referencing an interviewee is important. If you join an item half way through it’s irritating not to know who you are listening too.
Obviously the Green Book is long gone although there are still guidelines for broadcasting but when you see or listen to some programmes today you might well wish some of those strict guidelines were still in force.
Happy Birthday BBC and I wish you many more to come.
I want to send good wishes to Breezy Willow Kelly in Glenties Co. Donegal. Not long ago Breezy’s hundreds of years old thatched cottage burned to the ground. She lost everything, the lambing chair, the last copy of her book, the table around which so many of us sat and shared her bread, her wit and her singing. Even the red half door was burned. But Breezy didn’t feel sorry for herself, she assessed the situation and began to build her life again. She knew she had friends who would help but she didn’t realise just how many and how they would gather together to fundraise, to give her a temporary home and a lot of love. After her foundation of the world wide movement Bake Bread For Peace, for her peace marches and the positive vibes that radiate from this powerful little woman, this is just what she deserves. I join her on Sunday morning for breakfast so Breezy, over the airwaves, look forward to seeing you in person over the summer. Find Breezy at Over The Half Door.
