h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: John Kettley - Weatherman (and people mentioned in the same song) - A2879409
Author: Master B - Me and the farmer get on fine - U190397

Make of this what you will - it's taken a fair amount of research. More trivia and facts very welcome!

B

So you finally got round to it, then? I've been waiting for this one

John Kettley was in the paper the other week, apparently complaining about how all the weather presenters these days are attractive young women (brolly dollies) with no qualifications or experience in meteorology. Wonder if there's anything on BBC news about it...



Doesn't seem to be. This is the header of the article, in the Independent, but you need to log in to read the full thing.

http://news.independent.co.uk/media/story.jsp?story=609908

Yup, the dangers of having too much time over Easter (me that is, not Kettley).

B

The first handful of times that Demon Drawer wrote entries like this, I enjoyed them, I thought they were a clever and inventive way of writing an entry... but I think it's an idea that has run its course now and I hope that this will be the last one put through PR.

Down to specifics:

When did Peter Snow become associated with the swingometer? I'm sure he was well know before then and that the swingometer (and his famous red shoes) added to, rather than created his fame. I believe he hosted the first edition of Newsnight for instance.

"Michael Fish is the man made unfortunately most famous"
I don't know precisely what grammatical rules that sentence breaks, but I know it ain't right.

I agree that the idea is becoming a bit worn, but in my defence I did start writing this about eight months ago.

I will attend to the specifics after I've had dinner.

B

Marvellous.....

A few nitpicky suggestions as always....

"His temperamental Brazilian upbringing" [Aryton Senna]

A little un-PC perhaps? He was certainly tempremental though....

"He began his career fairly insignificantly, as a goalkeeper with Coventry City and Hereford" [David Icke]

Innocuously rather than insignificantly?

"David Steel lives in Keele

All you could ever wish to know about the political tiger that is Sir David Steel is contained in this fine entry. It is thought improbable that he ever lived in Keele, near Stoke-on-Trent."

Perhaps a link to A346367 (Keele University)? Keele itself is a very small village with a pub, a church, and not much more.....
Although there's no entry for Stoke-on-Toast, there is one for Newcastle-under-Lyme, which is much closer to Keele (A450596) but less well known than Stoke.

Consider it done.

In fact it already has been done, so no need for you to consider.

B

typo in the Peter Snow section

"have endured what might be an otherwise dull subject"
shouldn't that be endeared, not endured

I quite enjoyed the entry and it reminded me of a few people I'd completely forgotten about
I shall now promptly forget about most of them again I expect

I like entries like this

Debbie Thrower - any relation to Percy?

David Icke's green cause was probably noble rather than nobel, although I expect he thought it was the lizard people that blocked his prize in the end.

k

I can't for the life of me remember this tune. Does it have the same melody as something else which might be better known?

Tomorrow's World - interestingly the same program that launched H2G2 to the world back in 1999.

No speculation on Mr Ross's collection of moss, then?

Great entry!

W

"The first handful of times that Demon Drawer wrote entries like this, I enjoyed them, I thought they were a clever and inventive way of writing an entry... but I think it's an idea that has run its course now and I hope that this will be the last one put through PR."

Amen to that.

OK...I promise I won't write any more. Honest, guv.

It's the Towers' fault for putting that Spitting Image song on the Front Page. If it hadn't reminded me of this half-abandoned entry, I'd never have bothered completing it.

From the horse's mouth, Debbie Thrower is definitely not related to Percy:

http://www2.meridiantv.com/news_teams/debbie.shtml

B

Afraid I can't help you on Mark Burano or Eric Lane, I wonder who they were?

Just thought I'd post to say I like the entry and that I once saw Stephen's next band RUTH live - I think it was in Liverpool in about 1998, just around the time they'd finished their first album (which I think I still have somewhere)... all I remember about the gig was that the singer had a shaker shaped like a pineapple... and the song (I think it's called "Whirler") where the singer stopped singing halfway through (the rest of the band carried on), saying "There's something missing..." - then disappeared off stage and reappeared with a trombone which he proceeded to play for most of the remainder of the song. I think the "trombone solo" is also on the album, which I think was called "Harrison"... I'll have to dig it up again and have a listen.

One thing - maybe the title should be "John Kettley is a Weatherman - the song"? Otherwise people might be expecting to see more about John Kettley than there actually is...

I hear this song every time I hear the names of Micheal Fish and John Kettley. Now you've made it worse!

You should use the TITLE tag on your BBC links, so they look nice and smart in the right nav bar.

Newsnight could do with a link for those not watching UK telly - http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/search/int/all/n/n/newsnight/-/http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/audiovideo/programmes/newsnight/default.stm

"In 1988, Jonathan Ross was a second-rate comedian and game-show host"

Eh? What game show? He was hosting The Last Resort at the time (I know this because I went to most of the shows due to a huge crush on one of his regular guests . I even spoke to him once. If I can cast my mind back all those years I think I said he was taller off the telly and he said he thought tv made him look more impressive. Anyway...), which was one of his first television presenting jobs. I'm also not sure if he should really be classed as a comedian either. I think you've got that one wrong...

"After Simon Parkin's (qv)"

For us under-educated lot, what does that qv mean?

Obviously Wincey has got to you - "glamourous 'weather girls'. An experience public speaker from her unviersity days"

At least one typo in there, possibly two.

If not three...

I find it difficult to type with pictures of Wincey Willis on the screen.

B

And qv stands for 'quod vide', meaning '(for) which see'. It means that the reference is mentioned within the same article.

B

And a third thing...all links welcome.

There are loads that could probably go into this one, making it far more valuable than it currently is (I admit it's not my best work).

B

Didn't Bill Giles famously have a sign on his office door:

'Wet paint. Becoming dryer later'

I love that

Jules