11 September 2009

Pinup

One of my favourite bloggers will occasionally post photos of what she calls "eye candy". To be politically correct, these photos are of both sexes though it is obvious she favours the male "eye candy". It seemed like such a good idea that I thought I would imitate it. So here's my first offering - the archetypal Yorkshire battleaxe of a wife - Nora Batty played by the Lancashire born actress - Kathy Staff who sadly departed this life last December at the age of eighty. For transatlantic visitors who may not be familiar with this character, Nora Batty was the female lead in a Yorkshire based BBC comedy series which followed the peculiar antics of a small group of retired men in "Last of The Summer Wine". The writer - Roy Clarke - was a master of irony and understatement crafting scripts that were tenderly humorous and psychologically observant.

Nora had a harsh and miserable disposition, pouring scorn on all menfolk as she got on with the serious business of housekeeping - scouring her step and hanging out the washing. She did not tolerate foolishness or foolish men and was the guardian of northern commonsense in her pinafore and crumpled stockings. For many men of my generation, Nora was a sex symbol who enriched our inner fantasy lives over many years. Who needed Marilyn Monroe, Cheryl Cole or Jennifer Aniston when you could have Nora Batty? Talk about eye candy, Nora was the sweetest of all.

Here's just one of her lines:- "The old ways are sometimes the best. Rug-beating is one of the older types of therapy. It's what housewives had to make do with before nervous breakdowns were invented."

8 comments:

  1. Oooh, you're gonna be in trouble in New Zealand!

    Hilarious post, though.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hmm, I think her ideas about counselling could possibly be very similar to Keith's. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. "The old ways are sometimes the best. Rug-beating is one of the older types of therapy. It's what housewives had to make do with before nervous breakdowns were invented."

    So true.
    She of the wrinkled stockings was a favourite in my house. Losing her and Bill Owen ended the series for me.

    ReplyDelete
  4. She's a babe and no mistake!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What would the typical northern housewife look like now if Roy Clarke was to position his scripts in modern 21st century Yorkshire?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Now that brings back memories, I had the dubious pleasure of meeting Mrs Batty on the set in Holmfirth. She was a big bacon sandwich fan...

    ReplyDelete
  7. RHYMES WITH... Katherine seems to be grinding to a halt postwise so anyhthing to wake her up...
    JENNY Could this be what attracted Keith to you?
    VALERIE I bet you have a few Nora Battys in the Women's Institute!
    DAVID I thought that picture would get your blood racing!
    BOOTHIE - I think she would look exactly the same as the original Nora but she would have Freeview on her telly and she would have tried pasta.
    DAVID You name dropping pseudo-Kiwi! I am insanely jealous. Did Nora touch you? Ooooo! I have never heard of Bacon Sandwich. Were they from Holmfirth?

    ReplyDelete
  8. I don't think so, YP. Let me put it this way, I haven't seen a wrinkle yet. Mind you... no, I won't go there lol.

    ReplyDelete

Mr Pudding welcomes all genuine comments - even those with which he disagrees. However, puerile or abusive comments from anonymous contributors will continue to be given the short shrift they deserve. Any spam comments that get through Google/Blogger defences will also be quickly deleted.

Most Visits