THE BRITISH THREAD II

Thats nice. So whats the reference to the strike?

I'm (Civil Servant) on strike, Thursday and Friday. Won't be on the picket though... too bloody cold and the rain will spoil my hair-do.

x

Then it's no better than here, civil servants are always on strike...

Fancy smorgsie being on strike.

Talk of strikers in Cranford would have had the bonnets unanimous that they should be deported after being whipped through the streets. I know they look sweet pouring the tea and flirting in their dotage, a subject upon which I am unable to dwell without my eyes brimming up with tears, but underneath they were real enough.

I am talking of the ladies in the stations represented as they were in the real Cranford of that time and not those projections of their own personalities the lady programme makers have seen fit to regale us with.

One can't expect a mere five hours of screen time padded out with shots of people walking or coming down stairs to cover the seething undercurrents in a woebegone hole like that. See yourselves with five hours of film to make and a budget mainly of actor's and technician's wages. Entirely where possible. (see street scenes).

Compared to the variables of the seething undercurrents the scriptwriters of Corrie need to contend with Cranford is nursury school stuff. Seriously.


Our flagship North-West soap is so far ahead of the opposition that it's hardly believable. And it very cleverly portrays itself in a way which snobs can easily mock and thus sorts out the wheat from the chaff. There's some great acting in it too. Dierdre doing indignant is great. Sally doing "upward mobility" as well. And Jack and Vera are legendary. Judi Dench can only do Judi Dench.

Top of the ratings week-in-week-out year on year has a permanent big budget and can produce excellent actors like rabbits out of a hat. The girl who played the square's wife in The Likely Lads showed me what good acting is.

When I was a civil servant we didn't have the right to strike. Nor did we want it. I think Mrs Thatcher was the cause of civil servants getting the right to strike. I may be wrong on that. Something to do with GCHQ or something. But that lady was the cause of too many of our ills for me to bother with that one.

We didn't want our tone to be lowered by associating us with how ordinary workers went about their business. We were a bit elitist. We would never have dreamed of ringing up a journalist on the QT. And as for picketing--gee!

Why are not modern civil servants as contented as we used to be? They certainly have a lot to be contented with compared to our situation. Dripping butties, pump water, fleas, frost, flies, effluent were the small irritations.

If smorgsie is on picket duty I hope she's honest enough for it to read WE WANT MORE GRAVY AND BETTER BREAD TO DIP IN IT.

When were you a CS?

And what grade were you?

And what job did you do?

And have I got any chance of you answering those questions?

x

What would be the point?

It's a long time ago and I've shed a few skins since then.

There's plenty of interesting stuff in my recent post. I'm not interesting. I'm a shagged-out old has-been. I'm not in denial.

I've found a recipe for you smorgsie. I'll put it on later. Francis might know it. It's for Francoise's Chocolate Mousse. It's famous. They say that when you're eating them you should think of France.

Well you don't post like an old has-been (well not all the time anyway).

Yes please, do post the recipe, I'm interested in all things chocolate.

x

Today I stand on the north bank of the Tay, in the kingdom of Fife, and surveying the scene I pronounce it good.

Dead good, Clazza, and don't fret, pet- it should be on again before too long.

Ignore Spendy's criticisms, he don't know nuthin.

North of the Tay - Fife?
I used to be in the Braes of Angus ...

I was once in the bras of Angie for a while.

Does that count.

Our German Angie?

Francoise's Chocolate Mousse.

Ingredients: 100g of plain cooking chocolate, 100g of caster sugar, half a litre of milk (proper milk I presume), six eggs. Free range large brown with traces of hen-****.

Method: Bring the milk to the boil, add chocolate broken in pieces, and let it melt gently, stirring the mixture with a wooden spoon. Whip the sugar with the yolks of the eggs. Preheat oven to 130 C.
When the chocolate has completely melted, pour it over the sugar/eggs, mix rapidly and energetically, then pass through a strainer.

Pour out the liquid into little ramekins 8cm in diameter, but allowance can be made for slight variations, and place in oven in a bain-marie, for an hour. Leave to cool before serving.

It would probably cost £10 in those fancy boxes with a ribbon round it. Maybe £20 if there's gold lettering and it's been promoted by an ad showing a nice lady looking very pleased with the chap who brings one to her feet.

Oh-- I forgot.

When you bite into one don't forget to lie back and think of France.

I only got that far. Just occasionally I get the impression that beneath the worn and broken outer wreckage lies a vital spark which was once human. Humorous even. What are we to do with you Spendius? (For all Americans that is a rhetorical question)

Webpage Title

Overcome by the exuberance of my own verbosity, I put Fife on the opposite bank. In bright sunshine, I approached on the north side, then crossed the bridge, you're right, Walt. I may have become slightly disorientated or befuddled at Glen Morangie or Glenfiddich.

Good heavens McTag is communicating from bonnie Scotland via the interweebag.

Dinner tonight in Cupar, Fife, with some of the relatives.

(My liver hasn't recovered yet from dinner last night.)

:wink:

So, the British have "liver crisis", like in France?