Meanwhile the World Goes On

I would never blame a hotel for noises that emanate from outside the hotel, especially built-in ones like the sound of traffic. What do you expect anyone to do about the sound of traffic? There are only two reasonable criticisms on that subject: If it’s a building they’re allowed to renovate and their soundproofing isn’t…

As far as I can tell, the UK is generally less misogynistic and racist than the US, and more subtle about it. Watching a show like Four in a Bed has allowed me to see plenty of casual misogyny on display (Great British Bakeoff is where I notice the racism most). On the whole, Come…

There actually wasn’t much to say this week; I wouldn’t have written a post at all, except that I can’t let the Confederate flags go unremarked. They went dancing in Blackpool at some place that turned out to be decorated with a minimum of five Confederate flags (was too hard to determine the exact number)….

After the first episode, I thought this might be a week that didn’t inspire enough rage for blogging. Then the German woman hosted, and some fucking assholes outed themselves. Craig and Marie were determined to see Kristin according to stereotypes, to the extent that when Kristin talked about how she didn’t appreciate them, Craig came…

I think I’m starting to detect some tension between the north and south in the UK. (That’s a joke, I’ve seen Elizabeth Gaskell’s North and South, I knew it existed.) Funnily enough, though, in the week that talked incessantly about that dynamic, all the drama ended up not falling along those lines. “I think there’s…

Well holy shit. What a week. I liked Paul at first, with his stupid bowties, but he did not take long to piss me off. At the week’s first activity, he told the cameras he was getting “the strongest negative vibes” from Helen and Cathy. You’ve just met them, sir, why would there be any…

I could not stand Andrea and Nick from minute one, and they only got worse each day. He strings her along and refuses to marry her. She criticizes their competitors to an unreasonable standard. He called her Chubski. She got on the floor to wipe the back of the base of the toilet at James…

Oof. Young couple bickering about who’s the boss. Older couple with a husband who declares within ten seconds that they don’t even like each other, and a wife who starts criticizing the young couple on their first meeting. I didn’t hate anyone this week, but I certainly didn’t like most of them. Ruth and Margaret…

Immediately noticed Jenny’s assumption that the female host was responsible for the cleaning, commenting on hairs in the shower at Hans and Monica’s place and saying “poor woman, she’s missed them.” Maybe there was something on the cutting room floor that made that make sense, but without that, it reads as internalized misogyny. I think…

Andy is probably in the closet. He radiates the energy of someone trying to maintain a facade. He made vaguely homophobic comments, then chose an Elton John duet for karaoke and got a man to be his partner. He spent the week flirting with Richard, which was frankly really cute to watch. Less cute was…

This week’s villains, Gordon and Blossom, made themselves known by the beginning of episode two. Before they even began being shitty to all their competitors, they pissed me off by acting like the only reason people wouldn’t like their sexualization hotel is if they’re “narrow-minded.” They don’t think there’s anything wrong with the way they’ve…

It’s been a few weeks without feelings strong enough to warrant blog posts, but hoo boy, are we back with a vengeance. This week’s competitors are some real pieces of work. Please join me for an accounting of their crimes. For this prick’s “activity,” he took everyone to the gym. To work out. That was…

Well my goodness, we’ve got an American. Her accent is really throwing me! I can’t pin it down, and I’m wondering whether that’s because she’s been in the UK long enough for it to morph. I’m not a fan of how certain she is that she knows what’s best for everyone. She decided she doesn’t…

Another week with one clear villain. Who was worse: Galia or Mrs. Tee? Hated everything about her stupid (but admittedly GORGEOUS) place, Slimmeria. Just so many dealbreakers. No alcohol, no coffee or tea, no screens, a breakfast bell, and a 9 pm curfew? Absolutely not. The entire premise of this “slimming retreat” is fatphobia—Galia likes…

Oh my lord the doves, I died laughing. Teresa and Clive left their window open when they went out, and when they returned, there were two doves on top of their wardrobe. Why is Mark just standing there with one in each hand so funny? I agree with Kalpana and Joseph that if you’re going…

Tim and I love a good age gap. There’s 12 years between us, but the important thing is that we met when I was 36—fully, completely an adult. I’m creeped out by the 21-year age gap between Jessica and Adrian, because she is 24. Her brain is maybe not even done forming yet, while her…

Butterfly Dave, who looks and sounds a fair bit like Hugh Grant, said something interesting about money: “You need to have enough, but too much is really just as bad as too little.” I can’t agree that too much is as bad as too little; I don’t think it should take a robust imagination to…

This week has driven me crazy because some of the contestants look really familiar and I can’t work out why (particularly Annette, in front in the pink, and Peter, in the blue jacket). Hated the gendered activities when Jon and Julia hosted, and shared the opinion of whoever it was on the show who said…

This asshole. She seemed so charming and quirky at first. The eccentricity increased each day, and her ability to find fault was so extensive that she had the other competitors in stitches listening to her criticize breakfast. But it became less funny on payment day, when she underpaid everyone for absurd reasons. To the Castle…

Tim has introduced me to a UK reality show where four bed & breakfasts compete against each other each week, and since we’re watching several years after airing, I have nowhere else to talk about the people who piss me off. We scrolled back as far as we could on the Channel 4 website, so…