Reduce traffic: encourage motorists

This week Terry Wogan read out a message from a listener (“Major General”) who appears to believe that rainy days in Britain are evidence that climate change isn’t happening. He also appears to believe that traffic jams are caused by pandering to users of public transport. Dedicated bus lanes! What next? A free bun for every bus passenger?

Thursday May 21st at about 8:30am: “‘Isn’t it strange what goes through your mind in idle moments?’ Sure we spend our time here idling away. ‘I was sitting in my car, stationery - ’ Sat sitting, were you? - ‘stationary on a dual carriageway, looking longingly at the deserted no-car lane to my left.’

I come regularly up the old M4 with the old bus lane; you never see a bus. It’s a motorbike lane really, or a taxi lane. ‘Drumming my fingers in time to the global warming hammering off the windscreen, I wondered: why are the government trying to encourage people to buy new cars when there’s nowhere to drive the wretched things? By the time I got to work my new car would have lost a thousand quid value anyway. Why not buy us all a new Ferrari so we get there quicker and save the environment from choking fumes of stationary motorists? Does logic not apply in life any more?’”

Climate change: just like the Millennium Bug, apparently

This week Terry Wogan read out a message from a listener comparing climate change (and the current financial crisis) to the Millennium Bug, implying that both are a storm in a teacup.

Tuesday March 17th at about 8:24am, reading a letter from "a financial incompetent": "'I'm surprised nobody has thought of Charles Nove as the obvious solution to the financial meltdown we're facing. The world is melting and so is the financial world. After all, wasn't he part of the BBC's Y2K team of Millennium Bug-Busters' - you remember - 'holed up in a bunker on the eve of the year 2000 in case the world's computer systems went haywire.' Well, that disaster failed to materialise. What happened to that?"

A Famous Disk Jockey Named Terry Wogan

In the UK, there is a famous disk jockey named Terry Wogan. He plays middle of the road music on the national radio station Radio 2. Terry has taken it upon himself to dismiss the findings of environmental scientists the world over in a one man crusade against the concept of global warming.

I guess I'm starting where Alex Caldon left off.

Geocaust denial in the Torygraph

Terry's been at it in the Telegraph too, using a "whimsical" column to laugh at the very idea of cycling to work (while conflating cyclists and motorcyclists), describe climate change as a "scare story" and trot out the old jokes about farting cows.

The story so far

I started writing down Terry Wogan's comments about climate change a few weeks ago. I don't listen to the whole show and I don't listen to it every day, but when he does come out with a lump of denialist drivel I seize my shorthand notebook and take it down word for word. Here are some gems from the past couple of weeks.

16th Feb at about 8:45am, reading a letter from "Donny Gall" and chuckling throughout: "'An expert was telling us that the Scottish winter ski industry could be wiped out in 20-30 years due to global warming.' Yeah. I don't think it's appropriate when most of the country is up to its armpits in snow and ice to be talking about global warming. Let it lie for a little, lads, and come back to it when the time is ripe."

18th Feb at about 7:36am, reading a letter from "Andy Notherthing": "'Further to my efforts to save the planet' - aren't we all at it?- 'and a few bob, by driving everywhere at 56mph' - you're a great man - 'I've decided to take even more of the green message into account and save energy in other ways.' Is this from Al Gore, by any chance? No, Andy Notherthing.

'If the standby light on my wireless at home is causing global warming, then it stands to reason that my car lights and indicators are doing the same, so I've stopped indicating and I only drive on sidelights, so everything should be OK. Once again, I'm getting tremendous support from other road users. Not only do they flash their own lights to illuminate my path, but I've had some very interesting things thrown from passing vehicles for... composting.'

You see? Everybody's... All hands to the wheel, as it were. That's very good. Nothing gives me greater pleasure coming in of a morning than to see every empty office block and factory ablaze with light while I'm sitting in the gloaming with my underpowered lights doing my bit for the environment."

23rd Feb at about 7:50am, reading a letter from "Lolly Pop": "'The Welsh Assembly is demanding everyone in Wales walks to work to help control global warming, so' - as long as they're walking in Welsh - 'so could you tell your other listener that if they see Lynn Bowles hitching a lift on the M4 from Splott, ignore her.'"

Why this blog was created

Like more than eight million people, I enjoy listening to Terry Wogan's breakfast show on Radio 2. But it really upsets me when I hear Terry making light of climate change. His comments and jokes make it very clear that he doesn't grasp how real and urgent the problem is.

The danger of such comments on a mainstream radio show is that many people will assume Terry knows what he's talking about and that the scientists must be making it all up.This slows down our efforts to raise awareness of climate change and stop it before it's too late.

This blog has been created to record instances of Terry Wogan's climate change denial. Submissions from readers are very welcome.