Today's show 25/10/11

Hello dear blog readers!

Feltz is back on Radio 2 this lunchtime in an effort to offer some kind of entertainment to those poor listeners who have no available substitue for her random ramblings. A quick scan of today's menu shows that she is following JV's lead and conveniently ignoring any news story to do with the self-righteous leviathan that is the BBC, such as these two:

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/279112

BBC BLOWS YOUR CASH ON 100 LEAVING PARTIES

BBC FATCATS have splashed out thousands of pounds of licence-payers’ cash on nearly 100 leaving parties at exclusive restaurants and bars.
Staff, including many top executives, spent £70,000 on alcohol and lavish parties despite a pledge to cut more than 20 per cent off the corporation’s entire budget. The figure includes £20,403 on staff leaving parties at top London venues.
On top of that, executives blew £48,000 last year on beer, wine and spirits at award ceremonies, parties and power lunches, which amounts to a weekly alcohol bill of  nearly £1,000. 
No surprise that a story from the Daily Express has been ignored (although see item 2 below), but it also appears in the Daily Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/bbc/8844478/BBC-criticised-for-spending-70000-on-leaving-parties-and-awards-ceremonies.html) so it must be true, surely?

Damn! The second story was also from the Daily Telegraph but they have deleted the page for some reason. It was all about BBC staff being banned from having rubbish bins near their desks to stop them being “territorial and defensive”. It was on their website, so surely it must be true as well.

Anyway, this is what Feltz will be boring her poor listeners to death with today...

1) EUROPE - Eighty one Conservative MPs defy David Cameron to vote for an EU referendum. Have the rebels restored your faith in politics? : No, they haven't. As has been usual for the BBC since the Commons vote result was announced, there has been scant mention of the 19 Labour MPs who defied Ed Miliband. One rule for one... Next...

2) HOUSE HUSBANDS - A survey suggests that the number of house husbands has risen ten-fold in the last decade. If you're a house husband, how have you - and others - reacted to your role? Find out more from the Express : The Express? What would Jeremy say? I am not aware that any item from the Daily Express has been nicked for use on the programme before. There really is a first time for everything. Oh, and I am not a house husband. Next...

3) ST PAUL'S PROTESTS - Police say just one in ten of the anti capitalist protestors' tents, which are pitched outside St Paul's Cathedral, are occupied at night. If demonstrators are going home at the end of the day, should officers seize their tents? Find out more from the Telegraph : Ah yes, those will be the tents purchased from the "capitalist" companies that have the audacity to make them. The protestors claims that they are "the 99%" sits uncomfortably with me. They have a web site with a woolly sort of "mission statement" on it (http://occupylsx.org/?p=221) but, and as is usual with these things, it says "we don't like this" but fails to come up with alternatives. I have no sympathy for their cause so this must mean that I must be one of the 1%, so are the 99% protesting about me? What have I done? I could, of course, be part of an unknown percentage who are not included either the 99% or the 1%, but that would leave me completely marginalised, or is maths not their strongpoint? I just object to these people automatically assuming that they have my support when they very definitely do not, especially as the original "Occupy" movement appears to have been hijacked by UKUncut. Perhaps they should ask some Palestinians if they agree with the concept of "occupation" as being a good thing. And good to see that they had Polly Toynbee lecture them on Sunday about how wonderful they are. With three houses, children in private education and earning £110K per year just from her Guardian column I can think of nobody more appropriate! Meanwhile, it looks like the protest is over in Scotland (http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/2011/10/25/the-revolution-is-over-thanks-to-one-thieving-paisley-ned-86908-23513131/) following a robbery from the lone protester. "He took my mobile and a few pounds in cash, then threatened to come and find me if I went to the police. After he left, I ran to the council offices and started shouting for help. But there was nobody there so I went up to my mum's house." Poor bloke. Next...

4) KNOTWEED - We talk to the couple who have to demolish their home because of Japanese Knotweed. Find out more from Mail Online : The Daily Dose of The Daily Mail... An unfortunate story, but this paragraph tells me all I need to know: The(y) are seeking £400,000 compensation and claim that the solicitors failed to ensure there was a National House-Building Council warranty which provides the insurance cover for ten years in the event of any problems. The solicitors entirely deny liability and contest the claim. My question to the owners would be: Why didn't YOU check that you had an NHBC warranty? I'd bet that Feltz wouldn't dare ask that question. As for the knotweed, let's all blame man-made global warming.