Home » The Crystal Hall » Administrative Notes » For Future Reference
| Re: For Future Reference [message #55603 is a reply to message #55597 ] |
Mon, 19 March 2012 17:44   |
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 Diane Castle
Messages: 2505
Registered: September 2007
Location: Oregon, USA |
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| Cockle wrote on Mon, 19 March 2012 10:51 | | Diane Castle wrote on Sun, 18 March 2012 04:51 | Some of the panelists know a great deal about certain areas of interest (most blatant example: Brian Cox has a PhD in particle physics and hosts science programs).
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Dr Cox is a physicist, (and former pop musician), who just happens to host some science programs on TV and radio. Personally I think Jim al-Khalili - another real physicist who does TV - is a better presenter but he lacks Cox's boyish charm, (or so I'm told).
They do have other guests who aren't comedians, although they're in the minority. Also, I don't think it's quite the all-male show you suggest. They're in the majority usually but not always and there are quite a few female comics who are regular guests, like Sue Perkins, Sandy Toskvig and Jo Brand.
There do seem to be fewer female stand-ups overall - not just on QI. I'm not sure whether this is due to generic sex discrimination, or something specific to comedy. From what I see - just my guess, really - the number of women comics on QI is broadly in line with the proportion of women comics available.
Although, having had a quick look at the list of guests on Wikipedia it looks like I may be over-estimating the number of female guests. Perhaps I just pay more attention to the women, or they have more interesting things to say. 
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I think Brian Cox's strong point is the ability to be funny while he's talking. That's important as a guest on a comedy show like Qi. Rory McGrath knew a ton about bird species, but was about as interesting to listen to as Filbert Quintain.
It really is quite the boys' club, though. I can come up with two non-white guests, and both had only one appearance. Sandy Toksvig and Jo Brand are about the only women who ever appeared more than a couple times. (Let's see, Sandy appeared 8 times in 9 years, then Ronni Ancona 5 times, Sue Perkins 4, Linda Smith 3.) Non-Brits? About 3 or 4 total, with only Rich Hall appearing more than once. Rich Hall has won 10 of his 24 appearances, which seems astonishing to me.
Of those appearing more than once, the only ones who bug me are Johnny Vegas (who OTOH completely rescued the Pam Ayres episode) and Gyles Brandreth.
Diane
"WHO has deactivated my BEAUTIFUL frogs?"
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55606 is a reply to message #55603 ] |
Mon, 19 March 2012 19:32 |
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Cockle
Messages: 646
Registered: July 2011
Location: UK |
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| Diane Castle wrote on Mon, 19 March 2012 21:44 |
It really is quite the boys' club, though. I can come up with two non-white guests, and both had only one appearance. Sandy Toksvig and Jo Brand are about the only women who ever appeared more than a couple times. (Let's see, Sandy appeared 8 times in 9 years, then Ronni Ancona 5 times, Sue Perkins 4, Linda Smith 3.) Non-Brits? About 3 or 4 total, with only Rich Hall appearing more than once. Rich Hall has won 10 of his 24 appearances, which seems astonishing to me.
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Well, it is a British show. It's a bit unreasonable to expect to see a lot of non-Brit guests. Those who do appear tend to be people who spend a lot of time in the UK, like Rich Hall. I'm not sure whether to include Sandi Toksvig, as she's been resident here for ages. Are you counting guests from Ireland, Australia and the like?
Britain isn't a terribly diverse place. Unsurprisingly, it's mostly full of Anglo-Saxons, (and Celts and stuff)! We make up over 90%. Still, they could do better and there are candidates, always assuming they're actually interested and available. Omid Djalili, the rest of the "Goodness Gracious Me" cast, (in addition to Meera Sayal), Andi Osho, Stephen K Amos, to name just a few.
Mock the Week does slightly better on both women and non-white.
QI does seem to like their regulars. They also tend to go for people who have a bit of experience - a decade or more on TV - and not that many pure stand-up comics. That group doesn't include so many women and/or non-white performers: possibly (probably) indicative of a wider prejudice.
[/quote]Of those appearing more than once, the only ones who bug me are Johnny Vegas (who OTOH completely rescued the Pam Ayres episode) and Gyles Brandreth.[/quote]
I can quite understand that. Johnny Vegas isn't to all tastes, and Gyles Brandreth is a dick. I'm really not sure why he gets on TV at all.
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55615 is a reply to message #55606 ] |
Tue, 20 March 2012 00:46 |
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Diane Castle
Messages: 2505
Registered: September 2007
Location: Oregon, USA |
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| Cockle wrote on Mon, 19 March 2012 16:32 | Well, it is a British show. It's a bit unreasonable to expect to see a lot of non-Brit guests. Those who do appear tend to be people who spend a lot of time in the UK, like Rich Hall. I'm not sure whether to include Sandi Toksvig, as she's been resident here for ages. Are you counting guests from Ireland, Australia and the like?
Britain isn't a terribly diverse place. Unsurprisingly, it's mostly full of Anglo-Saxons, (and Celts and stuff)! We make up over 90%. Still, they could do better and there are candidates, always assuming they're actually interested and available. Omid Djalili, the rest of the "Goodness Gracious Me" cast, (in addition to Meera Sayal), Andi Osho, Stephen K Amos, to name just a few.
Mock the Week does slightly better on both women and non-white.
QI does seem to like their regulars. They also tend to go for people who have a bit of experience - a decade or more on TV - and not that many pure stand-up comics. That group doesn't include so many women and/or non-white performers: possibly (probably) indicative of a wider prejudice.
| Quote: | Of those appearing more than once, the only ones who bug me are Johnny Vegas (who OTOH completely rescued the Pam Ayres episode) and Gyles Brandreth.
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I can quite understand that. Johnny Vegas isn't to all tastes, and Gyles Brandreth is a dick. I'm really not sure why he gets on TV at all.
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I was counting guests from Ireland, Scotland, and Wales as 'British'. Have there been any Aussies or Kiwis?
And why can't Steven Fry understand a Geordie accent? 
Diane
"WHO has deactivated my BEAUTIFUL frogs?"
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55617 is a reply to message #13379 ] |
Tue, 20 March 2012 01:07 |
khade
Messages: 1578
Registered: May 2011
Location: Rockies |
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He can't understand it because it's funny to not understand it.
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55626 is a reply to message #55615 ] |
Tue, 20 March 2012 09:07 |
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Cockle
Messages: 646
Registered: July 2011
Location: UK |
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| Diane Castle wrote on Tue, 20 March 2012 04:46 | I was counting guests from Ireland, Scotland, and Wales as 'British'.
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I'm sure the fine people of Eire will be thrilled.
| Quote: | Have there been any Aussies or Kiwis?
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I think there have been a couple. Barry Humphries, certainly. I'd have to go through the list to be sure of any others.
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55638 is a reply to message #55626 ] |
Tue, 20 March 2012 12:58 |
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Bookworm
Messages: 1576
Registered: July 2008
Location: Houston |
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| Cockle wrote on Tue, 20 March 2012 08:07 | | Diane Castle wrote on Tue, 20 March 2012 04:46 | I was counting guests from Ireland, Scotland, and Wales as 'British'.
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I'm sure the fine people of Eire will be thrilled.
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They should take it in stride. 'British' is any member of Great Britian/British Isles, and last I looked, Ireland was still there. If you want weird, it's those people who are English, but say they're British (to a Canadian), OR those Quebecois that keep calling the rest of Canada 'English'.
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55657 is a reply to message #55638 ] |
Tue, 20 March 2012 18:03 |
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Cockle
Messages: 646
Registered: July 2011
Location: UK |
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| Bookworm wrote on Tue, 20 March 2012 16:58 | | Cockle wrote on Tue, 20 March 2012 08:07 | | Diane Castle wrote on Tue, 20 March 2012 04:46 | I was counting guests from Ireland, Scotland, and Wales as 'British'.
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I'm sure the fine people of Eire will be thrilled.
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They should take it in stride. 'British' is any member of Great Britian/British Isles, and last I looked, Ireland was still there. If you want weird, it's those people who are English, but say they're British (to a Canadian), OR those Quebecois that keep calling the rest of Canada 'English'.
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You can define it any way you like, but a large number of people from the Republic of Ireland wouldn't identify themselves as British and some would be offended if others did. Just like a Canadian or Mexican or Brazilian might dislike being called American.
The idea of "British" as being the people of the British Isles is a bit dubious anyway. It only really came into use because the British Empire ran the whole shebang. Before that people would be referred to according to their individual country, with no simple term encompassing all of them.
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55663 is a reply to message #55660 ] |
Tue, 20 March 2012 19:33 |
polarone
Messages: 430
Registered: May 2011
Location: Orion Arm of the Milky Wa... |
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Poor Wales, they got conquered so long ago that nobody remembers them. Except for John Williams.
"Quote."
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55668 is a reply to message #13379 ] |
Tue, 20 March 2012 21:03 |
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Sir Lee
Messages: 3060
Registered: May 2005
Location: São Paulo, Brazil |
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When I was in the local equivalent to high school, we learned the following:
"Great Britain" means "the main island -- including England, Scotland (which we learned meant "the northern half, give or take") and Wales (which we didn't know exactly where it was, only that was "some region on the west")." It does *not* include Ireland.
"United Kingdom" meant "Great Britain, plus the northern part of Ireland and a bunch of small islands whose names nobody cares to memorize."
And the ones who weren't asleep by this time learned that "Britain" was actually in France and not part of Great Britain at all (we use the same word -- Bretanha -- for "Britain" and "Bretagne", and for that matter "Bretão" for "Briton" and "Breton"), which we thought was quite confusing.
(Parenthesis: There's an anglicized form, "Britânia," but it's supposed to be used only for translating "Britannia" -- but Captain Britain got slapped with this. Since there's a kitchen appliances maker here called "Britânia," he got nicknamed "Captain Blender...")
Anyway... we eventually learned that "Briton" was supposed to be a shortcut for anybody from the Great Britain, but since "United Kingdomer" sounds really, really stupid, ended up being used for any UK citizens. Except when we are referring to Bretons, of course.
[Updated on: Tue, 20 March 2012 22:43]
Don't call me Shirley. You will surely make me surly.
--
Sent from my Bugs Industries® bPhone™
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55670 is a reply to message #55668 ] |
Tue, 20 March 2012 21:28 |
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Diane Castle
Messages: 2505
Registered: September 2007
Location: Oregon, USA |
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| Sir Lee wrote on Tue, 20 March 2012 18:03 | When I was in the local equivalent to high school, we learned the following:
"Great Britain" means "the main island -- including England, Scotland (which we learned meant "the northern half, give or take") and Wales (which we didn't know exactly where it was, only that was "some region on the west")." It does *not* include Ireland.
"United Kingdom" meant "Great Britain, plus the northern part of Ireland and a bunch of small islands whose names nobody cares to memorize."
And the ones who weren't asleep by this time learned that "Britain" was actually in France and not part of Great Britain at all (we use the same word -- Bretanha -- for "Britain" and "Bretagne", and for that matter "Briton" and "Breton"), which we thought was quite confusing.
(Parenthesis: There's an anglicized form, "Britânia," but it's supposed to be used only for translating "Britannia" -- but Captain Britain got slapped with this. Since there's a kitchen appliances here called "Britânia," he got nicknamed "Captain Blender...")
Anyway... we eventually learned that "Briton" was supposed to be a shortcut for anybody from the Great Britain, but since "United Kingdomer" sounds really, really stupid, ended up being used for any UK citizens. Except when we are referring to Bretons, of course.
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Fairly close to what we learned in 'social studies'. I have learned more about Wales and the Welsh from watching Rob Brydon on Qi than I was ever taught in school. Plus, rude jokes about Welshmen. Oh, and Rhiannon (Kamuro, Anna's BFF) is of Welsh extraction.
Diane
"WHO has deactivated my BEAUTIFUL frogs?"
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55678 is a reply to message #55670 ] |
Tue, 20 March 2012 22:36 |
rubberjohn
Messages: 374
Registered: May 2011
Location: South East Coast UK |
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Post deleted by author before I got myself in trouble.
Let me just say that I am proud to be from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland but I do not consider myself to be British except in the broadest of terms... I am ENGLISH before any other designation. However my Government seems to be doing it's best to deny I exist.
John.
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55680 is a reply to message #55657 ] |
Tue, 20 March 2012 23:06 |
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Sir Lee
Messages: 3060
Registered: May 2005
Location: São Paulo, Brazil |
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| Cockle wrote on Tue, 20 March 2012 19:03 | You can define it any way you like, but a large number of people from the Republic of Ireland wouldn't identify themselves as British and some would be offended if others did. Just like a Canadian or Mexican or Brazilian might dislike being called American.
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Actually, it's a bit of the other way. We consider ourselves as entitled to the adjective "American" as anybody from the U.S.A., in the same manner that a Swiss is entitled to be called "European" even if they are not a member of the EC. What does annoy us a bit is this wholesale appropriation of the name of the continent by a single country.
The degree of annoyance varies. In Brazil, usage of "americano" for "citizen of the USA" is commonplace (although the more militant portions of society prefer "norte-americano"), but usage of "America" meaning "the USA" is extremely unusual for Brazilians, and deemed a bit offensive when used by USA natives -- we tend to say "Estados Unidos" (yes, it means "United States") or even, informally, by using the English word "States." But never, never, never "America", unless you WANT to sound like a stupid dick who sold your soul to the Yanquis for a Sylvester Stallone DVD.
In Spanish-speaking Latin America I understand that there is less tolerance, and "norteamericano" is the standard form in most places.
Don't call me Shirley. You will surely make me surly.
--
Sent from my Bugs Industries® bPhone™
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| Re: For Future Reference [message #55698 is a reply to message #55691 ] |
Wed, 21 March 2012 09:16 |
Niknokitueu
Messages: 649
Registered: May 2011
Location: Swansea, UK |
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Heh. Liked it.
Though, when describing myself to a stranger, I go with "Welsh".
If he looks blankly at me, I add "The little bit of land on the west part of England", followed shortly by "No, not Ireland."
On official forms, it goes "Welsh, British" or "UK" as my birthplace, depending on the nature of the form.
It wasn't until I saw the above video that I realised how complicated it looks to an outsider. To me it is simple: The UK is everywhere in the region of the British Isles that is not Eire (or France etc). Everywhere else that we have a stake is 'British' (I personally don't draw a distinction between the Commonwealth and Overseas Territories). Simple, no?
I'm Welsh, and (too) Proud of it!
Have Fun!
Niknokitueu
[Updated on: Wed, 21 March 2012 09:16]
Do, or Do Not. There is no Try.
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