1) The Queen and the Wanna-Be Cowboy:
Much hullabaloo has been made of the Queen’s recent visit to the United States. As I think her quite fabulous and have confidence in the uniquely American bend to British-rooted traditions, I am enjoying the hullabaloo. Especially this little bit:
Apparently President Bush (#2) came quite close to implying that Her Majesty Elizabeth II had visited America 200 years ago. This is a simple enough verbal error, and his method of making up the matter was perfectly American: he winked at the Queen of the United Kingdom.
Naturally, Her Majesty responded in a manner perfectly British: she glared at the President of the United States.
He responded with an apologetic remark to the crowd, declaring that she had given him “a look that only a mother could give a child.”
She smiled serenely, and all was well.
2) The Churchill-esque Astronomer
Somehow in the mix of a radio interview, Sir Patrick Moore was turned to the topic of the modern BBC. Naturally, it’s “terrible”. Even more naturally, it’s the fault of the women. Hee! “The trouble is that the BBC is now run by women and it shows – soap operas, cooking, quizzes, kitchen-sink plays.”
Sir Patrick does, however, make a slight intellectual allowance for the soap opera epidemic: “I suppose it’s true to life. But so is diarrhea – and I don’t want to see that on television.”