I Can’t Promise You That I Have Found the True Origin of This Material
April 29, 2021 3:39 PM Subscribe
No, the beauty of the televised version is simple. It’s because you can pluck out that existing final punchline, endlessly used over the years, and give it to Bernard. What was just a bit of satire, becomes that same bit of satire… and something greater. That line reflects as much of Bernard as a character than any original line given to him ever did. The genius of Jay & Lynn is clearly evident, and that genius wasn’t in swiping a piece of material. It was swiping a piece of material… and using it in an extraordinarily precise way. From What The Papers Say by John Hoare
Sun readers don’t really care who runs the country, as long as they’ve got…
Huge...tracts of land?
posted by Greg_Ace at 4:10 PM on April 29, 2021 [3 favorites]
Huge...tracts of land?
posted by Greg_Ace at 4:10 PM on April 29, 2021 [3 favorites]
See, I've never seen Yes, Minister (keep meaning to, haven't gotten around to it yet), and most of my familiarity with the British press comes from MetaTalk posts about whether or not we should retire the Grauniad joke, and I just loved this. I love it when people are delightfully obsessed with something, and choose to spend their time researching, tracking things down, getting at the history of the thing.
This is a fantastic blog post, and a terrific FPP. Thank you so much for this, chavenet!
posted by kristi at 4:37 PM on April 29, 2021 [5 favorites]
This is a fantastic blog post, and a terrific FPP. Thank you so much for this, chavenet!
posted by kristi at 4:37 PM on April 29, 2021 [5 favorites]
"Never seen this indecision
Married with Grauniad-a-vision
Everybody wants to rule the world
Say that wull never, never, never, never need it
One headline, why believe it?
Everybody wants to rule the world"
posted by clavdivs at 4:44 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]
Married with Grauniad-a-vision
Everybody wants to rule the world
Say that wull never, never, never, never need it
One headline, why believe it?
Everybody wants to rule the world"
posted by clavdivs at 4:44 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]
Someone in the comment section of the post has a link to a book from 1967 that apparently contains the joke.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 5:20 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 5:20 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]
I just saw that—worth reading the comments.
posted by betweenthebars at 6:30 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by betweenthebars at 6:30 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]
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posted by bleep at 3:50 PM on April 29, 2021 [1 favorite]