Sunday, September 27, 2009

Good Old Beeb

You have to laugh, don't you?

My BBC nickname which I registered to use on the BBC Gardener's World blog (which isn't the most scintillating read anyway) has been reset as it has been considered 'offensive'.

I can't copy and paste the email as at the bottom it says that the contents are confidential.

My reply, however, is not.

"Dear BBC moderators,
Is your moderation automated or is it just lunatic? You have obviously never visited the Paris street Rue Mouffetard. It's a good job I'm not from Scunthorpe, Penistone or Lightwater and wanting to use those in my nickname.
I won't bother using your rather over-moderated website again, and look forward to telling everyone about it on my blog, where people have only ever known me as HappyMouffetard, and don't seem too offended by me.
Yours,
HappyMouffetard (a name I have been using online for around 10 years, and won't be changing)."

Bless them

14 comments:

Arabella Sock said...

Snork! How hilarious. I'm afraid the dear Beeb can be rather zealous in their moderation of some things whilst allowing very nasty and unpleasant postings in others.

I absolutely love your name.. I know the Rue Mouffetard in Paris and I thought it was the best choice of blog names!

I know there was always a problem about posting the word fuchsia on the gardening sites so that posters have had to say fushcia when referring to the plant.

Liz said...

The Beeb are fantastic, I especially love their 'unbiased' news reporting... Nup, not biased in the slightest.. At all...

*snort*

Penistone is always a great one, I may well start my own blog about it...

(I live in Sheffield btw, so could easily claim to be from Penistone, I lived close enough a few years ago)

Lucy Corrander said...

The mind boggles.

And it's sent me off on a tangent. Exactly why I needed to read poetry over the telephone this evening may disappear into the mists . . . but I did . . . so I grabbed a book of Thomas Hardy's poetry at random and found myself reading this . . .

REMINISCENCES OF A DANCING MAN

Who now remembers Almack's balls -
Willis's sometimes named -
In those two smooth-floored upper halls . . .


At which point, I was so overcome with splutters, I couldn't carry on properly. Moral - don't read poetry at random . . . and certainly never read Thomas Hardy to the BBC.

Lucy

Joanne said...

Life never ceases to amaze. I got bored with the Gardeners World blog and Gardeners World program some months ago. I had watched Gardeners World for over 20 years but couldn't be bothered with this latest series or presenters.

Victoria Summerley said...

Typical BBC! They're so busy trying not to offend people, that they manage to annoy absolutely everyone.

Gail said...

Happy...I love your moniker! gail

VP said...

Cue for a song:

Don't go changing... we love you just the way you are

Dawn/LittleGreenFingers said...

Have I led a very sheltered life? I'm struggling to know what is offensive about the term. I think part of my education is lacking - this may be true as I guessed incorrectly that I certain term was a method of cooking Japanese noodles. It has taken me all weekend to recover from the image Google brought up at its mention. Definitely no noodles, or culinary techniques involved.

Juliet said...

There used to be someone posting on the Beeb message boards with the username Crackintackle. When they changed to the new moderated boards they suddenly noticed this and told her (yes, it was a her) that she couldn't use this name. She pointed out that she'd been using it on their boards for years and no-one had ever objected, but they had decided it was offensive and they refused to undecide.

I suggested she register for the new boards as Tackincrackle - she did, just to see whether they would notice, I think - she didn't hang around for long after that.

I didn't sign up to be able to comment on their blog, btw, because of this clause in their site terms:

"You hereby waive all moral rights or similar rights now existing or created in the future in any part of the world in respect of any User Contribution and grant to us the non-exclusive, royalty-free worldwide right to use any name, user name, screen name, likeness, photograph, signature and/or biographical material submitted to us by you"

which I thought seemed an awful cheek.

Wendy said...

stupid american here - I also don't get it... Why would it be offensive?

Funny about the tackincrackle!

HappyMouffetard said...

Thanks for your comments. Call me naive, but it did take me a while to figure out what could possibly cause offence. It most certainly isn't meant to.

Juliet - perhaps I should spend more time reading small print - that's rather scary!

Frances said...

I still don't get what is offensive about your name, but find the phrase awful cheek amusing. We cry on about not having gardening shows here in the US, no G in HGTV anymore and how you in the UK have so many resources. Didn't know you had to sign away your moral rights! Good luck to some beans on his new venue, must check it out. :-)
Frances

Kat Wolfdancer said...

Anytime someone cheeky enough to inform me that I give up my moral rights, ain't so. And I read this: "was a method of cooking Japanese noodles." as: "was a method of cooking Japanese beetles." I sometimes have a reading disorder which has always --mostly-- provided me with a great source of amusement. I'm so glad you're cooking noodles and not beetles.

>^,,^<

Bay Area Tendrils said...

Catching up on my reading, so just getting round to this post. Again, I'm laughing and chatting out loud...to myself ~ you bring out a bit of the loonie in me. A good thing.
One of my faves on YouTube is David Bowie live at the Beeb singing 'Wild is the Wind.' But I'll consider a boycott of ALL things Beeb after hearing of this slight.
Penistone? Really??