You live in a hotter country than the one you were born in | James O'Brien - The Whole Show

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It's three minutes after ten. Is it
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I just... Did you hear that in the bulletin from Chris Philp
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I... Is it possible? You know me, I always like to think the best of people
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But I'm not sure he understands what his own party's Rwanda policy was. I don't just mean the finer detail or the small print
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I mean the central thrust of the entire flipping thing. and, crucially, the amount of people that it would have addressed
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if it had ever been introduced at all, despite costing tens of millions of pounds for doing precisely nothing
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And then you sort of think, hang on a minute, he was a minister. He's Shadow something. He's Chris Philp
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He can't possibly not understand the actual detail of the thing that his own party sought to introduce
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and he is still extolling. And then I remember that appearance. Am I getting him mixed up with someone else
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Did he appear on Question Time and appear not to understand what countries were when talking about Rwanda
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Or am I getting him mixed up with another of the, um, I don't know
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We need to have a phone-in about what insults you can use these days without getting the police called on you
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What can I call him? I can't call him that. I call him that. Wombat's all right, but then I feel sorry for Wombat's
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Was it Chris Philp who appeared not to understand what countries were when he was appearing on Question Time and talking about Rwanda, or was it someone else
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we need a clip elf on this programme don't we you know like the QI elves
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we need a clip elf Eleanor's far too important and busy to be ferreting around for little clips
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to fulfil my so's Amelia, so's Martha everyone's, oh Keith can you get me that
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we need a clip elf someone who can just can you see if I've gone mad
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or whether or not it was Chris Philp or someone similar who appeared not
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I think as an actual Home Office Minister appeared on the telly and didn't know what a country was
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Five after ten is the time. Stay tuned for that. It may be embarrassing for me. I may have got him mixed up with someone else
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Daniel Hanan is, of course, the world's wrongest man, but I don't know that Chris Philp is far behind
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Anyway, here's the headline. Keith, we'll do the thing, right? Because it is an unhinged..
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This was today's contender for unhinged headline, and thank you to everybody who sent it in
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It's quite hard to get hold of me these days, But Blue Sky is where I confine my social media activities
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And thank you to everybody who... I was chatting to Henry Riley on the way in about not being on Twitter anymore
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It's extraordinary the stuff you're not aware of. I didn't know that Stella Creasy had posted a picture of a parakeet
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saying that someone had lost their parrot. Did you see that? I didn't know about that
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And what was the other thing I didn't know? A Daily Mail columnist yesterday being really pervy
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but somehow he managed to attend Andy Burnham's speech yesterday and then post a thing, this is what Henry was drawing to my attention
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post a thing about a woman in the audience who was wearing a very short skirt
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It's just sleazy, right? Quentin Letts is the guy's name, in case you were wondering
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which of the sleazy Daily Mail columnists it might have been. But these things are passing me by
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So a couple of the, I can't say the kids, I'll say the lads. A couple of the lads in the office were having some bants
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Is that the correct use of the word, Keith? Lads having bants? Some of the lads were having some bants
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The lads were bantsing. And I'm sitting there going, I've got no idea what you're talking about
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And they filled me in on a couple of these stories. And I said, this is what happens when you're not on Twitter
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And then they filled me on a couple of other stories. And I thought, do you know what? You're not making me review my decision at all
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I'm just sort of thinking my life is better, I think, for being unaware of these things
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But you are occasionally conscious of the fact that everybody's talking about something you know nothing about
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I'm getting applications now for Clipelf. I can't pay you. You can just come in and you can have a cup of tea or something
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I don't know. I can't be paying you. It's not the BBC. Quentin Letch has a certain ring to it
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Well played, Isaac. We like that. Is that okay? Can I say that? Or is he probably a reformed supporter, is he
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Or a Nigel Farrell's toe-tickler? He won't call the police on me, will he? If I call him Quentin Letch
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I presume you've nicked that mate off all the other people that are still on
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that hideous hell site apologies to colleagues, time doesn't happen very often but when it happens
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it's completely sincere, Emilia insists that she is the clip elf, back off
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and let her have her empire, it's all gone a bit Game of Thrones in the production studio
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with Emilia insisting that she is the clip elf and you will have
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to prize that title from her cold dead hand don't call the police on me
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I don't actually mean that she's here these messages are for Nigel Farage by the way but when I make a joke or
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use a figure of speech that sounds potentially quite violent I don't want him to call the police on me
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he's already issuing enough complaints I draw your attention next to something that is
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an unhinged headline but the more I look at it the more I wonder whether it is or not
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so first of all join me in acknowledging that Alistair Heath, the maddest columnist
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in the history of columns has done it again Britain can't stop climate change
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let's just embrace a Mediterranean lifestyle and the fact that this is in the Daily Telegraph
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is comedy aside alleged comedy aside attempted, failed comedy aside the fact that this is in the Daily Telegraph
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is disgusting because I don't think any organ in this country has done more than the Daily Telegraph
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to normalise and amplify science denial. And they, of course, they cut their teeth on climate change
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before they got stuck into Brexit and managed to gaslight half the country
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into thinking that that would be a good idea or at least contributed to the process
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So the Daily Telegraph would be the place where you'd read Matt Ridley's nonsense
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or you'd read Nigel Lawson's nonsense or they'd all be queuing up. I don't really know why
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I don't know whether the former owners, the Barclay brothers, had huge investments in fossil fuel
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or they were desperate for advertising from the oil companies or whether they were all actually mad
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But that was the organ that probably did more damage to the United Kingdom's understanding of climate science than any other
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And there are still people out there, of course, who believe the nonsense, who believe the lies
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There's always a little bit of crossover. They're always a little bit Brexity. They're probably demonstrably more likely to be called
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Derek, Nigel, or... What was the other name? I had three names back in the day
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And if you came on the show and I asked you your opinions, it's probably a generational thing, wasn't it
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What was the other name? Derek, Nigel, and... It wasn't Colin. Collins were banned from the programme for years
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Derek, Nigel, or... What's the third name in that sort of hat-trick of heffalumps
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Derek, Nigel... Anyway, if you had that name, you were more likely
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not guaranteed, I don't want to tar everybody with the same brush, but you were more likely to hold
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you were more likely to be a bit Brexity if you were called Derek Nigel or the name
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I can't remember, but you were more likely to think that the scientists had got it all wrong and you'd done your own research on Facebook
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and you knew for a fact that climate change was not happening or it was all man-made
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and then you moved slowly on to well, it's all the Chinese's fault so what was the third name in that it wasn Keith no stop teasing that my job And there a little bit of you that goes OK better late than never
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Finally, they're coming round to it. They've got new owners. I've got the name Axel Springer in my head
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but I've got a feeling, isn't that the bloke that did the theme tune to Beverly Hills Cop? No, Axel Foley, Axel F, is the Beverly Hills Cop
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So Axel Springer, I think, is the name of the new, the company that now owns the Telegraph. Maybe they've issued an edict
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that we can't carry on being bonkers about climate change. So you've had a couple of columns recently saying
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oh, guess what, it's real. And today you've got the king of the unhinged headline
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Alistair Heath, Britain can't stop climate change, let's just embrace a Mediterranean lifestyle
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And Eleanor drew it to my attention as well this morning, alongside you on Blue Sky
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saying this one's got a shoe in for unhinged. And at first glance, and George Monbiot, who has probably done more to fight climate science denial
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in this country than almost anybody else. I was drawing attention to it as well
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So I don't know whether... I'm not qualified to say whether or not these people are psychopaths
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but all I can say is that they are behaving like psychopaths. And I'd normally..
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Am I going to regret this? Can you tell where I'm going
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Am I going to regret this? So, how do we do this bit
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Right. How do we do this bit? and the bit that I'm talking about is the simultaneous knowledge
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that, well, currently, our world is on fire. You know, there is a line from one of the big environmental..
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from the European Union, I think, is it? That Europe might be on fire by the end of the week
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You can't exaggerate this stuff. It is inarguable. Things are sort of spontaneously combusting
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because the sun is so hot and the ground is so dry. I mean, this is breathtakingly awful
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And, oh man, I'm going to regret this. But I bet I'm not the only one
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You can see the silver linings, right? And I know this is awful, and I'm not making light of
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I mean, people are going to die, of course. This is apocalyptic
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this is catastrophic, this is all of the things that the scientists have been warning us for years
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but you tell me you don't enjoy eating your dinner in the garden of an evening
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or having more barbecues in a month than you normally have in an entire year imagine if you'd invested in one of those big ponds
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a few years ago one of those big pools, you know, the big pools
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and we go on holiday to hot countries because things are nicer in hot countries
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now I know that if you're near the sea and if you've got air conditioning
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all of these things that make holidays better than they would be if you were actually enduring the same meteorological conditions in this country
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But I read that headline and I got ready to get very cross with Alistair Heath
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for it is he again and inevitably. And of course he is being a bit of an idiot on this occasion
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And the idea that you just throw your hands up in the air and go, oh, well, who cares about climate change
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stick another shrimp on the barbie, Keith, is obviously absurd. But you..
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You know that... Well, look, let me put it this way, because I want to get this right
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I've started off being a little bit flippant, but the question is actually serious
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The reason why we go on holiday to places like Greece and Spain and the south of France
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or, if you've got the money, Thailand and Vietnam, and Florida. The reason why we go on holiday to these places is partly because of the climate
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right? And that climate is now increasingly common here. And there are hideous consequences
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of that for millions of people. But for most people, the heat represents something different
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I'm not suggesting for a minute that we stop worrying about climate change and embrace
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a Mediterranean lifestyle, but I'm asking you how you think we do both. How do you simultaneous
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because I nearly did a phone in last week about whether or not it is admitting defeat
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to have conversations about coping. That's when I got a little bit obsessed with awnings
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I don't know if you were listening to the show that day, but about twice a year I stumble
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across a word that I just love the sound of and the mouthfeel of so much that I say it
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for no reason at all, several times in quick succession. And for me, awnings was one of those words
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Awnings. I've got to stop now. I'm off again. Seriously, it triggers something in my brain. I can't stop saying the word
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And that was a conversation about what we're going to have to do as we become a hotter country
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And I don't think that's defeatist, but it could be construed as such, right
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You could say, no, we can't be talking about how we're going to cope with the heat. We've got to talk about how we're going to stop it
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how we're going to get to net zero, how we're going to turn the temperature down. But that's not reasonable or fair
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because you are living in a hotter country than you grew up in
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and you want to make it cooler. So whether you're putting films on your windows
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whether you're installing awnings or investing in an air conditioning unit or recalibrating elements of your home
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I do not know. but you can't look me in the eye and tell me that it's a stupid or a dangerous conversation to have, right
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We have to cut our cloth differently from how we cut it
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when 1976 was the sorest thumb in British meteorological history rather than the new norm
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The new norm. And don't shoot the messenger but lots of people will have either reflected publicly or privately
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upon elements of this heat that they are enjoying. You know, sitting in the garden, if you're lucky enough to have one
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is just really nice. It's a nicer thing to do of an evening than sitting in the house
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If you're lucky enough to have a nice patio or a nice bit of grass
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sitting in the garden is a lovely, lovely thing to do. Eating in the garden, being a little bit alfresco
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and if you come for me, which you're perfectly entitled to do, I'm just going to keep saying holiday
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And you can't avoid that zinger by saying, well, I don't actually go on holiday to hot countries
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because you will acknowledge that that is what most people think of
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when they hear the word holiday. They think of somewhere warmer than they are used to
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They think of somewhere sunnier than they normally experience. I say holiday
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you say sunshine right you just do that's just true so don't come for me yet
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it was Roger finally Janet and Croydon has come through Derek Nigel Roger
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measurably more likely to be in favour of Brexit measurably more likely to be in denial of climate change science measurably more likely to be Look measurably is a bit of a push I grant you but I have measured it
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and therefore measurably more likely to be all of these things. So don't come for me, because when I say holiday
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the massive majority of people listening to this programme at this moment, they think sunshine
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So how do we... And this is an important conversation to have. how do we do it
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how do we do it should we feel guilty about the fact that we
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are quite enjoying some elements because it's a stupid thing to ask me to do
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to pretend that I'm not enjoying some elements of this it's a beautiful
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I'm very lucky in Brentford at the moment we've got a ton of lovely lovely restaurants
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and they have all got outdoor seating and it is really nice to wander through
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Brentford, which 50 years ago was best known for its gas works, we now wander
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through Brentford of an evening, waving at people saying hello to neighbours, and
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again, I appreciate the privilege involved in being able to eat out have your dinner out, but
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you've got a choice of restaurants where you can sit outside in some cases on the water
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and that is lovely it's my home and it feels like being on holiday and
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I do feel guilt and discomfort about that, but I'm not going to lie to you
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it feels like being on holiday. There are obvious opposites to this
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You know, a public transport is hellish at the moment if you're unlucky enough to have to travel during the rush hour
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I mean, it's like being in a sauna, but in a bad way, with your clothes on
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That's what I want to talk about. I'm not entirely sure what the question is that I'm asking you
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but I've just sort of put some thoughts in your head, hopefully
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and I want to hear yours now. 0345 6060 973. How do we deal with the fact that we know this is deadly
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catastrophic, and apocalyptic, but at the same time, it is turning our daily grind
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it is turning elements of our quotidian experience, It is turning parts of our normal lives into something that feels a bit like a holiday
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I mean, judging by my inbox, it's one of those mornings where I'm tempted to say
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you do agree with me, don't you? You do recognise what I'm describing. I haven't got mad. I'm not all alone
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So I'm going to use those words again. Catastrophic, apocalyptic, deadly, fatal, lethal
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Yes, of course. but at the same time the people who refer to a part of London
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where I live as the Brentford Riviera haven't actually got their tongues in their cheeks
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well I still have but some of them haven't they haven't got their tongues in their cheeks
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at the moment so either tell me how we ride these two horses
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on 03456060973 or and I mean this most sincerely tell me that I'm being an absolute idiot
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And even though I'm right, I'm also horribly, horribly wrong. Because I'm right about the fact that elements of our lives
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that didn't feel like this before currently feel like holidays, but I'm wrong about the fact that we need to accommodate this
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or acknowledge this or admit this. We should be absolutely shutting it down, closing it down
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or, I don't know, doing something else. And of course, if it does turn out I've gone completely bonkers
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we can always blame heat stroke. 0345 60 60 973 is the number that you need
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can you do it? can you do a better job than me of acknowledging the horror that is unfolding
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but also acknowledging the fact that elements of our lives feel like being on holiday
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I don't think you can argue with that but feel free to try
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James O'Brien on LBC or possibly Heathstroke as Michael suggests as opposed to heat stroke
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So, listen, it's a proper conversation. We're all grown-ups. I fully acknowledge the horror of what is unfolding
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largely as a consequence of humanity's stupidity in the face of the threat of man-made climate change
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But in a different part of my brain, and this might be part of the problem
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that I'm trying to articulate today, in a different part of my brain, I like the fact that my normal home life
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has elements of a holiday feel to it at the moment. What do we do with this cognitive dissonance
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I don't know. I don't know. Sean's in Birmingham. Sean, what would you like to say? Hello, James. Hope you're well
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I'm all right. It's interesting you're saying that. I'm not air conditioning, mate. I'm fine. But actually, Eleanor said something interesting during the break there
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She said that actually the heat can make us feel unwell when we're in our normal lives
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in ways that it doesn't do when we're on holiday. But we may get on to that later. It's not why you rang in
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What did you want to say? No, but it's interesting you mention air con because that's something I was going to come on to
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So imagine for a moment I'm Alistair Heath. His vision seems to be forget net zero
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We're all just going to get air con in our house. Oh, it's a bit expensive. Let's stick some solar panels on the roof
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And we'll all keep cool whilst the world burns. But what he doesn't seem to realise is that that actually is going to help us get towards net zero
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So the solutions to the problem that we're experiencing are also the solutions to the wider issue that we get to experience
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And that is, you know, in Nick's show earlier, I was listening in
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and there was a bit talking about, you know, Chris Philp and immigration. Well, if everyone..
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Andy Burnham must be doing well, eh? I know. If everyone's complaining now about the 50,000
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whatever the figure is, I don't know off the top of my head, small... Down by about 45%, I think, year on year
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I'm sure that was mentioned. That's it. But if we don't go towards net zero
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that will be up 100%, probably year on year, because there's going to be climate refugees
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this little heat bubble that we've got where all the grass all around is yellowing
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is doing so much more. Well, it's rendering parts of the globe uninhabitable
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and the people who currently inhabit the areas that are becoming uninhabitable
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are going to have to find somewhere else to inhabit. But you're not necessarily addressing..
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Why? I mean, how can I have a go at you for not addressing the question I'm asking when I haven't actually asked the question
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But do you understand what I'm talking about? And feel free to say no. no i think i do to an extent so it's about basically how we deal with the reality and
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really get people on side that climate change is real and we need to deal with it at the same time
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we're sat in our gardens as i have been really enjoying this weather quite honestly um but
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recognizing the what we're enjoying is i guess as a result of turmoil across the globe you know
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And our little poor country is feeling the benefit of that, but so much of the world isn't
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Yeah, so what do we do then? I mean, maybe I'm just hand-wringing and pearl-clutching
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and worrying unnecessarily, but what do we do? I mean, it's ridiculous to expect people not to enjoy elements
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of what is going on, and it's equally ridiculous to think that that somehow means they're not fully cognizant
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or concerned about the reasons why it's going on? Yeah I think we definitely need to look at adaptation So your big favourite word at the moment awnings Awnings Awnings The bloke the other day who called in about the blinds the bloke from the Blinds Association I already put some business his way you know
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Yeah. That should be on commission. Things like that we need to be looking at
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I mean, I've never been abroad, but I know that in some European countries they've got shutters on the outside
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I think these are realistic things we need to be thinking about now
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But I think... And that is part of the conversation that can look unhinged
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I mean, it can look a bit like saying embrace a Mediterranean lifestyle, but it's not saying, well, hey
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It is actually saying we need to acknowledge the changing nature of our own existence
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while never taking our eye off the reasons for it and the possibility of either curtailing it or possibly even reversing it
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Just before you go, how come you've never been abroad, if you don't mind me asking
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Oh, I mean, growing up working class, there wasn't the money for it
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and because of that, it's not really appealed. But I have recently put my passport, you know, in
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I know I'm Green Party, and people may think, you know, none of us want to fly, but, you know, it is only..
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So you've applied, but you've got a passport, and you're thinking about... Where did you go on summer holidays at all when you were a kid
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Yeah, so we'd go to North Wales, where our... Abu Dhabi? No, so Landon, no way
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I'm saying that completely wrong, but, you know, we got family down that way. When thinking..
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So, from Kidderminster, the migration west was always to Aberdovie and around there
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So, the Midlands have always headed for Wales, haven't they? And as an adult, you've never even sort of gone on a ferry to France or anything like that
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Nope, not at all. Wow. Where are you going to go first? Well, I was going to say somewhere hot, but at this point, perhaps..
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Go to Selly Oak! Are you of Irish extraction? Not, no. So it's, unfortunately, my mum just liked the spelling of Sean
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Fair enough. Well, keep us posted. Wait, can we do that? Can I get people to text in where you should go first
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Yeah, go for it. First ever foreign trip. We're not paying for it. Oh, come on, LBC
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Well, you never know. Someone might ring in and sponsor it. Thomas Cook might be listening
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It's unlikely. He's been dead for 100 years. But, you know, stranger things have happened. Sean, stay safe
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And that's it. I'm not setting up a binary phone in today or inviting you to ring in with ridiculous ideas
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about how to make life even worse for people who are risking their lives in small boats
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I'm just acknowledging two truths. Our world is on fire. The line from the European Union is extraordinary
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I'll get it exactly right for you in a moment, the line from the European Union about where Europe may be next week
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And it is also true, as Mike in Goff's Oak puts it, perfectly, Michael, thank you
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I absolutely hate this disgusting heat from 8 till 4, James but the minute I walk through my door
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open a cold beer and sit in the garden I feel like I'm in Spain and my mood completely changes
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so what we don't want to be, Mike and I and probably you
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is one of those people possibly called Derek, Nigel or Roger we don't want to be one of those people who say
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well, if this is global warming sign me up sign me up for more of it
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we don't want to be one of those people but we do want to honestly and adultly acknowledge
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that it's awful, both personally and internationally, globally and in human terms
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but when you get home in the evening and sit in your garden with a cold beer, it feels like you're on holiday
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I don't know why I'm talking about this, to be honest with you, but I'm glad that I am. It's Maria Zuber, who is, of course
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head of the EU's Emergency Response Coordination Centre, who said yesterday that wildfires could engulf
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her words, not mine, all of Europe within days. France, Spain, Portugal are already on fire
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I mean, it's obviously not... Yes, they could engulf all of Europe, which doesn't mean all of Europe will be on fire
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but it means huge swathes of Europe, much more than is currently the case, would be ablaze
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Say those words, you think, how dare you be enjoying a cold beer in your garden
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But you are. 1031 is the time. Dominic Ellis has your headlines
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James O'Brien on LBC. 1034 is the time. You'll be delighted to hear that on at least one front
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I have not taken leave of my senses. It was indeed Chris Philp, desperately trying to resurrect the small boats story with the help of some corners of the media this morning, but happily not all
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It was indeed Chris Philp, who sounded in our own news bulletin as if he didn't actually understand what his own party's so-called Rwanda deal involved
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And I thought, that can't be true. He was a Home Office Minister at the time. And then I remembered that someone a bit like Chris Phil, who looked a bit like Chris Phil
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was also a Home Office Minister when they demonstrated the fact they didn't seem to understand what countries were
27:17
in this case, including Rwanda. And I wasn't wrong. It was indeed him
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On Question Time in April of 2024. I come from a neighbouring country called Congo, if you know geographically
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that is located right next door to Rwanda. And right now in Goma, there's a genocide going on
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and there's such a big conflict going on with people from Rwanda. So had my family members come from Goma on a crossing right now
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would they then be sent back to the country that they're supposedly warring, Rwanda? Does that make any sense to you
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No, I think there's an exclusion on people from Rwanda being sent to Rwanda
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They're not from Rwanda, they're from Congo. They're from Congo. They're supposedly warring these people from Rwanda
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Are they then going to be sent to Rwanda if they came here on a crossing? From Congo
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From Congo, yeah. would people be sent from... Well, Rwanda is a different country of Congo, isn't it
28:09
It's a different country. Yes, it is. Yes. If they come from a war zone in Congo
28:14
would they then be sent to Rwanda? I'll tell you what, let's book Chris Philp. Let's get him on the show to talk about Rwanda
28:19
and small boats and immigration policy. And then you sort of say..
28:23
Eleanor would say to me, are you sure that Chris Philp is the guy we should be talking to
28:28
And I'll go, yeah, he's the Shadow Home Secretary, dudes. He's the guy we go to for the..
28:32
And then she'd say, hang on a minute, mate. Do you actually remember this
28:37
I come from a neighbouring country called Congo, if you know geographically, that is located right next door to Rwanda
28:44
And right now in Goma, there's a genocide going on and there's such a big conflict going on with people from Rwanda
28:51
So had my family members come from Goma on a crossing right now
28:56
would they then be sent back to the country that they're supposedly warring, Rwanda? Does that make any sense to you
29:01
No, I think there's an exclusion on people from Rwanda being sent from Rwanda they're from Congo
29:09
They're supposedly warring these people from Rwanda are they then going to be sent to Rwanda if they came here on a crossing from
29:16
Yeah Would people be sent from well, Rwanda is a different country of Congo isn't it? It's a different
29:22
Yes, it is. Yes, definitely. He's saying if they come to the war zone in Congo
29:27
would they then be sent to Rwanda? That's Congo Chris Filt there
29:30
knocking it out of the park once again. I mean, who wouldn't turn to him for insights
29:34
on the so-called Rwanda deal or immigration in general? The man's a genius, an absolute stone-cold genius
29:39
So you can't really talk to him about this stuff without mentioning that. You certainly can't talk to him
29:43
without mentioning the £750 million that they, to coin a Boris Johnsonism
29:48
spaffed up the wall without actually getting rid of anybody. And also, while we're at it, Ian Duncan Donuts, of course, was touring the studios at one point
29:56
explaining that we would only be sending failed asylum seekers to Rwanda, and it was..
30:00
pointed out to him that that wasn't true either. We'd be sending everybody there and then processing the applications when they got there
30:05
So it was, from any angle whatsoever, a ridiculous idea, endorsed, enforced and conceived by ridiculous people
30:14
But it was still something that the likes of Ian Duncan Smith and Congo Chris Philp could not understand
30:20
I mean, that's the mad thing about this. If you understood it, it was awful
30:25
But to go on the telly while not understanding it, or to go on the radio while not understanding it
30:29
is like seven different shades of awful. It's 50 shades of awful
30:34
And they don't seem to suffer from the same sort of... What was it? Andy Burnham talking about imposter syndrome
30:41
What's the opposite of imposter syndrome? I don't know. Congo Chris Philp, however
30:45
is clearly the embodiment of the opposite of imposter syndrome. Him and Kemi Bader not competing for the title, actually
30:53
of the least imposter syndrome people on the planet currently. Back to the planet
31:00
And this slightly odd phone-in topic about the truth of cognitive dissonance
31:07
Europe is on fire. And yet somebody has gone to the trouble of working out that
31:12
Grape harvesting now officially starts two weeks earlier than in the 1980s
31:16
and the average alcohol content of the wine has gone up by one percentage point per decade
31:20
Now, I don't know if you would call that a silver lining, but it is simultaneously a stark illustration of the pace of climate change
31:29
and it is provided by the Cote d'Azur and wine sector and if you were feeling a little bit daft
31:33
you could say, well, it's not all bad, the wine's getting stronger
31:37
and I am sort of saying, well, it's not all bad my home feels like a holiday
31:43
and it does so what do we do with this knowledge? Julian's in Maidenhead, Julian, what would you like to say
31:51
Good morning, firstly I'd like to say that we have to adapt
31:56
We're privileged in the United Kingdom, as always, because we're proud Britons, etc
32:01
Sovereignty, isn't it? Sovereignty, so much of it. And unicorns. Rife with it
32:08
We have to adapt. We're fortunate in the United Kingdom that this increase in temperature
32:13
is not a terrifying prospect for us on this island. But it has tipped other countries, which were already at this temperature before, it has tipped them over a ledge where adapting to it is going to be far more onerous
32:31
Because the mitigation is going to be so much wider because of the having to control vast waves of forest, etc
32:40
And the increased heat is something that other countries have dealt with for centuries, but they haven't dealt with this
32:47
I lived in France for 12 years, and I lived in the south of France during 2003
32:54
which was the La Quénicule, the major heat wave that France experienced
33:00
Bless you. Pleasure. I should have said that as soon as you said the foreign word
33:04
but unfortunately I was drinking a big sip of tea at the time. From the super mug
33:08
From the giant mug, yeah, so the joke didn't really land. Anyway, what was it called, La Super Su, the what
33:13
No, it wasn't called La Su, it was called La Quénicule. La Quénicule. La tenicule is a heatwave
33:19
You've got a lovely accent there, Julian. Thank you. You should hear my Spanish
33:23
So, yes, we always used to go to Spain on holiday because my family is Spanish
33:28
So I'm accustomed to this heat in the summer because, A, we always went back to, yes, I am Manuel from Barcelona
33:36
So we would always go back to Spain for holidays during the summer
33:42
And I experienced this heat. Then I moved to the south of France for 12 years and experienced the regular heat of the south of France during the summer, which we're experiencing now
33:52
But it was every year guaranteed. The difficulty came, those extreme heat events, for example, 2003 with the La Canicule, which was horrendous for France
34:07
they, you know, emergency services were absolutely stretched, coping with the number of people who were suffering because of it
34:17
We don't, in our societies, we don't die because of the heat
34:22
in the sense that we're not in a desert, dehydrating, drying out
34:27
But there are excess deaths, aren't there? There are, exactly. There are excess deaths
34:30
which are typically, not always, but typically, people whose systems are already compromised
34:36
and who, it kind of brings forward the deaths of the next..
34:41
It's like COVID. It's like not being able to get medical appointments during COVID or elements of COVID that accelerated deaths
34:48
that would have happened anyway a bit later or a lot later. But COVID did also..
34:53
Contribute to the symptoms as well. I understand, but not the excess deaths
34:59
But basically, there were excess deaths in the summer, but then there were fewer deaths in the winter in France
35:06
because the people that were affected were people who... Heat-associated is a good phrase, isn't it
35:12
Age-associated. Well, heat-associated. There's 753 heat-associated deaths in May of this year
35:19
during that last heat episode. Yeah. So it brings those deaths forward
35:24
But for the majority of people in the United Kingdom, there will be some deaths brought forward
35:30
there will be some heat-associated deaths, but we're at the point where all we have to do
35:35
to cope with this level of heat is just look at the examples from
35:39
France and Spain and Italy. And we're back to warnings. I mean, as a figure
35:43
of speech, not as a catch-all term. What do we do with the fact that
35:47
elements of our home life now feel like holidays, even as the emergency is real? Because I haven't
35:55
perfectly articulated this tension today, but happily I think most people have got the gist of what
36:01
I'm talking about. Does it not matter what I'm identifying today. Yeah, fine, enjoy your beer in the garden
36:06
but don't take your eye off the net zero ball. Don't support politicians who are still engaging
36:10
in climate change denial or banning people who promote net zero from running for their own party
36:18
But this doesn't matter, James. It doesn't matter that you're thinking of, you know
36:23
if you win the lottery, you'll probably get a swimming pool. None of that matters. Do you see what I mean
36:27
What do we do with the tension between the global picture and the domestic scenario
36:33
If we want to keep it at this level of temperature, don't burn any more fossil fuels
36:38
Yeah. Because otherwise, we will turn into what is happening in France and Spain now
36:44
At this moment, it's, like you said, sometimes a blessing. Yeah. And also, we won't be spending so much on fossil fuels
36:54
because few of us will be taking flights to go to Spain and France because it will be very uncomfortable there
37:00
And over here, it's the sort of temperature that we used to travel to seek
37:04
So if we want to keep it this way, if you would like this temperature in the summer
37:09
then prevent anything from making it worse and turning it into what's happening in Spain and France and continental Europe
37:17
But we're fortunate here in the United Kingdom because of the maritime climate, the cooling and so forth
37:23
We able to smooth things out We do have rainfall It just in another part of the country and we will have to take mitigating we have to take measures to adapt to it so we have to bring
37:35
That is why Britain can't stop climate change, let's just embrace a Mediterranean lifestyle, is
37:41
irresponsibly phrased, but it actually speaks to a rather unhinged reality, which you're describing, is that we will have to cut our
37:51
cloths very differently from how we've previously cut it. For example, a major incident
37:55
has just been declared in Suffolk. Suffolk, after a wildfire. I can just see
38:00
aerial footage there. It's chilling. It's frightening. I've also noticed, Julian is a good example of this
38:10
you've been quite indulgent with me this morning in that I've set up a
38:15
conversation in a slightly clumsy way. For example, Leo has responded it by saying, if you really feel compelled
38:21
to focus on your personal enjoyment of extreme heat, James. Pop over the channel and visit the devastation
38:25
to hundreds of thousands of people's lives, to wildlife, to the forest and to plant life
38:29
But both things are true at the same time, Leo. This is why I think my articulation has been a bit clumsy
38:33
because you haven't understood it. It is also true that people are sitting in their gardens
38:39
feeling like they're on holiday. That is true. And it is true that the devastation
38:44
to hundreds of thousands of people's lives, to wildlife, and it will get worse, is also true
38:49
It's two things that are true. That's the conversation that the rest of us are trying to have
38:54
And I don't know what you'd do with that knowledge, except, perhaps, ignore it
38:59
Just get on with living your life. Don't make anything worse, as Julian says. Try to cut down on the use of fossil fuels
39:04
Don't feel guilty about the fact that you're enjoying your evenings in the garden
39:09
but for God's sake, do not dial down. In fact, dial up simultaneously your concern about the bigger picture
39:15
that's causing these less unpleasant consequences. that's what, I don't know, maybe I'm the only one
39:21
well I'm obviously not the only one struggling with it but when I said that you're indulging me
39:26
you're kind of ringing in with the grown up sensible phone in that we might have had
39:33
the one about what we can do to adapt the one about what the country needs to do
39:37
let alone like the sort of what you might call the nationwide version
39:41
of the awnings conversation so not what we can do to keep our own homes cooler
39:46
our own lives cooler but what we can do to keep our country cooler
39:49
or to better accommodate the heat. And that is, philosophically, that's the thing I'm struggling with
39:58
because it feels like an admission of defeat. Oh, well, never mind, let's all buy some shutters
40:04
Let's all put up awnings. You can do both, right? You can adapt to the changing climate
40:11
while resisting the climate change. It just feels, at this point at least, to me
40:18
a little bit tricky, a little bit contradictory. It's 10.48. James O'Brien on LBC
40:26
It is 10.51. You are listening to James O'Brien on LBC. It's a really strange one
40:35
because is it meta and is it micro and macro? Is that what we're talking about
40:41
The negative impacts of something are obvious and real and the causes of them are huge and getting worse
40:49
but there are positive side effects that you feel weird talking about
40:54
I feel weird today talking about them. But I'm glad that we have
40:57
I'm glad that we have. And do you know, I've only had one text talking about the left-wing narrative of climate change
41:04
So, you know, where the Daily Telegraph leads, all the Nigels, Derricks and Rogers follow
41:09
I don't send me messages telling me that you're, you know, you're called Roger and you're lovely
41:13
It's a cheeky, slightly childish joke that I used to do. In the early days of conversations about the European Union
41:20
I was just struck by my switchboard, having a disproportionate number of those names appearing on it
41:27
attached to people who were preparing to tell me that we would all be richer when we left the European Union
41:32
And they often turn out to also believe Daily Telegraph columnists rather than scientists when it comes to climate science
41:39
But only one message, talking about the left-wing narrative of climate change
41:43
Remind me again why the left-wing wants to perpetrate a myth of climate science
41:51
And, I mean, I presume when you look out of your window, you can see snowdrifts. 10.53 is the time
41:56
Lawrence is in Blanford. Lawrence, are you ringing in to address the slightly clumsy conversation that I've tried to launch
42:01
Or are you, in an entirely unpatronising fashion, contributing to the phone-in I probably should have had instead
42:07
potentially James first of all lovely to talk to you and as an aside
42:14
I've been listening to you since about 2006 when I first became
42:21
the tree officer for the good old London Borough of Brent and now subsequently
42:28
many years later I'm a private tree consultant so obviously pretty heavily involved
42:37
in watching how the climate has changed and how it impacts upon vegetation
42:44
not just trees. Of course. Some trees won't survive. We lost a tree a couple of summers ago
42:49
just in the road outside my house. It came back from holiday
42:52
and it had literally died. Yeah. Yeah. And this is the issue
42:57
But if we start with, I suppose, your pretext and what you're really baiting the conversation around
43:05
I absolutely love going abroad. when we were younger as a family we didn't have a great deal of money i was a working tree surgeon
43:12
and we had young children and we spent nearly all our holidays in in dorset where my mother and
43:19
father-in-law had moved to we actually started out life we just moved to dorset three years ago we
43:24
were previously in south london and um obviously we've come down now to this beautiful village
43:31
in Dorset and we're surrounded by thatched cottages and we're on a farm
43:37
The thing about that is that we've got a, I'm on the parish council here
43:41
sort of, something you do when you get a tad older James, it'll probably
43:45
you know, but They wouldn't let me through the doormate, no one else would get a word
43:49
in edgeways, I'd be banned on site. Well I think they're pretty fed up with me for
43:53
almost the same reason, but they took me on for my sort of, my input
43:57
with regards to trees in the area, but we also have a special
44:01
have a subgroup of fire watchers as well. Okay, gosh, there's a thought
44:08
Yeah, because we've got so much vegetation around us. We've got farmland, we've got hedgerows
44:14
we've got a lot of coniferous and pine forest around us and lots of stuff that can be very readily combustible
44:23
And these are the big issues, you know, sort of surrounding us all
44:28
I have to take issue, James, with some of the stuff that Julian was saying
44:33
It was a brilliant phone call. But what he was saying about what we have to do now, that's irrelevant
44:40
because the climate that we are seeing now is actually based on air pollution, etc
44:46
that's built up since the Industrial Revolution. So if you consider, you know, the Earth as, here we are spinning, you know
44:54
around in the universe and we got an atmosphere around us It like a giant goldfish like a you know a giant goldfish bowl when it sealed But he was talking chiefly about the importance of not adding to it further
45:06
Oh, absolutely. But what we add to it now will come down the line later
45:10
Of course. So what we've got to do is we've got to actually work on what we've got now
45:15
Now, one of the big... You are, you're doing it, aren't you? You're responding to the finding I wasn't intending to have
45:21
but it's probably for the best. All my callers are a lot more grown up than I am today
45:26
But I am drawn to the tension between the knowledge of how awful everything is
45:33
and the simultaneous acknowledgement that you can sit in your garden in Dorset under a tree
45:38
and it is a much nicer experience than we are used to having in Britain for most of the year
45:44
It's absolutely wonderful, James. And, you know, when I finish my sort of working day in the garden room
45:49
I pop up to the patio we've got quite we've got about
45:53
not a massive garden about a third to half an acre but it's absolutely lovely
45:58
you know all planted up and we go and we sit on the patio and I've got a
46:02
we've got a sort of one of these sort of canvas covers
46:08
over the patio area and it's absolutely lovely and I sit there with a beer and think about it
46:12
but I can't just help feeling really stressed out because At the same time
46:17
at the same time Yeah Yeah, there it is. That's exactly what we're talking about
46:22
Yeah, but if I may, James, just briefly, just to put a bit of substance to it
46:28
So if you consider, right, well, after the Ice Age, we were left with around 67 different types of tree in the UK
46:37
So we were rather impoverished compared to other places around the world
46:44
And so we've got a rather, you know, so the trees that we have
46:48
and there have been introductions since then, you know, following the plant hunt
46:51
Can I hurry up slightly, if I may? Yeah, of course, of course. So, basically... Because you're branching out now, really, on this call
46:57
Right, oh, sorry. I only just twigged that. Carry on. Great. A hundred-year-old plus oak tree
47:05
has lived most of its life having X amount of moisture per year
47:10
and putting up with seasons that we were once used to. All of a sudden, in the last decade or so
47:16
now a big mature oak tree generally when it's in leaf takes up around 600-700 litres of water
47:23
a day out of the soil and now all of a sudden it's getting nothing
47:27
now you where you guys live in Brentwood Brentford sorry Brentford and you're on a lot of London clay
47:37
and that's highly shrinkable now when you've got big street trees like limes
47:41
London plains and all those sort of trees they are going to
47:45
suck the hell out of the clay soil. So, you know, you get all sorts of ongoing issues
47:52
But also... I don't think you hurried up. When I told you to hurry up, Lawrence, I don't think you hurried up
47:58
Sorry, sorry, Jamie. Are you saying that we may need to slightly rethink
48:02
what we consider to be our most obviously native trees? Yes, and we are doing already
48:08
Yeah, no, I thought we were. I am late. I'm going to have to knock it off
48:12
Is there a central... I mean, I think you've made lots of points. Is there one point you haven't made yet that you want to make
48:18
Yeah, I suppose the big point that I haven't made is that we really need to take this so seriously
48:25
enjoy the heat, but also... I kind of knew that. Before you go, anyone's got a tree that they're worried about
48:32
In fact, I've been sent pictures of trees that people are worried about. What should they do
48:37
I've been bearing in mind that there's a hosepipe ban in my neck of the woods, and sometimes you look at a tree and you think
48:41
well, it's too big for me to make any difference, and what you just told us about. Should we be watering trees more
48:47
Of course we should. That's all. Seriously, you're worse than me, mate
48:51
That's a yes or no question. Should we be watering trees more? Yes, we should
48:56
Should we be watering trees more? Yes. There we go. We got there in the end
49:01
It's 11 o'clock. That's your weekly introduction to the Chronicles of Pot Kettle Black
49:06
with me, James O'Brien, and Lawrence in Blandford. I got a few messages about another story in the news today during that hour
49:15
And it's about eggs. And it is, I think, deeply relevant not only to the conversation that we're having
49:22
but also to a slightly dismissive tone that I adopted earlier this week
49:29
When someone got in touch, I've got a feeling her name was Debs, to suggest that the reason why I felt an almost..
49:35
what would you call it, visceral reluctance to look at the fires
49:40
was because I ate meat and dairy. I'll knit all this together after the news
49:44
James O'Brien on LBC. Four minutes after 11 is the time. Do you know, 100 years ago, when I first started work at LBC
49:52
we used to have recipes. There was a show at the weekends
49:56
and chefs would come in and cook dishes on the radio. Do you remember that? You were two. You're probably still at school, were you
50:01
Keith, do you remember it? You used to come in, someone was talking about it the other day
50:05
I can't remember who. I understand the temptation some days to kind of do..
50:10
I don't know if you listen to the Legal Hour on LBC. It's absolutely brilliant radio
50:15
The idea that you can be listening to something that's not immediately relevant to you
50:19
but it's still really interesting. I'm going to talk about food next
50:24
But before that, I just want to do a bit of public service broadcasting. I often take the mickey out of people
50:29
who are, if you like, willfully ignorant. But at the same time, there's 48% of me that is acknowledging the fact that they have been led into positions of ignorance by people who should and often do know better
50:43
So whether you're talking about Brexit or climate science or even immigration, an awful lot of people who hold pungent and or ridiculous opinions were not born
50:52
Well, nobody was born with these ridiculous opinions. You've been spoon-fair. I mean, you know that your mum's not really a bad person
50:58
She's just been persuaded that all Muslims are awful. by, well, you can make the list of people for yourself
51:04
So people have been spoon-fed their bigotries very carefully and very profitably
51:09
And it's probably a bit of a fool's errand on my part, and I'm not sure I've made much progress over the years
51:15
but I always see this programme as one of those places, one of those rare, rare places in the British media
51:19
where we can push back against that sort of nonsense. And I'm always interested by the provenance, if you like, of the nonsense
51:29
So you might be surprised to learn what, and I'm going to say idiots, all right, and I'm sorry for that, but I'm going to use that word
51:39
Please don't call the police. I'm going to use that word, but I say it as a temporary state of affairs
51:46
You are currently an idiot. You don't have to be an idiot forever. You are not, your idiocy is not baked in
51:53
Your idiocy has been inflicted upon you. No one is born an idiot. Some of us have idiocy inflicted upon us
52:00
some of us achieve idiocy by accident, but nobody is born an idiot
52:04
So what the idiots are saying, and there's only three of them that I can see in my inbox this morning
52:09
is that the left-wing narrative of climate science is obviously bogus because lots of people have been arrested
52:16
in continental Europe over offences linked to the wildfires. So it not necessarily a recipe for radar records but I going to address those three idiots personally now okay People are indeed being arrested some of them even for arson others for offences that are more
52:38
of negligence than commission. For example, not taking care with things that can start fires
52:45
like barbecues, but some of them are being arrested for arson as well. You're absolutely right
52:50
idiotic friends. But the climate has created, or rather, the climate science has
53:00
explained, let me know, that's too complicated, let me try again. Alright, try and set fire to some wet
53:06
twigs. Go on, just do it now, I'll wait. Go on, let me get some names on the board
53:10
here as well. Ed, you've been messaging me about the left-wing narrative of climate
53:14
change. Here's another one, Dale's been in touch. 162 people have been arrested for
53:18
in France, it's the start of July. It's the left-wing narrative of global warming
53:22
Ed, Dale, others. There's one more, I can't find it. Go and try to set fire to some wet twigs, all right
53:28
I'll wait. Or just get the barbecue out, put some charcoal in the barbecue, don't use any fire lighters
53:34
Just use a match. Hold it next to the charcoal. How are you getting on, Ed
53:39
How are you getting on? I swear to you, it's a miracle that you're not called Derek, Roger or Nigel
53:43
But how are you getting on, holding the match next to the charcoal? Has it caught yet
53:52
Has it caught? Have you got a fire yet? Okay. Come on, Ed
53:59
Send me another message, mate. You genius. How's it going with the left-wing narrative
54:03
Has it caught fire yet? How about the wet twigs? Try that as well
54:06
Get another match. Try the... Oh, your match has gone out. Flipping hell. All right. Get the thing off the cooker
54:10
Get the gas clicker. Go on, get that. Go on, hold it next to the wet twigs. Have you got a fire yet
54:14
I've just got a lot of smoke. Right. Now, imagine that you were setting fire to dry straw
54:20
Or you had a firelighter smack in the middle of the charcoal. What do you think would happen then
54:24
Yeah? Loads of dry straw, lads. Loads of dry straw. In fact, all the straw is dry
54:31
There is dry straw from here to the horizon. Now drop a match on that and see what happens
54:37
Do you get it yet? So, the reason why these wildfires are sweeping through continental Europe
54:43
is because of what happens when a flame is introduced to the floor
54:52
And climate has created a floor that will go up in flames
54:57
regardless of what the original flame is. You could walk around 10 years ago, the areas that are now on fire
55:06
chucking matches around for fun, mate. And you wouldn't be looking at the potential evacuation of Bordeaux
55:13
So I am not responsible for how stupid you are being, Ed, Dale, Michael
55:22
but I am responsible, as your favourite radio presenter, for helping you be less stupid
55:31
So go and try to set fire to some wet twigs, and then come back and tell me what you've learned about the relationship between the climate and wildfires
55:43
he's still trying to set fire to charcoal with the man he's still trying to set fire to wet twigs
55:52
isn't he i mean i almost almost can't wait to see what the next responses will be from these people
55:59
but they are they walk among us probably brexit-y probably looking at the history of some of these
56:05
messages a little bit racist but spoon-fed their bigotries by the same people by the daily telegraph
56:12
by the Daily Mail, by all the same people. Richard Tice, who's absolutely adamant
56:16
that loads of scientists think that climate change is a hoax. He just can't tell you who any of them are
56:20
It's a left-wing conspiracy, says Richard Tice, while trying to set fire to wet charcoal
56:26
with a manky old candle. It is absolutely obvious why these wildfires are sweeping Europe
56:34
and it has very little to do with the original flame, mate
56:39
and everything to do with the tinder, that is being set fire to
56:44
And if you still don't understand it, you still don't get it
56:50
then I'm really sorry. Because I think that was a pretty good explanation
56:55
of why you are temporarily an idiot. And I use that word temporarily
57:03
It's important. You don't have to be. The Kangorn's are on fire
57:08
Suffolk is on fire. If somebody gets arrested tomorrow, for starting that fire
57:13
either by leaving a barbecue unattended or chucking a cigarette butt out of their car window
57:18
or doing it for giggles, arson, or for online, you know, content
57:24
it doesn't prove that climate change hasn't happened or that climate change isn't responsible for the wildfires
57:32
Because fires are not about the spark that starts them. they are about the material that catches fire
57:44
And that is the end of my TED Talk. It's 12 minutes after 11
57:51
And now I've got to set up another phone in. Honestly, the work you make me do
57:55
It's a good job we've got air conditioning. Organic eggs are twice as bad for the environment
58:00
as those from caged hens. Now, this is just disastrous news in many ways
58:04
because it means those of us who in a slightly sort of -footing middle-class way
58:08
try to do the quotes right thing are now being told that we've accidentally been doing the wrong thing
58:12
Unless, of course, you're prioritising chicken welfare over the environment. So if you're prioritising chicken welfare over the environment
58:18
then you will probably carry on eating organic eggs, but how are you going to prioritise chicken welfare
58:22
when you also care about the environment, and by eating organic eggs, you're actually contributing more CO2 and pollution to art rivers
58:30
So what are you going to do? What do you want? Less CO2 or a happier chicken
58:35
And this is why I think that I was a little bit previous..
58:39
Well, it was a very poorly phrased message on Monday from someone who I think was called Debs
58:47
When she said, maybe the reason why you don't want to look at the wildfires in France and Spain
58:51
is because you eat meat and dairy. And I thought, well, no, it's definitely not that, Debs
58:55
The reason that I occasionally enjoy a nice hot dog is not the reason why I find myself deeply disturbed
59:00
by the scenes of environmental carnage and, of course, increasingly likely human carnage
59:06
in Spain and France at the moment, and latterly the Cairngorns and indeed Suffolk
59:11
It is not because I like a... I mean, I don't even drink dairy anymore. Actually, how dare you accuse me of being a dairy ghoul
59:18
when I'm... Almond milk all the way these days. All my overnight oats involve almond milk
59:23
I even check the oat milk to see which ones have got additives in them
59:27
and too much salt. I'm great on that, but I do occasionally eat meat
59:32
And I eat eggs. which are not dairy. Write that down, Keith. It's important
59:39
So that was a silly thing to say, Debs, wasn't it? The reason why you don't want to look at suffering
59:44
is because you eat meat. Unless you're sort of casting yourself as immune from this
59:48
Oh, I don't eat meat, so this has got nothing to do with me. I'm terribly sorry, everybody burning
59:53
But I don't eat meat or drink milk, so I think you'll find that I am absolutely immune
59:57
from any involvement in this crisis whatsoever. and there's something going on here that i really don't like and this egg story cuts to the very
1:00:08
very heart of it i'll give you the headline again organic eggs are twice as bad for the environment
1:00:14
than eggs that come from caged hens so there's only one actually moral response to that
1:00:22
statistic isn't there organic eggs are twice as bad for the environment as those that come from
1:00:29
the caged hens? What do you do with that information if you
1:00:33
care about animal welfare and the environment and the climate or global warming
1:00:38
What do you do with that? You stop eating eggs, right? That's all you can do, right
1:00:46
Or you go back to eating the caged eggs, the eggs from the caged hens, which
1:00:51
means that you are essentially, I mean not to be glib about it, you're torturing chickens
1:00:56
just for an omelette. So what do you do with the news
1:01:01
that organic eggs are twice as bad for the environment than eggs from caged hens
1:01:05
You stop eating eggs. But you're not going to stop eating eggs, are you? Even though you know the only correct moral response to this story
1:01:13
this statistic, is that you stop eating eggs. But you're not going to stop eating eggs
1:01:21
I mean, if you're interested in the reasons why, it's a study published in Royal Society Open Science
1:01:26
Research has said organic birds need more feed per egg produced. Crops to feed them have lower yields because they've got to be organic
1:01:32
which means that you can't use pesticides. And crops are one of the biggest contributors to egg farming's carbon footprint
1:01:38
meaning more food means more emissions. Free-range non-organic farms are producing about 2.21 kilograms of CO2 per kilogram of eggs
1:01:46
which is only 0.11 more than battery farming. and taking dairy and meat into the equation as well
1:01:57
so the sort of vegan diet, if you like, the question is
1:02:03
why aren't more of us doing it? And I think I've got an answer to that
1:02:13
but I'm not going to tell you what it is until there are some calls on the board
1:02:17
because you've heard more than enough from me already this hour, because I had to do that very important lecture about climate change
1:02:23
I'm going to remind you of the phone number, and then I'm going to tell you exactly what the question is
1:02:29
03456060973 is the number that you need. And the question I want you to answer is this
1:02:35
Why, and I'll give you another one in a minute, but come on now, come and join in
1:02:38
It's Mystery Hour at 12 o'clock, so you haven't got long. Why aren't more of us
1:02:43
In some ways, it feels like the direction of traffic has gone into reverse in recent years
1:02:47
So we're looking at the wildfires. We're looking at the climate change. We're looking at the environmental impact
1:02:51
We're looking at the CO2. Why aren't more of us adopting a plant-based diet
1:02:58
And I take two types of answers to this question. Why aren't you, 03456060973, and why aren't they
1:03:07
Why aren't... I mean, because there's an ineluctable logic to this argument
1:03:11
that becomes even more irresistible when you see this story about eggs
1:03:15
But why are we... Why are... Why is it not happening more? It should have happened by now
1:03:20
Why is it not happening? Some answers will be obvious, some less so. I want all of them on the usual number
1:03:26
James O'Brien on LBC. It's not actually all bad news. If you do really like eggs, then the eggs you should eat
1:03:33
are obviously free-range, non-organic eggs, which produce a relatively negligible amount more CO2
1:03:40
In fact, I read out the statistic that proves this without fully understanding it myself. So, I mean, it's there, isn't it
1:03:46
It highlights the tension between trying to do the right thing and leading a feasible life
1:03:52
But I remember sitting here 10 years ago and telling you that I thought that sooner rather than later
1:04:02
I would be on a pretty much a plant-free diet. And dairy is a big deal
1:04:07
And of course, I was being an idiot in several different ways 10 minutes ago because I do still eat cheese
1:04:12
even if I've sort of cut cow's milk more or less out of my diet
1:04:16
liquid cow's milk out of my diet. I still eat quite a lot of cheese. Not as much as I used to, but I honestly thought
1:04:24
partly as a consequence of watching Simon Amstel's film, which I used to mention to you all the time
1:04:28
partly because of decisions being taken by people at home and people I live with and work with
1:04:37
I thought that by 2026, I probably would have embraced a much more plant-based diet than I was on 10 years ago
1:04:46
And I haven't. And I don't really understand why when it is so obviously associated with both global health and personal health
1:04:59
So why? Because do you agree? Did it feel to you like the tide was washing up against our shores
1:05:09
That things were beginning to change? And now it feels as if perhaps they're not
1:05:15
So is the answer to this, and I think that this is
1:05:19
part of the reason why it's quite easy to get a little bit
1:05:23
pernickety and rude with vegans which we shouldn't do but is the answer to this
1:05:29
that it's not actually a zero sum and listen I could have got
1:05:33
this completely wrong but what we don't do is extol the virtues of
1:05:42
cutting down we kind of say well if you're not a vegan you're evil what did i get called a corpse munching psychopath i mean it was a fairly well
1:05:53
intentioned exchange i think but it stuck with me i used to be a bit of an idiot on vegetarianism
1:05:59
and veganism and i've worked out why but i won't bore you with the with the details but
1:06:03
if you're a corpse munching psychopath because you eat a bit of meat then why would you see what i
1:06:12
mean is do you think part of the problem here is that we do not extol the virtues of cutting down
1:06:18
on things rather than insisting that if you are not eating a plant-based diet then you're a corpse
1:06:27
munching psychopath is that part i mean i don't know that's not one of my answers to the question
1:06:31
of why that the most obvious and easiest thing any of us could do to reduce carbon dioxide
1:06:40
emissions, I think the most obvious thing you could do is to move, I would once
1:06:46
have said, to a plant-based diet and I'm wondering now whether what we should
1:06:50
be doing is extolling the virtues of moving towards a plant-based diet or
1:06:54
am I... I think once I'd have done a phone-in about how much of the
1:06:58
problem is caused by vegans. You know those old jokes about how do you
1:07:02
know, if you walk into a room, how do you know who's a vegan? Because they tell you. There's a bit of truth in that. All the best
1:07:08
humour has a little bit of truth in it but I would have done the phone in that way
1:07:13
Reynolds and it would have been unhelpful and a bit rude and you know performatively obnoxious and all of those things that we try harder every
1:07:19
year not to be but I do wonder whether part of the problem and Deb made this point accidentally in her message to me at the beginning of the week about the reason why you don want to look at the wildfires is because you eat meat and dairy What about if you added the words too much to that message Debs
1:07:37
You eat too much meat and dairy. Or do I sound like I'm rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic
1:07:45
0345-6060973 is the number you need. Why are more of us not adopting plant-based diets
1:07:54
Is it partly because it's too zero-sum? It's too binary? It's an ogue view in a digital world, as Aidan suggests
1:08:06
Callum's in Guildford. Callum, what would you like to say? Hi, James
1:08:09
Hello, man. So, I can sort of see it from both sides
1:08:15
So, I was not vegan for the majority of my life and then went vegan back in 2020
1:08:24
I can understand it. I can see why a lot of people don't want to change their daily habits
1:08:31
And there's lots of people that do daily habits that negatively impact them
1:08:36
And we are aware of it, i.e. smoking and drinking. People do that every day and aware of the negative impacts on their health
1:08:47
But I think, unfortunately, it is just a reality that we're going to have to face at some point
1:08:52
that eventually we will have to sort of minimise our meat and dairy consumption
1:08:58
because unfortunately the planet and the environment can't keep up with the demand, really
1:09:06
And it is unfortunately having a quite... So what clicked? What made the penny drop for you
1:09:13
Well, actually, for me, it was a girlfriend at the time, wanted to give vegetarianism a go
1:09:20
So I was always sort of not against it, but I have a friend still who's been vegetarian for the whole time I've known him
1:09:28
And I would sort of, you know, joke and laugh at him about it
1:09:34
But the click was at the time I was experiencing health issues
1:09:38
And I gave vegetarianism a go for a month for January. I noticed those health issues were alleviating, so I continued
1:09:47
and then the following year we tried veganism for a month which I was a lot more sceptical against
1:09:53
because I used to love milk, dairy, milkshakes. So this was more about personal health than principle or morality
1:10:02
Personal health. It was. That's interesting. Initially it was personal health, which, I mean, it makes sense
1:10:07
because, you know, we all know that meat is a carcinogen. It does cause cancer, which, you know, it makes sense
1:10:15
so yeah initially it was for health but then it sort of spiraled into
1:10:21
environmental, animal rights spiritual personal beliefs really and it just aligns more with
1:10:28
So what's your answer to the question? Why do you think more people
1:10:35
they may have gone down different paths to you but they'd have arrived at some of the
1:10:39
milestones you've arrived at and they haven't I honestly thought Calum 10 years ago
1:10:44
I honestly thought it would have kind of exploded and that I would be part of the explosion and I'm not
1:10:50
So why do you think more people haven't changed their ways? Well, I would argue that it sort of has exploded
1:10:57
I mean, the numbers of vegans have gone up quite drastically over the past decade
1:11:03
But from a very low start. From a very low start, indeed
1:11:08
But then if you look at, you know, pre-World War II or like what my great-granddad or even granddad
1:11:14
when he was younger, pre-animal agriculture, they would have predominantly been eating vegetables
1:11:20
There wouldn't have been this mass... You wouldn't have gone to the supermarket
1:11:23
and there wouldn't have been a mass stock of meat. That wasn't normal then
1:11:28
And we've sort of... With a lot of things in society and life
1:11:32
we've sort of normalized it. Like, for example, something I always say about mobile phones
1:11:36
I remember when I was younger, it was my parents and my grandparents
1:11:40
that would check us on our mobile phone and social media usage
1:11:44
And now you go to a train station, it's not just teenagers on their phone
1:11:48
it's adults, how long are they on for it? Constantly. So using meat in the same way, it was partly a cost thing, actually
1:11:55
rather than a consideration thing. You just couldn't afford it. So everyone wanted to eat it in the area that you're describing
1:12:01
They just couldn't afford to. And then they brought in mass production and you could access it
1:12:08
I don't know that the statistics undo my question, but I mean it's valid to say that there are more people doing it than now
1:12:17
now than there were at some point in the past but you know a lot of companies have dropped the vegan products
1:12:22
that looked like at one point they were going to take over the supermarket aisles
1:12:27
a lot of people in my personal experiences have undone it or started eating fish
1:12:32
I don't know maybe it's a bit of a hobby horse of mine the idea that part of the problem here is the attitude that if you don't give it up entirely
1:12:43
it's like one sausage a year you're just as bad as someone who lives on liver
1:12:47
does that make sense i don't know i've just i suppose i'm trying to work out why i don't do
1:12:53
more of what i know is right um the answer james says this unsigned text as it is to so many things
1:12:59
is cheese i think he's right do you know we did a thing on this show we've been going through the
1:13:05
archives for reasons i can't currently tell you but if you're a real lbc head you'll probably be
1:13:10
able to work out. We've been going through the archives looking for things that we might enjoy
1:13:14
resurrecting on this program in a slightly different context from the daily radio show
1:13:19
And obviously Beat the Sweet has come up, good golly Miss Lolly. I remember doing
1:13:24
phone-ins and there's no way that we can reproduce this magic. I did a regular
1:13:28
phone-in about whether or not there was any food in the world that could not be improved
1:13:32
by the addition of cheese. And there isn't. Except possibly Chinese food
1:13:39
Everything else. You can improve by the addition of cheese. Don't at me on that
1:13:44
It's half past 11. Dominic Ellis has your headlines. James O'Brien on LBC
1:13:49
I'm 33 years at the time. I knew this would happen. Behave yourself, James
1:13:54
You can't add cheese to a curry. Can you imagine eating chicken tikka masala with cheese
1:13:58
Have you never heard of paneer? Don't just list curries, MC and Croydon
1:14:02
and then add cheese. Say lambuna with cheese, question mark. Chicken tikka masala with cheese, question mark
1:14:06
Paneer is cheese, mate. Paneer is cheese. If you've just tuned in, I'm not entirely sure what's going on either
1:14:15
But we are talking about diet. Here's a question for you. You know Reform UK, what do you think they vet more rigorously
1:14:24
Their donations or their candidates? Because they're always telling us how rigorously they vet their donations and their candidates
1:14:33
despite some evidence that makes the case that perhaps they don't vet either as rigorously as perhaps they should or could
1:14:39
I don't know, I'm just asking questions. But what do you think they vet more rigorously
1:14:43
Their donations or their candidates? We've actually got news on both fronts today
1:14:50
one of which follows hard upon yesterday's conversation. And actually, I need the Mystic Gym
1:14:56
I actually got it right I got the Mystic Gym thing right So I think Keith with your permission we actually have the jingle
1:15:08
Mystic Gym. So I pointed out to you yesterday that Nigel Farage had been investigated by the police
1:15:16
over comments he made that somebody complained about on the grounds that they were insightful
1:15:20
This was the occasion a few years ago when he said he was going to knife civil servants
1:15:24
or take a knife to the civil service. Subsequently, he said he should have used the word axe instead of the word knife
1:15:30
And I said it was quite right that the police had decided to take no action
1:15:34
over that unfortunate term of phrase. I predicted yesterday that Zach Polanski would not face police action
1:15:42
for, in his words, accidentally sharing a photograph of a man wearing a T-shirt with a guillotine on it
1:15:47
and the words, we're only making plans for Nigel. in both cases
1:15:52
both men behaved inappropriately and badly I still think that Polanski should have apologised
1:15:57
even though Farage never apologises for anything or demands that any of his crew apologise
1:16:03
for much more obviously worse behaviour most obviously I think the councillor
1:16:09
who shared an image calling for a Labour MP to actually be shot literally
1:16:14
no pictures of guns or t-shirts literally just saying she should be shot
1:16:19
that I told you that I didn't think Farage should have been prosecuted
1:16:23
for saying he was going to take a knife to the civil service and I didn't think that Polanski should have been prosecuted
1:16:27
for accidentally sharing the picture of the T-shirt. But I also told you that when the police decided not to prosecute
1:16:34
or pursue Zach Polanski for accidentally sharing a picture of the T-shirt, I also told you that Reform or Farage would come out immediately
1:16:42
and claim that they were victims of two-tier policing. That was only yesterday, this
1:16:49
So guess what's happened overnight? Police will not take action against Zach Polanski
1:16:53
for sharing a photograph of a man wearing a T-shirt with a guillotine on it and the words
1:16:57
we're only making plans for Nigel. Reform criticised the decision and said
1:17:01
I quote, once again, we are living in two-tier Britain. So, I not only told you
1:17:08
that I didn't think the police should have pursued Nigel Farage for saying he wanted to take a knife to the civil service
1:17:13
and I didn't think the police would pursue Zach Polanski for sharing a photograph of a man wearing a T-shirt
1:17:17
with a guillotine on it and the words were only making plans for Nigel. I also told you that when the police decided to treat
1:17:22
those two very similar cases in an identical fashion, reform would hop out of their prams
1:17:29
and claim that it was another example of two-tier policing or two-tier Britain
1:17:36
This is getting uncanny. I'm beginning to think I should tell you the lottery numbers
1:17:43
Mystic Gin. And staying with yesterday's examination, of examples from the Reform UK file of behaviours and allegations
1:17:55
that were arguably more questionable than Zach Polanski's, I have some other news for you
1:18:03
A man has been charged with posting a grossly offensive comment on social media
1:18:07
This is Glenn Gibbons, a councillor for Sunderland City Council, has been charged with the offence under the Communications Act 2003
1:18:15
The charges in relation to a post from 2024, which referenced the Nigerian community
1:18:20
Northumbria Police received a report in relation to the post in May this year
1:18:24
and carried out an investigation. The force submitted a file to the Crown Prosecution Service
1:18:29
who subsequently authorised the charge. The 66-year-old from the Sunderland area is due to appear
1:18:35
before South Tyneside magistrates court next month. And this is important, do bear this in mind
1:18:40
even if people who should know better choose to ignore it. A spokesperson for Northumbria Police said
1:18:45
we are aware that there has already been significant interest in relation to this individual and the social media post
1:18:51
We would urge people not to speculate, both online and in the community
1:18:55
in relation to this case. So we're still OK speculating about whether or not
1:18:59
we think reformers spend more energy scrutinising donations than they do candidates
1:19:05
And I've got news on the donations front for you shortly from Henry Riley
1:19:09
Before that, back to food. I'm actually getting hungry, which was not part of the plan
1:19:13
Alison is in Bury St Edmunds. Alison, why do you think the plant-based diet has not secured more subscribers in recent years, given the irresistible evidence of where some of the impacts of eating meat and dairy are unfolding
1:19:31
Oh, morning, James. Well, I think your comment that you've just made is incorrect, and I'll tell you for why
1:19:39
It was a question, not a comment. Well, let me answer the question then
1:19:43
Go on, of course. Um, as you're... Oh, hang on. Stay there. I'm just going to read out a statement from Reform about Glenn Gibbons
1:19:50
The party is aware of the situation involving Councillor Gibbons. We will monitor the verdict closely
1:19:56
Sorry, carry on, Alison. No, that's fine. Basically, I think what happened
1:20:04
and I've spoken to you a couple of times on this subject. You have a vegan cafe, don't you
1:20:09
Yes, I do. And one of the reasons I rung up today was because the last hour and this hour
1:20:15
what I'm doing this morning and this afternoon knits them together. So I'm in the middle of doing a buffet for the Carbon Charter Suffolk this afternoon
1:20:23
which basically gives recognition and support to businesses in Norfolk and Suffolk
1:20:28
who want to go sustainable, are sustainable, reduce pollution, that sort of thing
1:20:35
So that's what I'm doing. So it's the environment and it's eco and it's, you know, the animals
1:20:41
and that sort of stuff. As to your question, I think what happened is when it was at its height
1:20:49
so that was basically just after I became vegan. I became vegan in 2017
1:20:55
and 2018, 2019, 2020 was kind of when it all kicked off
1:20:59
Yes, I'd agree with that. And the big boys, as I call them, Tesco Sainsbury's
1:21:04
thought, oh, okay, let's get on this bandwagon, paid millions, bought millions
1:21:10
and so did other companies. Now, it's true to say that there's not as many of us
1:21:15
who eat a plant-based diet than there are who don't. There's not going to sell many ice creams going at that speed
1:21:22
Sorry, there's an alarm going off in the background. Do you need to see to it? No, no, no. I'm going to second
1:21:27
I've got the windows open to my car to keep my car cool to put the food in
1:21:31
So just give me two seconds. I will. No, you take your time. Don't worry. There we go. Carry on
1:21:36
It's all done. And we're back in the room. So basically, when they realised that the profit margin wasn't going to be as big, they scaled back
1:21:46
But there are more people who do eat a plant-based diet and a vegan diet
1:21:52
And I'm not one of these who says, oh, well, you don't eat it seven days a week, so no, you're no good
1:21:56
Do you think that's an important part of the problem? Yes. Yeah, I do too, actually
1:22:02
Because no one likes feeling judged, even especially people who should be judged
1:22:06
we're the ones who hate it the most how dare you judge me correctly but it's the idea that if I make a real effort
1:22:12
to cut down on the amount of meat and dairy I consume I'm still going to get called a court-feating psychopath
1:22:17
or attacked by devs from some you will, not from me because you have to meet people where they are
1:22:23
I think you're right if you don then you get backlash now 60 I think I said this to you before 60 to 70 75 of my customers are not vegan I have people come who are vegetarian who eat fish who eat all sorts of things for dietary requirements
1:22:39
You know, the people this afternoon, there will be several there who are vegan, but several won't be
1:22:45
But the thing is, I think we, A, we don't like being told what to do
1:22:50
Yeah, big part of it. exactly b people automatically think that eating a vegan diet or plant-based diet is more expensive
1:22:59
when the most expensive thing in your trolley is meat so it's not more expensive i and the other
1:23:08
thing is our taste buds now i don't feel since i've been vegan that my taste buds are any more
1:23:15
important than an animal's life in fact my taste buds are less important i would rather that animal
1:23:21
live so that is kind of i would too obviously when you put it like that but i don't it doesn't
1:23:27
land quite as heavily with me as it clearly does with you yeah i mean and i well i did it first
1:23:32
off for health and i think that's the important distinction so i had a gastric problem so two
1:23:38
years before i was vegan i was dairy free which helped a little bit but then i went vegan pretty
1:23:44
much overnight because i watched um what the health documentary and that does all three it's
1:23:48
environment it does eat and eco stuff it does animals and it does health so i thought well
1:23:54
nearly there so i'll do it and i've not looked back i've not taken any medication in 10 years
1:23:58
to my stomach so i'm not saying everyone's going to do that and go and don't take it i'm just
1:24:04
talking about me um but there is other evidence um you know there are celebrities will i am he
1:24:10
you know he's on record of his i think his doctor said he was going to have to take statins and
1:24:15
stuff, if my memory serves me correct, many, many years ago, and he said, no, I'm not doing it
1:24:19
He changed, and it helped. There's another actor as well. Is it Morgan Freeman, maybe
1:24:26
Samuel L. Jackson, that's right. If you look it up, he did
1:24:31
a similar thing. He was meant to have an operation. He said, no, I'm not going to do it
1:24:35
And he changed, and he didn't need it, I believe. I'll take your word for the general
1:24:41
health benefits. I haven't got the things in front of me. No. So, but then it quickly went to animals and eco
1:24:51
and I've just stayed, you know, and it's probably one of the best decisions I ever made
1:24:55
How much of it? What's the name of the cafe? Go on, give yourself a free advert
1:25:00
Alison's Eatery, and a lot of my customers, they do listen to you. Do they? You haven't got the one that called me
1:25:06
a corpse-eating psychopath coming in. Have you on a regular basis? I wouldn't know, but I would never call you that, James
1:25:11
Thank you, Alison. What's it called again? No, no, no. Alison's Eatery. Or just Alison's people, yeah
1:25:16
Alison's Eatery in Bury St. Edmund. It is, yes. What are the specials today
1:25:21
We haven't got any because I'm doing this buffet. Oh, of course you are. Yeah, you're completely busy doing the buffet
1:25:25
Yeah, and I've got a totally vegan wedding on Saturday. Carbon charter. Well, how do you make a cake
1:25:30
What's a vegan wedding cake like? I'm not doing her cake. Somebody else is doing it
1:25:35
But the person who's doing her cake is a vegan baker. So she's a friend of mine
1:25:39
So totally vegan wedding. Yeah. There we go. Is Bury St Edmunds a hotbed of veganism, or is it just a coincidence
1:25:45
No. I mean, there are several places where you can get vegan options
1:25:49
It's not probably as good as it used to be. Oh, that's part of my point, isn't it
1:25:54
That's part of my point. Yeah. Well, in a way, that's good, because there's less competition
1:25:58
but in a way, that's bad, because, you know, the climate. Well, not a day when it's hot
1:26:02
No, this is true. Yeah, I think you're right. Alison, you take care
1:26:06
Alison's Eatery, or Alison's in Bury St Edmunds. if you did want to sort of ease yourself into a more plant-based diet
1:26:13
rather than necessarily looking upon it as a kind of open and shut issue
1:26:17
a zero-sum game, an all or not. I think for me that, for me, if I had to write a book about this
1:26:22
and don't worry, I'm not going to, the two things I'd point to would be what Alison
1:26:27
three things that I think are interlinked. Alison's point, we don't like being told what to do
1:26:32
Andy's been in touch to say, don't you tell me that I don't like being told what to do, which is an excellent point
1:26:37
We don't like being told what to do. And point number two would be the effort
1:26:42
that is put into promoting things, you know? Imagine, and we never played that clip yesterday
1:26:49
of Jonathan Miller talking to Enoch Powell. You know, the effort that is put into telling people
1:26:54
to be frightened of foreigners, to be frightened of people of colour, to be frightened of immigrants
1:26:59
to be frightened of refugees. Imagine if the same amount of effort, the same amount of coverage
1:27:03
the same amount of power was dedicated to telling them to be nicer, to be more human
1:27:08
So then you'd have a completely different picture. So you very rarely see huge advertising spend budgets
1:27:14
encouraging, you know, apples or carrots. The carrot marketing board has been very quiet
1:27:21
Do you see what I mean, though? We're usually being encouraged to eat things that are meaty
1:27:26
for reasons. And I always do this. I do the rule of three
1:27:30
You know the rule of three, Keith. It's a rhetorical device. I use it as a sort of punctuation mark
1:27:35
So I say there are three reasons, and then by the time I get to reason three, I've forgotten what it is
1:27:39
Or I've thought, oh, I'll come up with a third reason by the time I get to reason three
1:27:43
and then I get to reason three, and I can't remember what it was. So we don't like being told what to do
1:27:48
Huge amounts of money are spent on discouraging us from going anywhere near a plant-free diet
1:27:54
And reason number three, why we're not, is, is, is, there it is
1:28:01
is because of the discouragement of moderation. So, reason number three why more of us are not eating less meat and dairy
1:28:11
is that we're made to feel as if that wouldn't matter anyway because we'd still be corpse-eating psychopaths
1:28:16
even if we cut down on the number of corpses we were eating. There you go, that was the rule of three, that was
1:28:21
Henry Riley's up next with news that may help us come to an answer
1:28:25
regarding the great question of the moment, which is, do reforms spend more time and energy scrutinising candidates or donations
1:28:35
James O'Brien on LBC. It is 11.51. Plant-based diet, not plant-free. Why does no one ever correct me except everybody in my inbox
1:28:47
I've got colleagues here. You're supposed to listen to this bilge. When I say plant-free diet, that would be ridiculous
1:28:52
That would make me a lion. so I've accidentally said plant-free diet
1:28:57
that's the kind of I mean plant-based diet thank you Andy at least someone's paying attention
1:29:03
Henry Riley is here I said it at the top of the hour
1:29:08
plant-free diet and no one corrected me it's no good saying that you noticed you're supposed to correct me
1:29:12
Henry Riley would have corrected me if he was here, wouldn't you? Yeah, well I wouldn't have made a mistake Well, that's very true
1:29:16
you should listen to it when are you next on with your own show? Somedays from 3 There you go, mistake-free
1:29:21
PM now, is it? Oh, congratulations. Don't tell them. The Guardian..
1:29:30
Well, actually, before we get into the story, we should start with the denial. Reform UK and Robert Jenrick have responded to allegations on the..
1:29:38
Honest Bob Jenrick have responded to allegations on the front page of today's Guardian
1:29:42
regarding donations they received from Fiona Cottrell because there was about one and a half million quid
1:29:46
Yes. We learned yesterday that it had made its way from Fiona Cottrell
1:29:52
a retired stylist and mother of a convicted criminal who calls Nigel Farage daddy I keep reading and
1:29:59
We weren't entirely sure where she could have got one and a half million quid from that she donated to..
1:30:06
Well, you reminded her. Well, yes, you are right, James. So The Guardian today is alleging that George Cottrell, posh George as he's known, as you say
1:30:14
it's reported that he refers to Nigel Farage as Daddy, he has previously admitted guilt to a charge..
1:30:21
Why don't you call me Daddy? It's previously... You're the young pretender on LBC
1:30:26
Tell me the truth. Do you call Nick Daddy? No, I can't actually think of him. I called him Gaffer when I was his producer
1:30:32
But he's previously admitted guilt to a charge of wire fraud and ended up serving eight months in prison
1:30:39
He was detained in Chicago and he was alongside Nigel Farage, later sentenced and jailed in Arizona
1:30:44
So that's the history on posh George, which I'm sure your listeners know, but that's just to remind them
1:30:48
The paper today, The Guardian, is alleging that he transferred a total of more than two million dollars to his mother
1:30:55
the retired stylist, Fiona Cottrell, in the days before her donations to reform
1:31:01
Days? Like, I mean, hours. Yeah, matter of days. Right. So there were two donations
1:31:06
Scotland Yard is looking at this. Both of £250,000, so half a million pounds in total
1:31:12
to Reform UK by Britain Means Business. That's the company with Richard Tice is the sole director of
1:31:20
Fiona Cottrell is alleged to have made a £1 million transfer to Britain Means Business
1:31:24
She also separately made two donations to the party, each worth a quarter of a million pounds
1:31:31
So in essence, James, it's half a million directly to the party. And you could argue half a million indirectly because Britain means business, which she donated to, donated to reform
1:31:40
Financial industry sources have told The Guardian that Fiona received one deposit of $1.4 million from her son George and two tranches of more than £300,000 each
1:31:51
Again, she says that she has attributed, the sources say, as coming from her son
1:31:58
Now, the allegation here from critics, James, and the meta looking into this
1:32:04
not to say it's true, but that's what the meta looking into, is were these donations made by Fiona Cottrell, the retired stylist
1:32:10
because George Cottrell is an impermissible donor, i.e. because he pays tax in Montenegro
1:32:16
Not because he's a convicted fraudster. Not because he's a convicted fraudster. Because his financial affairs are based in Montenegro
1:32:22
He has financial affairs based in Montenegro. But his lawyers have previously said
1:32:26
and the reformer previously said, that is not the case. So that is not why. But the Guardian also understands on that timeline, James
1:32:32
that the transfers were made 24 to 72 hours before Fiona Cottrell, his mother
1:32:39
made a donation to Reform, or Britain Means Business, that company, as well
1:32:43
Now, as you can imagine, James, there are many questions for Reform about this. And Robert Jenrick, the Treasury spokesperson
1:32:49
and for the party has been fielding questions at a press conference
1:32:53
primarily on social care, but he was also asked about this today. The donations you're referring to were some time ago
1:32:59
This has been going on for a long time. But we are entirely confident that reform followed all electoral rules
1:33:07
at the time when the donations were made. Of course, we'll participate with any inquiries
1:33:12
To the best of my knowledge, we haven't even been contacted by the police. So I don't think we have anything more to add to that
1:33:19
I presume you don't have a question about the actual substance of the press conference today
1:33:24
No, okay. Well, it would have been better to ask that one first
1:33:31
but if you want to actually ask about the issues that the public care about, then by all means
1:33:36
You say that you're sure that the rules were followed at all times, but what explanation is there for George Cottrell transferring $2 million to his mother
1:33:45
shortly before she made very substantial donations to reform. Well, firstly, on the donation, as I said earlier
1:33:54
reform is certain that all the electoral rules were followed. If you've got a question for Mr Cottrell, then I think you have to direct that to him
1:34:01
With respect to the tax proposal... Yeah, but he really doesn't answer questions, so I'm directing it to you
1:34:06
Well, let me come to your second question. Whether reform considers itself confidence that it knows the source of George Cottrell's wealth
1:34:12
well on your second question I don't think there's anything more to add
1:34:16
I've already said that we've followed all the electoral rules and we're very confident of that
1:34:21
a number of questions for Robert Jenner there at today's press conference just a little reminder there
1:34:25
but just a theory perhaps that's why Nigel Farage isn't conducting these press conferences
1:34:30
that he used to himself there's a line from Neil Hamilton I was reading recently
1:34:35
that Nigel Farage has to be the bride at every wedding and the corpse at every funeral
1:34:39
which of course don't call the police It's a figure of speech deployed by Neil Hamilton, quoted in a book that I'm reading
1:34:45
He would normally be front and centre at all of these press conferences, but for some reason in recent months, he's pushing people like Honest Bob Jenrick
1:34:53
and Leila Cunningham, the candidate for London Mayor, and others to the forefront
1:34:57
Well, it's fair to say that I was covering a lot of those press conferences last year. They had a lot of momentum
1:35:02
And Nigel Farage was front and centre very much at all of those. He never actually elbowed anybody else out of the way
1:35:07
but that was certainly the mood on the podium. He was certainly front and centre, James
1:35:13
Just to tell you, on this, The Guardian have a quote from a Reform UK source
1:35:18
saying that George Cottrell was acting as a sort of shadowy treasurer, saying he would find a way to get money in
1:35:24
Reform UK say, we deny this completely. Reform takes pride in stringent vetting of donations
1:35:28
and always ensure that the Electoral Commission guidelines on donations, as set out in the Political Party's Elections and Referendums Act 2000
1:35:36
are strictly followed, as has been the case with all donations. and I do also have to tell you, James, as well
1:35:42
the Lib Dems did refer a donation to, a loan, I should say
1:35:47
from George Cottrell to Richard Tice, the deputy leader, of £80,000. That was referred to the Parliamentary Standards watchdog
1:35:55
That has been dismissed by Daniel Greenberg, the commissioner. He says he's not going to look into it
1:36:00
because of insufficient evidence. So just making that point as well. But this, of course, referring to Fiona Cottrell
1:36:05
who's a stylist and also used to run... Retired. Retired stylist. and also used to run a marina in Tewkesbury
1:36:11
Pardon? She's a retired stylist who ran a marina in Tewkesbury in Gloucestershire as well
1:36:17
Okay. Well, you live and learn, don't you? Yeah. I mean, to be fair to honest Bob Jenrick
1:36:24
he was busy ordering murals to be painted over at processing centres for unaccompanied child asylum seekers
1:36:30
at this point in the political cycle. It was nothing to do with reform when these donations were being, allegedly being made
1:36:36
Well, no, the donations were being made, but the money transfers from son to mum
1:36:41
for the benefit of daddy's party were being made. He was busy painting or ordering that mural
1:36:47
He wasn't part of Reform UK back then. Well, he wasn't a minister. You're correct to say he was an immigration minister before that
1:36:53
He'd resigned by that point, but you're right. He was in the Conservative Party
1:36:56
when their leader was Rishi Sunak, yes, at that election. And on it goes
1:37:01
So that question remains, really. I like that quote, because you could substitute the word donations for candidates
1:37:06
We deny this completely reform takes pride in its stringent vetting of donations
1:37:12
So what does it that more stringently donations or? Candidates we have I believe contacted George Cottrell's lawyers for comment and we have contacted your cock George Cottrell's lawyers for comments
1:37:21
We have not heard back but in terms of all the reporting We seen when it comes to George Cottrell lawyers in previous legal correspondent They always said that any political donations his mother has made have been made entirely at her own discretion and are a matter for her
1:37:38
Thank you very much, Henry Riley. And also, while I'm doing thank yous
1:37:42
I'd like to thank the staff and the head and neck ward at the Royal Worcester Hospital
1:37:47
where my mum is currently confined. Nothing too serious, so don't worry on my account
1:37:54
I dashed up, I nearly said flew there, but I couldn't possibly afford to fly up to Worcester and back in a single day
1:38:02
because I haven't got someone like George Cottrell bankrolling me. So I caught the train to Worcester and back yesterday
1:38:07
just to spend some time with my mum, and I was so moved, as I always am
1:38:12
when the NHS come to my family's support, so moved by the quality of care
1:38:18
even sometimes in difficult circumstances, but everything at the head and neck ward at the Royal Worcester
1:38:22
A particular thanks to Shirelle and Sue, who I had the pleasure of encountering personally
1:38:28
But there is something invaluable, isn't there, about witnessing the care that a loved one is receiving in hospital
1:38:35
and just feeling a lot better about everything as a consequence. So thanks to everybody there, but particularly to Sue and Shirelle
1:38:44
And also the other lady, whose name I didn't catch, who was just with her when I left yesterday afternoon
1:38:50
You're all amazing. It's 12.01 and... Wait for it. Mystery Hour is next
1:38:58
James O'Brien on LBC. Five minutes after 12 is the time and this is it
1:39:03
Your weekly opportunity to achieve the sort of satisfaction not ordinarily available anywhere else on your radio
1:39:09
If you're not familiar with this feature... It's not going to sound that exciting when I describe it to you
1:39:16
I cannot lie. Someone rings in with a question, right? And then someone else rings in with an answer
1:39:24
That's kind of it. That's the feature. If I tell you that it has spawned games, a board game and a travel game
1:39:31
two games, two games, then perhaps you get an idea that there is rather more to it
1:39:35
than originally meets the eye. And if I tell you that it routinely features as the favourite part of the programme
1:39:40
among my growing army of listeners, then perhaps I would have given you enough cause to give it a go
1:39:47
to give it a whirl. Remember, you can also ring in and either show off your own knowledge
1:39:51
or share your curiosity about something that you're certain must have an answer
1:39:57
And as if that were not inducement enough, you can win a game by being my favourite contributor of the week
1:40:05
Find out more about the game at mysteryhour.co.uk and find out more about the terms and conditions regarding the competition at lbc.co.uk
1:40:15
You're not allowed to look stuff up. and that's it, really, I think
1:40:22
No repetition, no motoring questions. Motoring questions have become, that's become a bit perforated around the edges
1:40:29
a bit blurred around the edges, the motoring questions ban may get further blurred today
1:40:33
but in the meantime, it is time to get things underway. And David is in Normandy in France
1:40:39
That's quite vague. David, question or answer? Good morning, James. We're between Dieppe and Rouen
1:40:46
That's more like it. in a nice little cottage in the countryside, which is lovely
1:40:50
Is it a jeet? No, it's not. It's a cottage, which we're lucky enough to have
1:40:54
What's a jeet, then? A jeet is when, I think that's when you pay money to someone else
1:41:00
like an Airbnb thing, isn't it? So a jeet is on someone else's farm, as it were
1:41:05
Yeah. Is it? I don't know. I'm asking you. You're the expert. Yes, it is. A jeet is on someone else's farm or their individual cottage
1:41:12
Right. So you've got a self-contained individual cottage. That would be one way of putting it, yeah
1:41:17
And is it your own or are you on your vacances? We've been here 20 years
1:41:22
We live normally in Kent, so... We're just here with the grandchildren
1:41:26
which is the basis of my crisis. All right, let's get on with it, then
1:41:30
Not the children. Good. I'm here on holiday with my eight-year-old, Emily, granddaughter
1:41:36
Yes. Grandson, Isaac, 85. Hello, Isaac. Hello, Emily. Bonjour, bonjour. Hello, Emily
1:41:40
Oh, bonjour, merci. And we have a problem, a breakfast-related problem. We've smuggled in some proper porridge oats for breakfast
1:41:49
but we are using three different types of milk. One of us, I know, from the last hour
1:41:55
They're well played. I know, well smoothed in. We have something, none of your West London oats soaking going on here
1:42:02
Proper porridge in the morning. Yeah. Someone's having oat milk, the children have whole milk
1:42:09
and I have skimmed milk. Why do the different kinds of milk
1:42:13
take a different amount of time in three different saucepans? It's not the saucepans
1:42:18
I think it's something to do with the milk, but I don't know what. So you have three pans of milk on the go
1:42:24
Well, yes. So the children both have cow's milk. Yes. You have semi-skimmed cow's milk
1:42:32
and Mrs. David has... Chris. Chris has oat milk. Oat milk, oat milk, yeah
1:42:40
And, I mean, let me take some... Let me have a couple of guesses, all right
1:42:45
Yeah, go on. The oat milk absorbs it quickest and the full-fat milk absorbs it slowest
1:42:52
Skimmed first. Skimmed is fastest? So Grandpa seems to get his porridge quicker
1:43:00
Same amount of porridge, and then followed by the oat milk, followed by the full-fat
1:43:04
There you go. So semi-skimmed oat milk full-fat. It's going to have something to do
1:43:09
I just thought it had something to do with fat, but there's no fat at all in the oat milk, I don't think
1:43:14
All right, you're on. I love it. There's a Goldilocks joke here, but I'm damned if I can think of it, David
1:43:20
I'm sorry? I'll have to ask the three people in the garden
1:43:24
Three different bowls of porridge. One is hot, one is not so hot, and one is just right
1:43:29
Anyway, why? Why does the type of milk you use affect the speed with which the oats absorb the milk, even
1:43:37
Thank you. Ten minutes after that. I love that, David. Enjoy the rest of your holidays. Love to Emily and Isaac
1:43:42
I'll try and get them an answer, but I hope I don't put them off radio for life if we don't succeed
1:43:48
Austin is in Beckenham. Austin, question or answer? A question, please, James
1:43:53
Carry on, Austin. The Met Police HQ is called Scotland Yard. It is, yeah
1:43:59
Why? I know this. Oh, okay. I think I know this. I read it in a book
1:44:05
Yeah. I think the original Scotland Yard dates back to when Scotland and England were two separate kingdoms
1:44:19
Yes. Countries. And you know that technically the soil that an embassy on is the soil of the country whose embassy it is rather than the country
1:44:33
So I think that Scotland Yard was where... It wouldn't be an embassy back
1:44:42
but it's like if the King of Scotland came to visit London, the place that they stayed in was Scotland Yard
1:44:49
and it became part of Scotland. Oh, is that because of maybe James I
1:44:54
Prior to that Because he wouldn have needed Because he was King of both wasn he yes but i think scotland yard is is to do with scottish royalty or or embassy royalty and embassy be the
1:45:08
same thing actually um and that so new scotland yard's got nothing to do with that old scotland
1:45:14
i mean scotland yard presumably stopped being that and became the headquarters of the police
1:45:20
and then it moved and they just kept the name and they called it New Scotland
1:45:25
I think that, I mean, qualifications, I think I read it in a..
1:45:29
Would it be an Andrew Taylor book? Anyway, that I think is the answer
1:45:36
but we're going to have to wait for someone who sounds a bit more convincing than me, right? Well, thank you
1:45:40
Reform policy may be... Hang on, what? Steady. I mean, you're not going to get me in trouble with any politics
1:45:47
Oh, well, I hope not. No, I was just going to crack a little, try and crack a little gag there, but never mind
1:45:52
No, you can if you want, that's fine. I've spoiled it now by drawing too much attention. Maybe for the next election
1:45:57
maybe reform party policy could be to change it to England. That might work. Don't give them ideas
1:46:06
12 minutes after 12 is the time. I tell you what, mate, you pay enough money
1:46:11
I'm sure that they do that on your behalf. 12 minutes after 12 is the time
1:46:15
0-3-4-5-6-0-6-0-9-7-3 is the number. Eve's in Barnet oh hang on a couple of
1:46:21
hurry up there's some phone lines free so what happens is at 12 o'clock
1:46:24
we get quite a lot of calls they're not all some might be questions that we've
1:46:28
dealt with quite recently some might not quite pass the sniff test as it were
1:46:32
so there are now more phone lines free three phone lines free that were not
1:46:36
free three minutes ago Eve's in Barnet Eve question or answer question please Jane
1:46:41
carry on hi I know it is on public transport in Europe
1:46:45
and possibly everywhere else they have plastic seats plastic Plastic? Plastic. Yes
1:46:49
You know, plastic seats, moulded seats. Yes. But our tubes and buses have got seats covered in fabric
1:46:55
And I can only imagine the secretions that go through the clothing. Oh, you can't use that word on the show
1:47:00
It's absolutely true. Oh, no, great. You're sitting on it and wondering who else is sat in it and what they sat in
1:47:06
It used to be a thing. Yeah. If you hit it really hard, the amount of dust that would come up off a London under... Exactly
1:47:13
Yeah. Yeah, so everywhere else is plastic seats and you can disinfect them easily. and you can, you know, you clean them down
1:47:19
Why have we got fabric seats that can't be cleaned easily? I'd rather have a plastic seat
1:47:23
as long as I can stop thinking about secretions. Wouldn't you? They're just much comfier
1:47:30
Well, no. I mean, you can have... Well, no, I don't think so. And also..
1:47:34
Have you been... How many countries in Europe have you been to? Quite a few
1:47:38
And they've all got plastic seats? They've all got plastic seats, yeah. Every bus, every tram, every train
1:47:45
Yeah, yeah. Well, as far as I know, put it that way, as far as I know
1:47:49
And you're on the seat for 10 minutes and you get off, but then you're not thinking about whoever else is sat there before you
1:47:56
Yeah. Okay. Yeah, and it's a British thing. Yeah, it is. I've never really clocked this before, actually
1:48:05
Yeah. Okay, you're on. Yeah, I like that question. Thank you very much
1:48:09
I'll see what I can do. If you ring me again, don't say secretions. Okay, I'll try not to
1:48:13
Deposits. Deposits. Have a great day. Is deposits better? Deposits not better, is it? Deposits worse
1:48:19
No, no. Reminders. Souvenirs. Leftovers. Sheddings. It's 40... I'll stop now. This is disgusting
1:48:27
People are trying to have their lunch. Alan's in Wigan. Alan, question or answer? Speaking of lunch..
1:48:32
Oh, dear. It's a question, James. Carry on. I haven't done a lot of driving for a living
1:48:38
and driving up and down to Scotland over the years. I have noticed a lot of birds eating various bits of roadkill
1:48:44
And then I got thinking, the buds have taste buds. Well, this has got worse, not better, hasn't it
1:48:50
for people trying to eat their lunch? You're thinking what they're pecking away at the road
1:48:54
worms, fish. Now, I know people eat raw fish, but the buds have taste buds
1:48:59
What road has gone on? Where have you seen roadkill? Fish? Well, they eat fish as well
1:49:04
Oh, sorry, I thought we were just talking about roadkill. No, no. I was going to say, where have you been driving
1:49:10
Driving a hovercraft. That would be astonishing, wouldn't it, if you got fell off the back of a lorry, I suppose
1:49:16
Pretty much everything you eat, apart from seagulls, who eat ice cream, fresh and chips
1:49:20
but do buds have taste buds. Not just bud. I mean, you know that our dog, for example
1:49:28
and it might not be flavour. I don't know your dog. You don't know her, but, you know, you will soon
1:49:33
I'm about to introduce you. She turns her little nose up at dry food, you know
1:49:38
Yeah, yeah. And she'll come away, and she'll, like, look at us. thinking, well, if I just play this right
1:49:43
then I'll swap it for some wet food in a minute. And we don't, because we're very strict
1:49:48
I think Mrs. O'Brien does when I'm not around. So she can have wet food in the morning
1:49:51
and dry food in the evening. Otherwise, it's going to bankrupt me before we even start talking about vet spills
1:49:56
But there's a definite preference there. So why would birds, I know that birds aren't mammals
1:50:01
but why would birds be any different? Would it be a taste bud
1:50:06
I mean, so is the question about the literal anatomical existence of something akin to a mammalian taste bud
1:50:13
or is it just the question about whether they actively prefer some food to others
1:50:17
I prefer the mammalian. Yeah, OK. Do birds have anything like taste buds
1:50:22
I like it. It's a good question. 0345 6060 973. It's 12.16
1:50:28
James O'Brien on LBC. It is 18 minutes after 12, and you are listening to James O'Brien on LBC
1:50:37
in case you've forgotten. Mischar's underway. questions in need of answers. Why does
1:50:41
the type of milk you use to make your porridge a few porridge purists getting
1:50:47
in touch to say if you're using milk at all then you're not eating proper
1:50:51
porridge. It should just be water just water for your porridge but that's the question. Three different types of milk
1:50:59
three different rates of completion. Why? And staying in Scotland or with matters
1:51:05
Scottish, why is Scotland Yard called Scotland Yard? I've pretty much nailed
1:51:09
that, but there's a round of applause. Easy pickings, low-hanging fruit for you there
1:51:13
if you just want to sound more informed than I am, or more qualified
1:51:18
Why is the United Kingdom, apparently, the only country in the civilised world, that has fabric seats on public transport
1:51:25
instead of wipe-clean seats, like you get in a hospital? You know, you can wipe down everything in a hospital. You'd think public transport
1:51:33
would be a lot safer if it had wipe-clean up Hall Street, but it doesn't
1:51:39
And every other country does, according to Eve. It's been to all of them. It's been to all the countries
1:51:43
All the countries. And do birds have taste buds? 03456060973. Daniel's in Plymouth. Daniel, question or answer
1:51:53
Question, please, James. Carry on, Daniel. So, I do a lot of travelling with me employment and
1:51:59
I've noticed over a few years now that a lot of place names seem to double up. Yes
1:52:07
So, for example, you've got Southend in Essex, and then there's a Southend in Scotland
1:52:11
Yes. Or there's a witch church in Devon, the witch church just outside Cardiff
1:52:15
Yes. I was just wondering, who decides on the name? Is there a set limit you can have in the UK
1:52:20
Yeah, no one. Absolutely no one at all. Well I don know what it is now but the reason why this phenomenon exists you kind of provided the answer yourself without realising it Place names were derived usually from geographical features So for example
1:52:40
Lin, as in King's Lin. Lin is the Celtic word, Celtic word for a lake. A lot of Viking language
1:52:48
as well would be describing features and south end is obviously the south end of something
1:52:55
whether it's a piece of land or a piece of water the south end and if you're in um
1:53:01
you know going back a couple of thousand years and you're knocking around
1:53:05
essex um and you call something south end how the hell are you going to know that there's someone
1:53:10
up in scotland who's just used the same name to describe something as well so they're descriptive
1:53:15
They're descriptors, which means they're bound to be duplicated because the geographical features that the place names are derived from
1:53:23
Whit Church is a church, I don't know what Whit is, but Kidder Minster is a church on a hill
1:53:29
Kidder is an old word. There's only one Kidder Minster. But there could have been loads because it means a church on a hill
1:53:37
So it would be mad if it hadn't happened, if they hadn't been duplicated
1:53:41
If you were to start a new town now, which is kind of the subtext of your question
1:53:47
would anybody check to make sure there wasn't a town already called that? Yes
1:53:54
Yes. I mean, why do you think they call it Milton Keynes, Daniel
1:54:02
Oh, God knows all I know. It means Land of Roundabouts. It does, actually, in the original Latin
1:54:07
The Land of the Roundabouts. Milton Keynes. I think that the, I don't know, actually
1:54:14
but I've given you the half the first answer, right? So that's the geographical features provide the place name
1:54:22
So, of course, they're duplicated. So that's why are they duplicated. Whether or not in late, you know, early 21st century
1:54:32
is there any, I think wit means new. So which church would be new church
1:54:37
Alid's been in touch to say that the Welsh equivalent, The Welsh translation, indeed, of Wit Church in Cardiff would be Eglis Newid
1:54:44
and Newid there would be new. So if it's a literal translation, then Wit means new
1:54:50
But whether or not you can check now, I mean, when's the last time we named a town, Daniel
1:54:56
Not you and me, I mean, like, everyone. I know they've had a recent town just outside of Penrith called Shelford
1:55:06
Called what? Shelford. Shelford? Yeah. Well, Ford, F-O-R-D. Yeah. So that's probably linked to a geographical feature anyway
1:55:16
But what we don't know is whether anyone checks whether there's another Sherford anywhere
1:55:20
So that's the question. If Daniel and me started a new town tomorrow
1:55:25
do we have to clear the name with anyone? Yeah? Yeah, I can live with that
1:55:31
All right, that's it then. We're off. 23 minutes after 12 is the time
1:55:34
I actually really like that question. 0345 6060973 and we didn't even mention other countries
1:55:40
you just, you know, you go off to another country and just name it after your hometown, like York
1:55:44
well, of course, call it New York, lads shall we? Originally, of course, called
1:55:48
New Amsterdam, Keith, did you know that? Of course you did. Isn't there a They Might Be Giants song that addresses
1:55:54
New York, New Amsterdam, Istanbul Constantinople, I digress Wendy's in Poynton which is in Stockport, or the Port of Stock
1:56:02
Wendy, question or answer? Question, please Carry on, Wendy. Is it in Stockport or near Stockport, Pointon, technically speaking
1:56:10
It's near Stockport. Well, I apologise. I apologise. I wonder, what do you think, Pointon, where does the name Pointon come from
1:56:17
Pointon. I have no idea. Pointown, Pointown, no, nor do I now, but anyway, what's your question
1:56:22
Right, so I've got a dog, Pepper, who's half-colly, and whenever I play mouse-hogan, which is not very often
1:56:29
but when I do, she starts howling. Right. And we don't know why, and I've always wondered
1:56:34
and I wanted to ring you for about three years but never got round to it. Well, you've been very busy, Wendy
1:56:40
You've had a lot on. How often do you play the mouth organ
1:56:46
Not very often. Can you get a tune out of it? Do you need a party trick? Can you get a tune out of it
1:56:51
Well, no. Not really. We just play it and then she just howls and she's funnier than us playing it
1:56:57
Do you want to hear her? Yes. Have you got your mouth organ? Yeah
1:57:01
Thank you. Well, my daughter's here with a mouth organ so I can put the floor next to her
1:57:05
She better do it. Yeah, come on. And Petta's there as well. Petta's there
1:57:17
She's so hard. She's got stage fright. There, we got that. We got the howl
1:57:27
We got it. We got it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. We got the howl. She normally howls a lot louder
1:57:32
but I think she's a bit... She's got stage fright. It's not every day she's on national radio
1:57:39
Our dog does it with fire engines. Oh, yeah. So a fire engine goes past
1:57:46
and our dog absolutely howls like a wolf. You know, like a real..
1:57:51
It's the only time she ever does it. She doesn't even do it when she's chasing foxes around the garden
1:57:55
So it must be the same thing, right? Yeah, my friend's dog does it with a phone
1:58:01
She's the one who made me try out Pepper. Oh, I like it. Pepper with a P, not Petter
1:58:08
Yeah, Pepper with a P. Named after the famous cartoon character, I venture
1:58:13
No, actually, she had a peppery nose when she was born. She had like a speckled nose. No, she hasn't
1:58:18
That's nice. Just to be clear, Wayne has accused your daughter of faking that howl
1:58:22
I just, I believe that that was a... No, I know. That's just outrageous
1:58:26
I've got a recording. Outrageous. Fake howls. I've got a recording of her doing it, yeah
1:58:30
Yeah, I know you have. So it's probably, do they think it's another dog
1:58:34
Is that what's happening with the mouth organ? No offence to your mouth organ playing, but, you know
1:58:40
does she think it's another dog? No, I think it's more something to do with resonance or something
1:58:48
Like it's a pitch that she just has to howl. She does it with the recorder, but I can't find the recorder
1:58:56
Well, as in the recorder, as in London's burning, London's burning. Yeah, when you learn to play that
1:59:03
You haven't got a didgeridoo, have you? I haven't. Because I bet a didgeridoo would set her off as well
1:59:12
It could well do. We've set off quite a few other dogs, actually
1:59:16
Gary's been in touch. Caroline's been in touch. There's quite a few dogs now
1:59:20
Do they hold it too? No, they're not howling. We've set their dogs off with your mouth organ
1:59:25
Oh, really? Yeah. I mean, we may not get an answer we may not get an answer to this question, Wendy
1:59:32
but we've certainly amused ourselves Well, I'm really glad like I said, I wanted you in so long
1:59:39
I'm glad you did Shall I ask you your daughter's name or is she too cool
1:59:45
No, she's not too cool Maria Wendy and Maria there and Pepper
1:59:50
combining to create some radio gold but hopefully we'll actually get an answer to the question
1:59:55
And why do certain sounds make dogs howl? 0345 6060 9710. is the number that you need. Tom's in New Malden. Tom, question or answer
2:00:04
Question, please, James. Carry on. So, a good hen can lay one egg a day
2:00:10
so I'm just wondering if the egg is created fresh every day, or if there's sort of a descending line of eggs inside the hen
2:00:19
I think I read once that when a baby girl is born
2:00:27
Can that be right? That every egg she'll ever create is already inside her
2:00:33
Oh, okay. But is it, is it, is the, I get that. So does one come along and then grow into a full-sized egg over a period of time
2:00:41
Well, obviously the full-sized eggs aren't all inside the chicken when it's born
2:00:45
because they lay about an egg a day. So the tiny, tiny, tiny thing is in the, they're all in the chicken
2:00:51
Well, I mean, there's no reason to conclude that chickens are the same as humans
2:00:55
or that birds are the same as mout? That's two questions that hinge upon
2:00:58
No, no, no, no, no. But what I mean is the full-size egg comes out the hen every day
2:01:03
Correct. And then is a new one made from that point? Or is there sort of a half-ready one
2:01:09
You mean like Russian dolls? That's it, exactly, yeah. It's unlikely. They're not very big, these chickens, are they
2:01:15
Okay, so, all right. What is the production line inside the chicken
2:01:19
Yeah, exactly. Okay, that's a good question. We don't need pictures. We just need someone to describe it to us
2:01:25
Not at least because we're on the radio. And that's the second question today that sort of looks at the hinterland
2:01:31
between the bird world and the mammal world, isn't it? It's a little bit like the question about taste buds
2:01:38
We're taking a mammalian... Well, I took a mammalian principle and applied it to the bird world
2:01:43
I may have done so incorrectly. It may be completely different biology, but I doubt it
2:01:46
because, of course, we'd all have a common ancestor, you, me, and the chickens, and Pepper the dog at some point
2:01:51
crawled out of the primordial sludge and began the great evolutionary journey
2:01:56
that brought us all, Tom, to this moment. It's coming up to half past 12
2:02:01
Matt Hewitt is here with your headlines. James O'Brien on LBC. 12.32 is the time
2:02:08
Keith, can you get the news here? It's raining in Stourbridge. Sally's just been in touch
2:02:13
It's raining in Stourbridge. It's also not very hot in parts of Scotland at the moment as well
2:02:17
so I apologise for dedicating the first hour of the programme to heatwave-related conversations
2:02:23
but, you know, what can I do? I can't keep all the people happy all the time
2:02:27
Literally, I can't keep all of the people happy all of the time. And also, I think the heatwave, to be fair
2:02:32
is news even in areas that aren't very hot at the moment
2:02:36
given that parts of the country are on fire. It's all going on, as you know
2:02:42
As I've told you a couple of times already today, that situation in Suffolk that you heard in Matt's news bulletin
2:02:47
has been declared as a major incident. So thank goodness for the temporary light relief of Mystria
2:02:55
which continues. Gabriel's in Bow. Gabriel, question or answer? Good afternoon, James
2:02:59
It's a question, please. Carry on, Gabriel. I'd like to know, why at the Savoy do taxis and other cars
2:03:07
arrive on the right-hand side and leave on the right-hand side? Oh, I knew this once
2:03:13
We've done this a few times over the years. This is why we got rid of the repetition rule
2:03:17
because my memory's shot to pieces. I want to say, I've never actually stayed there
2:03:24
I've only ever photographed there, so it's not like I'm a regular. Is it? No, because this would apply to all hotels, wouldn't it
2:03:31
The side of the car that you're more likely to get out of so that the doorman can open the door for you
2:03:37
It's not that. But I thought that too, but every other hotel, like you say
2:03:41
every other forecourt is left-hand in and out. So the Savoy, when it was built, the doily car
2:03:47
It was the doily cart, wasn't it, who built it, I think. Just showing off random knowledge here that's not helping at all, aren't I
2:03:57
It was one of them. It was doily or cart, both of them. The theatre, the hotel was attached to the theatre
2:04:03
I've got it in my head that the hotel was attached to the theatre and the impresarios
2:04:08
No, it's not going to happen. I've got nothing, Gabriel. I'll put it. So what sort of photography do you do
2:04:13
Do you follow, just for fun, or is it your job? I changed the photograph of you last month at Lush
2:04:19
Oh, you! Oh, gosh, sorry, Gabriel. That was a lovely picture. Actually, it was a lovely evening as well, wasn't it
2:04:25
It was. It was cracky, wasn't it? It was a really nice evening. Yes, thank you. You're brilliant
2:04:28
Gabriel is a brilliant photographer. Does book covers, hangs around. What were you doing outside the Savoy, then
2:04:34
I've sometimes photographed in there, but it's not too often. But I've always thought whenever I arrive
2:04:38
why am I coming up this side of the road and then coming down the other? The only place in the United Kingdom
2:04:42
where we drive on the same ride that you do in France. Could it be a French thing
2:04:46
I hope you might get better as well, James, as well. Thank you. Nice one, Gabriel
2:04:50
Well played. 12.35 is the time. Why do we do it? Why do we do it
2:04:55
Chris is in Chiswick. Chris, question or answer? Answer, James. Carry on, Chris
2:05:00
So, you were right about Scotland Yard. So, Scotland Yard was where Scottish royalty ambassadors used to stay
2:05:07
during the Middle Ages when they were visiting the English court. When the Metropolitan Police was established in 1829
2:05:14
the first headquarters was built on that area the first so it was actually built in for Whitehall Place
2:05:22
but the entrance to the public was at Great Scotland Yard and the public then referred to it
2:05:28
if they were visiting the Metropolitan Police as they were going to Scotland Yard and it's kept its name as it's moved ever since
2:05:33
Yeah, qualifications? I used to be the head of communications at Scotland Yard
2:05:40
That'll do, nicely and that is a perfect example of what I promised
2:05:44
Austin we would do? As in get someone who sounds like they know what they're talking about
2:05:48
to confirm that my original answer was pretty much correct. Round of applause. Thank you
2:05:54
Round of applause for Chris. It's a big job that. Do you miss it
2:06:00
I do, actually, yeah. Can I imagine? It was a big and stressful job and
2:06:05
I led some big operations, including the 77 London Bombings response over the years
2:06:10
Good grief. Well, thank you for that. That's a huge thing to have undertaken
2:06:14
That round of applause feels a little bit inadequate now, Chris, but thank you. 12.36 is the time
2:06:20
We can cross that one off. It's not quite Ray Liotta territory, is it
2:06:23
Because it's a sort of 600-year-old story, that. And I'm pretty sure he wasn't there at the time
2:06:28
Claire's in rugby. Claire, question or answer? Oh, it's a question, please. Oh, is it
2:06:34
Well, it's to do with vision. And you know they talk about 2020 vision is perfect vision
2:06:39
No, I've never heard that. I'm joking, I'm joking I teasing you I probably felt a real idiot then No don be silly I the idiot always Well come on I just a stupid thing
2:06:53
Yes. How do they define perfect vision? I mean, and what scale is this
2:06:58
Is there sort of 20... I don't know, 2019 vision or 2050 vision
2:07:04
It's... What does it mean? I think... I think it's... Is it not the distance you stand from..
2:07:13
It's changed now because they've got all the technology and they can use magnifying glasses and stuff like that
2:07:20
But it's to do with how near to the eye chart you need to be to read it
2:07:31
So the way the eye chart is designed, if your vision is perfect
2:07:37
you should be able to read everything on it from 20 feet away
2:07:41
but what makes that perfect well it's just i mean they just decided that when they started
2:07:50
doing eye tests i mean someone might have vision technically that's better than 2020 vision which
2:07:54
would be described as 2019 vision or something like that oh i think i just can't it's how they decide
2:08:07
what makes it one thing or the other. Let's say normal. Normal. Normal vision
2:08:16
Not perfect vision. So you're 20 feet away and the standard then is
2:08:23
20, so that's what you... And some people would need to be
2:08:27
10 feet away or 30 feet away. They might be long-sighted or short-sighted
2:08:31
This isn't helping, is it? Well, sort of, but not quite. Don't be polite. Be honest. It's not helping at all
2:08:37
Well, I still don't... I just don't understand. No. No. And my explanation is possibly making things worse, not better
2:08:44
Oh, I'm not quite sure, to be quite honest. Well, there's my answer, really
2:08:49
You're not even sure whether it's making things clearer or not. That's how unclear we are now
2:08:53
Who knows what we... What are we even talking about? 2020 hindsight? 2020..
2:08:57
I mean, maybe other countries do it differently. I don't know. Don't make it more complicated
2:09:03
Let's just focus on this country, will we, for once? Honestly, we want..
2:09:08
I test sovereignty, and we want it now. OK, Claire, you're on
2:09:12
OK, 2020 vision. Why? What are we doing? What's that all about
2:09:16
My pen's run out of ink, but that's not your problem. 2020 vision. What does it mean
2:09:23
03456060973. So I know that one of them means you're standing 20 feet away
2:09:27
I don't know what the other one means. So that will be the answer. Tim's in Kingsland
2:09:31
Do you know where the name King's Lynn comes from, Tim? I'm guessing it's something to do with the fact
2:09:36
that it's very near to the King's estate. No, that's the King's bit, but the Lynn bit..
2:09:41
I said it about ten minutes ago, Ray. What's the point of me dropping all this harder knowledge
2:09:46
into conversation if it's not landing with you? I don't know. I must have missed it
2:09:51
Lynn. Lynn is the Celtic Celtic word for a big old lake
2:09:55
Ah, OK. You don't sound very impressed or interested. No, I am very impressed
2:10:00
That's fine. I'm reading some lovely books at the moment set in your neck of the woods by a writer
2:10:05
I only discovered her on holiday. There's a called Ellie Griffiths. Have you come across her
2:10:09
No, I haven't, no. It's beautiful stuff. Really, really evocative of that North Norfolk coastline
2:10:13
and the salt marshes and the areas where the land meets the sea
2:10:17
They're crimes. They're whodunits, but they've got a lovely archaeological subtext and loads and loads of geographical detail
2:10:24
Anyway, I digress. Question or answer? Answer, James. Carry on. Well, I've phoned out, I've got one answer
2:10:31
but I could possibly do two answers if you... No, that's not allowed, mate
2:10:35
I don't make the rules, sorry. I wish you could. I don't know, I mean, they're so strict about it
2:10:39
Do birds have taste buds? Yeah. Is the answer to that. And the answer is yes, they do
2:10:44
God. However, for most birds, their taste buds are located either at the back of their tongue
2:10:50
or the back of their throat. So, essentially, they have to have
2:10:55
a godful of what they're eating before they know what it tastes like
2:11:00
Oh, okay. So that means they will have things they prefer to other things
2:11:04
So if you put five bowls of food in front of your average bird, they would go to one bowl time after time after time
2:11:11
They do have... So their taste is not as developed as ours
2:11:15
So they can distinguish between things like hot and... Like temperature, hot and cold
2:11:20
and like sweet and sour, kind of basic sweet and sour. But they don't have, they can't distinguish, like if they eat a hot pepper, they can eat, that doesn't burn them at all
2:11:31
They can eat that with no drama whatsoever. You know yourself. Qualifications
2:11:37
I am founder and trustee of Sally's Duck Rescue, which is one of the biggest waterfowl rescues in the UK
2:11:44
And we are surrounded by about 500 birds on a daily basis
2:11:48
Where are you based? Whereabouts in Lenny are you based? We're in Marshall and St James, which is literally just outside Kingsley
2:11:53
I've spent a lot of time in your neck of the woods. I've never never come across your... Do people visit
2:11:58
We're not we're not generally open to the public. Oh well that's why
2:12:02
That's why I've never visited then as a member of the public
2:12:06
We can arrange visits if you feel like you want to come along and meet some ducks and chickens and various other friends
2:12:15
It's got you a round of applause. I love that. Nice work
2:12:19
No worries. man. And good luck. Seriously, it's important work that you're doing. 12.43
2:12:24
is the time. But Sal's in Paddington. Sal, question or answer? I've got
2:12:28
an answer for you, James. Carry on, Sal. It's about place names. Good man. There
2:12:32
is no authority that names all places in England or Scotland or Wales
2:12:40
I didn't think there would be. Just through sort of observation. But what are your
2:12:44
qualifications? I'm a historian and a linguistic philosopher, but we've tried it several times and it's never
2:12:50
actually quite worked. Well, we've tried to introduce some sort of register or... Yes
2:12:54
and even that doesn't quite cover it. So, the Doomsday Book, basically, the reason that we
2:12:59
still have lots of different place names is because they didn't Latinise everything, so they
2:13:03
wasted that opportunity. Was that one of the secondary reasons for doing the Doomsday Book
2:13:09
Yes. To get rid of duplication of place names? To make sure that when they were actually allocating
2:13:16
the taxes paid. You couldn't have one place claiming to have paid..
2:13:21
Of course, yes. So, hang on, we're in... So you'd have the lads in Essex. Oh, here you go. Here's your money, King William the Conqueror
2:13:28
Here's your... And then all the ones in Scotland would be going, Oh, no, we've already paid. We've already paid
2:13:32
And on its way to Winchester if it happens to go missing well there you go It not our fault You have some quality accent work there as well Carry on sir So we then tried it again
2:13:44
when we started changing all of the names over and trying to anglicise more things
2:13:52
That didn't work either because basically the different areas kept saying, well, my heraldry's on this
2:14:01
so we've stuck this flag here. So we do have the College of Arms in Westminster
2:14:07
that decides place names attached to heraldry, but not on actual land itself
2:14:13
So if me and Daniel, and now you, were setting up a town, we could call it whatever we wanted
2:14:18
We could even call it Kidderminster. Yes. There's only one Kidderminster. Round of applause, great work
2:14:25
Now go on, carry on, another nugget in common. So local government tends to decide on street names, etc., etc
2:14:31
Act of Parliament can do things that involve cities, but only after the Crown has given a cent for cities, etc
2:14:39
And the closest we've got is topographical decision-making, but that's not even definitive
2:14:46
That's only what is considered the most agreed-upon name, and often they use local consultation to get that on maps
2:14:53
Good Lord, what a comprehensive answer. Have a round of applause. Great stuff, Sal. Thank you
2:14:59
12.45 is the time. James O'Brien on LBC. 12.48 is the time
2:15:05
You're listening to James O'Brien on LBC. Quite a lot to get through
2:15:09
I've experimented with the format today. I don't know if you've noticed. I've been not mentioning all the things
2:15:16
that are still waiting for answers. I think I did it at quarter past 12. I haven't done it since
2:15:20
So I'm just experimenting with the format. It's not that I completely forgot at all. Perish the thought
2:15:25
Mitch is in Southend. What did you think of my South End accent a minute ago, Mitch
2:15:30
I thought you were a native, actually. Yeah, I basically sounded like I could be living next door to you
2:15:36
Go on, question or what a horrible thought. It's an answer. Carry on
2:15:43
The Howling Homelica Hounds. Oh, yes. Oh, I like that. Maybe my first band. Go on
2:15:51
Basically, they're hearing a howl and they've responded to it. Is it that
2:15:55
join in. It's very primal for them, because they're basically wolves, and they hear a
2:16:01
howl, and they want to join in. They hear, there's a lot more overtones than we can hear
2:16:07
and they can hear everything within it, and they're just, oh, oh, who's calling me
2:16:11
And there's no rhyme or reason to it, really, because, you know, some dogs, you could have
2:16:16
ten dogs all listening to exactly the same things, and they might howl at ten different triggers
2:16:20
That's right, because like humans, they've got different ranges of hearing. Even some breeds have got better hearing than other dogs as well
2:16:29
Qualifications? 30 years of being a harmonica player. Hang on a minute, Mitch
2:16:35
How does that qualify you to talk about dogs' hearing? Because it's a really common question in the harmonica community
2:16:42
Is it? Is it? From beginners, yeah. I've had an awful lot of harmonica forums
2:16:47
and I run one on Facebook. Wow. Why does my dog howl
2:16:51
Well, I'm a beginner harmonica player. Why does my dog howl whenever I'm playing
2:16:55
And it's not criticism. It's just they're responding. So you could be playing beautiful music, could you
2:17:01
Yeah. And off you would go. If they don't like it, they will run a hide. And you're a professional harmonica player
2:17:07
There can't be many of those around. Oh, there's quite a few of us. I say I'm professional, but I was in a band for about 12 years
2:17:17
I'm in a new band at the moment. When's your next gig? We're on a summer hiatus
2:17:23
No, fair enough. I was going to give you an advert. I'm not doing gotcha. No, fair enough. We've got nothing in the book at the moment
2:17:27
Have you got it with you at the moment? Can we have a quick blast? Okay, it might last the metres
2:17:32
but I'll give you a quick blast, okay? Yeah, please. He's good
2:17:42
You're really good. All right. It got me there. I got one to set me off then
2:17:48
That's weird, isn't it? Have a round of applause. There's the howling. Lovely stuff
2:17:52
Thanks a lot. Thank you. I tried, actually. I tried to play lots of things as a kid
2:17:56
but one thing I really wanted to be able to play was the harmonica. Absolutely no choice
2:18:00
I bet he could teach. You know when you meet people and they always say, oh no, anyone can sing if they have it
2:18:05
I could teach anybody to sing. No, not me. Same with Tai Chi
2:18:09
I've never told you that story. I don't know that I ever will. I tell, yeah
2:18:16
I did. I dropped it into a... I've told you the story. Accidentally told the story
2:18:20
I've dropped it into a full disclosure, Eleanor. I've accidentally told the Tai Chi story in a full disclosure episode that hasn't come out yet
2:18:27
Oh, no. I wonder if I can get it removed in time. Tiago's in Bristol
2:18:31
This means it will be a food-related answer. Oh, hi, James. It is an answer
2:18:36
Thanks for having me on. You're very welcome. Yeah, so that's about the porridge and the different absorption rate of the milk
2:18:44
Well, there's a thing. Overall, the difference in fat between semi-skinned and skin milk
2:18:51
it is considerable for our mouth feel, but on the molecular level for the oats, it's quite irrelevant
2:18:57
It's not so much about the fat preventing the water to be absorbed
2:19:02
but more about how much water is available for the oats to absorb them
2:19:09
Yes. Yes. So, to remind ourselves of the order in which it went, the semi-skimmed milk will have more water in it than the oat milk
2:19:17
Yes, exactly. The semi-skimmed should have more water available for the oats
2:19:22
And actually, what I love about this answer is that Emily and Isaac will find it very easy to understand
2:19:26
So, the milk that is absorbed most is the milk that's got the most water in it
2:19:33
Exactly. So, skimmed milk being the first semi-skimmed, then the second, and oat milk would have variable results
2:19:39
because there's a lot of particulates... Different types of oat milks. I mentioned that at the top of the..
2:19:43
And then, of course, if they wanted to do another experiment, you could do a pan with water in it
2:19:49
and that would be faster even than the semi-skimmed. Absolutely. Water, as always, the universal kind of benchmark
2:19:55
when it comes to those things. And it also depends on the type of the oat ring
2:20:00
If they just rolled ones, the more shredded type, because then capillary action plays a part
2:20:05
on how fast the water gets pulled in. Qualifications? uh well i grew up on their farm and used to work in the food advertising that'll do nicely
2:20:15
thank you no thank you tiago i love that one so judy's in belsize park judy question or answer
2:20:20
uh it an answer about driving on the right hand side like the savoy in front of the Savoy Hotel and the Savoy Theatre Marvellous It was apparently
2:20:32
I was told it was apparently traditional for grand ladies in coaches
2:20:38
to always sit on the right-hand side in the coach, which meant that when the coach drew up
2:20:46
at the theatre entrance, the driver of the coach could open the door
2:20:52
and the lady could step directly out onto the pavement and the entrance into the theatre
2:21:00
Sounds good to me. And then I suppose we don't know why that wouldn't be true
2:21:04
at all other theatres as well because the roads don't work like that. The Savoy has that lovely little cul-de-sac
2:21:09
which gives you an opportunity to do this which is not something that any other venue in London could do
2:21:14
Well, the reason for that is that area in front of the Savoy
2:21:18
but it's a private area. So they can make the rules. So they can make the rules themselves
2:21:23
Yes, it's almost like so the hotel is kind of set back
2:21:27
from the main road and they've made the equivalent of a kind of
2:21:31
front garden terrace area in front. Qualifications? I worked at the Savoy Theatre
2:21:38
many, many years ago before you were born. How lovely. How do you know when I was born
2:21:43
Well, you didn't you were not born in 1960 very true well played um and so and i always had wondered about it and i asked people there
2:21:56
and that's what i was told that's lovely what were you doing at the theater were you performing or
2:22:01
were you oh god no um i was stage managing well that's not a million miles away from performing
2:22:08
is it in fact in that era if i can call it an era without being rude quite often your your asms at
2:22:14
least would be part of the cast, wouldn't they? No, I blagged
2:22:18
my way. I always got, when I first started as an ASM, I
2:22:22
always said I'd do small parts, but I never, ever, ever set foot
2:22:26
on a stage. Well, it's not too late, Judy. I think, I think. Anyway
2:22:32
that's what I was told. Round of applause for Judy. That'll do. Nice answer
2:22:38
Thank you, Judy. Sam's in Manchester. Sam, question or answer? It is an answer
2:22:42
James. Carry on. Okay, so it's about the 20-20 vision. Yes. And 20-20 vision is actually in Americanism
2:22:49
So in England, we use an equivalent, which is 6'6". Oh. But everybody knows it
2:22:54
Is that metres versus feet, is it? Yes, they use centimetres and metres
2:22:59
We use feet and inch. Yeah, okay. And that's the only difference. But what does it mean
2:23:03
What do the numbers mean? So it's how we measure somebody's vision on a standard Snellen chart
2:23:09
So obviously the big letter at the top, our equivalent is 660
2:23:14
And as it goes smaller, your vision's obviously better, and the number reduces on the right-hand side
2:23:21
So you can have 2010 or 2030 vision? Yes, of course you can, yes
2:23:26
Just because I'm a bit daft with numbers, Sam, what is 2010
2:23:31
2010 is better than 2020, so it'll be 20 metres over 20 centimetres
2:23:36
So 2020 is like normal or average in a sense rather than perfect
2:23:41
Exactly, yes. You can get better than 2020. Like I say, our equivalent is 6'6"
2:23:46
but we can get 6'5", and better than that as well. 6'7"
2:23:50
I've got to stop doing that. No, stop it. No, stop it
2:23:55
Don't do the gestures either. Don't do the actions, honestly. Even the kids don't think that's cool anymore
2:24:00
Qualifications? I'm a domicile really spent an optician. Blimey, bless you. Have a round of applause
2:24:06
Thank you, sir. That was lovely. Perfect answer as well. Beautifully delivered. And what a lovely giggle you have
2:24:10
Victoria, we're not going to get a question about the satin seats. Satin? Vinyl seats
2:24:14
Fabric seats on buses. But we can squeeze in, Victoria. Unless you get in now. 0-3-4-5-6-8-7-9-10-3
2:24:19
Victoria's in Dumfries. Victoria, question or answer? Answer. Carry on. It is about chickens and eggs and so forth
2:24:28
Phone line's going. Phone line's going. I'm going to hang in there. Go on. Yeah
2:24:32
Yeah, the problem is a confusion between the word egg and egg cell
2:24:37
Okay, so you were absolutely right. Oh, yeah, you're right. So all the egg cells are in the chicken when the chick is born, but not the eggs
2:24:44
Absolutely. And so they are born with all of the egg cells, the same as the human females
2:24:52
Yes. But it takes about 18 to 20, 24 hours for the egg cell to be coated with the egg yolk
2:25:01
So every egg starts from scratch after the last egg has been laid
2:25:08
Yes, or... You haven't got one that's like just sort of coming up to the..
2:25:13
No, so it is a continuous process. There are some chickens which lay two eggs a day
2:25:19
and so the process is continuous, and it starts, but from start to finish, it's about 18 to 20 hours
2:25:25
And so, and if you do egg cells are released at the same time
2:25:30
that your two egg yolks in the same one. And if you want to see an egg cell on top of the egg yolk
2:25:37
look for the little sort of different dots. Why would I want to see that
2:25:42
What? You'll see a little dot on the top of the egg yolk
2:25:46
and it always faces upwards. Well, I never... Oh, oh! Qualifications? Okay
2:25:54
What are your qualifications, Victoria? Biology teacher in class, two or three years ago
2:25:58
my husband declared that he wants to keep chickens, so I did my research about chickens. Another extra fact for you
2:26:04
chickens, they start their life with two ovaries, but only one of them develops properly
2:26:10
and the majority of them are with left ovary only is functioning and releasing egg cells
2:26:15
Extraordinary. So, here you are. Well, that is an excellent answer. Oh, God
2:26:22
Okay, yes it is. You've listened to this show before. You must have been expecting that
2:26:27
Have a round of applause. Yes, I was. but I didn't make that good myself. You missed the extraordinary, to be fair, Victoria
2:26:32
I gave you two for the price of one there, honestly. No extra charge
2:26:38
Would you like a game, Victoria? Oh, yes, please. Right, send her a game
2:26:42
There you go. What an excellent prize. That is it from me for another day
2:26:46
If you list any of the show, you can listen back on our free Global Player app or the LBC app
2:26:50
where you can stay up to date with all the latest news videos and opinions. Podcasts galore, including James O'Brien Daily
2:26:54
You've got to listen to the podcast now, the Full Disclosure podcast, because in one of them, I share some clues about my Tai Chi story
2:27:00
that I've sworn never to share with you. Download the official LBC app for free from your app store now
2:27:06
Coming up at four on LBC, it's Tom Swarbrick. But now, standing in for Sheila, it's Asma Mia
2:27:10
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