manners maketh the mother-in-law
The media in turmoil. The public in uproar. Police on the take. The euro on its knees. Revolution rising in the Arab world. Teachers strike. Surly Scot crashes out of Wimbledon. Again. And the focus of the world’s attention is on the manners, or lack of them, of a soon-to-be-bride and her prospective mother-in-law. But oh what a hoot!
No doubt you already know of the story and the actual details of the withering email Carolyn Bourne fired off to her son’s fiancée, Heidi. Did she write, re-write and re-write again to cause maximum effect? I suspect not. Did her finger falter and hesitate for a split second over the send button? No way, Jose! I reckon she just rocked up to the keyboard and cracked it out. And, in today’s overly PC world, good on the lass for that – say what you mean, mean what you say and don’t you dare leave anything to potential misinterpretation.
There’s no denying the pompous nature of some of the complaints (I’m thinking of the ‘castle wedding’ one specifically) but the general thrust of ‘whilst under my roof, behave as I would expect’ is entirely justified and perhaps highlights the lack of respect for property and person shown by swathes of today’s younger society. Furthermore, if this reminds us all to make a very visible stand against the ill-mannered, lazy, arrogant and uncaring members of our land, so much the better.
Her son, Freddie, is now in an invidious position in terms of whom he sides with as he’s damned if he does and damned if he doesn’t but it sounds as if he needed to grow a pair in any event. And what was Heidi doing making it a public affair via all her pals in the first place? The final word in this hilarious ‘Keeping up Appearances’ exchange surely has to go to Hyacinth’s slobbish brother, Onslow (played by Heidi’s father) who is quoted as saying ‘Miss Fancy Pants is so far up her own backside she doesn’t know whether to speak or fart!’ As long as she apologies and excuses herself I won’t mind either.
