To Mark Thompson, BBC re Gaza Appeal

Mark Thompson, Director General of the BBC, recently decided not to air a television appeal by a group of UK charities on behalf of the people of Gaza, on the grounds that it would be seen to compromise the BBC's "impartiality". Thompson defended his decision on the BBC website, to which I sent this response:

Sir,
I have little to add but endorsement to the overwhelming view that says you were completely wrong. Your reasons are inadequate and unconvincing, and if you (BBC) are incapable of drawing a clear line between politics and human suffering you are simply incompetent as journalists and inept as a public service. It is completely inadequate for a media organisation to say that the matter is "contentious" when you have the means to distinguish one story from another. This was not about who was right or wrong, but about what people in the UK might do to help the victims - the dying, the wounded, the hungry, the homeless and the terrified. This was a matter of simple humanity. Had all the devastation or similar suffering been on the Israeli side I would have equally expected an appeal for help to be broadcast by the BBC for them. But the situation is in Gaza, and however it has come about, it is one in which ordinary people need help, that is all.

The sort of impartiality the BBC should show is not about scurrying to avoid to offence to "sides" as much as having a clear moral framework of humanity, decency and respect that applies to all. I see your response and action as being those of a time-serving back-watching bureaucrat, not those of the leader of a purportedly authoritative and independent (less alone humanitarian) broadcaster. You have taken the BBC down by yet another notch rather than strengthening it in any way, and you should consider your own position.

Childhood myths

Putting blotting paper in shoes would make you faint, by sucking the blood to your feet. This was a ruse supposed to be a sure-fire way of getting out of exams. Didn't work.

Chewing gum if swallowed would wrap itself round your intestines and kill you. Any accidental swallowing of chewing gum was followed by days of panic in anticipation of a gruesomely painful death. Luckily none of us died.

B&W memories

A regular if infrequent feature of life at Craigflower, my prep school, was the showing of a film.  The stacking chairs, metal tube frames with canvas seats and backs usually fraying at one or more corners, were set out, the projector was spooled up, and the shutters closed.  The films were all black and white, with the most evocative opening effects, as the numbers counted down and the Rank gong-beater or the Gainsborough lady appeared to usher in the main feature. These were predominantly WW2 tales of heroism - Ill Met By Moonlight, Appointment With Venus, Reach For The Sky, The Wooden Horse, and so on - with such suitable male role models as Kenneth More and Dirk Bogarde (well, who knew?).  There was a sprinkling of Ealing comedies - The Lavender Hill Mob, Passport To Pimlico - and other upright fare - A Night To Remember and A Kid For Two Farthings. The last of these made me sob for hours, and many films make me cry to this day.  

The joy of these sessions was partly the escape from the reality of school for a couple of hours, and also the chance to dip a finger-tip into a smuggled-in tin of Cremola foam crystals.  This was a sugary powder which when mixed with water made a completely delicious fizzy fruit-flavoured drink of very synthetic taste and colour.  But for the best effect, it was consumed straight from an indelibly stained finger under the cover of flickering darkness, as the passengers clung to the lifeboats and the band played Abide With Me.

Cars - Renault 14TS

It was a Giant Test in Car magazine that clinched it. By late 1983 the much-loved Citroen Dyane (JES) was in terminal decline mechanically and structurally, and while all that was fixable the recent arrival of our very precious daughter Kate had raised awareness that driving in the Dyane was like being inside a crumple zone - passenger protection in any significant accident was non-existent.

So the hunt was on for something a bit more solid. It had to be French, for the summer holidays, so it was between Citroen, Renault and Peugeot. The Car article was a comparative test between a Renault 14TS, a Fiat Strada and an Alfasud, all mildly tweaked versions of the standard cars. The Alfasud won of course, as it was Car's favourite machine at that time. However, the Renault acquitted itself well performance-wise, had a good 1.4 litre engine, handled much better that the rather spongy standard version, and was well equipped for the time. Car's verdict was something along the lines of "if you like lots of buttons to press, this is the car for you". Well, after the Dyane, the thought of electric windows (front only) and a fifth gear was mouth-watering. I wanted buttons, lots of them, so the 14TS it was.

I tracked one down eventually, in white, at a showroom in St Martin's Lane, now the site of a Pret A Manger sandwich bar. This was NLM 711V, a couple of years old and in very good condition, and as the 14 had just been discontinued it was also going for a reasonable price. The Dyane broke down - electrics - on the drive up from Southampton to effect the part-exchange, but we did the deal and I proudly drove the Renault home.

There was a long hill on the M3 up which the Dyane had always laboured, forcing a change down to third long before the crest, while heavy lorries thundered past. On this first trip I found that not only did the Renault not slow down, it could accelerate in top gear from halfway up! 1.4 whole litres! This was an uplifting moment.

NLM stayed with us for just over three years, and was a delight. Unlike the experience of many others, I found it reliable and dependable. Although the suspension was slightly stiffer than standard it still rode exceptionally smoothly, but could press on along back roads when required. The fifth gear meant that it could cruise comfortably on motorways. It was roomy for four adults, and had a surprisingly large boot under its hatchback.

Its styling had always caused comment, and it had been marketed disastrously on its launch as a "poire", something from which it never recovered. It was rounded, almost plump, with a strong scalloped line on the flanks curving down to the rear wheel arch. I liked it, however, and now feel that it was way ahead of its time in both its design and the marketing campaign. Certainly it was much more characterful than the drab (but no doubt safer) design that Renault brought out to replace it.