Mental wanderings

[inulro]

Found this in the Independent today: Christine Hamilton bites back after home makeover

Talk about a lot of awful people getting what they deserve.

Now, I hate the Hamiltons as much as anybody (I laughed my head off all the way through Purple Homicide), but Colin & Justin are equally objectionable.

When I was flu-ridden I caught an episode of their programme, and was utterly disgusted at their behaviour. If anybody spoke to me the way they spoke to the homeowners, in my own house, no matter how badly it needed a makeover, national TV or not, they'd have been out on the street. Probably bleeding.

This has nothing to do with taste in furnishings, it's about respect. They had none for the home owners or for the tradespeople who actually did the work (I cheered when some of them walked off the job because they didn't like being shouted at!).

So, there's that new book out about how rude everyone is now. It's hardly surprising if prime time TV has presenters showing such blatant disrespect to all the people they come in contact with, and being rewarded for it, that young people (and indeed older people) think treating other people like human beings with feelings is optional.

Comments

[moral-vacuum.livejournal.com]

I presume that the producers have cut out all the moments where the homeowner says "Fuck you, you naff old queens".

[inulro.livejournal.com]

One lives in hope.

[ankaret.livejournal.com]

The Lynne Truss book is OK, but feels like it was written in a bit of a hurry and not edited very well. Can bring this afternoon if you're interested in borrowing.

[inulro.livejournal.com]

I've only seen this now. I'd be interested, but my to-read pile is currently two to-read piles for health and safety reasons (the pile from before I went away, and the pile of books I bought in the States) and I'm trying to learn Spanish at the moment, so maybe in a couple of months.

[mimmimmim.livejournal.com]

I'm always amazed people even volunteer to go on those shows - don't they realise that most people watch that type of programme to see things go wrong? Even if everything went wonderfully, the few nasty episodes would be the bits to make the final cut. Sounds like Colin and Justin have a touch of the Lawrence Llewellyn-Bowens with that 'brights and blacks' palette. Do you remember the dining room LLB did that had the people in tears? I'd shoot him if he started walking up my drive!

I don't usually watch that sort of thing, but I did see Grand Designs Abroad on More4 this week. iddle-class couple buy derelict French alpine chalet, have very firm ideas on what they want, then go back to England without employing a project manager/ on-site architect. Add to that the fact that it would seem the French there like new buildings (which makes them very like the Spanish; selling a restored house is not as easy as you might think in Spain because the Spaniards would rather have something new, character be damned) and so the builders' immediate reaction was to pull out all the old stuff, beams and all, and replace it with new wood and poured concrete.

The house looked nice when it was finished, and the woman didn't have nearly half the trauma she deserved...