A Stranger's London
Sportsmen all
The talking points are all about sports. This being the Wimbledon fortnight, the Test series between England and the West Indies and the preparation for the Los Angeles Olympic Games.It is called the high summer of sports. The summer bit is, of course, unpredictable and they have perfected the routine of "rain has interrupted play" be it, the Tennis at Wimbledon or the cricket at Lords.
It all looks like a procedure that has been rehearsed many times, spectators and players all take cover orderly and the precious grounds are covered by tarpaulin to protect the court or the pitch from the rain.
This is the time when all housewives take up tennis and the sports shops are doing a roaring trade in sports equipment. Those who play tennis normally can hardly contain their irritation because all the public playing courts are taken by housewives, children and businessmen who are taking their annual resolutions to "do something" about their expanding waistlines and dreaming of making it to Wimbledon next year.
Talking about housewives and children, this year the newspapers have been full to saturation about the behaviour - or is it - misbehaviour? of the World champion John McEnroe. Every Sunday newspaper had an article on him, not his tennis but his behaviour and every radio programme has had letters from listeners on the subject. It looks like there hasn't been fear of a worse plague invasion since the Spanish Armada.
Parents and teachers in the Wimbledon area schools have complained that their children are at risk from the bad language used on court by McEnroe and the rest of the country want to be protected from witnessing such behaviour in their living rooms on their televisions. The children have said they hear much worse language on family programmes on television and sometimes in their own homes!
This year Nduka Odizor, last year's everybody's favourite has not fared as spectacularly having had to withdraw due to a wrist injury and people have therefore had to fall back on their home-grown heroes and heroines.
"An English rose blooms in the rain', that was the national heroine Virginia Wade defeating the number five seed and the national anguish when she was defeated by an unknown Swedish girl!
Everybody was willing on Jo Durie the British number one female, but nobody was actually too hopeful.
Chris Evert Lloyd who has been the favourite is losing some of her charm not just because Martina Navratilova has been beating her so often, but also because she has separated from her husband John Lloyd an Englishman.
Whereas nobody expects any home grown heroes at Wimbledon, Ian Botham has restored some British pride by taking eight spectacular West Indies Wickets during the second Cornhill Test.
On the athletics field, the only sensation came during the final selections for the team that will represent Britain at the Olympic Games. There was one place left for the 1500 metres and two stars vying for it. During the trials Peter Elliot defeated Sebastian Coe, the Olympic champion. The selectors picked Sebastian Coe much to the disgust of the young Elliot.
As they say around here, many felt the selector's decision wasn't cricket.
Holy row
There is an almighty ecclesiastical row brewing in the Church of England. A new Bishop of Durham was due to be ordained on Friday 6 July. Some twelve thousand petitions have been collected and presented to the Archbishop of York protesting against the man to be ordained. The problem with the would-be Bishop of Durham, Prof. David Jenkins is that he has uttered the words that are bound to shake the very foundations of the Church.He says that he does not believe in the virgin birth (all that talk about Jesus being born in the manger etc, are all so much fairy tale or anansesem according to the good professor) nor does he believe that Christ physically rose from the tomb. Strong beliefs and radical ideas those, and the church members are outraged and do not want such a person ordained as a Bishop.
The thinking at mid-week was that Prof Jenkins was going to become the Bishop of Durham and many people cannot wait to hear his sermon at Christmas that is, in case the petitioners allow him into the church and don't mount protest camps outside that was the national heroine the church.
Miners' strike
The whole world has of course heard about the 16-week old strike of the National Union of Mineworkers. While all the unpleasantness has been. going on and charges and counter charges flying about, one can't help but wonder about if such a strike could have taken place in our part of the world.Every time I see the NUM President Mr Arthur Scargill on the television arguing his case, threatening hell and brimstone on all who stand in his way, I think of him and his entire executive being put firmly in jail on the second day of the strike for being saboteurs and nation-wreckers... And they are complaining here loudly of intolerance, brutality…
