leading britain's conversation this is a podcast from lbc james o'brien mystery art is underway a weekly opportunity to achieve the sort of enlightenment that is not ordinarily available to you elsewhere um and that's not me showing off because you're the clever ones the way mystery art works is you ring in with a question, someone else hears it, brings in with the answer. You're not allowed to look stuff

up and we try to avoid repetition and dullness. Dullness is very much in the ear of the beholder,

i.e. me. So if I think it's boring, I will be very, very rude to you. Indeed, if Eleanor

and Beth put you through with a very, very boring question. I will also, during the ensuing commercial break, be very, very rude to them as well.

The best way to avoid being dull is to not ask questions about motoring, I find, historically, or sort of parking-related issues, that sort of stuff.

But to be honest with you, it's a rather hard rule to observe. So if you sense when you ring in that you're being politely discouraged

from continuing with your call, then just hang up and move along.

We only allow one, I'm saying this for the benefit of everybody, we only allow one question

a week about the origin of words and phrases, okay? Otherwise it's all we'd ever do. Similarly, do not ring in with questions

about motoring unless it is, in your view, a question of such absolutely coruscating brilliance

that the whole world will share your desire to find out the answer. Is there anything else?

I feel like I normally do a lot of housekeeping at five minutes after 12 on a Thursday,

but I've kind of run out of things.

You're not allowed to Google stuff or look stuff up.

That's a rule, obviously, because what we try to do here,

it sounds a bit pompous on paper, but it doesn't, when it comes out of my mouth.

We're just trying to celebrate knowledge.

So you know stuff.

Why do you know it?

It doesn't matter. I'll ask why. I'll say, how do you know that?

What are your qualifications is what I'll say?

And you might say, I saw it on tell you last night.

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