Something On

Mum used to complain as a matter of routine towards the end of her life that there was nothing on the telly. And now I sometimes find myself doing much the same, despite the many channels I have access to and the many programmes of which I am aware that I know lots of people enjoy.

But just occasionally I find myself watching something I find completely gripping, and tonight, by some weird coincidence, this happened to me with two items adjacent to each other, though on different channels. First of all I found myself watching a 15 minute piece on Sky News about palliative care for the dying, largely focused on a hospice in Sheffield. I suppose it should have been depressing given the subject matter and the fact that two of the people interviewed actually died before it was broadcast. In fact it was strangely life-enhancing and made me feel considerably more cheerful than I'd felt up to that point - though it was also very sad.

Then I switched over to BBC World on which there was a repeat broadcast of a Hardtalk episode featuring the novelist James Elroy. I only caught the last fifteen minutes and how compelling they were. The guy's a complete eccentric in the great tradition of American individualism. It's rare you see someone interviewed on the box who clearly just doesn't give a damn what you think of him. I felt like cheering. (He announced that he intended to live to a hundred years old and I devoutly hope he does.)