General Chat

omg, I'm gonna have "olympic jetlag" tomorrow lol

ignore this....

It's the easiest way for me to find out UK time..............

can't find anything on local tv guide as to when the cycling track events are on

tv just broadcast what they like grrrrrrr

lololol

I was asked by a woman in Eastern Europe if we had shops in Australia :-0

back in 1976 I spent the summer in USA and a shop assistant in Philadelphia on learning I was Welsh asked me if we had roads in Wales!!!!

lol Sylvia

A woman in US, when she found out we were from Australia asked:

"Is that near Sydney"

Yes, all around it.

:-D

re the "lesbian kiss". I must have missed that bit. Or I saw it and didn't take any notice.... we live in what's known as "The Pink Triangle" :-D

Ann

we lived in the US for a year ................ and discovered just how insular most really are ...... and that includes politicians as well, which is really, really scary!

Witness what Mitt Romney has been saying this week in the UK and in Israel.


As you say ................... other countries don't really exist for them. And even if they know about other countries, the US is always "best".


That is actually the problem with what they have done in Iraq, and Afghanistan ................. the US rule of law and way of life is the "best", and therefore every other country's rule of life and way of life MUST be replaced.




In 1968, we had to get chest x-rays for entry into Canada. We went to the x-ray clinic in Austin, Texas, had the x-rays done, and then had to go back the next day to pick them up.

The whole clinic staff was waiting for us ................. with questions about Canada ..........


would we live in an igloo?


would we be driving dog sleds?

what would we eat?



I am serious! They really did ask those questions! That was ALL they knew about Canada!!



and this extrapolates to the American media's view of their athletes at the Olympic Games.

Their athletes MUST be the best in the world, no other country could possibly come close ................ so they find it very difficult to appreciate or acknowledge someone who beats an American



sylvia

Paul M. The worst bit of the opening ceremony... Turned sound down for most of his rendition.

And why Oh why did he sing "Hey Jude" What had it got to do with the theme of the evening?

The only thing that this particular song reminds me of is Saint Jude .......

The patron saint of lost causes!

Paul M. The worst bit of the opening ceremony... Turned sound down for most of his rendition.

And why Oh why did he sing "Hey Jude" What had it got to do with the theme of the evening?

The only thing that this particular song reminds me of is Saint Jude .......

The patron saint of lost causes!

Sylvia, the thing is from when we have watched TV in the states, other countries don't really exist. I feel sorry for those who have to watch it all the time, they miss a lot of what goes on in the world outside US.

I see Paul McCartney was paid £1 for his performance - just the right amount as far as I'm concerned - pathetic rubbish from a has been who never was in my opinion - he's had his day, he should disappear along with Cliff

Gwynne

The Canadian carrier, CTV, did show the lesbian kiss.


Remember, for the US ............. nothing beats 9/11.


In actual fact ................. NBC is being berated even in the US for most things to do with the Olympics.

no live events, all taped for later showing

talking heads

overly patriotic, and expectations of winning everything


...................... but that is actually nothing new for American coverage.

We were in San Antonio during the Atlanta Games, and I thought it would be great to see live coverage for once .............. I did see afternoon events. BUT the coverage was horrendous ........

........ coverage during a race, for example, being only of the US competitor(s), very little of any others. Followed by in depth interview of the American(s) ........ even when they had come 4th or worse. Sometimes, I wouldn't even know who HAD won the race.

Pathetic!!!!




and, of course, it is all due to wanting to be able to sell ad time at the very highest price .............. which means prime time.


They have to do that because of the obscene prices they have paid for the privilege of being the "Official Carrier"


and the IOC can be partly blamed for that, as they are the ones who conduct the "auction" of rights for each country around the world.


TV and radio stations from other countries then have to negotiate with the TV station of the country holding the Olympics to carry feeds ................... thus, only the BEEB is allowed to film and record the events.


Other countries record voice coverage over the BBC's tape.





sylvia

Shame they cut out such an important part of it though, jl, don't you think?

Gwynne

The ceremony was shown later in the States apparently because of the adverts, as they wanted maximum coverage. - jl

We watched the ceremony live here on the east coast of Australia. Wonderful - the British sure know how to throw a party :-) The lighting of the cauldron was breathtaking - it truly brought tears to my eyes.

Freedom of speech means having to right to complain. I'd like to complain about having a late breakfast because I couldn't stop watching the ceremony long enough to make porridge :-(

Strange my last two replies have not appeared!

I commented about Paul McCartney's poor performance at the Opening Ceremony. His last two performances - Jubilee & Opening Ceremony have not been good and I am a Macca fan (or was) !

ChAoTic Mmmm! But he seems to have disappeared now. :-)

Did anyone else find Roger's original post hypocritical, going on about his freedom of speech whilst trying to deny others their's by telling them to stop complaining.

Disappointed to read that US network NBC omitted the tribute to the dead of 7/7 and the memorial wall to broadcast an interview with a competitor.

I'm told the lesbian kiss was also edited out.

Shame on NBC, say I.

Gwynne

The opening ceremony was shown live on TV in West Australia very early in the morning long before the sun got up. After that it was just a replay of selected segments.
Radio announcers seem to have thought it was very cleverly done and showed British humour and notable achievements in all fields including sporting, industrial, literary, musical and demonstrated what it is to be human with the NHS segment.
Britain has a very long history and has achieved a lot to be proud of including spreading the English language around the world. I wonder why there are so many knockers?

DET


If that was the reason for the late start ............... it certainly didn't work for the North American market.


Both the Canadian and US networks opted NOT to show the Ceremony live. Both went with taped shows starting at prime time ............... 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm.


I think Nz'ers saw it in real time. Not sure about Aussies


and no idea what happened in China or India.


The reason was probably the need for darkness to show off many of the effects


BUT ....... the real reason for the Opening Ceremony is to open the Olympics for the ATHLETES ....................... and that is where I think little thought was given!

All the recent ceremonies (Winter and Summer) have concentrated on entertainment of the "masses". The athletes seem to be largely forgotten.



But many of you know my feelings on that ....... after having had the 2010 Winter Olympics here.






sylvia