Playful as a pussycat? Not as wise as a serpent, for sure?
I know some people who enjoy, and adore the Royal Family for everything they do. Equally I know others who would happily dump the whole lot, and create a Republic. Me, I’m somewhere in between, though definitely not a member of their fan club.
So no, the arrival of the latest Royal baby clearly held far less (pretty much zero) interest for me, than some who wanted to swoon, and get overwhelmed by the whole event. The thing is, however you feel about them, there are bounds of decency that you have to keep when talking with them, and not just the ones concerning the fact that the person you’re talking to might be a fervent Royalist, you just dont know.
So anyway, while showing a total lack of enthusiasm about the whole birth, at the same time, I’d never say anything horrid about any member of the Royal Family, other than maybe the ‘witty’ taxpayer burden comment, but thats as far as it goes.
Sadly, as was showed earlier today, some celebrities think they are above the rules of decency, or just think that a very bad taste joke will be written off, just because they are famous. So, as you may, or may not know, Danny Baker thought it was ‘funny’ to post a comment re Harry, and Meghan, and leaving the hospital after the baby was born, to post a picture with the baby as a monkey, presumably because of the whole half caste thing? Personally, if people are happy together, does it matter what sex/gender/colour, or anything else some might like to consider, matter? No, it shouldnt!
The only things that sadden me over the whole affair is that the BBC, in their wisdom, only decided to sack Baker when a public furore blew up about the posting on Twitter. Until then, seemingly they were prepared to look the other way about the whole issue, which doesnt cast them in a great light. Baker seems to thing he’s been hard done by, but I have no idea why?
The second thing that saddened me, was the number of people supporting Baker on Twitter over the whole matter (though I do wonder, having looked at a few profiles, if some weren’t Russian bots), and saying that he was being incorrectly treated for what he’d done. Of course, to many racists, I suspect, they probably agree with him! Sad, scary, but with where things are currently heading, not at surprising as it should be!
The cynical side of me meant I did sent a tweet to Radio 5 (from whom he was sacked) offering a non controversial, but bisexual, trans woman as a replacement for their new vacancy, but as of yet, I havent got a reply. Given I’m probably the antithesis of the sort of presenter they would like to have, I wont be expecting one either. But fine, a ridiculously well paid (he was supposedly on a £300 K contract), sit down job would be heaven for me, pre retirement. Just imagine the pension I could get on 5 years of a salary like that, lol?
So no, I might not become a fan of the Royal Family, but I will at least give them a decent level of respect. Doesnt look like I will be paying tax on my salary for much longer, anyway, as from all I’ve heard, my next role is medical retirement. Unless Radio 5…? No chance!
OK, video time. Sorry, its a wicked choice, and its unlikely Meghan will ever become Queen, but…
Well, they ‘killed’ Danny Baker’s job, in a sense, though in truth, it was his own stupidity that killed it
Tribute to a transgender pioneer
Irony moments here. It was only after I’d written the blogs last night, that I heard that Julia Grant had passed away (some places she’s called Julie, which explains the video). Still, I thought it gave me an option for a blog on Sunday, as it was something I wanted to comment on. And then, yesterday, and this morning, my back fell victim to a lack of physiotherapy, and some cold weather, and was pretty much totally locked up this morning. Thankfully, I’ve eased that issue, with my first experience of an infra red sauna (or indeed any sauna) today. Wouldnt say its cured it completely, but on a pain scale of 1 to 10, its gone from 10, to 2 or 3, lol.
Julia Grant wasnt the first person to change gender, I’m not even sure if she was the first in the UK to do so, but she’s probably seen as the pioneer over here in the UK, because back in 1979, her transition was part of a BBC Documentary. Whether she kick started Sex Reassignment Surgery availability in the NHS in the UK, who knows? Quite possibly she did, but regardless of that, she was the one who did it in the eyes of the public.
I’m not going to say it wouldnt now be available on the NHS without her, as times have changed, but then again, history makes it impossible to go down a different route, and find out. I’m not going to say much about her life since then, as all I know of it, is a few lines on the internet today, and if you want to read that, well, you can Google (or whichever search engine you prefer) for those details quite easily! Funny thing is, she was only 3 years older than me!
I know, I had said in the past that unless the need arose (a partner) for me, I wasnt going to do the surgery, supposedly far too much like pain for a wimp like me. Then I’ve discovered the ‘joys of pain’ through my disabilities, and during Transgender Awareness Week, a couple of months back, I did say I was going to get it done, but only once I’ve retired, as its quite a recovery period for all, and I should imagine even more so, at my age! When that retirement date might be, is the 64 million dollar question! The way its going, it could be any time from a few weeks from now, until March 2024 (retirement age), or anywhere in between? My money is not as late as the latter date, but hopefully I can get through a few more months, or even a couple of years before the pain in the body wins out! Well, a lottery win might jump up and change matters, but with my luck in life, pigs flying is just as likely!
So, RIP Julia Grant, for being the one brave enough to go through transition, under the lights of TV documentaries. I dont know if I shall ever bother with the sex thing, but being able, one day, to look down, and see the correct ‘bits’ will be a wonderful thing for me too. Without her, whether I would be able to get that done on the NHS, who knows?
OK, video time. As I say, in a couple of places, she’s referred to as Julie Grant, which is how I found this video. Just to add, this is an entirely different person, even if she was actually known as Julie Grant, not Julia. A few minor hits in the early 60’s, but found this live video, from 2010, for tonight
I wish it didn’t matter anymore
Yes, I assume the Brit’s here at least have heard the news today, that the Olympic diver, Tom Daley has come out as gay, and is very happy with his male partner. I wish them both the very best, but thats not the point of this blog.
Seriously, I saw the 6 o’clock news on the BBC tonight, and you would think that this was some sensational news, and that the BBC didnt even realise there was such a thing as a gay relationship. Oh hang on, this is the Beeb I’m talking about, so maybe they dont?…rolls eyes!
Fine, I know, Daley has made publicity about this for himself, by posting it on Twitter, and other places probably, but in all honesty, he shouldnt have to, and I gather that most of this relates to our ‘wonderful’ press making all the fuss about this in the first place. So fine, its not just the Beeb, it seems to be the media as a whole that cant get its head around the idea that not every relationship in this world is going to be purely hetro, and purely vanilla. To them I say, get a life!
No, I dont expect everyone in the world to happily embrace the whole LGBT scene, that would be far too much. And no, I dont even mind (to a slight degree) the BBC making this a news item, I just wish they wouldnt put it out as shocked sensationalism that he has come out in this way. I certainly cant wildly imagine that certain people will ever except transgender in the same way, we dont seem to develop the same cool factor in any way that the L’s and G’s do, ah well…
Its actually fair to say that according to reputation, sport, and LGBT have a shocking relationship. And in many cases, they’re right. Soccer has a dark past in this issue, and as for the ‘big 4’ sports in the US, dont even go there, as far as players go. To be fair, as far as cricket is concerned, I can only comment on my perspective as I see it through one team, that is the Ireland cricket set up. From them, brilliant, absolutely brilliant.
No, I dont know of any gay players in Irish cricket, though I’m sure there must be some, somewhere at club level at least. And hopefully, they arent afraid to be out (ghastly word, btw) to their team mates, if they are. But what I look at, is the way that I, as a transgendered female, get treated by the players, and management of the team, those I have had contact with at least. As you might have gathered from above, its better than I could have wildly hoped for. It makes me so proud to be a supporter of such a wonderful group of guys.
As I say, one day, hopefully in the not too distant future, an announcement like the one made by Daley today, will simply be met with a shrug of the shoulder, and the comment, so what. But for now…
The video. Well yes, I wanted to find a Buddy Holly live version, but with all things, it couldnt be done. So I found a video performance by one of my favourite groups instead.
50 years of Dr Who
Back in 1963, the BBC came up with a new children’s programme called Dr Who, which was first shown on 23rd November that year. No, I cant remember if I actually watched that first episode or not, far too long ago for that. What I do know, is that at some point in William Hartnell’s reign as the Doctor, I watched several episodes. Since then, with every reincarnation of the Doctor, I’ve seen at least 1 episode. Of course, thats all Paul McGann ever made, but fortunately, I saw it. My recent working life has made keeping that record up more complex, but I managed to grab one episode with Christopher Ecclestone, and matched that number with Matt Smith. Now it seems, at some point I will have to keep the streak going with Peter Capaldi.
My personal favourites, Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, and David Tennant, I guess.
My favourite baddies, unsurprisingly to many, it would have to be the Cybermen. Mind, they have changed their look over their time too, the best part of 50 years as well. There was a long gap between 1989, and 2005 when no episodes appeared, beyond that one special with McGann. But then it returned, and has been reincarnated ever since.
So, 2 weeks from yesterday, Dr Who will quite literally celebrate its 50th birthday. Wow! The trailer for said programme
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