Much as I was disappointed by Frankie Boyle when he played the Cambridge Corn Exchange (and wouldn’t bother going to see him again anywhere) I do still like a lot of the things he says, does, and jokes about. (We’ll also get past that thing about the Down’s Syndrome jokes, which were stupid and based on attitudes from about twenty years ago)

I’ve also been impressed with his statement here about the apology issued “on his behalf” (and apparently without his knowledge) by the BBC in regard to jokes he made on a radio programme two years ago…

In case you missed it, the jokes in question are: ‘I’ve been studying Israeli Army Martial Arts. I now know 16 ways to kick a Palestinian woman in the back. People think that the Middle East is very complex but I have an analogy that sums it up quite well. If you imagine that Palestine is a big cake, well…that cake is being punched to pieces by a very angry Jew.’

I think the problem here is that the show’s producers will have thought that Israel, an aggressive, terrorist state with a nuclear arsenal was an appropriate target for satire. The Trust’s ruling is essentially a note from their line managers. It says that if you imagine that a state busily going about the destruction of an entire people is fair game, you are mistaken. Israel is out of bounds.

The BBC refused to broadcast a humanitarian appeal in 2009 to help residents of Gaza rebuild their homes. It’s tragic for such a great institution but it is now cravenly afraid of giving offence and vulnerable to any kind of well drilled lobbying.

The full statement (as per the above link) is available here

Of all the temptations on iPhone, my downfall has been Angry Birds. It got recommended a while back in the Guardian, so I got it on Herself’s phone – and damn it’s addictive.

I did complete all of the first release, which was the first time I’d played to completion since the eighties.

Anyway, I’d done really well and not got it on my own iPhone – after all, I’d completed it on Herself’s phone, so I didn’t need to do it again on mine.

This week though Angry Birds has had an update, new levels and all. So I’ve had to get it on my own phone.

Of course, this also means I’ve got to get through the first bits (again) in order to get to the new levels.

So that’s my Bank Holiday weekend sorted then.

Yesterday the Scottish National Party were told that they won’t get a plinth in the final televised election debate. And quite right too.

The debates are for the national parties, the three with a chance of national rule. The SNP (and Plaid Cymru) haven’t got a chance of that. They’re not running a national campaign – so why should they have a national mouthpiece ?

Last night I finally got out and about with my camera a bit.

We’d organised an evening meet up with the people I went on the photography course with last year, and we met up in Norwich to have a walk around.

It was a really pleasant evening, and I got a whole bundle of photos. Haven’t had the time to check them out yet, but I’m pretty sure I’ve got a few good ones in there. Damn well hope so, anyway.

The last two days of driving in to work have been populated with complete idiots, and one really close near-miss.

Yesterday I was belting under the A11, and a (female) driver came down off the A11 and turned out in front of me, didn’t even look to her right. She was on her phone, which is apparently some kind of excuse for being a fuckwit. Even better, when I swerved round her – fortunately there was nothing coming the other way – and used my horn, she decided that it was me being unreasonable.

Other than that notable experience, there’ve also been a whole bundle of people pulling out in front of me – allbeit while looking – as well as incredibly slow-moving trucks and tractors.

With tractors and farm machinery on the road (as I’ve said before) it drives me barmy that so many people seem to be so nervous about overtaking- particularly when there’s a long sweep of straight road where several cars could overtake the sodding things.

Still, all’s OK, and you do get to your destination eventually. But dear lord, it’d be nice to have a dickhead-free drive home…

One of the things that’s always irritated me about Herself’s iPhone is the piss-poor battery life it gets in everyday use. She has to recharge hers pretty much every day, which after a while just gets depressing. After all, it’s a step back to when I had my first digital mobile, back in 1994 (an Orbitel 902, if anyone cares) which needed charging daily. Since then my phones have gone up to being charged about twice a week at most, so going back to daily charging was always going to be a bit of an arse.

As a result, when I got my iPhone, I also ordered a Mophie Juicepack Air, which is an iPhone case with a built-in battery pack, which pretty much doubles the usable time of the iPhone. And of course me being me, it’s in a bright purple. You can get other colours, but once I saw the purple there wasn’t going to be any other colour that worked.

It’s taken nearly a week to get here, but it arrived yesterday and is in use now. And so far I’m damn impressed with it.

Battery life is definitely extended, it’s been easy to fit, set up and charge, and all told so far it’s a nice bit of kit.

A further review will follow in the next couple of weeks, I’m sure.