17rh December 2017

Those of us who trained as dancers were all agog. Who would win the Strictly Come Dancing show?  Who had the best dancing skills?  However the winner was judged by the viewers. Similarly in the far more serious fields of politics and in the criminal courts. Should Britain leave the EU? Let's ask the general public.  Never mind that the average man in the street couldn't possibly understand the intricacies and financial consequences. In the courts, back when we had the death penalty, a jury of ordinary citizens, completely untrained in the field of criminology, were handed the role of life and death over some poor person. Imagine if this happened in other fields.  Picture the neurosurgeon about to decide which bit of the brain to excise to cure a terrible disease: should he then call in a 'jury' of complete novices to make the ultimate decision?  In football, was it a penalty?  Let's ask the baying, opinionated crowd. The general public will always choose the personality, be swayed by the current fashion/media, will tend to use emotion rather than raw facts. In TV programmes the result isn't that important. In more serious issues, it is. When important decisions must be made, ALWAYS leave it to the experts in the field.

22nd November 2008

There's a TV programme in England called 'I'm a celebrity - get me out of here', in which so-called celebrities compete against each other. Similarly, 'Strictly come dancing' is supposed to show the quality of the stars' dancing ability. Most of these shows comprise young people, but with a smattering of oldies to make up the team. What was surprising last week was how the oldest dancer by far, John Sergeant, continued to get the viewers' votes even if not for his dancing!
The only thing remotely resembling reality TV in France lately has been the socialist elections. But even here, the oldest candidate won. Martine Aubry, who gave France the 35-hour work week, edged out ex-presidential candidate Segolene Royal on Saturday to win the leadership of the opposition Socialist Party by a few dozen votes.
I suppose what I am trying to show here is that the public, at last, recognise that indefinable je ne sais quoi naturally embodied in those of a certain age. But, the public still haven't got it right in my view. We don't want the public to vote for us oldies because we seem 'cuddly' like John Sergeant, but because of the talents we have learned and honed over the years.
So, that is why tomorrow and each successive Sunday on this blog I will do a piece called 'I'm NOT a celebrity - get me published!'
You'll have to tune in tomorrow to see the first episode - don't miss it.