Talk To Rex - Comments

Oh wow, that's really quite

Charlotte — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 00:20:11 +0100

Oh wow, that's really quite incredible. I hope that venting has helped at least a little, and if nothing else, it serves as a warning for others! I for one shall bear it in mind if I need to change any such details in the future. It puts me in mind of job application websites that say they time out after 20 minutes and actually time out after five - also incredibly annoying and creates unnecessary extra stress (although I haven't yet had an experience quite as bad as you describe).

No, I don't think you're a

James Lark — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 14:58:33 +0000

No, I don't think you're a hopeless sentimentalist at all and I agree entirely. In fact that's pretty much the point I was trying to make and I should be absolutely clear that in my rather vague and not-terribly-well-worded criticisms of 'the system' I was pointing the finger very much at the individuals who made these decisions. My fear is that there are a lot more like them out there. But I'm all for juries. Juries are great.

Well, as a lawyer I feel

Full Stott — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 00:39:04 +0000

Well, as a lawyer I feel obligated, if not actually intelligent enough, to respond. I may be a hopeless sentimentalist but isn't one of the things that connects these three decisions that you feel are wrong is that none of them relied on the decision of a jury? Fortnum is a classic Stipendary Magistrate (sorry, District Judge) decision, Robin Hood airport was also Magistrates' Court and 'Sarah' pleaded guilty rather than running a defence of duress, even if not lawfully made out in full, past a jury to see what they made of it. It may also be a coincidence but at least two of those are offences drafted deliberately widely to cover a massive spectrum of behaviour and thereby enable ease of conviction (and therefore to overcome clever defence lawyers and their damn loopholes); no doubt, reliant on the then lawmakers' belief that no sensible state prosecutor could or would misapply them. That's the problem with drafting laws to overcome potential defences, you overcome good defences as well as bad ones. That's why juries, who make their own stubborn minds up, are so important rather than professionals strictly applying the letter of sometimes less than amazingly written laws.

Thanks...

James Lark — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 22:13:08 +0000

...for pointing me towards that, Chris, a really good post. The hypocrisy surrounding the whole Glitter Thing, especially but not exclusively in the press, is worthy of far more attention.

Nicely written, this guy is

Chris — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:59:20 +0000

Nicely written, this guy is a imbecile. This "social experiment" is akin to dressing up in full Bacofoil Glitter get-up and sitting in a car outside a primary school wanking. I blogged on Glitter myself and got some interesting (mixed) reactions http://chrisbarratt.wordpress.com

On Pastishe.

Daniel Sturman — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 21:02:37 +0000

Lets be careful with how we define pastiche. Pastiche in this context is always used in a negative tone, and almost always used falsely. A pastiche is a sound-alike or nod to a particular piece of music, it does not mean to write in a style. If one were to write a country and western "cowboy" song it would be in that style, it would not be a "pastiche". Whereas say, if one were providing music that *sounds like* a known popular piece that is unobtainable for copyright reasons, then that would be a pastiche. If you are using pastiche just to refer to rock scores, pop scores and the like, then you are no better off when looking back with reverence at the golden age of musicals, as they were virtually all slow pop ballads.

Musical theatre, cutting edge

Trevor Chenery — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:29:50 +0000

In modern music-theatre the fact, overall, is that all too many scores are not much more than a pastiche and not very good ones at that. The current entertainment industry is oriented towards the minds and tastes of adolescents rather than adults with the result that fewer and fewer adults go to the theatre who demand to be treated as such. Not that there was ever a problem - or lack of financial return - in giving the paying public what they want, certainly not in the short term. Another possible factor in play is the need to question of the musical style that is taught to young composers where there is considerable emphasis on innovation and harmonic experimentation. If you couple with this the lack of opportunities nowadays for young lyricists and composers to learn the real craft of story telling at the feet of the shrinking band of acknowldged masters - in both the US and UK - and ways of using the combination of words and music to tell a story creating plot, structure, characterisation and carefully integrating: feeling,romance, lyrics and particularisation, music and comedy it's a trulytough situation. Knowing what kind of song is required and at what point in a story it needs to be inserted, and how, is a skill-set that requires years of practice. Possibly one of the few recent shows to understand how the musical can be used to address human situations at a time when the bulk of the culture is adolescent was "The Light In The Piazza" with music and lyrics by Adam Guettel and book by Craig Lucas. Guettel's music and lyrics are complex but you are never in any doubt about the powerful emotions in the play. The overhanging question is do the public want and will the public pay to see powerful and emotional music-theatre entertainment at a time when, maybe, they just need something to lift the mood.

How songs are made popular?

Daniel Sturman — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 13:59:04 +0000

Perhaps one the reason why the musicals of yesteryear produced the popular songs of the day was because there were fewer outlets for mass culture, and therefore theatre was a bigger deal. But I believe that it was in fact the moving picture that made musical theatre songs in the 40s and 50s into the popular songs of the age. Case in point that popular "records" were often added to the orginial score of existing musicals to make them more, well, popular. Movies made songs famous. Also consider that even in the 40s, musical theatre music wasn't where new music actually came from, it was just that "records" and musical theatre music were written by the same people, pulled out of the same trunk. What has perhaps happened is that the musical language of theatre has moved away from 40s pop ballads for stylistic reasons. Remember that most of those musicals were set in their contemporary era, musicals today are set everywhere.

Very well done

JP — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 12:41:46 +0000

I am never moved to comment on blogs and the like, but very well written. The whole thing smacked of smugness. This needed to be said. Thanks.

Needs to be done

KT — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 03:45:25 +0000

Excellent piece - although, if anything, I think you give him too much credit. The guy who started the account is really low. It's bad enough to pose as a convicted child abuser for a lark, it's even worse to righteously pass it off as a "social experiment" when things get too real. Live by the sword, die by the sword - Ben's true colours?

In case anyone wants the right to reply...

James Lark — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 15:31:02 +0000

...it turns out 'Ben' presents a programme on an internet radio station which was 'founded by Henry after a drunken bet with a friend'. No wonder he's so cocky. In case anyone wants to participate in what promises to be 'two hours of your uncensored phone calls' the details are here. ...though I can't help wondering if he'll be screening his callers as much as he's been censoring his own recent output.

Interesting tweet from @slash_username on Jan 2:

JDT — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 13:26:21 +0000

"#describeyoursexlifewithamovietitle Daddy Day Care" From which I think we can conclude that jokes about paedophilia are apparently ok if Ben himself makes them.

Very good

Paul — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 09:48:04 +0000

I agree. I can see why it's amusing as a troll to fool people but the "social experiment" angle is just a bit OTT in my opinion. I managed to find the guy who did it @slash_username in the search results where I found your article - seems pretty happy with himself. I wonder why he removed his blog post though :/

new link

Anonymous — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 01:37:34 +0000

good article. he's taken down his explanation but there's a copy here

Very well done that was an

Anonymous — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 19:49:53 +0000

Very well done that was an excellent article and really summed up the hypocrisy and false moral righteousness surrounding this whole fiasco. It was so disappointing to find out what it was, I at least hoped it would be a very good troll