11/04/12

Well, this is nice. It has just gone 09:00 and Richard Madeley is droning on about nothing in particular, as usual, on the radio in the next room. Hang on... click, off, gone... there, that's better.

There have been some interesting retweets on your feed in the last 24 hours. The first one was this from @RadioToday:
Radio 2's @theJeremyVine to do Bristol Q&A:http://radiotoday.co.uk/2012/04/radio-2s-jeremy-vine-to-do-bristol-qa/ #radionews
The link takes us to page that says: Jeremy’s session for the Radio Academy will cover his life, work and his love of radio. He’ll also talk about journalism and offer advice for all those wishing to enter the profession. The event is free for Radio Academy members and £10 for non-members.
I'm almost tempted to go, but in all honesty I can't be bothered. I'd love to hear your advice to journalists though. Will it include speculation, lieing, conjecture, illegal activities, arrogance, disrespect for the UK public and not getting caught? If not, what ARE you going to say?

Most of your retweets seem to be of the "Sometimes @theJeremyVine show is the only thing that gets me through the day" kind but you have posted a couple of "anti" messages, such as this one:
RT @Atko86: Because me and @Iainrobbo468 work with old dears we gotta listen to your pony radio show!!!! <~~~ COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS
Having moved away from London nearly 30 years ago, it is a long time since I have heard the word "pony" used as rhyming slang, but well done you for retweeting an "anti" message. I'm not sure what blessings the messager was meant to be counting though.

And this one:
“@CanLaw: @theJeremyVine @radioleary @whichpennysmith Get a life, you pathetic ignorant loser” <~~~~ WHICH OF US? YOU HAVE TO NARROW IT DOWN
A poorly directed message there, and the "Get a life..." phrase seems to be a standard response by @CanLaw, but that was a good retort on your part. I get similar comments left on my blog from time to time by fans of your programme.

Anyway, enough of the joys of Twitter. What did I miss yesterday? Not much by the look of it...

1) TAX RETURNS - Should all MPs publish their tax returns? : If that meant I can see how Galloway makes his money then yes, they should. The BBC news page you link to says "Four of the Mayoral candidates - Mr Livingstone, Conservative Boris Johnson, Lib Dem Brian Paddick and the Green Party's Jenny Jones - published their tax records after the Conservative and Labour candidates clashed last week.". I was unaware that Livingstone had actually provided full details but instead had only provided a sanitised version (http://order-order.com/2012/04/05/ken-is-the-14-5-former-climate-change-adviser-knocked-up-partial-figures/). Now, I know that research is not your strong point, but how could you get your programme guest's financial details so wrong? You spoke to Chris Davies MEP and said "In my hand, Chris Davies, I have got your tax return" and went on to say "it says employment 57657" at which point Mr Davies corrects you with a higher figure and one that coincides (within a few pounds) of what he has on his current tax return available on his web site (http://chrisdaviesmep.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Tax-Return-2011.pdf). So tell me Jeremy, why did your Researchers (and I use that term merely as a job title and not as a description of what they actually do) fail you so badly again? And why should anyone believe a single word that you say? Next...

2) HOMELESS IMMIGRANTS - Homeless migrants who are living near a Northampton roundabout have been urged to speak to authorities or face eviction : From what I heard when you spoke to Zoe yesterday, it was the roundabout aspect of this story that was of more interest to you than the homeless migrants. So, I had a good think to try and remember where my nearest roundabout is and, having remembered, I checked Google Street View to see that it is only about 5 feet in diameter, built entirely of brick and contains four arrow traffic indicators. There was no sign of any homeless people. The BBC news page you link to is a classic, as it says "The migrants, known locally as the roundabout people, have set up home (using woodland) on the Barnes Meadow roundabout." and then says under the picture "It is not known whether the woodland at Barnes Meadow is still occupied". If this is such an important story that nobody could be bothered to check, why were you talking about it? Next...

3) MUGABE - We look at what has happened to the Zimbabwean opposition as the country denies reports that its president Robert Mugabe is dying in a hospital in Singapore. Find out more in this article from the Mirror : I'm going to have to think about this for a second. Who should I believe? The Zimbabwe authorities? The Daily Mirror? You? They are all as trustworthy as each other. Hmmm.... Next...

4) AFTERNOON TEA - And have you been astonished at the high cost of afternoon tea? Find out more in this article from the Daily Mail : Never having partaken, my answer is "No". Like the BBC, these establishments can charge what they like. Unlike the BBC, we consumers have a choice whether to pay.

The Jeremy Vine Show - Pony and trap ... you can work it out yourself!