39 Comments
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Debra Reece's avatar

Oh Jane! You’ve made me laugh. You’ve made me cry.

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Linda Pennell's avatar

https://laingartgallery.org.uk/whats-on/with-these-hands

Jane - you might like this

Best wishes Linda

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Jane Brocket's avatar

Looks brilliant - thanks for letting me know about it.

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Gail Doggett's avatar

This has made me think deeply about what makes me laugh and yes it’s wit and warmth. Teasing, scoring points and crude humour never hit the mark for me. Interesting point about how much one has at stake…

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Louise's avatar

So true about Leonard Cohen - I immersed myself in him in the wake of a messy breakup and ended up so loving his wit that it cheered me right up again.

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Lucille's avatar

Did you see Last One Laughing?

Worth it just for Bob Mortimer and Richard Ayoade head to head. Or Bob Mortimer torturing David Mitchell on Would I Lie to You? Then Lee Mack with his lightening repartee. I'm smiling just thinking of them and that's a good thing.

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Jane Brocket's avatar

Yes, we did and it was funny how trying not to laugh can be so funny - for others!

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Jill Guest's avatar

Wonderful Sunday reading as always - thank you xx

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Katherine Radburn's avatar

A pleasure on my Sunday morning, as always 🧡 I actually went looking for you on Instagram to thank you for alerting to me about the Winifred Nicholson rag rugs — my friend, five year old and I made a journey to Carlisle to see them this week before the exhibition closes. Perhaps they didn’t quite make me laugh, but they did fill us all with a lot of joy !

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Jane Brocket's avatar

Glad you got to see them!

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Helen's avatar

My Swedish partner admires the appreciation of silliness in northern English humour, and our readiness to laugh. And I’m with you on Instagram - I deleted my account in January after receiving some Chinese state propaganda about Xinjiang as a suggested post. No regrets; such a thief of time.

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Sarah Harkness's avatar

Thank you, lots of lovely funniness here. I can never not click on a Ted Lasso clip. Did you try Shrinking, from the same gentle stable but with a priceless comic turn by Harrison Ford? Who knew! And I find the comedy of embarrassment, like Fawlty Towers, quite tricky, but did enjoy The Studio on Apple TV. The episode where the director Sarah Polley is trying for the perfect 'one take shot'. Brilliant.

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Jane Brocket's avatar

No, I haven't seen Shrinking or The Studio so thanks for the recommendations

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Clare Owen's avatar

I was born in Stockport, left at 18 but still consider my sense of humour that of a northern lass! Great writing as always. Thank you ❤️

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Mary's avatar

Did you catch the recent Eric Tucker exhibition in London? Typically, I only noticed the week after it closed!

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Jane Brocket's avatar

No, I had no idea it was on. How annoying!

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Sue Key's avatar

Ah, Peter Kay! After I had left my convent grammar school for girls (obviously!) and my home town, the LEA went comp and co-ed. Hence I can proudly proclaim Peter Kay went to my school. Car Share is one of the funniest programmes I have watched. Love him!

Read Charles Nevin’s Lancashire , Where Women Die of Love. He explains the difference between Lancastrians and Yorkshire folk - winds. Annoy a Yorkshire person by asking them to name a Yorkshire comedian. Then ask them to name a Lancashire comedian…

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Kate Harwood's avatar

I’ve never understood why Leonard Cohen is considered depressing; emotional yes, melancholy sometimes but so often self deprecating and witty, ‘I ache in the places where I used to play’… I love him.

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Jenny Lee's avatar

I wanted to know what Tom had for his tea.

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Jane Brocket's avatar

Hahaha, wish I could remember!

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Alison Macaulay's avatar

I love a bit of northern humour, though as a (non-native) Glaswegian, I'm a bit biased towards our own specific brand.

But the thing that reduces me to helpless weeping is music played or sung badly. Les Dawson's piano playing; the wee girl dressed as an angel belting out the song in that nativity video that comes round on the internet every year. I once made the mistake of taking a front row seat in a music evening at our son's cubs group. I had to leave the room when one kid got up and played only the double bass part of an orchestra tune he'd been playing in his school orchestra, which was basically the same note played very enthusiastically over and over for about 5 minutes.

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Joan Higgins's avatar

Hi Jane

Another lovely post. You made me laugh, when we met up recently, with your story about ordering a cup of tea in Yorkshire. I’ve dined out on it. Some people have a great belly laugh, as I did, and some don’t get it AT ALL. If you don’t you don’t!!

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Jane Brocket's avatar

Glad to hear some people get it!

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