An excuse to sneer at Laurie Taylor's 'Thinking Allowed'...

Today, as you may have noticed, was St George's Day. 

True story. A chap at work turned up in blue trousers, a white shirt and a red tie to mark the day. I admired his patriotic spirit, and I didn't have the heart to tell him that he ought to have been wearing merely the white shirt and red tie. (That said, I don't think the ladies at work would have been too happy to see him turn up trouserless. He's not their type.)

I myself am, of course, entirely au fait with the story of St George, England's patron saint. I've known the legend of St George rescuing the damsel from the dragon (Smaug) by showing it the head of the gorgon since I fell out of my cot, drunk, at the age of six. (I am part Scots by the way.)

Back to the BBC though.

Radio 4 has done all of us English folk proud today. 

Justin Webb dressed up as a knight to present Today, and Sarah Montague came dressed as a damsel. Tony Blair appeared as the dragon (by popular demand), and was duly slain (as per Sue's post).

The excellent Baroness Trumpington turned up on Midweek and stuck two proud English fingers up at all of England's enemies. [Good on that woman!]. She was egged on by Libby Purvis, who came dressed as Elizabeth I.

Woman's Hour was devoted to the issue of damsels in distress. Jane Garvey admitted that the thought of being rescued by St George made her feel weak at the knee. On imagining George Clooney playing the part of St George, Jenni Murray fainted live on air.

The Archers sang folk song arrangements by Vaughan Williams and Shula recited Shakespeare and C.S. Lewis. 

This week's edition of Round Britain Quiz was between the North of England and the South of England. And rightly so.

Best of all though...

Laurie Taylor and his guests announced the inaugural Ethnography Award 'Short List' on Thinking Allowed, and instead of the usual, predictable Marxist sociological crap that the programme usually trots out (pun on 'trots' intended).....

....you know the sort of thing....

....studies on 'Transactional Transgender Relationships in Cambodia', 'The Multicultural Prison', 'Butch Women: An ethnography of lesbian cookery', 'Islam, Youth, and Modernity in Post-English Britain', 'Intersexual seafarers and transnationalism in the twenty-first century' and 'Beyond parody? Alternatives to consumption within a social network of Russian workers'....

....Laurie Taylor and his judges instead chose, to my complete surprise,....

'The Secret of a Happy Marriage in Christian England', 'Why Prison Works', 'Soft and Feminine Women: Why the BBC Favours Young and Attractive Female Presenters', 'Islam, Women, and Barbarity in Saudi Arabia and Iran', 'English seafarers and their triumphs across the centuries' and 'Beyond caring? Alternatives to BBC sociology programmes'.

Bless you Laurie!