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Keep going, Charlotte
Jun. 1st, 2021 09:12 pmBook Review: The News is Read, by Charlotte Green
This had been on my to-read list for a few years when I chanced upon a copy in a book-swap shelf in a red telephone box in Mapledurham. It looks like quite a Radio 4 place, to be fair.
The book itself is quite gentle reading, giving the overall impression of quite a relaxed approach to life, and more than a hint of the giggles. Inter alia we have reflections on the spurious personas assigned to various Radio 4 newsreaders by the Dead Ringers team, the infamous inflatable false teeth moment on the News Quiz and a couple of incidents on the Today programme. But there is also more serious reflection on the job of a newsreader, such as on the occasions of the 9/11 or 7/7 terrorist attacks. I do remember listening to the car radio on the occasion when the Six O'Clock News was brought to an abrupt halt as Charlotte Green announced "we have to leave now" - she describes it as a "credible bomb threat" and although she recalls the announcement being calm, as a listener, I beg to disagree (and inserted the italics): it was measured but also alarming. (No question that she was doing the right thing, though.)
There appear to have been a number of car accidents in Charlotte Green's life, though never with her behind the wheel. There's often a wistful air, longing for friends and family no longer with us. The book lacks an index, which is quite irritating. I suspect the Dead Ringers version of Brian Perkins would say that's what you get for joining Classic FM.
This had been on my to-read list for a few years when I chanced upon a copy in a book-swap shelf in a red telephone box in Mapledurham. It looks like quite a Radio 4 place, to be fair.
The book itself is quite gentle reading, giving the overall impression of quite a relaxed approach to life, and more than a hint of the giggles. Inter alia we have reflections on the spurious personas assigned to various Radio 4 newsreaders by the Dead Ringers team, the infamous inflatable false teeth moment on the News Quiz and a couple of incidents on the Today programme. But there is also more serious reflection on the job of a newsreader, such as on the occasions of the 9/11 or 7/7 terrorist attacks. I do remember listening to the car radio on the occasion when the Six O'Clock News was brought to an abrupt halt as Charlotte Green announced "we have to leave now" - she describes it as a "credible bomb threat" and although she recalls the announcement being calm, as a listener, I beg to disagree (and inserted the italics): it was measured but also alarming. (No question that she was doing the right thing, though.)
There appear to have been a number of car accidents in Charlotte Green's life, though never with her behind the wheel. There's often a wistful air, longing for friends and family no longer with us. The book lacks an index, which is quite irritating. I suspect the Dead Ringers version of Brian Perkins would say that's what you get for joining Classic FM.