Apolitical dunce

We went to the Lawrence Batley Theatre to see Our Friends in the North on Thursday . The play was pretty good. It was first written in 1982 and this is a special 25 year anniversary production, a timely reminder of the origins and ramifications of political corruption. The story is quite a bit different from the t.v. version– there is loads about Rhodesia, which doesn't even get mentioned in the BBC adaptation. My friend reckons this is because Mugabe is all the media's fault as they bigged him up. Well I can't remember that amount of detail from the time, but it is interesting the way things get edited and distorted, innit?

I actually found it more depressing than the telly screenplay because, I suppose, of the politics and how much more apparent it was that things are just the same now – there was a theme running through that this was the beginning of political disillusionment among ordinary people, but I wonder if that is true. There's a lot of talk nowadays about apathy and alienation which leads to the British people largely accepting things, and not standing up for what they believe is right; they'd rather have a good winge (see non smoking law for details, as previously discussed) than change things. But with a very few exceptions, I think it's been that way for a long time.

We have currently been watching the BBC version of Our Friends in the North on DVD. This weekend we watched the episode covering 1984, the Miner's strike and all that. This made me think again what a bastard Thatcher was. Why does everyone have this rosy glow about what life was like under the Tories? I mean, Labour are just as shit but what happened to the miners was totally criminal – how could people vote that woman in again after what she did to them? Well, I guess they got their comeuppance with the poll tax riots; this really was the last straw for a lot of people. When the government starts upsetting middle class grannies, they really have to start taking notice so Gordy watch out! People can see past their shiny beads eventually if they're pushed hard enough!

Polish car mystery

I visited the relatively new Polish in Huddersfield a couple of days ago. It's funny going in there, because it's like going to a foreign country. I was the only person who spoke English. It's also funny because some of the brands they sell are familiar, such as knorr, but the packaging is all Polish. Mind you, I saw that most shoppers were buying crisps and other such stuff.

I have also noticed a new bar in Huddersfield which I think is Polish, and there seem to be a lot of young Polish people in the town, making me wonder if they are attending the University. I was musing with Phil yesterday, saying it was strange with all these Eastern Europeans moving in that I don't actually know any (apart from the wife of a work colleague who is from the Czech Republic). When I was a kid I had friends whose families were Polish and Ukrainian and I sometimes went to their clubs for dances and stuff. It made us think about that and how those earlier generations became integrated into the rest of British society, whereas the young people coming over now perhaps don't plan to stay so don't mix as much. I don't know for sure, but maybe this is the case.

A few weeks ago I started to notice Polish cars on the morning commute, which made me wonder about the economics of driving a car overland – surely it's not cost effective in these days of cheap flights or indeed coach travel? Couldn't quite get my head round that. The only thing I thought possibly is that because it is so much cheaper to buy a car in the rest of Europe that this makes it worthwhile bringing your old one over rather than buying one in England. If there's any Eastern Europeans who now live in England reading this, perhaps you could help me out.

Posh it up

There is a growing trend for posh shops in the town where I live, which seems to be accelerating of late, particularly along Market street. As well as Lupino and Rose that has just opened selling jewels and other things you don't need, there is a new jeans shop called Sage & Onion which is far too expensive – about £160 for a pair of jeans, so I can't see it lasting that long! Together with Kloggs and Dynamite which opened a few weeks ago, that makes three trendy clothes shops now. Then there's Ruby Shoesday* which has moved across the road, and a total of three jewelry shops. Still, at least two of these are run by the people who make the stuff.

Hebden has always been full of creative people, but now I guess they reckon there's a market to sell their stuff here so they're opening retail outlets. I notice a lot more people coming into the town at weekends now to buy things other than chips. It might also be that the big cities are getting too expensive for small independents to afford the rents. I think it's quite good for the town, even if some of the stuff is a bit pricey.

Mind you, I can imagine lots of wingeing about it! It's like when Hebden was on the Politics Show last weekend. The article was mainly about the town going plastic-bag free, but they also mentioned other initiatives such as the plastic recycling and the Alternative Technology Centre. Although the main article was on the local segment of the show, there was a short link from the national studio in London who described Hebden Bridge as 'glorious'!

During the interviews with our Mayor, Nader Fekri and two of the Bag Ladies, I was thinking I bet they've blocked the street off to stop the undesirables and nay sayers (i.e., locals) wandering up during filming. I can think of a few people who will detest the fact that the town is getting more interesting, famous and prosperous!

*See Standing Shoes only for an amusing anecdote relating to this shop