Dyyysstopiiiaaaargh
Does this, my dearios, not sound like the setup for a 1970s dystopian novel: Rubbed out: the riddle of Love Island (scroll down): [L]ist of villa rules... no books or magazines, no more than two drinks per evening, no being naked (I don’t know how that can possibly be enforced, seeing that the show is pretty much a celebration of the human body and the sexual possibilities thereof, but what do I know), no discriminating against staff, no mic removal, no phones. And then there’s this one: no masturbating.
The horror. The horror.
But, we contend, this here is an insidious attack on our traditional British right to ride on public transport in grumpy silence, reading our book/newspaper, or simply listening to our own thoughts: UK public transport rolls out 'chat day': Commuters on West Coast Virgin trains will find every coach C is designated a “chat carriage”, while bus company Arriva is placing “conversation starter” cards on vehicles servicing their UK network.
Transport for London, Greater Anglia and the Go Ahead Group are also all taking part, with posters at three London tube stations encouraging people to talk to staff. Counsellors trained by the charity Relate will ply London buses as part of an initiative with Greener Journeys, encouraging passengers to open up.
National Express said it would invite people to take part in “some stimulating activities” on Birmingham’s number 11 route, the longest urban bus route in Europe.
Paging Gerard Manley Hopkins: Elected Silence, sing to me
And beat upon my whorlèd ear,
Pipe me to pastures still and be
The music that I care to hear.
Shape nothing, lips; be lovely-dumb:
It is the shut, the curfew sent
From there where all surrenders come Which only makes you eloquent.
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