Is Chivalry Dead?

I ask this question after much thought over the past few months and speared on by something I read in the metro this week.

This reminded me of a few weeks back when I was setting up and taking down the Gigbeth stall at Artsfest. I had so many boxes and bags as well as a TV and was really struggling to transport it all to and from my taxi, which refused to park any nearer to my stall. I wasn’t going that far but I am not ashamed to admit I am not too strong and would have gladly excepted some help from any of the passers by who just gorped at me. In the end, when I couldn’t go any furthur I resorted to asking two men smoking outside a pub if they would help me the last 100yards. They begrudingly helped.

So I ask, whatever you think of Russell Brand, is he one of the only true Gents left? Is chivalry dead? Or have men just decided that in this modern world of political correctness, they best not offer to help for fear of getting there heads bitten off?

Gigbeth at Artsfest

I have just spent the weekend standing on New Street in Birmingham manning the Gigbeth stall at ArtsFest. This meant I had to tell lots of people that “Gigbeth is a music festival held in the Digbeth area of town on the 7th and 8th November.” I must have said that 1000 times over the course of the weekend whilst giving out 3000 flyers. I also gave away lots of free stuff in the shape of t-shirts, bags and cds. It is funny how much people love free stuff even if it’s not very good free stuff but just because they can’t belive you can actually get something for nothing.

The line up so far for this year’s festival looks very cool indeed. Including D:ream (of Things Can Only Get Better, Labour theme tune fame) Guillemots, The Young Knives, The Destroyers, Stanton Warriors and best of all The Sugarhill Gang. Now, there were two kinds of reactions people were giving to the fact they are playing. The first was:

“The who?”

“The Sugarhill Gang”

“I don’t know who they are.”

“Do you remember the song Rapper’s Delight?”

“Nope”

“I said a hip hop ….”

“Ahhhhh!”

The second kind of reaction was the most amusing. This was the I got from a man who took a flyer and walked about four paces. Turned around and came back.

“The Sugarhill Gang?”

“Yes”

“The REAL Sugarhill Gang?”

“Yes”

“From AMERICA?”

“YES”

“I said a hip hop the hippie the hippie to the hip hip hop…”

And the guy rapped the whole of Rapper’s Delight whilst dancing in the street. High fived me and went on with his day. I wonder if he knew he had just made my weekend? For all your Gigbeth info check out there website. Tickets are on sale now.