Not sure how widely known this particular force of nature is in these parts, but I thought you might like it: a veritable human mash-up that artfully yokes the lyrical gymnasium of Neil Peart's mind with the autostrangulatory warble of Geddy Lee's larynx.

Don't eat it all at once....

Yeah, that's right, another punter telling you how great you are; just what you need.

I love the staples, I love the shininess and smelliness of the cover, I love that new bit where Mark Ellen does his own version of "I've Been Everywhere, Man" at the beginning, I love anything that gives Danny Baker the chance to have a page to himself, and I laughed so hard at Giles Smiths' review of that 1970's kid's DVD thing that a little bit of wee came out. I've lost count of the things I love. Oh, did I mention that I also love Kerry Shale? If I didn't, I'll get back to that.

You've been so brilliant this month, in fact, that I've accidentally misplaced a box in my brain that had "critical distance" written on it.

There is just one thing though, while you're in the business of change (and this is my Kerry Shale bit): I'm not happy with that podcast sting that goes: "The Word: A magazine, a podcast, a website (pause) a way of life".

I've never liked it. It doesn't scan proper

ly, and it breaks the golden "rule of three". If there is an opposite of premature ejaculation, then that sting is it. I know you're all four of those things, but still, it just doesn't sound right, and I think it should go. How about:

"The Word Magazine: a website, a podcast, a way of life."

NO: that's still not right, but maybe there's something else....

Yeah, that's right. I'm now in my 40's, and I've never been to an arena or stadium gig, or a festival; probably never been anywhere bigger, say, than The Shepherd's Bush Empire (2,000 approx).

What's it like? I know about the rubbish side (crap sound, expensive beer, invisible band, etc), but what's good about it?

And festivals? I'm open to anything, but really; they sound sh*te. I'm quite prepared to try an enormodome before I die, but a muddy field dotted with cuban food concessions and multi-pierced bald men juggling on unicycles or banging dustbin lids in unison? I don't like the sound of that at all.

There must be something good about it...

This recently discovered footage of BBC2's aborted first night on air in 1964 is sheer broadcasting gold. Gerald Priestland does a sterling job of trying to holding things together, but there are still a couple of moments of utter hilarity.

Listen out for some rather bizarre recommendations for Sunday activities from The Church of Scotland, and a helpful reminder from GP that the news headlines he's just read out will be repeated in one minute's time.

Hang on in there though; you won't hear anything for the first minute or so.

Dale Winton has just played this on "Pick Of The Pops" and even now, forty years later, my pulse races when I hear the opening bars.

This was my pop initiation, and there wasn't one tune in the recent Word Festive 50 that thrilled me this much, good as it was.

Everybody's got to start somewhere. Right?...

I've just read a posting by Andrew F about vinyl volatility in the "CD Vs LP" survey that's currently heading the homepage, and it reminded me of some of the more interesting jumps that my records made when I were a lad.

My copy of "Return To Sender" on Elvis' 40 Greatest used to go:

"I gave a letter to the postman,
he put it his sack -

- my letter back. ",

and my copy of "Rocky Raccoon" on The White Album used to go:

"So one day he walked in to town
And booked hims -

- oon".

Both of which somehow improve on the original in ways that no remasterologist could ever anticipate, and even now I still feel blindsided and even slighly cheated when I hear the authorised versions.

I know this is probably the most tenuous posting in the history of postings, but am I alone here?

You may be interested to read the following recommendations by The Policy Exchange:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8458271.stm

which recommends that the BBC

"should cut the amount it spends on sports rights, popular entertainment and shows for 16 to 35-year-olds"

and that:

"it should put quality before ratings and leave sport and popular entertainment to commercial channels".

Could this be what we're waiting for? Does this mean the end of public broadcasting ageism? Is this the death knell for brain-dead beeb 3 James Corden vehicles? Will the BBC finally acknowledge that interesting things happen to people older than Ferne Cotton and that being over 40 is not the same as having swine flu?

Will they get the message that the British public actually DO prefer age-disfigured people like Michael Palin and Delia Smith to Alan Yentob, despite what er...Alan Yentob says?

Probably not, but you can hope...