Update 40
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On Tuesday Michelle came to see us and have a look at me. We have agreed that the steroids will not now be reduced below 2 mg a day in order for me to hold on to my taste sense. She was unable to identify any notable deterioration in my condition. It is obvious that the steroids are causing my face to swell and unless I keep it propped up, my left ankle will also swell.
Thank you to all of you who responded to 39 by insisting that 40 tries to explain what was happening at the BBC last weekend. Your confidence in my powers of analysis is flattering indeed. It was at some point on Friday 10th that Boom Radio’s Nicky Horne tweeted “whoever does present MOTD tomorrow, it’ll be the end of their career.” That was how the situation looked to some, whilst for others it was simply deemed important to give some support to the “good guy”. It was at this point I realised here was a story that was going to have legs.
Gary Lineker had observed that some of our own government’s recent language echoed that of the 1930s Nazi government in Germany. In that respect I can’t see the case against his observation. The only substantive issue was whether or not his categorisation of government language took him beyond the restrictions in his contract with the Corporation.
It seems that this question takes us into a very grey area. We know that news and current affairs journalists are most definitely restricted in what they may report on matters of a political or controversial nature, but for those broadcasting about sport or entertainment, the situation is less clear and that may offer a potential route for ending the matter. Apparently the Director General, would-be Tory Councillor Tim Davie, has agreed to an independent review of the current guidelines whilst Gary has agreed to abide strictly to the “rules” until new ones have been clearly established. Perhaps a way forward will emerge, but I suspect not without one further step also being taken. Anger amongst BBC staff lingers around one fundamental difficulty - whilst it is apparently fine for BBC Chairman Richard Sharp to have showed his support for the Conservative party with a £400,000 donation, it is unacceptable for Lineker merely to have pointed out the unsuitability of the government’s language. People are very angry about that, and it will probably remain an issue until either Sharp “steps back” or perhaps, like Lineker himself, he is pushed back.
Former colleagues Celia Potter and Charlie Usher visited us in Burgundy and we took them to see THE Moulin-à-Vent.
In the wine growing Beaujolais region there are only ten villages that under the strict Appellation controls are allowed to sell wine under the actual village name. Moulin-à-Vent is one, alongside other famous names including Fleurie, Morgon or the latest to be added, Régnié.
Long gone are the days of ‘Beaujolais nouveau’ and frantic marketing ploys that gave Beaujolais a very down-market image. Recent Vintages have seen plantings and harvests cut back and quality significantly improved. I’ve noticed this year that Beaujolais is harder to find and decidedly more expensive. Hardly anywhere can one find a decent bottle under a tenner, but the plus is that most of what you can find is a more satisfying drink than has previously been assumed from the region. Farmers outside of the named villages sell their yield either as ‘Beaujolais Villages’ or simply as ‘Beaujolais’.
The highlight of our week has been working our way through Channel 4’s ‘The Piano’. Four amateur pianists, chosen from railway station auditions, were given a wonderful opportunity to perform on the stage of the magnificent Royal Festival Hall. I cried in every one of the five episodes at the immense power of music to bring us together, and to enable us to sense a holding of hands without the need for any physical conduct. None of the chosen four enjoyed the luxury of having a piano at home but at the end of the programme we saw a brand new ’Boston’ piano being delivered to each of their homes. I was prompted to look up the brand only to discover that ‘Boston’ appears to be a subsidiary of the mighty ‘Steinway’.
I commend this series to you without a single moment’s hesitation. Music is just so phenomenally powerful and we should celebrate its part in our lives every single day. The joint presenters are Mika and Lang Lang - brilliant choices both, and if you ever played with the idea that Channel Four should be sold off, then please recognise now, that you and this government were wrong. Especially I ask you to remember Lucy with cancerous tumours in both her eyes….. and more importantly, forget the awful Nadine Dorries.
On Friday I recorded some thoughts about the early days of Capital Radio in conversation with David Symonds, with whom I’d first worked in the late 1960s - one of the truly great radio voices of our time.
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