A Thin Time

The Lesley Riddoch Podcast

Lesley Riddoch and Pat Joyce

Political Chat, News, Political Commentary, Scottish Politics, Politics, Scottish Independence, Uk Politics, Society & Culture

4.8 • 259 Ratings

🗓️ 7 January 2025

⏱️ 65 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

It's welcome back to the podcast after our Christmas and New Year break.
We kick off by reflecting on how we both spent Hogmanay in our different ways, Lesley's island sojourn sounds affy braw.
Much criticism has been levelled at BBC Scotland in particular for its pallid Hogmanay programming and Lesley takes the opportunity to compare the "official" media offerings with the work of the late Martyn Bennett and the Grit Orchestra. Suffice to say the authorised ones don't stand the comparison well.....It seems now is the time for a complete rethink on BBC and STV Hogmanay fare.
We also discuss the cancellation of the official Edinburgh celebrations. Is it time for the capital to have a complete rethink ?
Martyn Bennett's music and Danny MacAskill's cycling on the Cuillin - 81 million views!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQ_IQS3VKjA
Grit Orchestra gig - just two seats left!!

https://tickets.glasgowlife.org.uk/34209/34210

Lesley talks about her new, self filmed, series of short videos she's filming on her travels around Scotland.
Lesley also reflects on the recent funeral of 'John the Bird' Chester on Eigg.
https://x.com/LesleyRiddoch/status/1876598275693859210
Anas Sarwar in his most recent speech talked about reducing the number of quangos but was somewhat less than comprehensive in how he would do this and even less specific on what a Labour administration would cut other than reducing the number of Health Boards.
However is there a kernel of truth in Sarwar's statement? Has the growth of quangos led to the creation, as Robin McAlpine said, of " A feudal system of nested fiefdoms each insulated from the transparency and accountability nominally radiating from the one above"?
We also discuss Sarwar's appearance on Good Morning Scotland where Laura Maxwell grilled him on his stances on the 2 Child Benefit Cap, Winter Fuel Allowance, and the WASPI women.
We also discuss Neil Mackay's recent Herald article analysing the growth in support for Scottish independence as UK Labour tanks in the polls.
Is the SNP in a fit state to profit from this? Is it radical enough to get independence over the line?
Listener Leslie Wilson got in touch after our chat on swimmer Duncan Scott to highlight the television coverage-lack of- of Bruce Mouat's champion curling rink. We discuss.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This is a thin time in Celtic culture between worlds, between one year and another.
0:06.0	And we kind of pick that theme up actually unintentionally reflecting on what proper Hogmanais could be like.
0:12.0	Thankful that someone has finally made such a gaff of the Edinburgh Hogmane privatisation
0:17.0	that surely a new Labour Council will have a different offer for next year.
0:21.8	Thinking too about lost friends, the Hebrideon Funeral and Egg I've just come back from
0:26.6	and the incredible way that that is all conducted with great feeling.
0:31.7	So a lot of that, a lot less of Elon Musk, nothing of Keir Starmour,
0:36.4	and actually a little bit of Anna Sorwar.
0:38.4	Those are the headlines. Now for the podcast.
0:44.8	Hi, John's and welcome to the first Leslie Ridic podcast of 2025.
0:50.5	Hooray! Yes. We made it.
1:00.2	Yeah, gosh, yeah. We made it through New Year, Hugmanee, and we made it through nerdy. And, you know, a lot of people have been asking Leslie because we missed the last
1:06.0	podcast prior to Christmas because you, and I know somebody complained about this when I, because
1:13.4	I did the tweet and I'm afraid you get slaughtered for it when I use Scots when I say she's
1:19.0	no affy wheel and somebody says, and what language is this? Oh, you're joking. Really? Oh, no,
1:24.2	why do you look at the replies? Oh, God.
1:28.0	It was the, and I made my, I don't know why I do, but again, it was a complaint about the fact I wrote in Scots on that, which I thought was inappropriate.
1:38.0	And that came back.
1:39.3	But so, how you doing after being no affy wheel?
1:43.6	See, I thought it was affy neay-wheel, but there you go.
1:46.0	You know, fine, it's a really strange, strange thing.
1:50.0	It was, you know, lots of people have had lurgies.
	...

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