Brexit: BBC News Continues to be Stupid, or Deliberately Wrong

Just sat watching the BBC's North West Tonight to hear their political correspondent Nina Warhurst claim that our region is a hit confused about the EU elections tomorrow because the two main parties have been pretty absent.

Now I know that the Tories don't seem to be putting much into their campaign (as I blogged at the weekend, they are the only party I haven't received any correspondence from) but Labour missing from our region? Erm, here's a picture of Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn speaking to an audience of hundreds in Bootle on Saturday...

Perhaps North West Tonight didn't get the memo?

Warhurst then went on to say that the region is further confused by Labour's vague stance regarding the EU and a second referendum. Again the BBC don't seem to want to acknowledge that Labour has whipped for a so-called 'people's vote' twice now, but there isn't a sufficient majority for it to pass in the House, which is why it isn't happening.

Let's be clear about the second referendum; Theresa May's latest deal (aka the same as it ever was: why is it we have to respect the result of the Brexit ref, yet she will not respect the result of her first, second or even third attempt at getting her deal through?) claims that parliament must have a vote on whether there will be a second ref, but they have to vote on her deal first. It's a ploy to push her deal through and a meaningless sop towards another vote as she knows damn well there isn't a majority for one. The only way we can get another vote is if the PM backs one. 

Meanwhile tonight, Theresa May is sitting behind the sofa of Number 10 with her fingers in her ear and the door barricaded. She is a PM that neither the country nor her own MPs want and, in typical Tory fashion, she's refusing to acknowledge reality. How very strong and stable.

And the European media? Tonight they're discussing the UN Report into UK poverty which estimates a staggering 40% of our children will be living in poverty by 2021 as a result of the Tories austerity policies. Are our media talking about this? Are they bollocks. We just get the same old Brexit chat and the same old lies. Ignore them. Get out and vote tomorrow - and vote Labour - because we need to send a clear message that we can no longer tolerate what this government has done to us and will continue to do unless there's a General Election and a Labour victory.

RIP Dianne Oxberry

As a proud northerner who loves his region, I am shocked and saddened to hear of the death of local legend and BBC North West Tonight's long-time weather presenter, Dianne Oxberry following a short battle with cancer at the age of just 51.

The meteorologist joined North West Tonight in 1994 and, as such, she has been an almost daily part of my life for the last twenty-five years. She was the mainstay of the programme and I will always remember what I personally feel was the show's golden years, when the presenting team consisted of Gordon Burns, Ranvir Singh, Tony Livesey and her. Around this time she gained national attention when Peter Kay memorably interrupted her forecast, proclaiming "God love Dianne Oxberry - You made the sun shine for everybody!" Words that many paying tribute today have recalled fondly, almost as her epitaph.

Prior to North West Tonight, Sunderland born Dianne worked for Radio 1, presenting alongside Simon Mayo and as part of the Steve Wright's 'Zoo' team. In the early '90s she also presented the BBC's Saturday morning children's TV show The 8:15 From Manchester with Ross King and Charlotte Hindle - a show that the teenage me used to greatly enjoy with its mix of cartoons, stunts and games and its showcase for the best in the baggy Madchester music scene. It was her that she met her husband and the father of her two young children, cameraman Ian Hindle.

As well as presenting the weather, Dianne also presented the Inside Out North West current affairs and local interest series, worked for BBC Radio Manchester and appeared as herself in the film Grow Your Own, and in the Steve Coogan comedy drama series Sunshine. 

Presented with a cake by the NWT team for twenty years service with the show

There are many heartfelt tributes being paid right now from colleagues and admirers, but the most touching one I've seen comes in the shape of a poem from Lemn Sissay, which I'll share here;

She saw and named storms,
With calm and hazel eyes,
I shalln't think of her as 'passed away',
I'll think of her as sun rise.

Indeed. I'll be preparing myself for some tears coming in today's bulletins.

RIP

Jumping Before He Was Pushed

The notion that the Labour party is riddled with anti-semitism continues again today as it is revealed that veteran Birkenhead Labour MP Frank Field has resigned his role as the Labour whip.

This really is a non story. The Brexiteer Field was within a gnat's whisker of being deselected on account of his decision to vote in favour of propping up Theresa May's weak Tory government. It's as simple as that really.

He's currently mouthing off on the BBC's Northwest Tonight about 'political thuggery' within the party against anyone who is not on message with Corbyn, adding that Westminster is a place that hates him, whereas Birkenhead is a place that embraces him. This is nonsense. Field's constituency placed a vote of no confidence in him following his decision to support Theresa May, securing her future with a margin of just three votes. It is not 'political thuggery' to demand that your MP represents the views of your constituency and opposes the government. If you ask me, the sooner the selection process is fully implemented within the party once again the better.

As for the anti-semitism slur Field makes, well it is becoming increasingly clear that this is a Trojan horse used by the Blairites within the party who wish to see Jeremy Corbyn removed from the leadership. Statistically, it is proven that Labour has actually become less anti-semitic under Corbyn's leadership and is certainly still less anti-semitic than the Tory party (who also have a troubling issue with Islamophobia which the press are conveniently ignoring) and Field's decision to cite it as a reason why he - a man whose views on immigration and the EU make him less Blue Labour and more Redkip - resigned today is extremely shallow and deeply convenient for the plotters. 

Zombies Have Fallen (2017)

"Go careful boys, she's not your average kind of girl"

It's the zombie apocalypse...in Greenock?!

Whilst watching North West Tonight earlier this evening I was intrigued by a report about the Bolton based filmmaker and recently graduated student from the University of Cumbria Sam Fountayne (also seemingly known as Sam Hampson going off the IMDB credits) who has just released and secured a prized distribution deal for a zombie action horror film he made for just £500!

Zombies Have Fallen was clearly a labour of love for the student turned writer/producer/director Fountayne, as well as for his cast and crew. Pooling resources they uploaded various scenes to YouTube where Green Apple, an American distribution company, saw it and made him an offer. They subsequently sold it to Amazon Prime which - thanks to the free monthly trial I take up every year - is where I headed to see just what all the fuss was about. 

Kyra (Tansy Parkinson) is a young woman in need of help. Escaping from some top secret clinical institution with the help of a mysterious benefactor, she takes his advice and heads to Scotland's Gretna Green to track down a potential ally in the shape of semi-alcoholic loner John Northwood (Heath Hampson). It appears Northwood is a former protege of Kyra's elusive benefactor who reveals to him, via a prerecorded video message, that Kyra is in fact is no ordinary girl; she possesses special telekinetic powers which resulted in her parents being killed and her being held against her will in the clinic since childhood by its proprietor, the evil businessman Raven (Ken Richardson). Hot on Kyra and Northwood's heels is Max (Tony Gardner) a bitter and ruthless mercenary determined to bring the girl back to his paymaster, Raven. And then the zombies show up...

In all honesty, the major flaw in this film is the zombies. I can't help but wonder if they were a late addition to the plot at the behest of the US distribution company. It would certainly explain why the title was changed from Bad Blood to the particularly feeble Zombies Have Fallen (presumably a rather dumb and inexplicable cash-in to London Has Fallen, given the similarities in the poster design) and it would also explain why the whole plot seems to do a completely disorientating 360 around the 45 minute mark to become an extremely tongue-in-cheek romp with gun toting priests and mini-mart workers taking down this sudden arrival of zombies. After the taciturn thriller elements of the first half, this change in tone came as a big disappointment and the plot that had been slowly developing simply goes out the window for the cheap thrills and laughs of the campy zombie genre instead. They literally lose the plot! If this all really did come from Green Apple then it's a real shame that Fountayne (or Hampson) has allowed his artistic integrity to be bought right out of the starting gate. If the film kept to where it seemed to be going, I'd have rated this at least an extra half star more than I have.

The effects on display here are the kind you'd see in mid '80s Doctor Who, the acting is on a par with a porn film (and Raven looks like a cross between cockney bog-brush haired rocker Joe Brown and former EastEnder Paul Moriarty...after a strict pie diet), the score just lies there like a damp carpet, the sound is terrible - with ADR being louder than anything else in the mix, and most striking of all - to me at least - they misspell Bounty Hunter as 'Bount Hunter' in the dossier up on Raven's plasma TV screen, but what do you want for 500 nicker? 

That a film could be made for just £500 (or $622 if you're across the pond) is an achievement worth discussing, and it's nice to see that the central character of Kyra is actually played by an ordinary looking young woman (with actual thighs!) rather than some highly sexualised object.

Take Me To Church...

Weather Girl Anna Church that is - who brightened up many a cold day over the festive season

Brighten Up Your Day : Anna Church

Being British I have an interest in the weather. Being male, I have an interest in women. This often means I'm interested in the female weather forecasters on the BBC! 

Readers with a long memory may recall I was very keen on Laura Tobin until she defected to ITV and their breakfast show. There's been a bit of a dry spell in terms of interest since then (though I have grown fond of Nina Ridge; she of the striking features i.e. nose and teeth that friends tell me is often my 'type') But last night, whilst watching the early evening round up for North West Tonight I stumbled across Anna Church, who I believe normally presents for East Midlands Today.

Well how lucky are the Midlanders? Isn't she lovely? A beautiful curvy real woman. As you can see in the following clips, she'd give you a real warm front alright!

On these cold wintry nights she's just the sort of person you'd need to keep you warm. Her twitter page has lots of lovely photos including a main banner picture that certainly shows off her asset!

Yup, new infatuation here! I might have to start taking an interest in the regional affairs of the East Midlands ;)

Remploy Rant

The final Remploy factory in the North West (Heywood to be precise) has closed today. It is absolutely heartbreaking to see the workers in tears on the local news tonight, some of them have been there for almost 30 years. Remploy was a vital and absolutely commendable organisation providing physically and mentally disabled people employment and an independence and quality of life that they simply would not get elsewhere. The Tories have branded Remploy a loss making organisation and believe the disabled should be in mainstream employment, as a result they've been closing factories these last couple of years. Maybe they should be in mainstream employment, maybe inclusion shouldn't be an allusion, but that's bloody easier said than done in the middle of a recession. Able bodied people can't get a foot in the door with maintream employment just now, what chance have some of these got? I really fear that some of these people will never work again. Sorry for the rant but it REALLY makes my blood boil. Typically, the Minister for Disabled, Esther McVey, refused to comment on North West Tonight. 

Nice Puppies

Jayne Mansfield.

Actually, there was a great little snippet of film on tonight's North West Tonight news, which all through the week has been showing little films of Blackpool throughout the years. Tonight looked at the illuminations and the stars and celebrities down the years who have switched on the lights for the thousands of tourists each season. One such, in the late 50s, was Jayne herself and there followed an amusing piece of footage in which Jayne all glam pouted and posed waiting for her cue as The Mayor (below pictured with Jayne) introduced her...only for the poor old dodderer to stumble and stutter over his words, so enamoured of her was he! Haha! Well, could you blame him? It was the stuff of seaside postcards!

Inclusion Is An Allusion

I am so angry. The government are closing down Remploy factories throughout the North West making hundreds and hundreds of disabled workers redundant.

Remploy was a specific industry that allowed disabled workers protected work, ensuring their illness and condition was never a hindrance to their right to work. More, it was a community for these people, a chance for them to work along similar colleagues and to experience a happy working life.

The Govt stupidly believe that because each of the remaining 10 sites make a loss it would be more cost effective to place these disabled workers into mainstream industry ie with employers less aware or concerned or financially able to offer disabled people with protected working, employers who are unable to make concessions. It is cloud cuckoo thinking...you're just putting more people on the dole with bigger barriers to them gaining new work. It's saddening to watch interviews with the laid off staff at Wigan in North West Tonight many of whom feel they'll never be given the chance to work again, and I don't think that's pessimistic thinking, I think that's realistic thinking. It's absolutely infuriating that the Coalition have come to this conclusion. 

There should be no reason why a disabled person cannot enter a 'mainstream' or 'normal' working environment, and I can see the govt reasoning there, but the sad fact is there are still far more closed minded employers than their are open minded ones. The rate of unemployment is astronomically high as is, especially here in the NW, now they've gone and added about 500+ to that number, each with clear 'obstacles' and 'barriers' into employment that sadly some employers will either not want to know, or not be able to accommodate. The thing is the Govt put money and profit before people - the workers only averaged about £12,000 PA and the company was always making a loss, simply by its very nature, so they've decided to hand over the NHS contracts they served to outside providers, probably at a cheaper rate and slung these poor people out on the scrapheap. They'll say it will open opportunities, and I hope it will, maybe it will for some, but I can't help think of the Tories previous disasters at 'inclusion' such as care in the community and the abolishment of many special needs schools. Sadly sometimes that old adage is true 'inclusion is an allusion'

Rant over.

Stats

It fascinates me to know what posts I make get the most interest. This week, following the sad news of Kate Simms resignation from BBC1's North West Tonight on Wednesday, my post dedicated to her gained a whopping 50+ hits in the space of just a couple of hours. Now that post has seen 127 visits.

Also topping the stats this week includes April's posts of The One Show's Alex Jones performing a hand-bra for a charity calendar  (499 views this week) and my post of 6 Music's Music news girl Elizabeth Alker  (296) Incidentally Alcopops is the most popular post I've ever done, at 2585 hits. Seems it's not just me who adores the quirky muso from Rochdale!

It looks like any reference to a BBC girl immediately means popular posts!

Farewell Kate Simms

This will mean nothing to anyone living outside of the North West but my favourite regional newscaster and crush, Kate Simms left North West Tonight after 10 years with the programme this evening.

Everyone seems to be leaving NW Tonight lately, and the replacements are a bit naff. First legendary Gordon Burns  (pictured above) retired last year, then Ranvir Singh (off to national TV with Daybreak) and now Kate. Very sad, and a real blow to quality regional news.

Here's Kate in action from last year...

Addendum: Wowsers this post went off the chart tonight! I've had 54 hits so far! So if there are any more Kate fans out there reading this, please, feel free to say hi!

Also, checking Kate's twitter (http://twitter.com/katesimms75) it appears she's leaving for a life of rural bliss - working on her in law's pig farm! She's hoping to make a go of it, but suggests the door may be left open for her to return to broadcasting in the future. It goes without saying that I wish Kate and her family all the very best!