Clunes meets our Loons

Looks like the island is gearing itself up for another A.A. Gill moment.
The non-Manx won’t know what an ‘A.A. Gill moment’ is, so try http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/eating_out/a_a_gill/article788124.ece and
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/eating_out/a_a_gill/article2162693.ece.
Yes, it’s painfully accurate, and no, we shouldn’t snigger, though I almost broke a rib laughing when the first one was published, and couldn’t believe it when he came back for a second shot. Absolutely nothing to do with local ramblers and their scabby dogs who caused sheep to bolt over a cliff on land owned by Gill’s mate Jeremy Clarkson either, I’m sure.
The latest ‘Gill moment’ is actually a ‘Clunes moment’. That’s Martin Clunes, once a badly behaved man, now the new Reggie Perrin.
Clunes is fronting a TV series about the smaller British isles which next features the Isle of Man, and in this week’s Radio Times he commented of the island: 'I just got a bit sick of everybody coming up to me saying, "It's great, you don't pay any tax and none of my money goes in Gordon Brown's pocket. And I thought, "Well none of mine does either, you t**t". It's just unattractive.'
Seems fair enough, as he’s not having a go at ordinary locals. Sounds to me like he bumped into some of the white flighters who were enticed over here by a cretinous new resident policy in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s.
Can’t blame him for taking a dislike to such folk. Very few people here like them either, so it is a shame if Clunes throught they were typical Manxies.
Actually, when you see the decidely twee agenda the Tourist Department dreamt up to show off the island (see http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/Martin-Clunes-to-explore-Isle.5224785.jp) my only surprise is the poor man didn’t leave us in a straitjacket. Manx cats, fairies, tin baths, our Glorious Leader in his shop…..even Guantanamo would be a summer holiday by comparison with that lot!
The local paper picked up on the story (see http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/Wait-to-see-what-Martin.5241658.jp) and now we wait with baited breath to see if his on-air views match his press comments.
… or maybe the whole thing is just a cunning plan by the TV production company to get people watching when there’s more interesting fare on the other channels.