Comedic "things you would ban": minor things that irritate you

[Jimini]

Foolish income really, as most people won't read them and the advertiser is wasting their money

Don't tell the advertiser that

 

[GusB]

How about those annoying advertising flyers stapled in between the pages of a weekly magazine or periodical?

Argh! Yes, that really annoys me. The process of removing said flyers often results in the staples being bent, thereby increasing the risk of minor injuries, and the possibility of the magazine falling apart.

 

[Class800]

Argh! Yes, that really annoys me. The process of removing said flyers often results in the staples being bent, thereby increasing the risk of minor injuries, and the possibility of the magazine falling apart.

I've not seen ones stapled in - maybe we're reading different things. The magazines I get you just need to give them a good shake, all the inserts fall out and can be put in recyling unread

 

[52290]

I've not seen ones stapled in - maybe we're reading different things. The magazines I get you just need to give them a good shake, all the inserts fall out and can be put in recyling unread

The Radio Times has them firmly stapled in.

 

[PeterY]

Not lighthearted really, but I have a friend who would leap and answer his phone when he was mid-sentence in a conversation with me. Maybe it's a generational thing, I'm old but he's older, and my dad used to run off and answer the phone at home also.
The last time of many he did it I decided I needed to do something about it. His phone rang and he said "do you mind if I take this?" to which I said "yes" but he didn't listen to what I said, just assumed I was OK, and took the call. Which I had to listen to because we were chatting in a pub until he stopped talking to me.
At the end of the call I said something as politely as I could along the lines of "did you not realise I said 'yes' in answer to your question and I find it exceptionally rude that you break your conversation with me to talk to someone who just happened to call you".
He got the message, and now he's much better about it.
Don't get me wrong, sometimes someone important does call, but my book of manners tells me to apologise in advance to my companions, explain that I might get an important call and apologise for having to take it. For example, I might be waiting for someone to call me to confirm something important has happened.
But if I get an otherwise unexpected and unanticipated call when I'm talking to someone, I just let it go to voicemail, that's what it's for.
I was once at the cheese counter in Fortnum & Mason and chatting to the man about cheese when someone - actually the same miscreant friend - called me, so I answered to the effect of "sorry Bob, but I'm busy, I'll call you back" and the cheese man described me as his politest customer of the day for not ignoring him.
I don't know, it just gets me and is something I find incredibly rude. A bit like queueing up for someone behind a desk who starts talking to you, then their phone rings, and they answer it.
My dad said "it might be someone important" to which my point in response was "who am I, then?".
It was difficult working out what to say to Bob but it obviously worked because we're still friends and he doesn't answer his phone when he's chatting to me any more! I think the fact that his girlfriend confirmed that I was right in her opinion when he subsequently asked her what she thought probably helped also.

It annoys me, when I'm volunteering in the charity shop and I'm on the checkout. I'm serving them but they're talking on their phone. AHHH I consider it rude.

 

[Gloster]

Something that seems to be particularly common in charity shops. You are looking at something such as books when someone approaches you from one side of the aisle. You move up close to the shelf to allow them space to pass, but they stop immediately behind you and you are left standing with your nose about half-an-inch from one of Catherine Cookson’s masterpieces (or should that be mistresspieces). For good measure they usually stand there thinking vaguely, rather than considering whether to buy something.

 

[duncanp]

Something that seems to be particularly common in charity shops. You are looking at something such as books when someone approaches you from one side of the aisle. You move up close to the shelf to allow them space to pass, but they stop immediately behind you and you are left standing with your nose about half-an-inch from one of Catherine Cookson’s masterpieces (or should that be mistresspieces). For good measure they usually stand there thinking vaguely, rather than considering whether to buy something.

Not just charity shops.

Supermarkets are also prone to this.

Whatever I want to buy in the supermarket, there is always someone who is standing in front of the relevant area, dithering about which brand or size of beans/milk/cheese.... etc. to buy.

Then there are the people who stroll down the aisle, two abreast with their trollies, thus making it impossible to pass.

And I swear that when I go to Aldi, the staff wait for me to come in, and then decide they want to stack the very shelf that I am looking at, or squeeze past with a huge pallet loaded with something.

 

[GusB]

I've not seen ones stapled in - maybe we're reading different things. The magazines I get you just need to give them a good shake, all the inserts fall out and can be put in recyling unread

The Radio Times has them firmly stapled in.

It was the Radio Times that I had firmly in mind when I posted! It's not a publication that I buy very often these days as I'm happy enough with the Freeview's web TV guide, but I tend to buy it at Christmas when it's double the size of a normal issue.

 

[jfollows]

The Radio Times got me going, not just because of the vast quantity of inserts, but I used to subscribe to it. At some point they increased the price, but the letter they sent me informing me was deliberately vague and waffly about how much it was going up by, they made a big point about "only XXp per day" or whatever but nowhere did it say "you used to pay £x per period, we are increasing that with effect from some date to £y".
So I sent them a terse letter and told them (politely enough) what they could do with their subscription. Never missed it since.

EDIT Ah yes, what annoyed me is that they obfuscated a 33% increase in my subscription rate by telling me my new price but not mentioning the old one. When I called them to cancel they backed down and reduced my rate down to little more than it had been, but by this point I'd had enough. So basically they were trying to milk long-standing customers in order to offer teaser rates to new subscribers. So I felt they were being dishonest by not spelling out the size of the proposed increase.

 

[52290]

The Radio Times got me going, not just because of the vast quantity of inserts, but I used to subscribe to it. At some point they increased the price, but the letter they sent me informing me was deliberately vague and waffly about how much it was going up by, they made a big point about "only XXp per day" or whatever but nowhere did it say "you used to pay £x per period, we are increasing that with effect from some date to £y".
So I sent them a terse letter and told them (politely enough) what they could do with their subscription. Never missed it since.

I don't have a subscription to RT I just buy it in the shop. As a classical music fan I find it's the only way I can find out exactly who is playing what on radio 3.

 

[jfollows]

I don't have a subscription to RT I just buy it in the shop. As a classical music fan I find it's the only way I can find out exactly who is playing what on radio 3.

That was the reason I subscribed also, but I now automatically record a lot of programmes and keep them if I want them. Disk space is cheaper than the subscription! (get_iplayer on a Raspberry Pi; I used to use a digital recorder which recorded from DAB but it needed programming with start/stop times, hence Radio Times, now the software records by name of the programme so "Radio 3 in Concert" gets what I want)

 

[bspahh]

I don't have a subscription to RT I just buy it in the shop. As a classical music fan I find it's the only way I can find out exactly who is playing what on radio 3.

Does it have information that you can't get from one of the schedules from https://www.bbc.co.uk/schedules, like the weekly Radio 3 schedule like https://www.bbc.co.uk/schedules/p00fzl8t/2022/w16 and the program site like https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0016b79 ?

 

[jfollows]

Does it have information that you can't get from one of the schedules from https://www.bbc.co.uk/schedules, like the weekly Radio 3 schedule like https://www.bbc.co.uk/schedules/p00fzl8t/2022/w16 and the program site like https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0016b79 ?

I don't think it does really, but the format and presentation are better on a printed page than the Web site, in my opinion. It just looks nicer and there's no need to click on things all the time to get to the details. Plus I find that things that interest you tend to "jump out of" the printed page in a much better way.

 

[dgl]

Any cartoon thst was once done using stop-motion and is now entirely CGI, Thomas and Fireman Sam come to mind.
It might make them cheaper to produce but the CGI versions look crap in comparison.

 

[ABB125]

It might make them cheaper to produce but the CGI versions look crap in comparison.

"Thomas decided to do a handstand to show off to his driver" is far easier in CGI though!

 

[Cowley]

Any cartoon thst was once done using stop-motion and is now entirely CGI, Thomas and Fireman Sam come to mind.
It might make them cheaper to produce but the CGI versions look crap in comparison.

Absolutely with you on this @dgl. The colours are always hideously garish in the new versions too.

 

[Techniquest]

Any cartoon thst was once done using stop-motion and is now entirely CGI, Thomas and Fireman Sam come to mind.
It might make them cheaper to produce but the CGI versions look crap in comparison.

I have seen a little bit of the more modern Fireman Sam than I grew up with, it was certainly different but whichever one I saw was not that bad. I have seen bits of more modern Thomas, I think a 2000s version, and to me nothing will be better than the 1980s Thomas episodes.

It's good that they keep these programmes going for the next generation though. We were privileged to grow up with such programmes, so to rob the next generation of such joy would be unfair.

The same applies to Alvin & The Chipmunks, I grew up with them and while I can't say I really like the newer movies that much, I haven't watched them the way they would be truly enjoyed. That is, to watch them with an open mind the sort you'd only have as a child.

I also grew up on things like Thunderbirds and The Famous Five. I love that GWR have their advertising campaign using The Famous Five, and I watched their current TV ad recently, which I enjoyed as it encapsulated the spirit of The Famous Five rather well. I don't think I will ever find any version of Thunderbirds better than the original series, although as with Thomas and Fireman Sam I am still happy more generations are getting to sample at least the spirit of what I got to enjoy as a child.

I might be getting a bit too mellow, a bit too soft, for this thread these days! That I am not complaining about!

 

[Jimini]

I love that GWR have their advertising campaign using The Famous Five, and I watched their current TV ad recently, which I enjoyed as it encapsulated the spirit of The Famous Five rather well.

Same for me (1980 baby here)

 

[Paul Jones 88]

Loud background music on TV drama shows, absolutely ridiculous, I want to hear the dialog, if I wanted to listen to music then I would have put the bloody radio on.

 

[Mark24]

The casual dropping of Definite Articles.

 

[D821]

People who don't normally use the train, using the train during rush hour, oblivious to other users.

Get on. Immediately stop in the middle of the carriage stopping anyone getting past. Have a conversation about whether to go left or right, despite both sides of the carriage being identical.

Amble down the aisle, pausing to discuss the merits of each available seat.

Dither a bit.

Pick a seat. Proceed to unpack all belongings, bags, children, elderly relatives and any livestock they have on them.

Put any minor items of luggage, smaller than a suitcase, but not actually any suitcases, in the overhead storage.

Dither a bit more.

Sit down, usually as slow as possible to avoid any sitting down-related injuries. No rush.

Look surprised that there are a queue of other people angrily stood behind them waiting to sit down.

 

[duncanp]

People who don't normally use the train, using the train during rush hour, oblivious to other users.

Get on. Immediately stop in the middle of the carriage stopping anyone getting past. Have a conversation about whether to go left or right, despite both sides of the carriage being identical.

Amble down the aisle, pausing to discuss the merits of each available seat.

Dither a bit.

Pick a seat. Proceed to unpack all belongings, bags, children, elderly relatives and any livestock they have on them.

Put any minor items of luggage, smaller than a suitcase, but not actually any suitcases, in the overhead storage.

Dither a bit more.

Sit down, usually as slow as possible to avoid any sitting down-related injuries. No rush.

Look surprised that there are a queue of other people angrily stood behind them waiting to sit down.

You could say the same thing about people when they board an aircraft.

Why is it that the first person to board the plan stands and blocks the aisle whilst they fuss about where to put their hand luggage. (which is usually too big for the overhead bins)?

And then, of course, they are in the aisle seat, which means a lot of huffing and puffing and blocking the aisle again whilst they get up to let the person with the window seat in.

I can recommend The Grumpy Guide To Holidays (on You Tube) in which one of the quotes is "The problem with flying is that there are too many other people" which in a way is true when you look at the chaos at airports in the past couple of weeks, not only in the UK, but right around the world.

 

[Calthrop]

..."The problem with flying is that there are too many other people" ...

Some would say that that is one of the main problems, not only with flying, but with life on Earth...

 

[nlogax]

People who don't normally use the train, using the train during rush hour, oblivious to other users.

This is one of my favourites. Had it at Waterloo one night the other week..parents brought their two kids onto a very full suburban service and marched everyone up and down the full length of the eight car 450 on a hunt for seats, to no avail. Both parents were evidently aghast at how busy this rush hour train was and couldn't actually comprehend that there was nowhere for their children to perch.

 

[Runningaround]

People who rage against modern technology while on the INTERNET.

Cull all who came up with awkward knotted system that is the Rail Industry in the 21st century which ensures even the simplest improvement needs years and years of planning. Just get on with it its obvious they are trains the clues in the name they can be extended or shortened! Special measures for those ''improving'' a service by making it worse.

Hipsters thinking they are being different while looking all the same and being the dopey beard is more than enough, crap tattoos and then the fat blokes in skinny jeans just look at yourself. You are the equivalent of the Pot Bellied England fan stretching his shirt over the bulge on the beach.

 

[D821]

This is one of my favourites. Had it at Waterloo one night the other week..parents brought their two kids onto a very full suburban service and marched everyone up and down the full length of the eight car 450 on a hunt for seats, to no avail. Both parents were evidently aghast at how busy this rush hour train was and couldn't actually comprehend that there was nowhere for their children to perch.

Oh yes, I forgot that. Like there's an empty carriage no one has thought to sit in.

 

[52290]

The casual dropping of Definite Articles.

I agree, they should use the litter bins.

 

[pitdiver]

Where I live it's done all the time

 

[Cowley]

Losing your page in a really thick book…

 

[Calthrop]

Losing your page in a really thick book…

My know-all friend says, "memorise the page number". Not all of us have a computer-standard "head" and memory for numbers and figures...