Comments on: Alan Coren Remembered http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/ Out of the crooked timber of humanity, no straight thing was ever made Sun, 21 Mar 2010 15:05:31 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: links for 2007-11-03 « Matthew Henty http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-216644 links for 2007-11-03 « Matthew Henty Sat, 03 Nov 2007 06:22:03 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-216644 [...] Crooked Timber » » Alan Coren Remembered (tags: humor bbc) [...] [...] Crooked Timber » » Alan Coren Remembered (tags: humor bbc) [...]

]]> By: josh http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215905 josh Tue, 30 Oct 2007 20:03:30 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215905 As far as Coren's attitude to Ingrams goes: in Coren's (wonderful) brief memoir of his undergraduate years (included in the volume My Oxford, and which I paraphrase from memory), there's brief mention of a bunch of oafish former public schoolboy undergrads who discovered that they could make each other fall down laughing by uttering certain epithets (which are no longer acceptable to print, even when quoting); he adds that they went on to found an undergraduate humour mag -- Parson's Pleasure -- to provide an outlet for this past-time, and subsequently went on to found PRivate Eye, where they had gone 'from weakness to weakness'. As far as Coren’s attitude to Ingrams goes: in Coren’s (wonderful) brief memoir of his undergraduate years (included in the volume My Oxford, and which I paraphrase from memory), there’s brief mention of a bunch of oafish former public schoolboy undergrads who discovered that they could make each other fall down laughing by uttering certain epithets (which are no longer acceptable to print, even when quoting); he adds that they went on to found an undergraduate humour mag—Parson’s Pleasure—to provide an outlet for this past-time, and subsequently went on to found PRivate Eye, where they had gone ‘from weakness to weakness’.

]]> By: magistra http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215673 magistra Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:32:24 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215673 The running joke on the News Quiz during the Ingrams-Coren years was the hopelessness of Richard Ingrams at answering the questions. He always acted surprised that he might be expected to have read any newspapers, in contrast to Alan Coren, who knew the most obscure stories. I suppose it was really the classic English thing of Gentlemen v Players. The running joke on the News Quiz during the Ingrams-Coren years was the hopelessness of Richard Ingrams at answering the questions. He always acted surprised that he might be expected to have read any newspapers, in contrast to Alan Coren, who knew the most obscure stories. I suppose it was really the classic English thing of Gentlemen v Players.

]]> By: John M http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215653 John M Mon, 29 Oct 2007 15:16:23 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215653 Richard Ingrams has some decidedly reactionary views but Private Eye under his editorship was truly funny. Hislop is just a bit too priggish to be a good editor of a satirical magazine, I think. Richard Ingrams has some decidedly reactionary views but Private Eye under his editorship was truly funny. Hislop is just a bit too priggish to be a good editor of a satirical magazine, I think.

]]> By: The Witch from Next Door http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215652 The Witch from Next Door Mon, 29 Oct 2007 15:10:44 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215652 It's before my time so I don't remember, but according to Wikipedia, Coren and Ingrams were the original team captains of the News Quiz. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_News_Quiz If they really did hate each other, that must have given it a bit of a frisson. It’s before my time so I don’t remember, but according to Wikipedia, Coren and Ingrams were the original team captains of the News Quiz.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_News_Quiz

If they really did hate each other, that must have given it a bit of a frisson.

]]> By: belle le triste http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215622 belle le triste Mon, 29 Oct 2007 11:06:57 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215622 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=David_Thomas_%28editor%29&action=edit" rel="nofollow">not lost but gone before</a> not lost but gone before

]]> By: Tim Worstall http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215620 Tim Worstall Mon, 29 Oct 2007 10:32:30 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215620 Ingrams not a friend of Coren's? A very mild formulation. Ingrams hated him and Punch. One of his motivating drives was to take Private Eye past Punch. Ingrams not a friend of Coren’s? A very mild formulation. Ingrams hated him and Punch. One of his motivating drives was to take Private Eye past Punch.

]]> By: Chris Williams http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215619 Chris Williams Mon, 29 Oct 2007 10:20:27 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215619 Never mind the discussion about that unfortunate aside. Hurry to the listen again page, for it includes one of the funniest things I've ever heard, Coren's 'Ballroom dancing' story. It's towards the end if you're short of time. Never mind the discussion about that unfortunate aside. Hurry to the listen again page, for it includes one of the funniest things I’ve ever heard, Coren’s ‘Ballroom dancing’ story. It’s towards the end if you’re short of time.

]]> By: dsquared http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215614 dsquared Mon, 29 Oct 2007 09:20:40 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215614 Graydon Carter is also an ex-humour magazine editor and has not really been either use or ornament for quite a while. I think that calling Paul McCartney a "musical nonentity" is perhaps flying in the face of the opinion of a lot of people who might be thought to have a good idea, including John Lennon and George Harrison. Graydon Carter is also an ex-humour magazine editor and has not really been either use or ornament for quite a while.

I think that calling Paul McCartney a “musical nonentity” is perhaps flying in the face of the opinion of a lot of people who might be thought to have a good idea, including John Lennon and George Harrison.

]]> By: Dave http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215607 Dave Mon, 29 Oct 2007 06:59:53 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215607 Ingrams was/is also an unapologetic homophobe. 'Pooves' feature quite heavily in his vocabulary. I expect it wouldn't be too hard to find evidence of casual racism, too. Meanwhile, what's unfair about saying the world would be a more interesting place if Lennon and Harrison were still here, in place of the two musical nonentities that survive? Ingrams was/is also an unapologetic homophobe. ‘Pooves’ feature quite heavily in his vocabulary. I expect it wouldn’t be too hard to find evidence of casual racism, too.

Meanwhile, what’s unfair about saying the world would be a more interesting place if Lennon and Harrison were still here, in place of the two musical nonentities that survive?

]]> By: riffle http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215603 riffle Mon, 29 Oct 2007 01:18:16 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215603 Thank you! I've been pretty positively disposed to Hislop, too (the little I've seen of his work), so glad to know he's not the one you're referring to. As for Ingrams, never heard of him--thankfully, it sounds like Thank you!

I’ve been pretty positively disposed to Hislop, too (the little I’ve seen of his work), so glad to know he’s not the one you’re referring to.

As for Ingrams, never heard of him—thankfully, it sounds like

]]> By: harry b http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215601 harry b Mon, 29 Oct 2007 00:54:35 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215601 Oh, alright, though CB would do it better. I like Hislop, and he's my generation, not Coren's. The person I'm thinking of is Richard Ingrams, who was, apparently, not a friend of Corne's. He was a predecessor of Hislop's at Private Eye who is older than Coren, was never funny, and has some very dodgy attitudes (eg I've read stuff of his that struck me as straightforwardly anti-semitic, and I should add that I am not very sensitive to anti-semitism). Hislop's a doll, in my view Oh, alright, though CB would do it better. I like Hislop, and he’s my generation, not Coren’s. The person I’m thinking of is Richard Ingrams, who was, apparently, not a friend of Corne’s. He was a predecessor of Hislop’s at Private Eye who is older than Coren, was never funny, and has some very dodgy attitudes (eg I’ve read stuff of his that struck me as straightforwardly anti-semitic, and I should add that I am not very sensitive to anti-semitism).

Hislop’s a doll, in my view

]]> By: riffle http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/comment-page-1/#comment-215599 riffle Mon, 29 Oct 2007 00:44:35 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/10/28/alan-coren-remembered/#comment-215599 As an American interested in, but not knowledgable, about this kind of thing, could I impose on you to explicate a bit? The only other humorous magazine editor (not ex- yet, I believe) is Ian Hislop. If you don't mind being a bit more direct, could you tell us who you're referring to and why? As an American interested in, but not knowledgable, about this kind of thing, could I impose on you to explicate a bit? The only other humorous magazine editor (not ex- yet, I believe) is Ian Hislop.

If you don’t mind being a bit more direct, could you tell us who you’re referring to and why?

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