Last week
I went to see Victoria Coren record her radio show Heresy. It was great as I had free tickets through http://www.tvrecordings.com, and also the show is recorded about 20 minutes walk away from my work. When Drew and I got through the door we were asked to complete a short 3-question questionnaire (e.g. one question was 'Transport strikes are bad for commuters' - do you Strongly agree, Agree or Disagree). If we answered Strongly Agree to any there was a box to tick whether or not we were willing to speak on the show. I ticked the box for not speaking, obviously. The show works by the panel arguing against the beliefs of the majority of the audience, with the phrasing of the questions set up so that you are more likely to agree than disagree with them.
In the crowded bar I was quite pleased to realise I was standing next to a couple of Librarians (a conversation about CILIP and Chartership gave it away). I considered interrupting and saying 'Hey, I'm a Librarian too!' but decided I would probably just come across like a big freak. Eventually we got called in to sit down. It was fun to see how radio shows like that are recorded, the producer made us all practice some clapping and some laughing which he said might be used in the final edit. Victoria Coren had three guests on with her - one was Marcus Brigstocke, one was a vicar and another was a lady who looked a bit like Mo. I was impressed by how little repeating or retakes needed to be done, all of the panel spoke without stuttering or speaking over each other. The only bit that Victoria had to re-record was Gabriel García Márquez's name, which the producer said she had pronounced wrongly, so she redid it in a spanish accent.
This Tuesday we're going to see Charlie Brooker film 'You Have Been Watching', excited! More excited than about my birthday, I'm turning 28 this week, urgh.
My recent falconry experience was great, but I still couldn't help feeling that in general insects, and particularly social insects, are much more interesting to study. For instance, check out the ingenuity of this Copidosoma floridanum wasp, which lays a single egg in a poor caterpillar which can then clone itself up to 2,000 times and produce a devastating self-sacrificing clone army: devious wasp. The only bird I can think of which comes close to such awe inspiring evilness is the cuckoo.
In the crowded bar I was quite pleased to realise I was standing next to a couple of Librarians (a conversation about CILIP and Chartership gave it away). I considered interrupting and saying 'Hey, I'm a Librarian too!' but decided I would probably just come across like a big freak. Eventually we got called in to sit down. It was fun to see how radio shows like that are recorded, the producer made us all practice some clapping and some laughing which he said might be used in the final edit. Victoria Coren had three guests on with her - one was Marcus Brigstocke, one was a vicar and another was a lady who looked a bit like Mo. I was impressed by how little repeating or retakes needed to be done, all of the panel spoke without stuttering or speaking over each other. The only bit that Victoria had to re-record was Gabriel García Márquez's name, which the producer said she had pronounced wrongly, so she redid it in a spanish accent.
This Tuesday we're going to see Charlie Brooker film 'You Have Been Watching', excited! More excited than about my birthday, I'm turning 28 this week, urgh.
My recent falconry experience was great, but I still couldn't help feeling that in general insects, and particularly social insects, are much more interesting to study. For instance, check out the ingenuity of this Copidosoma floridanum wasp, which lays a single egg in a poor caterpillar which can then clone itself up to 2,000 times and produce a devastating self-sacrificing clone army: devious wasp. The only bird I can think of which comes close to such awe inspiring evilness is the cuckoo.