24 NEWS Talking points
THEWEEK 28 March 2020
Firstwewatched,inshockedfascination,
asthepeopleofWuhandisappearedinto
quarantine,turningthatcity’sbustling
streetsintourbandeserts;then,ordinary
lifeendedinItalyandacrossEurope;now
Britainisgoingintoalockdownofits
own,andyethowstrangeitstillfeels,
saidKarrenBradyinTheSun.Ihavelost
countofthenumberofpeoplewhohave
toldmeit’slikelivinginafilm.Butthis
isnotfiction:facedwithaninvisible
enemy,ourexistenceshavehadto
changeovernight.Millionsofpeoplehave
abandonedtheirworkplaces,andhave
been“helplesslywatchingatidalwave
ofcancellations–weddings,parties,
meetings,holidays”.Parentsarehavingto
home-educatetheirchildren,whileholdingdownjobsremotely;
othersmaynolongerhaveajob.Meanwhile,everyonemustcope
witheithertheworryandlonelinessofisolation,orthechallenge
oflivingunderthesameroofasrelativesorflatmates 24 /7.“To
saythesearetestingtimesisanunderstatement.”
One ofthe “most remarkablelessons” ofrecentweeks ishow
quickly “the mindcanmaketheunthinkable thinkable”,said Tim
Adams inTheObserver.WhenPremierLeaguefixtures were
cancelled afortnightago,somesaidit
wasanoverreaction. Sincethen,we
have“notonlyquietlyaccommodated”
theshuttering ofvirtuallyallpublic life,
butloudlydemandedmorerestrictions.
Afewdaysago,Iread somany
outragedpostson Twitterabout
irresponsiblepeople “carryingonasnormal”,Iwent foradrive
around northLondonto see this“newLuftwaffe”formyself.
At 9.30pm,therewasbarelyacaronthestreets,and“thosethat
weredrovevery slowly,asif nottodisturb the unfathomable
quiet.The pubsandrestaurantswerejust aboutuniformlyempty,
lit uplikeagalleryofEdwardHopperpaintings”.Yetthenext
day,theshopswerecrowdedwithpeople “coughing nervously
intotheirelbows”,who had,like me,no doubtconvinced
themselvesthatitwasfinejust topop outforaloafofbread.
Much scornhasbeenpouredon the“Covidiots” who defied
theGovernment’sadviceon socialdistancing,promptingthefull
lockdown,saidPatrickO’Flynn inTheDailyTelegraph. Butmost
people have actuallybeentryingtodo therightthingin this crisis.
Admittedly,Ihaveno excuse forthehipstersand othersseen
gatheringinbarsandfashionableLondonmarkets;theyareeither
selfish or stupid. Butwe shouldn’t be so hard on thepeopl ewho
headedoutsideenmasseonMothering
Sunday.TheGovernmenthadurgedusto
takeexercise;theymayhaveassumed
thatinapark,oronabeach,itwouldbe
easytokeepadistancefromotherpeople.
Theyweren’ttoknowthateveryonewas
goingtohavethesameidea,atthesame
time,creatingvastcrowds.Similarly,
whilethesightofpeopleknockingover
theelderlyandvulnerabletogetthelast
loorollhasbeenshocking,thedescenton
thesupermarketswasnotirresponsible
initself:wehadbeenadvisedtoensure
wehadprovisionstolastsevendaysin
casewehadtoself-isolate.Infact,if–as
hasbeenreported–Britishhouseholds
haveamassed£1bninextrafood,thatis
onlyenoughtofeedusallforthreedays.Foodsecurityisnotsomethingweshouldbeworryingabout,said
TheTimes.Ifwedon’tpanicbuy,therewillbenoshortages.The
greaterthreatsfacingusareanxietyandboredom,saidLibby
Purvesinthesamepaper.Confinedtotheirhomes,peoplemay
not getthevirus,butthey doriskgoing stir-crazy.Still,“we have
blessings tocount”:oneis thatthispandemiccoincidedwiththe
“fullflowering of4Gand the internet”,sotherearenotonly
constantstreams ofTVtowatch,but
alsomyriadways tokeepus intouch,
fromWhatsApptovideoconferencing
apps wherefriendscanmeetfor digital
dinnerparties,“virtualpints” and
“quarantinis”. But what peoplewho
normallyleadproductive orbusylives
thirst forafterawhile isasenseofachievement: for them,there
arebookstorea d,newintereststo acquireandskillsto learn.
Youneverknow:“strangefruit”may come ofour isolation.The mediatendsto have arathermiddle-classperspectiveon the
lockdown,saidBrendanO’Neillin TheSpectator.Journalists
wholiveinlarge homes,perhaps withgardens,andwiththriving
online lives,maycomethrough thislockdownunharmed. But
what ofthose trapped intinyflats, who donot have online
contacts, ifthey are onlineatall?They may notfare sowell.We
shouldalsospareathought forpeople with serious disabilities,
whoare relianton anetworkofcarers,saidTheIndependent:
howwilltheycope?Thenwe mustconsider thepeoplenowshut
insmallhomeswithviolentoralcoholic partners,childrenliving
on crime-infestedestatesandthose whoare livingwithserious
mentalillness.Thislockdownwillnotbeeasy foranyone,butit
will bealot easierfor somethan forothers.Britain in lockdown: will we cope?“Most people have actually
been trying to do the right
thing in this crisis”Crowds in Snowdonia on Sunday 22 MarchCelebrities, eager to do their bit
to stop coronavirus spreading,
have been posting videos on
social media.Robert De Niro
warned his fellow New Yorkers
to stay inside (“I’m watching
you”) andKevin Bacon,ofsix
degreesofseparation fame,
urged his fans to do the same.
“Since we’re all connected by
various degrees–trust me, I
know–wecan work together
to stay home,” he said. While
Madonnasaid the virus puts usall in the same boat. “It’s the
great equaliser,” she said, from
abathtub full of rose petals.The writer, comedian and
national treasureBarry Cryer
continues to compère The
Oldie magazine’s literary lunch
each month. At his most recent
appearance–inthe pre-
lockdown era–herecalled
putting onashow withWillie
Rushtonin Belfast during the
Troubles. The pair stayed at
the Europa Hotel, which was
bombed 36 times in the conflict
and wonareputationasthe
most bombed hotel in Europe,
if not the world. The
guestbook, Cryer told his
audience, posed the question:
“How did you hear about us?”
To which Rushton’s reply was
simple: “News at Ten.”The importance of not making
assumptions, Tory MPSarah
Dinessaid in her maiden
speech last week, isalesson
all politicians must learn. To
illustrate her point, she used
the example ofMatthew Parris.
In the 1980s, the then MP
invited some sex workers to
speak toaparliamentary select
committee. Collecting them
from Central Lobby, he jauntily
askedalike ly-lo okin ggroup:
“Are youthe prostitutes from
Birmingham?” An “awful
silence” followed before the
women explained–albeitin
Birmingham accents–that
they were members of a
Catholic women’s group.Pick of the week’sGossip©DAILY POST WALES