08-08-08 at 8.00 pm saw the start of the Olympics. I watched the highlights of the opening ceremony – and thoroughly enjoyed the astonishing creations in light, sound and artistic design. Remarkable. I am reporting on the cheap, by sitting in my bunker in West London watching the television footage. I will not, however, be reporting on the Oympics. It was interesting to see footage of George Bush scanning the crowd with his binoculars. Perhaps he was looking for Gordon Brown – who was not, of course, at the opening ceremony. 
A curious week – the start of the Olympics, the Russian invasion of South Ossettia and all the attendant fall out from that – yet, I suspect, to be revealed to the free world, and rain stopped play yesterday at the Test Match. Team GB, after a rocky start with judo man not winning a medal and the four male cyclists dropping out, managed to get a Gold when Nicole Cooke claimed Britain’s first gold medal of the Beijing Olympics in a thrilling women’s cycling road race. I can’t get into the Olympics… just not interested in it.
Today, I have done a podcast with the author of the Usefully Employed blog on employment law issues and to discover why he converted from being a solicitor to a barrister. Being 50 Not Out, I thought it appropriate to ask about age discrimination laws after reading cases about City law firm partners suing each other.
I have also decided to increase the law content slightly – not by actually providing any law… but by drawing together information on the oddities of law. I have called this weekly examination “Law Review”
And… I am delighted to be able to report that I have done a podcast with the anonymous creator of Anonymous Assistant.
AA is about the adventures of junior litigation lawyer, Helen Bailey, and her friends as they struggle to assert themselves amidst the egos and eccentricities of a large City law firm. It is written by an experienced City lawyer – and, for today’s podcast, she has disguised her voice; talking in a Celia Howard Brief Encounter voice. I do the Trevor Howard part – but more Captain Bligh of Mutiny on The Bounty. I enjoy reading the Anonymous Assistant blog – the story develops each fortnight and manages to shoehorn in topical references to credit-crunch et al. I have an enjoyable conversation with AA’s creator. I think you will enjoy this podcast. It is office safe – but there is absolutely no law in it at all. I even manage to refer to Geeklawyer and late night Twittering.
Listen to the podcast with the creator of Anonymous Assistant
Pet irritation of the week
I understand that the BBC has sent hundreds of people to Beijing to report on Team GB’s efforts and other matters. Why so many? Why did Adrian Chiles from The One Show need to bugger off to Beijing and then deliver a crap report? Guido Fawkes raises the same issue in the political sphere... with a report on the legions of BBC staff have been sent to cover the elections in the USA. Guido notes that 472 staff were sent – more than even the big US TV stations. Guido noted that it was unlikely that politicos in the states would be that interested in talking to the BBC – simply because British people and those who avidly follow the increasingly feeble BBC World News offerings are not US voters.
I shall quote one of Guido Fawkes’ readers – whose opinion is in tune with mine. Perhaps he was a bit more anglo-saxon in his expression of distaste – although the word is not, of course, unknown to me or unused by me:
- Complete bunch of cunts! I just don’t bother watching it but I`m forced to pay for it.
Cant it be made subscription or advert based then we can have our telly tax back.”
Part II of Postcard from The Stateroom – from Beijing – will follow later, if I am not over over-refreshed.
Have a good evening… best regards
Podcast 77: Usefully Employed on Employment Law
Charon QC 