Monday, January 29, 2007
Shilpa, Jade and Jeremy
So Shilpa Shetty wins Big Brother; there would, presumably, have been a further diplomatic incident if she hadn't. In victory, she is very magnanimous to Jade Goody, her racist abuser. 'People make mistakes,' she says, 'and we're all human beings, we're all fallible.' Sweet, but then Jade did make Shilpa's day by giving her more global exposure in about five seconds than the whole output of Bollywood could hope to do in a decade. If smart Shilpa intended to use thick Jade to advance her career, then she played a blinder. Meanwhile, Top Gear returns with an unscarred Richard Hammond. In the course of the programme, Jeremy Clarkson referred to Jade as 'a racist, pig-faced waste of blood and organs.' The study audience roared its approval. I know Jeremy and I like him but he really shouldn't have let himself get involved in this disgusting freak show of mob-manipulation.
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A blog about, among other things, imaginary ideas - What ifs? and Imagine thats. What if photographs looked nothing like what we see with our eyes? Imagine that the Berlin Wall had never come down. What if we were the punchline of an interminable joke? All contributions welcome.
It's noteworthy, isn't it, that when we categorise people in certain derogatory or disparaging ways, we often throw in for good measure some mention of their physical characteristics, as if there is some correlation.
ReplyDeleteBad to hate someone for racial reasons, but when one has good reasons one's wallowing in horrible, hateful states of mind to be applauded. Hurrah for the men of certainty. I'd have thought pity for someone to be in that state of mind maybe more appropriate.
ReplyDeleteHmm, good point, Neil. No correlation perhaps, but it often makes for a much more satisfying insult. Though I should now perhaps now be quiet, before I am accused of being a racist and Select Committees begin asking why I wasn't taken off the internet before I started typing offensive blog posts.
ReplyDeleteOn "The Hamster" - am I the only one feeling more than a tad cynical about his near death experience?
p.s Your new book is, as we speak, darting its way to me from Amazon HQ.
p.p.s Has Jeffrey passed comment on Jade-Shilpa-gate? Someone should let him know...
True, James. In the case of racism, though, it seems particularly glaring.
ReplyDeleteMr Appleyard falls into the currently common misconception that Miss Jade Goody is racist. By the rules of Political Correctness only white people can be racist. Miss Goody was fathered by a Jamaican and therefore is "mixed race" and by definition cannot be racist. Furthermore her being "mixed race" entitles her to VICTIM STATUS and is therefore beyond criticism by mere white trash like BA. Expect a call from the Met, probably in the early hours.
ReplyDeleteThe excuse of Jo O'Meara of S Club 7 was the classic giveaway: "I'm not racist, my cousin is married to an Indian."
ReplyDeleteReminds me of Ron Atkinson's burblings following his disagrace on ITV. "I'm not racist - I signed several black players as a manager..."
You're a saint, Ron. "I'm not racist - I even let them in my house."
Top Gear was actually slightly disappointing last night. The section of the show in which the guys were re-tarmacing a road in 24 hours was one of those features in which they're trying too hard to be funny, and it all comes across as a bit contrived. And Jamie Oliver is just a bore, so it was a pity he had to be driving the 'reasonably-priced-car' this time round. However, the Jaquar/Aston Martin feature was beautifully shot and edited, Hammond's entrance was brilliant, and the jet-car footage was always going to be a morbidly fascinating.
ReplyDeleteClarkson's jibe at Jade Goody did make me 'laugh-out-loud', (I must be part of some mob), but I think the 'pug-faced' bit is out of order. And on the subject of Jade, she may be thick, but clearly not as thick as Jo O'Meara, who clearly has the charisma of a rattlesnake, the heart of a flint, and the brain of a pidgeon. She regrets nothing, whereas Jade was smart enough to fall on her sword the moment she realised what was happening. Jade will now be able to go through a cycle of perdition, repentance, and redemption, and earn a few more bob. Jo O'Meara is finished.
Or Jade has a better agent to Jo... (Many think so, due to connections.)
ReplyDeleteIt's funny, I actually thought Jeremy was describing himself. He's the most selfish person I know and i am embarrassed to be related to him!!
ReplyDelete