A senior
³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ figure came by my desk yesterday afternoon. I mean - REALLY senior. I won't embarrass either of us, or you, by dropping the name here. But trust me. HUGE.
Admittedly, he was only being polite - he was passing through the office. But he came over and could not have been more charming or supportive. He told me he is a fan of the blog. We spoke about trying to get PM podcast, and about new technology and Value For Money. Even nicer, he said he listens to PM four nights out of five...which for someone as senior as him is a breathtaking endorsement of the work we're doing. I asked him why he didn't listen all five weekday nights, and he said he was in meetings. Bastard.
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Do you think he knew you broadcast on a sixth night? Or is it the case that he doesn't realise you broadcast on the weekend. Is the hidden truth that there shouldn't be a weekend PM, but you all break into the office, as you just can't last two days without being on the air?
Eddie,
Your response is quite inappropriate. The man is to be pitied. To have to sacrifice an evening with you for a boring meeting? No contest!
Clearly it is time for the management at the Beeb to get its priorities right. Tell him, Ed, go on, tell him!
Presumably the purpose of this posting is to check his purported allegiance to the Blog. Do let us all know how you get on.
How long if your contract? Is it due for imminent renewal? What are the grounds for dismissal? - No you don't have to tell us, really, but we hope you're thoroughly backed up and unionised (NUJ, presumably).
I really can't get over it - How could anybody want to sit in on a meeting when they could be listening to PM?
Could it be that one of us Froggers is actually this bigwig in disquise?
Ah yes, Michael - you are both right and wrong. Indeed there is the sixth night - but never with Eddie, and I guess that's the reason for Mr. Huge's slip. And Mr. Ed's omission. And the lower Saturday ratings.
Has anyone else seen story today. Positively made my day!
Enjoy
That's a good one, Stephen. Presumably that's where Spooks got the idea for the latest storyline, except it was putty not jelly.
FF - Re the BigWig - I reckong it's Mr. I Kew. But, there again, it could be YOU!
S-Strop(5) Yes, I'd seen it :)) too funny for words!
Big Sis (7) nope, it's not me, honest! Maybe it's the chatbot?!?!?
sb8
Mr Huge - didn't One of Us froggers let slip the transcript of tapes of a previous meeting between those two a wee while ago?
It occurs to me, Sir Ed was so taken aback by the visitation on high, that he forgot to even write yesterday's newsletter. So that was no cut and paste job on the blog yesterday - he actually frogged it?
I've been giving Eddie's current postings a bit further thought and have seen the connection.
First posting: Blinding us with his technical prowess (note use of 'wizardry'!), Ed uploads Hugh's pictures (really nice, btw, to get pictures to go with the aural imagery). Impressing us even further, more postcards are promised. Eddie can upload and scan.
Second posting: talks in high places about podcasts, blogs, new technology etc. etc. Eddie the TechnoKing talks to Mr. Big.
Are you trying to impress the DG by any chance, Eddie? Is there a new 'technotest' being applied to presenters? Will you soon hoofing round the studio a la 9 o'clock? (Careful before you answer that one, Eddie, - Remember the Webcam!)
Eddie,
This 'ere ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ senior management 'johnny' was he...
The Director-General,
The Deputy Director,
Director (General) of Radio & Music,
Director of Television,
Director, ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ People,
Director, Marketing, Communications & Audiences,
Director, New Media & Technology,
Director of Group Finance,
³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Chief Operating Officer & Chief Executive Officer,
³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Worldwide, Director, Policy, Strategy, Legal & Distribution,
Director, News,
Director, Nations & Regions,
Director, Sport,
Director, World Service & Global News Division, Director, Factual & Leraning,
Creative Director & Director, Drama, Entertainment & C³ÉÈËÂÛ̳.
... and does he work on the fifth floor?
I want to know exactly what the wedding party were planning on doing with the jelly. And how did it get left by the side of the road? And where was the groom when he was woken up? Only half the story so far. Perhaps PM can bring us the rest?
Maybe after your blog about your digital car radio yesterday, "Mr Big" dropped by to offer you a new free in-car system? "Try this one Eddie. It'll work this time, honest. Go on. Please. We need you to say you like it."
You can tell us.
Big Sister : FF - Re the BigWig - I reckong it's Mr. I Kew. But, there again, it could be YOU!
Plainly Mr Big is Big Sister.
Rats, Andy. You've got it half right. He's my broth - Big Brother, of course!
It reminded me of a story recounted by Terry Wogan whilst being interviewed on 'Front Row' recently. A very important ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ person took Michael Aspel out for a meal snd told Michael how well he was doing and what a treasure he was to the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳.
The very next day Michael received an internal memo explaining that his contract would not be renewed :-(
Jonnie - The same thought had crossed my mind (having heard that interview) but I didn't want to blight Eddie's day.
Of course, there is no comparison between EM and MA, and anyway let's hope that the reigning monarchy don't operate like that.
Have a nice day Eddie!
Maybe the bigwig was there because Eddie managed to find the fifth floor a week or two back, and so now they're priming him to join the Secret Order of Fifth-floor Afficionados (SOFA for short)....
Well done, Eddie. And Well done Lady P. And well done with the rods and the soda. The Newsletter is here. The blockage is cleared. It was all the postcards, wasn't it, Eddie? (And, BTW, where are they?)
A word of advice, Eddie, when people say I DID (etc.) like that, it does whiff of 'methinks he does protest too much', moody adolescents, and the like ...
I listen to PM. In fact, I am wondering if PM received my post card.
Clearly Lissa was not around when the big wig turned up, because, as you will recall, her clarion call is
ITS NEVER TOO LATE TO LISTEN TO PM
as you can "listen again" at any time. I bet EM did not make that observation to the big wig.
My thoughts is that the big wig is a succession of these one-off posters.
Hmmm... Eddie, if I were you I'd check with Fig Lover whether she got a visit from Mr Big just before getting the boot from BH for spoon-stealing (or whatever it was...)
Talking of which, who's snaffled the strapline?
what a worrying train of thought you will have started for poor Eddie now (Jonnie & 16). Lets not even think of what happens to people who get Tony Blair's "Full support" for their "Wonderful work". Good job the PM never comes on PM so at least Mr Mair is spared that worrying endorsement!
Hello Eddie,
The newsletter turned up today - thanks.
I see that you're doing a bit about conkers on PM this afternoon. I've read in my local paper that considering the crisis that's befallen the noble art of conkers, it is a tribute to its practioners that only a few days ago the World Conker Championships occured at all.
In the very teeth of a drought said to be weakening trees, a terrible-sounding disease called "horse-chestnut bleeding canker" and the unwelcome attentions of the horse-chestnut leaf-miner moth, (whatever that is) the annual World Conker Championship held in Northamptonshire passed off as usual.
There can be no greater tribute to those who participate in conkers, nor to the sport's (and it is a sport) survival against apparently insuperable odds.
With such resilience to hand, it can only be hoped that the game will continue to see off its most determined foe of all - that fearsome pest known as the health-and-safety-officer.
See you on the ice!
Re: 23
Or even... Director of Health & Safety (³ÉÈËÂÛ̳)
I can't be bothered to actually go back and count, but how many discrete froggers do you think there are? There can't be more than a couple of dozen or so. OK, maybe more than that. You see, what's occurring to me is that if there are only so many people appearing on this frog - and it has been running for a while now - then that seems a pretty poor return. Either there must be only about 150 people listening to PM on average or else the frog is less successful than we like to think. Perhaps others (including Mr Huge) are just lurking?
Apparently this got skootered before because I was risque enough to collocate the other word used to describe Mr Huge with that one.
Yes OntheLedge, let's hope that Eddie doesn't go the same way as poor old Fi Glover did! Although I believe that Fi was stashing staples and paperclips away, which of course is taken very seriously.
I think Fi needs some moral support and we should all buy copies of her book. Here is a little extract from her website at :
www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/news/bh/this_week.shtml
"If you share any kind of love of radio please feel free to buy a copy of 'Travels With My Radio' a small tome I wrote in 2000 about the joys of local broadcasting around the world. I believe you can get it at a very reasonable price these days. And so I now find myself on the big station that is Radio 4, I do hope that you enjoy Broadcasting House as much as I intend to, Happy Listening……
Sorry 'The Stainless Steel Cat' I see you got there before me with the Fig Lover one - just noticed it :-)
Re. 11: Does Auntie have a
³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Chief Operating Officer & Chief Executive Officer?
That's very economical. Our company has two men to perform these roles.
Fearless (17) - marvellous. I shall forever be suspicious (and excited) when asked to join someone on the sofa...
Not only does the newsletter promise conkers, we'll apparently learn of "the impending nucular catastrophe" that'll kill us all.
When the blows....
And, as for
Only a small firecracker compared to ours!
xx
ed
Chatbot is getting chattier?
John H, you don't think he wants to axe us do you? I must hie me to another place immediately and find out how to set up somewhere else for us to meet - with a SOFA of course?
Yes, Chatbot is quite convincing - postcards too!
We could all get togther on John W's blog. Btw, that's not his real name, you know?
Do tell, Aperitini
Hey, Eddie, just finished listening to Des Brown being really nasty to you. You remained perfectly polite - Shame the bruiser didn't keep his manners, though. But - Hey! - he who keeps his cool retains the high ground.
What a shame Herr Brown went to the John Reid school of mannters.
I'm sure there are other lurkers besides me. What's a frogger?
Jonnie, great minds think alike!
(Sadly, I can't remember how the second part of that phrase goes...)
It seems that the bloggage theory - the one that says some electronic communications get stuck in wires, overheated plugs and/or batteries-with-a-headache -is far more widespread than some (no names. They know who they are) technogeeks would like to admit. How else do they explain the -things-that-go-wrong-they-can't-fix?
And now I shall have to stand in the corner on account of having used up the entire frog community's allocation of hyphens in one go. Oops.
Welcome Lurker! Or should that more properly be 'Welcome, Lurker'? I agree with your 33, having been one myself. Just as there are more people in the audience for The News Quiz than there are panellists. Unless the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳'s using a laughter track, of course. Like it does on EastEnders.
Oh, so this is where we're hiding the fun tonight! Almost missed it...
Hmm chatbot is getting a bit chattier. I think we may have to change to calling him an AI!
Welcome indeed lurker! You'll find us an easy going bunch, I think... As for Froggers, well, it's sort of like this:
A typical Blog is where the blogger (EM in this case) makes a comment, then everyone else (the posters or blogees) resposnds to it or discusses it. We noticed a few weeks ago that Eddies' blog doesn;'t seem to work that way. We tend to take the conversation off at a tangent within one or two posts (as we've done here). That's a lot more like a Forum. So, I can't remember who it was, but someone in a stroke of genious decided that this was half way between a Forum and a Blog, and hence it's a Frog, and we're all froggers:)
Lady P (37), I can actually say, as an Electronics Engineer, it's not uncommon at all for things like that to happen! Trust me, I've been fault-finding things where they only work when the person stand in one spot, but if they move 1 metre to the left or right, it stops working completely!
Appy (29) I just hope when Eddie is climbing the SOFA ranks, he doesn't forget us froggers who have obviously helped him on the way up. After all, he did say that the Senor Figure was a fan of the blog, and this blog is made by all of us together:)
Let me just say to you, Mr Des Brown - stop making out you need permission to answer questions that have just been put to you! Flamin’ *censored* *censored*. My big sister had it right at 34.
I’m convinced the above interviewee would have wound me up even if someone else hadn’t already done the same.
(29) Would you like to join me on the sofa?
Ooh Doc (40), I'm all suspicious and excited! Whatever can you mean? - The answer is 'yes, so long as you don't mention Des Brown'.
FF (39),
One could say I've made a career in spotting such odd coincidences vs odd causes. It's haulled us out of some tight spots.
Aperitif (32);
How could you? I don't use my first name. But I doubt Aperitif is your name, is it?
Lurker(35)
Welcome.
John W (32),
What do you mean how could I? - I'm only repeating what you said to Lissa on an earlier blog: that John W is a 'nom de plume'.
Or do you suspect I have cameras at your house too, and that I therefore know what your real name is??? ;)
(41) Good-oh!
It is productive
on a trip to the coalface
to bestow blessings.
Aperitif,
I normally don't use my first name. But since you've claimed to have got webcams installed at FF's, I'm beginning to wonder if you've not had one installed here, and hence *do* know the name I normally use.
But I was a little out-of-sorts last night, having been on the receiving end of salvos of flak from an unexpected quarter yesterday evening (not work, even), so perhaps was a little sensitive...
Oh dear John W, I hope it wasn't the neighbours. And I hope it's sorted out now.
Sorry If I made it worse - I'll never divulge that you are really called-CENSORED
Mr. B. Wigg
Just how big is your wig? And how many coalfaces do you visit?
BTW, Bloggers are the hidden face of anarchy. Lord Mair of the Blog is its more visible face.