The gaiety of the nation
The gaiety of the nation: “adds to the gaiety of the nation” is one of my favourite little phrases. I like it because it makes, quite succinctly, the case for frippery. I was about to invoke it in that notorious talking-shop the k-punk comments box (vis a vis King Arthur On Ice, as it happens) but instead decided to sniff about and find out where it actually comes from. NO DICE! But the phrase has a perky little life outside its nook in my mind, from the Daily Mirror to the Daily Telegraph. Here are a few of the things that have increased TGOTN:
- the Scottish Arts Council
- Barbara Cartland
- Jazz
- tiny political parties
- the Monarchy (is this what the phrase was coined for?)
- Murray Lachlan Young! (according to Auberon Waugh!!) (somewhere else claimed Waugh coined the phrase - surely not?)
- incidentally Murray Lachlan Young was at Glastonbury, it was in avoiding him that I encountered yesterday’s juggler.
- Sebastian Coe’s affairs
- the Incredible String Band
- four British women getting into the second round of Wimbledon
- Bono
- Posh and Becks (this was the Mirror citation)
- Tara Palmer Tompkinson
- the National Lottery
- the Irish credit unions (Ireland’s gaiety surely at a severe low if this is the case)
- Frankie Howerd (”by making his top hat waggle”)
- Rod Stewart’s love life
- King Crimson
This quick survey suggested that the nation is easily pleased. But then so am I.
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