Then & Now plus X Factor

Then and Now plus X Factor

On one of the History Channel I have been watching a programme about the unsung heroes of the second World War people like the Train Drivers who were ferrying cargo, petrol, troops, bombs etc to keep the war effort a lot of time when bombs were dropping and when German planes were strafing them, there were the Land Army Girls and Young Women who were put on the land to feed the country, the Bevin boys, young men conscripted not into the Army but down the Coal mines and they were no released from their duty till several years after the War had finish with no back pay or demob suit. The one thing they had in common, they were British and they got on with the Job without any histrionics. After watching this exhilarating and tear jerking programme I felt a deep sense of pride in the people and in being British.
Then I switched by mistake to that X Factor programme which started its life being a stage for new singing talent, you had a panel of Judges who would listen to you sing and make a judgement on your ability. This seems to me not to be the criteria anymore now you have to sing and then you asked a string of questions about your private life, the more you can trowel on the emotional blackmail, plus tell the most outlandish story so you can get the women judges in tears the more likely you will get through to the next round. WHAT has that got to do with your ability to SING????
If that doesn’t work you humiliate yourself by falling on your knees and beg, yes beg while doing this it helps to cry and whine about how bad life is for you. Now if you do win you run out in hysterics to join your supporters who in turn go hysterical. WHAT an absolute disgrace, yet pages of this nonsense goes into the press, one wonders what the young people from GB i1940’s and 1950’s thought of this. One thing is for sure they would not recognise the behaviour of the people of this British Isles, that is until they meet our Boys and Girls who serve in the Armed Forces giving their all for this country the last remnants of the saying “Proud to be British”


Martin Clarke Sittingbourne Kent