And On That Note... 2

I also read the Agyness Deyn article. Not much to say because there was so little said. A lot about Katie Grand*, her other friends and about Rochdale. And modelling, duh...

And er, not much else. Actually, Deyn didn't get on my nerves half as much as Peaches but it was more the comment at the end of the article that made my rage barometer go off the scales.

"Agyness Deyn is more than just a pretty face"

Read this statement. Now read it again. And again. Think about the ways in which Agyness is NOT just a pretty face... erm.... thin body? Sorry love, but apart from a couple of comments about stick-thin models (of which she is not one, as no bones show and her arms are not like twigs to which I will say my only kudos) you've got nothing about you! You flounce around tea-parties! In pink tea dresses! The only reason this one's famous is because of a.) her name (FYI, it's an anagram of "Deny Gayness") and b.) her style, which is slightly ill-informed but then I like a more tailored, smart-casual look, so what do I know?!

Katie Grand - for those who don't know, she's the editor of bi-annual fashion magazine Pop which is influential in certain circles. I would have been interested just to read it just once to be nosy but we're not that cultured up north. Sorry, but you've gotta admit that we're not!

Peaches

I don't know why I did it, but yesterday I thought I'd read an article and interview about Peaches Geldof - you know, daughter of Bob who ran away to get married in Vegas, at 19, while only knowing her husband for a month previously (half of which was on Facebook or MySpace, so does that really count?)

Anyway, I don't know if anyone else out there has braved reading this article but it's full of contradictions and hypocritical behaviour. For instance, she claims to not respect the media for the way that she's been treated yet she has become a journalist. And then she goes on to say that she would like deep, meaningful articles but openly admitted to asking stupid questions about cheese in some of her articles.

Hmm.... I think the thing that ticked me off the most is when Peaches said that she'd been offered a place to study English Literature at the University of London and yet smugly said that she'd deferred for a year because she wanted to live the high life in New York. Oh god, I think I nearly died. I don't know what anyone else thinks, but is there a distinct.... smell of being a spoiled brat? Is that just me?

A lot of people have to work madly hard and grind themselves into the ground to get to where they are but Peaches seems to have glided through everything with such ease. I think this is like the episode of the Simpsons (yes, yes, I know, but it's a good reference point) when Homer meets Frank Grimes. Now, if I'm Frank and she's Homer, I'll eventually electrocute myself with rage because of the utter frustration that I feel from seeing someone glide through life without any sort of work involved what-so-ever. To quote: "You're what's wrong with America today!!" or maybe "You've got the house, the family and lobsters for dinner and all I have to show for my years of hard work is a briefcase and this haircut!!"

I'm angry, super-angry. I don't like sleb culture* anyway, but it's weird.... In another section of the paper there was an article about people being snobs towards the working classes and getting into Uni (er, college in America, right?) I think maybe Peaches got there because of who she is rather than what she is. And that's the worst thing about sleb culture. If you're not known, no-one wants to know. Argh!!

*Sleb Culture - Well, it sounds better than Celebrity Culture doesn't it? Actually I don't mind some of them because some are more genuine than others... I hate the ones that are only famous because of their parents....

30 Rock: Or, Why Sitcoms From the UK Are Rubbish

Over the holidays (hope you had a lovely one guys!) I've been enjoying the re-runs of the first series of 30 Rock. And it's brilliant. At first I turned my nose slightly, but I'm in the habit of giving things a good go before I give up and didn't want to do it an injustice based on the pilot episode.

And guess what? I've fallen in love with its odd, completely weird storylines and quirky humour. Tina Fey, who also created the show, is great as Liz Lemon, the long-suffering head writer and producer of "TGS With Tracy Jordan", a late night comedy programme that is, so I've heard, a stab at Saturday Night Live... But you rarely get to see the show itself unless something goes disastrously wrong (normally involving fireworks - hilarity!) It tends to focus on what goes on behind the scenes, and to be honest there's not much work going on. For instance, Jenna, who used to be the star of the show before Tracy came in and took everything over, is focusing on her film acting debut in the "Rural Juror" or "Rerr Jerr" as it's referred to - no one seems to be able to understand what she's saying. But my favourite line comes from sex-crazed executive (of both this part of NBC and the microwave division) Jack Donoghy, who is trying to think of things to say during a speech. Cue the line: "squeezing the juice from his mind-grapes". Oh lordie, how I laughed!!

The bad thing is it's making me think of how stupidly awful most British comedy is. Okay, there must be trashy shows in the USA too but you never see them. All the American shows I've seen have had something positive going for them while all we can come up with is reality show after reality show, things about dysfunctional families (although I'll admit that Outnumbered is brilliant - catch it if you can) and the rest of the programming seems to be dedicated to sitcoms about people who are old enough to know better. What a bore! My UK viewing is restricted to University Challenge and documentaries, and I'm increasingly not watching TV at all! Please can someone in this country come up with something... you know... good?

Oh, and bring back 30 Rock sharpish!!