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Edith Crispin (Miss)

Listed below are comments made by Edith Crispin (Miss) between Tuesday, 15th July 2008 and Thursday, 26th February 2009.

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To dummy or not to dummy, the debate rolls on. 2:16pm on 26 Feb 2009 Dish cloths.

Before using, stick them in the microwave for a couple of minutes. Kills all the bacteria and stuff.

Warning: make sure the dishcloth is damp or else the cloth will catch fire and burn the place down.

Second warning: it'll be blimmin hot so avoid burns by taking it out with a pair of tongs.

Dummies.

Only give a dummy to get the child off to sleep. Remove as soon as the child has nodded off.
The Kermodes: Make Your Case 2:12pm on 29 Jan 2009 I don't know about giving this particular film a kermode - it's unlikely that I'll ever see it. The distribution companies aren't convinced that there is an audience for an off-beat movie called 'Morris: A Life With Bells On' - even with a cast including Harriet Walter, Sir Derek Jacobi, Greg Wise and Sophie Thompson.

There's a trailer for it here: http://www.morrismovie.com

I'd go and see it.
Serious questions to answer 8:24pm on 08 Dec 2008 Hurrah for the Serjeant at Arms and her legal advisors!

Hurrah for the fact that the police were allowed to search and seize evidence in the Commons, without need to obtain a search warrant first. That's how it should be.

Hurrah for the fact that the Speaker was washing his hair at the time and unable to protect the so-called right, privileges and immunities that the House enjoys.

A raspberry to the bleating MPs who only seem to get indignant when their own pay, conditions, expenses and interests are threatened.
A BASE IS ONLY THERE TO BE BUILT UPON. 4:51pm on 04 Dec 2008 Chris Evans said:

"The show is fab and I love it but it is only the beginning of what's possible... "

Not complacent and self-satisfied then Chris?

I think you could be good (and might even get the breakfast show) if you made some changes, like .....

* Playing more music and
* Less wittering.

The music seems to be viewed as a necessary intrusion on the real focus of your show - Chris Evans, Chris Evans and more Chris Evans. Which is alright if you're aged about 8 or in care home where the nurse has control of the 'off switch'.

Buck up, Evans! I thought they were paying you oodles of cash because you were meant to be good at this.
DREAM A LITTLE WEIRD DREAM AND OH WHAT A BEAUTIFUL DAY. 3:33pm on 04 Dec 2008 Seriously though, how can anyone find this blog and its consequent posts interesting?

Stop wittering, Evans.
Reg Meuross asks What is The Tradition? 1:35pm on 01 Oct 2008 Froots uses the ‘rooted in the tradition’ phrase to describe its niche and specialism. The phrase is vague enough to allow the magazine to distinguish artist A from artist B, but as a consumer I find it totally meaningless and unhelpful.

The phrase seems to have been seized upon by singer-songwriters to market their songs to the folk audience (but more likely, to market the product to Froots). The artists put forward all sorts of convoluted reasons as to why their product, while not being traditional, should be seen as ‘rooted’ in a Tradition.

They probably mean that they are heirs to the tradition of storytelling, commentating, celebrating events and places – but pop songs or easy listening songs can do that.

Think of some powerful, resonant pop songs that are timely stories, commentaries or descriptions of landscapes and people - ‘That’s Entertainment’ by the Jam, ‘Ghost Town’ by the Specials, ‘Solsbury Hill’ by Peter Gabriel, or ‘One Day Like This’ by Elbow for instance. Would it be accurate and honest to say that they were rooted in the Tradition? If you follow the logic of Reg’s argument then the answer is ‘Yes’.

That can’t be right, surely? Froots would have to review the likes of Muse, The Streets and Bubbz if that were the case.
Reg Meuross asks What is The Tradition? 12:35pm on 30 Sep 2008 Personally speaking, I have to overcome some prejudices before playing a CD by a lone 'singer-songwriter'. It has nothing to do with their songwriting or the subjects that they sing about because I have no such prejudices about singer-songwriters with bands - Chris Martin, Noel Gallagher, Seth Lakeman, Steve Knightley, Bono or Bowie. I find 10 or 12 tracks of voice and guitar does not hold my attention and becomes a bit samey.

As to the question 'What is the Tradition?' - it's a body of work that lives because singers and musicians play it, change it, mangle it, have fun with it, experiment, renew it and make it their own. It's a Living Tradition because each generation recovers it and puts their own stamp on it.

How can singer-songwriters claim that their product is 'in the tradition' when their song has not been through this process of reclamation and reinvention yet? I don't think they can - that's for future generations to decide.

How can singer-songwriters claim that their product is 'in the tradition' just because of its subject matter or its style? I don't think they can.

It's not helpful when singer-songwriters label themselves as folk artists - and play not one single traditional song in their set or CD! The two terms are not synonymous. There has to be a balance between new material and traditional stuff - Martin Simpson and Show of Hands are good examples of that balance.
Olympic overdose? 7:42pm on 11 Aug 2008 I wouldn't expect to see anything of the Opening Show to the Olympics during the news in the same way that I wouldn't expect to see highlights from a Fireworks display, or Glastonbury or the Edinburgh Tattoo.

Seeing an athletics record broken, a medal-winning performance by one of the Home Nations, or some sort of grave incident during a competition (god forbid!) - now that's a different story and a newsworthy story at that.
Moral panic? 5:04pm on 16 Jul 2008 Let's be right. Knife carriers are boys in gangs or they are wannabe gangstas. If they weren't carrying knives, they'd still be fighting over territory with another weapon.

They live in homes where Mum keeps a baseball bat behind the door and their big brother has another one in the well of his car. (Funny how many baseball bats are sold in this country - and no-one plays the game!)

They have a friend who has a friend who knows a bloke who can fix them up with a gun, if necessary. In the meantime, they parade around the streets, wearing the stab-proof vest that they got from Ebay.

Their lives are so much more exciting, risk-laden, dangerous and macho than their peers (who go to school or play truant and watch daytime TV).

Give up their knives, their status symbols and their fantasies just when they are making the news, being interviewed and filmed? You must be joking.

I deplore the reporting of the knife-carriers. It feeds their sense of self-importance and it encourages a sense of insecurity among young boys.

I deplore even more the response from the Government. I've sat through more initiatives in schools and clubs and street corners than I care to remember. Spare me the pointless talk around 'I was a Gangster/Drug Dealer/Car Thief once and went to prison, but I'm better now - especially with a full time job talking about my past exploits'. The time would be better spent teaching the boys to read and write.

The journalist's time would also be better spent on more worrying crime trends. I'll give you a 'for instance':

I don't know how many small children have been murdered by their father, in cars, as part of his suicide and a parting shot to his estranged wife. Too many, I'd say (more than the number of young boys murdered by stabbing?) but I haven't seen one single thoughtful analysis of those murders, how to stop them and how to identify potential dad-murderers.

Good blog! Keep it up, Kevin.
Youth justice 7:05pm on 15 Jul 2008 You wouldn't believe the kind of rubbish that lies behind the statistics.

I'll give you a few examples.

1) A headteacher calling the police when two six year olds came to blows in the playground.

2) A father reporting a theft on behalf of a child - the next neighbour was refusing to give the girl's ball back.

3) A mother and father calling the police to their home after two children had fought over the TV remote control. They wanted the elder child to be taken into care as 'beyond control' and when told that it wouldn't happen, demanded that the elder be arrested for damage to the remote control. The elder child was 11 years old.

There's no rise in crime here and there's no greater risk to our children than there was 10, 20 or 50 years ago. They still fight, squabble, call each other names and run off with each other's school bags.

It's just that
(a) the police have to record every single incident that is reported as a so-called crime.
(b) Every child has a mobile phone and can make immediate contact with the police, their carer or another agency (dedicated bullying hotlines are widely advertised in schools)

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Edith Crispin (Miss)