Friday, 16 February 2018
Aristotle's Masterpiece Again
Radio 4's New Quiz is a programme I don't often bother with these days – too much of it is drearily predictable, smug and long-winded – but I caught an item this evening based on a news story I hadn't heard: an early copy of the 'banned Georgian sex manual' known as Aristotle's Masterpiece has come up for auction. I once had a copy myself, of a later (probably mid-19th century) edition, which I bought in Sheffield out of curiosity and subsequently lost or threw out. I blogged about it here back in 2009, a propos another book (Maurice Gorham's Londoners), so if you want to find out more, follow this link...
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I was astonished by an edition of the New Quiz a week or two back. I have no problem with satire and enjoy, for example, "The Brexit Bulldog" on Radio 4's "Broadcasting House" which pokes fun at David Davis's implied incompetence. However, on the News Quiz in question Miles Jupp, the host, assured us that Davis was like a drunk who gets on the train and sits next to you before insisting on showing you naked pictures of his wife on his phone and then hitting you and vomiting. I could see no justification for this or, indeed, connection with reality. I complained to the BBC regarding this gross slur. They replied that they cater for a wide range of tastes leaving me feeling as though I was some kind of humourless killjoy!
ReplyDeleteYes, it's amazing/ appalling what gets said on that show (tho Miles Jupp isn't usually the offender - step forward Jeremy Hardy). Most of the laughter seems to be a virtue-signalling reflex - they're nothing actually funny about most of the 'jokes'. If only Alan Coren was still with us...
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