Unbelievable Unbearable London: February 2020

I wish there was a special place for troubled celebrities to retreat to like an animal sanctuary. A Love Island that one could be whisked away to, cared for, loved without all the media judgment. Did people see Harmony Korine's film Mister Lonely? No celebrity worth that accolade would mind sharing their experiences with so-called normal troubled 'folk'. But in this social media-driven world it just isn't really possible. We are all human.

We all 'fuck up'! Can any of you out there say that you haven't? Only, when you piss your pants on stage at the Grammy's or whatever it really is a totally different ballgame.

Is America any different to Britain? I thought it was, but the longer one experiences the 'American dream' the more you realize exactly what it is based upon. When you screw up the jackals are there before yesterday. It makes headlines. Money. Power moves. It is an unforgiving dream. It is all the 'yellow brick road' or nothing. That's where great songwriters come into play. Have you ever heard a great song that doesn't sing to your failures rather than successes? ! Not really. There is always pain. The human condition.

Wish I had the money to set up an island of healing. A secret garden of wounded wonderful wacky creatures.

Ne me quitte pas….

there was a time...

Caroline Flack (1979-2020)

Found this wonderful 45min of Caroline Flack interviewed about her clothing line for River Island. Easy to see why she became so famous and beloved, I wasn't bored for a second.

[Feb 19: Caroline Flack's unpublished Instagram post released by family]

Was thinking some more about the Crown Prosecution Service and the trial for her alleged assault. No-one or celebrity is above the law. Yet celebrities just aren't equal otherwise they wouldn't be celebrities. So to say a trial would be in the public interest is very debatable for that very reason. Juries are juries, judges judges, we are all human. In this case, though, we have an alleged assault (not a murder) on a minor celeb boyfriend by a major celeb with the boyfriend not wishing for further action. Agreed CPS, the victim could have been bought off, pressure brought to bear etc and that isn't in the public interest to ignore such an incident..

And yet. Trials are expensive and paid for by the British taxpayer. Shouldn't there be another road to travel down for such cases? A closed mediation and assessment by peers and clinical professionals? And if all else fails and there seems 'foul play' then go to trial? Of course, the CPS would argue that is why they decided to trial the Caroline Flack case because they believed evidence of wrong doing was overwhelming.

I'm not arguing for a 'be nice to celebrity screw ups' camp, I would argue that for every citizen. Simply most celebrities are more or less brittle and vulnerable and THAT is why the public are drawn to them. (Caroline says that in the above interview about the best Love Island contestants.) The public want to see a version of themselves. Someone relatable. Not some pompous twit or genius pretending to know what normal life is like. They see something or a lot of themselves. Ironically, normal people become celebrated for their normality. Only, normal folk don't have the minutiae of their lives under a microscope. You heat that living organism too high under that gaze then it will simply die and/or mutate.

And I totally related to someone interviewed on Brit breakfast telly when she said that when depressed you feel you a burden to friends when you talk about your state of mind. I totally agree. I think it is worse in America where everything ought to be 'a good day' and of course rarely is for anyone. Aren't friends/family better listeners than professionals? No, not always. And yet the depressed person feels even further ignored when the folk around them don't seem to care or are rather bland in their 'cheer up' it will all be fine response. Have another cocktail!

Americans (and it is a generalization but one I've found to be true on some many occasions) want to know all about you but not really some of who you are. Inside without all the so-called facts and/or hearsay. There is most often a huge difference. I don't mean that to sound cruel or suggest that people are uncaring. Simply that it seems so ingrained into human interaction.

The difference I think in America to the U.K. is that you don't have, what they call in Australia 'the tall poppy syndrome' : if they grow too tall cut 'em down, make them cognizant of their own mortality. Of who put you there. That has certainly been proven a necessity for some celebs, but I would argue not for most.

I still don't understand America except that it is led by the dollar. Always has been. That given, a huge network of grassroots individuals and organizations have sustained over the decades a watchful eye on the excesses of capitalism. The irony for celebrities in America is that if 'the tall poppy syndrome' comes into effect then a media outlet is attacking the very revenue that sustains itself. That's not to say it is any different to the U.K. media in making money out of high profile individual demise. Only that, the media (social and print) in America don't wait outside one's door for a curtain or boob to fall. It simply isn't an ergonomic use of resources rather than any moral correlative.

Which brings us back to the PEOPLE and their vote. Look at what happened to the 'uninformed' in Britain and Brexit manipulated in a far more cunning technological way than ever seen before with the LEAVE campaign, ironically ultimately bankrolled by an American.

There is a sea-change in the world, and not just literally. One can observe how now easily promulgated are far-right wing and anti-Semitic views etc. all over the world. Yet it is the same technological means of promulgation that allows formerly voiceless peoples of understanding and tolerance to speak. Very loudly, boldly, passionately. Equally, that same promulgation, finally enabling a voice to sexually exploited females and males.

What would Marshall McLuhan have to say today about "The medium is the message"? A lot! McLuhan describes in Understanding Media the "content" of a medium as a juicy piece of meat carried by the burglar to distract the watchdog of the mind.

So what is the connection with Caroline Flack to all of this? Caroline was self-admittedly a 'people-person'. That is just apparently who she was. I haven't lived in the U.K. for almost 10 years (though officially a citizen, not without pride!) so totally unknowledgeable of Caroline's exploits. It seems, though, after informed of an assault trial she feared that 'the medium' would take over. That she would have no content/message to offer because there would be no popular support ever again. She seemed a very smart, savvy girl (with loads of genuine friends) and on a better night in her life (the assault) would have surmounted whatever emotional turmoil raged within her. Emotional and physical exhaustion happens to us all.

Humans (and animals) do very, very strange unpredictable things. Like the oak tree that when crowded out of its sunlight by other trees above, grows absolutely useless branches way low down. The tree is literally screaming, crying for help it will never receive.

Caroline Flack could never be deemed a 'a piece of meat' for the media. As far as can be ascertained she never manipulated the 'medium' allowing her burglar into U.K. homes. She had no ulterior motive entering with her friendliness, love of chat, love of working earning an honest living from that.

Hollywood/streaming studio heads spoke to The Hollywood Reporter recently and the overriding sea-change for them was 'the people'. They are the ones now deciding what gets seen. Yet the medium is taking on an even more crucial role than ever before. Gatekeeper is now about inhabiting not exhibiting one's green light decisions, allowing creative creatures the opportunity to grow in the light outside the cave in voices rarely heard before. Burglars into peoples' minds giving them gifts of insight, knowledge, curiosity rather than forcing beliefs from them. Maybe it doesn't always work, but at least you tried.

People liked Caroline Flack because she inhabited something real to them. Sure one can sell 'fake' it works all the time, though arguably less and less.

Maybe I should stop before getting into trouble….!

Of course there is far more to life than reality TV shows. The fact that many ARE life, though, can't be ignored. Nor the suicides of two recent Love Island contestants who lived 'the dream'. Back to the film Mister Lonely. Where do you go when you lived however briefly a life less ordinary? Has every one seen Ricky Gervais' Extras (Season 2) ? and there's a brilliant cameo by David Bowie when Ricky's allowed (well booted out then bribing back in) the VIP area (star of a BBC1 equivalent sitcom compromising his artistic integrity). Ricky confesses his frustration to Bowie and the legend improvises a satirical song about him. Ricky then returns to the pub from whence he ran to the haven of 'havin a laugh' fans and selfles.

All intelligent thoughts have already been thought; what is necessary is only to try to think them again.- Goethe