On the BBC News this morning they were interviewing people who were getting off a ferry in Dover at the end of incredibly long journeys back to the UK. One of them was asked if his travel insurance would reimburse him for the extra costs he had incurred and he said that the costs weren’t… Continue reading Act of God
Tag: language
Guerrilla vs Gorilla
On the train home I was pondering the difference between guerrilla marketing and gorilla marketing. Antonio points out that the Cadbury’s Phil Collins advert might be an example of gorilla marketing, but I think it’s probably deeper than that. According to Wikpedia: Guerrilla marketing is an unconventional system of promotions that relies on time, energy… Continue reading Guerrilla vs Gorilla
Literacy and Professionalism
I remember a time, not very long ago, when people assumed a link between literacy and professionalism. When producing text for public consumption people would always take the time to ensure that their spelling and grammar were correct. Obvious errors in copy would be seen as a lack of attention to detail and would throw… Continue reading Literacy and Professionalism
R U Avail?
An SMS that I have received twice today: Hello. R U Avail & Looking 4 work? I have a 3 mnth contract at the BBC – £310 P/Day 4 a good Perl Dev? If yes pls call ASAP at [removed] – Rgrds Kathe @ PCR Even if I was available and looking “4” work, I’d… Continue reading R U Avail?
Tesco Improves its English
From the BBC: Tesco is to change the wording of signs on its fast-track checkouts to avoid any linguistic dispute. The supermarket giant is to replace its current “10 items or less” notices with signs saying “Up to 10 items”. Tesco’s move follows uncertainty over whether the current notices should use “fewer” instead of “less”… Continue reading Tesco Improves its English
Ariel
You don’t have to be stupid to work for Radio 1. But it often helps. Someone called Dom, writes on the Chris Moyles show blog: Now then – the BBC has its own in-house magazine called Ariel. This name is very clever as it can relate to a TV ariel or a radio ariel. Two… Continue reading Ariel
Quoting Illiterates (Update)
An email has flooded in about my previous post confirming that I was being too harsh. My correspondent points out that the mother was illiterate, she was just using “txtspk” which, whilst not being a dialect that many people enjoy reading, is still becoming an acceptable language amongst the young. I don’t agree with this… Continue reading Quoting Illiterates (Update)
Quoting Illiterates
The BBC have an interesting report on the baby who was mauled to death by the family rottweiler. The story talks about the child’s mother’s reaction to the death. It’s interesting because of the way that they report what she says. The quotations from the mother in the story obviously come from two sources –… Continue reading Quoting Illiterates
Double Negatives
If there’s one time in your life when it pays to be very careful about what you’re saying, then it’s when you’re answering questions about crimes that you have been accused of. You know, there’s that whole “anything you say will be taken down and can be used in evidence against you” thing going on.… Continue reading Double Negatives
Ridiculous
Did I miss a memo about English spelling reform? More and more people seem to be spelling ridiculous as “rediculous”. Have they all been infected by the same typo? Or is it some street-talk that I’m unacquainted with?