Am I stupid? No. Am I educated? Yes. Am I an hysteric? Definitely not! Then, why is it that the moment I feel a bit tired (read ‘exhausted’), have sore teeth and aching bones, the immediate diagnosis, in my mind, is coronavirus? I didn’t even take the pill!! The exhaustion is down to fighting the brainwashing! Honestly. It makes me so angry and, yet, it is inevitable. Ground down by the constant negative media coverage, the incessant headlines, it is no wonder that even the most intelligent become sceptical when it comes to their own health. Sleep? Who amongst us can boast six hours? Don’t be ridiculous. If the anxiety doesn’t get you, boredom will!
I happened to hear John Cleese on Radio 2, yesterday morning, and rushed to grab a pen and paper as he uttered the following: ‘The idea that we will ever have an intelligent, well-round, kind society – forget it! It isn’t going to happen.’ The truth at last! Someone prepared to tell it as it is. He is an absolute breath of fresh air; always was, I suppose, if not a little eccentric. Part of his genius lies in his lack of fear; his refusal to acquiesce. Like most comic geniuses, however, he has the ability to observe – and criticise – with humour: ‘Everything humorous is critical. If you have someone who is perfectly kind and intelligent and flexible and who always behaves appropriately, they’re not funny. Funniness is about people who don’t do that, like Trump.’ (John Cleese to Reuters)
His response to UKTV’s proposal to ‘temporarily’ remove the infamous German episode of Fawlty Towers was expected – and welcome! As if he ever thought he would have to spell out the fact that the hilarious, beloved characters were vehicles of fun through which the likes of racism could be highlighted … Interviewed by Karl Quinn of The Sydney Morning Herald (June 12, 2020), he said: ‘‘Fawlty Towers’ has given a large number of people a great deal of happiness, why would you want to stop that?” Adding, ‘It reminds me of the definition of a Scottish Presbyterian as someone who has a nasty, sneaking feeling that someone, somewhere, is having a good time.’ That, to me, succinctly depicts the pitiful PC brigade who increasingly dominate; their characteristic aggression, when challenged, ensuring opposition from only the strong.
‘A lot of people in charge now, at the BBC, just want to hang onto their jobs. If a few people get excited, they pacify them rather than standing their ground as they would have done 30 or 40 years ago.’
The words of John Cleese in the same interview for The Sydney Morning Herald. Depressingly, the BBC, to which he refers, is a microcosm of the world in which, it seems, we now live. If there is, as the abounding conspiracy theories suggest, a long-term plan to dumb us all down until we are little more than pathetic clones awaiting further instruction from the powers that be, then it appears to be working, God forbid! What happens to those who refuse to conform? Those who question, refusing to forego, ultimately, the right to freedom? I suppose we have John Cleese in our camp, for starters, so at least we are assured of laughter! Meantime, I, for one, plan to buy a ticket to the live streaming of his stand-up show at the Cadogan Hall, London on Sunday, 2nd August. The title? ‘Why There Is No Hope’. Perfect!
Laughter. Sarcasm. Whoever said it was the lowest form of wit? To my mind, it is humour at its most intelligent. Yes, sometimes scathing but, then, the ability to laugh at oneself should never be under-estimated. I was teased from birth and laughter has been my armour. My sister, on the other hand? At one’s peril! Characters so different from the same gene pool. Never ceases to amaze me.
‘The world was my oyster but I used the wrong fork.’ Oscar Wilde
I know exactly what he means! Just a quote I have scribbled on a piece of paper which deserves to be remembered. Then there is one I have written down, at one point, courtesy of Fred Astaire:
‘The hardest job kids face today is learning good manners without seeing any!’.
Fred departed this earth in 1987. Quite honestly, he only witnessed the tip of the iceberg!
Six-forty pm, as I write, and the torrential rain has never faltered all day. It serves only to confuse me further as to the time of year. Approaching Christmas? I’m sure, meantime, all those who rushed to Spain must be thankful for their haste affording the opportunity to sun themselves on packed beaches and frequent the bars and chippies on the Costa del Brit before returning home to another two weeks enforced holiday. In the words of my new oracle, John Cleese, once more: ‘People, nowadays, are really quite stupid!’.
I have few notes to address, today. I think everyone is feeling rather flat. We reached the end of Downton Abbey, on Friday, our saviour in the passing months. Still the film to enjoy, I shall desperately miss the wonderful, biting humour of the Dowager Countess, aka Dame Maggie Smith. An absolute jewel in a bland world. The tissues were on hand as the credits rolled, primarily thanks to Barrow, the bad guy turned good! How fickle we are … Actually, I subscribe to Lady Carnarvon’s blog which she posts every Monday. What can I say? The similarities are obvious! In the words of the late George Michael, ‘Turn a different corner …’. They didn’t have Sat Navs in my day!
I found this quote, courtesy of one of Alexandra Fuller’s talks, I think, which struck a chord. I know it is unrelated to any of the above but … stay alert!
‘Liberties can never be given. They can only be taken.’
Alexandra Fuller’s version of the Aldous Huxley quote – which I love.
This is Trish, signing off.
