THE ‘AUBERGINE STORY’
As you will see from my response to Kev on yesterday’s blog, it wasn’t an easy decision to include this on The Nightshift this morning. For those not ‘in the know’, this all started with a brief mention of the story on the Nightshift Newsreel. Loz seems to have been so taken with it that he did some investigative journalism, unearthed the details in all their lurid glory and sent them to me. In recognition of his hard work - and because not all the stories we cover can be innocently trivial - I decided to tell everyone the sordid truth about The Gynaecologist and The Aubergine. And you must admit - it IS one of the more heroically unlikely tales of 2007. You really couldn’t make it up, could you? Not that you’d want to, mind you.
I am already regretting its inclusion, though. Railton Howes, who was busy putting together his Howe’s Fishing programme this morning - and a man with whom I have the most cordial of all relationships - burst into the studio just before I went on air foaming at the mouth and waving his arms around. Let’s just say he questioned my ideas of tastefulness (or lack of it). I was able to calm him down by changing the subject to the price of fish but I suspect I haven’t heard the last of ‘The Aubergine Story’.
CONDOMS
Today’s blog is becoming increasingly unsavoury as I now turn my attention once again to the disreputable Chinese company which is making hair-bands out of used condoms. The practise has been condemned by a Health and Safety inspector called Dong. Helpfully, Loz has provided the picture below so you can make your own mind up about whether the process is worth the result.
CUDDLY MICROBESThanks to everyone who emailed me with the contact details of these awesomely wonderful cuddly toys. For the record, it’s giantmicrobes.com. I know what MY partner’s going to get for Christmas.
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Murder-path is - as I’m sure you knew - Morpeth. We do not, of course, know the nature of the crime commemorated in this unusual name; it all happened a very long time ago - at least 1,400 years ago, in fact. But it’s rare for actual events to give rise to place-names; another local example is Sockburn (in County Durham), which means ‘the place where a council met’.
So have you figured out what we now call the place the Anglo-Saxons called ‘hazel wells’? It’s in County Durham.
GEMS
Today’s special tracks were Abba’s Slipping Through My Fingers (from the Visitors album of 1981) - an almost painful evocation of the emotions of parenthood - and the Swedish Polka, from the opera Roslagen written by Swedish composer Alfven.
CONTACT ME
Post comments on this blog or contact me in any one (or more) of these ways....
ian.robinson@bbc.co.uk
text 07786 200954 (while the programme is on-air)
call (between about 0545 and 0630 Monday to Friday) 0191 232 6565
Ian Robinson, The Nightshift, BBC Radio Newcastle, Spital Tongues, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE99 1RN
NOTE
Please bear in mind that the views expressed in this blog are my own and NOT the views of the BBC.
3 comments:
As I once said before 'It's not what you know, but where to find it!'
Haswell (County Durham)
A corruption of Haesel Wella - the hazel spring
Hi Ian,
Ah, so you did insert the full aubergine story.
I missed it as i was somewhat tired last night, but on reflection it's perhaps just as well as the initial research on the gory fullness of this veggie tale of unbelievable proportions was tummy-turing enough without hearing it read out in full on air.
Hope there's no manageial backlash at you using the full tale.
Have to say I was surprised you did, but good on ya for having the bottle to broach a very odd subject indeed.
Boundaries are there to be pushed I believe.
Loz.
I can see I'm going to have to make the place-name questions a little harder, Kev :-)).....So far, Loz, so good. I seem to have got the aubergine story under the fence!
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