Caution: Elderly person gripeing and ranting. [Welcome to my perfumed garden]

I'm watching Museum of Life on BBC2. Fascinating subject and I was actually hoping for a proper documentary but alas, it's just the usual bollocks with the usual over-excited Blue Peter-type presenters giggling and squeeing all over the place and everything dumbed down and over-produced and explained and...

::pauses to sigh::

Maybe it's just me, maybe I'm just getting terribly old but I ache for an adult documentary that respects my intelligence, where a proper presenter like Ken Clark or Michael Wood or James Burke, someone who has a personality rather than is a 'Personality', can take us on a journey without needing to involve us quite so much in the whole wretched process, presenters who don't act like clowns making balloon animals at a children's party.

And here's David Attenborough! But don't worry, he's only being interviewed. He clearly can't be trusted to present the damn thing; too old, probably, too crusty and tweedy and prone to use Big Words that might frighten some viewers.

::sigh:: I fear I may have lived too long.

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::joins you in the old farts' corner::

I was hanging in there till they got to the rubbish with the worms. The thud you heard was me keeling over with boredom.

I love the Natural History Museum - the blue whale was the first love of my life - so I'll probably struggle through the rest, but I wish they'd stop pratting about.

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My attention started to wander midway, by the time we got to the nervy gel rubber-painting the feathery fossil I was getting crotchety, when we got to the worms I was ready to start writing letters to the Telegraph. Yes, I really was that cross.

Pratting about - Yes! This. Your choice of words - perfect as always. ::nods vehemently::

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Yes! Letters to the Telegraph... I feel them coming on more and more often. I shall be a strange bearded old lady with a spiteful Biro. And probably quite soon *g*

And who was the nervy gel anyway? Could have slapped her, so I could.

I ought to go and get my gin and Horlicks and calm myself *g*

Your style, I like it. I have neither gin nor Horlicks but if I did I'd be joining you. I might partake of a glass of Shiraz, though, in celebration of the fact that The Voice Of Reason aka David Mitchell is on now.

I really like the idea of a spiteful biro but have to say, I think a shotgun would be quicker and cleaner.

I'm happy to confess I didn't know who any of them were, and who are these Beatles anyway?

I'm happy to confess I didn't know who any of them were

Oh thank god - I thought it was just me... and yes, a shotgun has definite merits ::nods crankily::

Ultimately kinder, too, I feel. To the human race, anyway. Take the buggers out of the gene pool. ::grows ginger moustache and thornproof tweeds::

::falls about laughing::

Bless you - please don't ever change *g*

I promise never to actually change into Sir Henry Rawlinson if you will promise me likewise. ::serious stare::

I so almost stole your subject line for the post I just made :)

Excellent! I shall pop over and take a gander just as soon as I've finished a birthday post for all the people - like your darling self - I missed over the past few days. And the internet is so achingly slow.

By all the Gods, I needs me a stiff drink.

Hee! My dad is out of town and I'm unemployed -- I started my first beer at about 2 pm :)

You should throw a party, pass out cold on the coats, have to clean up the sick before Dad gets home earlier than expected.

there are some good docos out there. i've been watching quite a few lately, mostly BBC. i find the US ones tend to be 1. very dumbed down and 2. painfully repetitive as they go over the same information after every ad break (i guess Americans have very short attention spans?)

There's a horribly annoying tendency to jive up docs here by having noisy ~~children~~ young presenters getting all hands-on and over-excited and trying to show how, wow, you know, like, palaeontology is like really fun, guys, you know? And not, like, boring at all.

Yes. I knew that. And I would like David Attenborough to do it properly now, please.

The Beeb are still making great documentaries, Life and Last Chance to See spring immediately to mind, but the Museum of Life ones are gaining ground. I was hoping I'd be safe on BBC2 but it wasn't to be. :o)

Documentaries are a never ending source of disappointment these days. The dumbing down, the constant recapping just in case you didn't get it first, second or third time. I particularly hate all those documentaries about the natural world with their intrusive soaring/majestic music and a presenter who sounds like he's in a constant state of awe and ecstacy. Look mate, I want to say, just get a grip and calm down. I know it's not the same thing but... can I come in the crabby and crusty corner too.

Oh please do! I have warmed the cushion on the naughty stool for you.

The hideous and unbearable Blue-Petering of documentaries is a source of constant rage for me these days, I'm glad to know I'm not the only one. About the only presenter of the ilk I can tolerate is Neil Oliver; he can dumb me down anytime he wants to Fnrr fnrr. ::rude gesture, naughty smirk::

I'm still amazed at how one Brian Cox managed to make the entire solar system boring to me. And infuriated that a historical programme I would otherwise have watched was presented by David Dimbleby; what brand of historian he?

Yeah, my first reaction, less than five minutes into the solar systen thing, was that this was aimed at an audience of ten-year-olds - it was definitely a blue-peter presentation. Heck, Blue Peter was *better* presented, back in the days when I watched it!

I can understand that the repetition of stuff after every commercial break is aimed at telling the folk who have been channel hopping and just flicked on to it what has been covered; personally I think the channel hoppers don't need to be catered for. They probably won't stick with the programme for more than five minutes anyway.

And Gilly? You are *not* 'elderly'. I'm elderly (I refuse to admit to being old). You've a fair number of years to go before you catch up to my age! :-)

because I rather like Brian Cox and I'm enjoying Wonders of the Solar System, myself. |I agree, there's a fair bit of slack-jawed Wonder in the show, but the science is there and Brian C is highly bona-fide, a repected particle physicist at CERN and Manchester Uni. Of course, he got the gig, not for being a respected scientist but because he's relatively young and personable and because he was the keyboard player for D-Ream, but he does know his stuff.

Dimbleby's show is watchable, I think, but I prefer Dan Snow's current effort. My favourite historian/presenter though is Michael Wood, who could talk you through 3 hours of paint drying and make it impossible to look away.

I'm not denying that Cox seems to know his stuff, but did he script this? I'd doubt it, or if he did, I think he was told to gear it towards an audience of children. I expected to enjoy the series, and so far I haven't. I feel I'm being patronised by the producers.

Oooooh, I don't know about that. I do feel, once you've crossed the half-century post, you're well on your way to biddie-dom. But you know what they say, you're only as old as the man that you feel, which makes me 54, haha. Or as old as you feel (= at least 85. ::laughs like loon::)

Welcome to my perfumed garden

Caution: Elderly person gripeing and ranting.

Too cool for subject

Too cool for subject

Too cool for subject

gin and Horlicks

Re: gin and Horlicks

Re: a shotgun has definite merits

Re: a shotgun has definite merits

Re: a shotgun has definite merits

Too cool for subject

::steeples fingers::

Re: ::steeples fingers::

Re: ::steeples fingers::

Too cool for subject

Too cool for subject

Too cool for subject

an I come in the crabby and crusty corner too.

Too cool for subject

Too cool for subject

I'm afraid I'm going to dissent here

Re: I'm afraid I'm going to dissent here

You are not 'elderly'.

May