For most of my life I emerged from my nightly slumber at about 6am or earlier.
Having now been (semi) retired for well over a decade, that has morphed into a couple of hours later.
Imagine my confusion when this past Wednesday (March 18) I awoke to see reports of Spalding having entered the Town of Culture contest.
I thought I had been asleep for two weeks longer, let alone two hours.
This was compounded when, later in the day, I picked up a copy of this publication to see such reports repeated on the front pages.
Who on earth is trying to gaslight the whole country by promulgating the fact that Spalding is a place of culture? Would that be the town centre, with its rubbish strewn streets and vacant, derelict commercial properties, and not forgetting the drunks frequenting the various seating areas, spitting and shouting most days?
Perhaps it might be referring to its highly educated and academic indigenous population, with their bent noses, cauliflower ears, big booming voices and clenched fists wondering who just spilt my beer, and who view violence and the threat of same as a perfectly normal and appropriate action with which to resolve disagreements and conflict?
Perhaps it might be the plethora of country houses and the such, dotted all over the area?
Where, precisely, is this culture to be found? I have lived here for 34 years and have yet to be accosted by it.
I would suggest that any smidgeon of cultural decency this area had, if indeed it ever had any, probably passed in about the year 2008, and maybe even before.
At the time of writing, I now see that Boston has thrown its hat into the ring as well.
As the television character Jim Royle might have said “town of culture my …”, any way, I’m sure readers know the rest of the quote!
If the front page article had not been coupled with the name of The Voice’s esteemed reporter Richard, then, as mentioned at the start of my letter, I really would have felt I had been asleep for two weeks and the article had been written by that (in) famous freelance journalist, Loof Lirpa.
Tony Bown
Whaplode St Catherine
