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NIGEL SCOTT: Glamour over substance
THEY'VE got to be kidding, right? Jordan, sorry Katie Price, has been nominated as Celebrity Mum of the Year.
They say you get the society you deserve and this is a clear indication of the society we have become – slobbish and fame obsessed (and by fame I mean fame achieved by notoriety rather than talent).
It shouldn't come as any surprise – she did win a similar title a couple of years ago.
And for what?
Living a semi-pornographic lifestyle in the public eye. Skilfully manipulating the media to slake the almost unquenchable thirst of the deluded trash magazine generation.
These are apparently the criteria needed to be considered a success these days.
No wonder so many kids are growing up with screwed-up ideas of what constitutes achievement.
Bounty – "the UK's favourite parenting club" – has nominated the plastic-injected, headline-seeking "glamour" model for the award.
It has also nominated Samantha Cameron, wife of the Tory party leader. I bet she's delighted to be ranked in such high company. Not.
A few other celebrities and past media darlings have been lumped in to make up a shortlist including Leeds's own Mel B and fellow ex-Spice Geri Halliwell.
Oh and last year's winner Suzanne Shaw (Who? My point exactly) has been nominated again.
If a company is going to run a competition such as this in a coldly calculated bid to win tabloid and trash magazine column inches it would be nice if it actually took time to consider who might be worthy of such a title rather than just grabbing a load of so-called celebrity names out of a hat.
Oh but I forgot. Being worthy of an award doesn't actually matter much in our modern Britain.
It's far more important to simply slap on the make-up, jut out those pneumatic bosoms and put on a show for the cameras. That's what gets you noticed.
It therefore came as little surprise when last week a pop "star" from a manufactured band was awarded the accolade of Yorkshire Woman of the Year.
Kimberley Walsh is a member of Girls Aloud, in case you didn't know.
She's probably a really nice girl and she does a lot of work for charity (well she doesn't need a proper job now she's in the tabloid celebrity fame game/on the celebrity gravy train) but what has she really achieved apart from getting lucky?
She's just another example of how we fall over ourselves to celebrate prefabricated glamour over substance.
A hard-working single mum struggling to bring up her kids on the breadline on a hum-drum council estate is never going to be celebrated for success in her daily battles.
Yet if you've got a pretty face and you're already a media darling you're halfway there without lifting a finger.
Our nation used to be defined by all manner of worthy criteria – wartime spirit, stiff upper lip, innovation and manufacturing excellence. You know what I mean.
Now, I fear, we are increasingly a country defined by our collective shallowness.
And, believe me, it will only get worse.
Flying the flag for democracy
GOOD old Gordon Brown put on his best statesmanlike voice the other day to welcome the latest developments in Afghanistan vis--vis the democratic election of the country's leader.
He was unequivocal in his support for the democratic process – showing that when not foxed by questions about his favourite choccy biccies he is occasionally able to offer up an opinion – even if America has told him what it is.
Brown demonstrated unreserved enthusiasm for a second ballot in the war-torn, corruption-riddled country, saying it was "absolutely vital" that Afghanistan had a legitimate govern-ment supported by the people.
But hang on a minute. When did we elect Mr Brown to lead our country?
Oh, that's right, he was foisted upon us by Tony Blair's decision to bail out on Britain while he could still hold his head – illegal wars in Iraq excepted – high.
It's no wonder Western leaders hold their vision of democracy in such high regard when they can twist and bend its rules to suit their own ends.
At least there's only a few more months left now before, like Afghanistan, Britain can have its own democratically-elected leader.
And I'm betting it won't be Gordon Brown.
Hands off Leeds arena
IT's a funny place, South Yorkshire.
It's only just down the road but it might as well be another country.
You've only to drive a few miles out of Wakefield in the direction of Barnsley and the accents change markedly.
I reckon they're a jealous bunch down "south" too, with chips on their shoulders about their perceived injustices compared to us in the West and North of God's Own County.
The latest manifestation of their collective small-mindedness – at a political level, anyway – is their opposition to a new entertainment arena for Leeds.
Instead of accepting that they've had it good for the best part of two decades and it's only fair that someone else gets a look in they've chosen to bleat and moan about the damage it will do to them.
Well, tough.
Just because Sheffield has an arena shouldn't preclude Leeds – the capital city of Yorkshire, after all – from having one too.
Sheffield is not without its attractions, many of which have benefited from the kind of public finance support that Leeds could only dream about.
Its city elders should brush the chips off their own shoulders and set an example by concentrating on promoting what it has got rather than spending their time selfishly trying to prevent others from improving their lot.
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Sunday 12 February 2012
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