CF was honoured and touched to be invited to return to that den of iniquity, the House of Comments.

Now in its 11th great incarnation, we are reliably informed that the House of Comments podcast is the fastest production car of its kind the most popular politicial-but-not-from-the-BBC podcast in the world.

This particular sizzling roller coaster of political and current affairs comment featured famous media ho' Mark 'Reckons' Thompson,  Stu 'what are backups?' Sharpe and Darrell 'lurch to the left' Goodliffe of 'Moments of Clarity'.

The recording session started badly when Darrell revealed that he was attempting to connect using a ZX Spectrum. Via a 300 baud dial up line. From a small village in New Zealand. During a thunderstorm. With a 'Barbie Karaoke' microphone. While eating Cream Crackers.

The other particpants could only hear the first word of every sentence before of long bursts of static, and had to chat among themselves while Darrell repeatedly rebooted, upgraded and wired his own network cables.

Eventually he was connected to the almost Bang & Olufsen standards of clarity demanded by Mark, and was able to record the full ghastly story of how he came to move from being a avowed Lib Dem to a staunch Labour man. You'll have to listen to the podcast for details, but rest assured, it involves some bin men and was little, if anything, to do with Mark Oaten.


CF whinged for a while about his liver, and the bastards who would like to take control of his innards and his life, and that led into a conversation about whether we should expect the 'nanny state' to clear snow from our front paths or fucking well get off our arses and do it ourselves.

There was some chat about the Carnage at the Chocolate Factory, and CF had a long, rambling, rant about the difference between a Retail Bank and a Wholesale Bank - one that both Gordo and Barack choose not to understand.

Well worth a listen, the podcast can be heard directly on the website , downloaded directly (raw mp3 file here if you prefer).

Or, if you're a complete consumer, and have an iSummat, you can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes.

Get in!

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Constantly Furious was honoured to be invited to join this week’s House of Comments podcast

He joined Mark 'Reckons' Thompson', Stu 'Sharpe's Opinion' Sharpe and Charlotte err.. 'Charlotte Gore' Gore, all top bloggers and frequent appearers on Sky News.

A fascinating discussion ensued, covering the possibilities of a Hung Parliament, Peter Mandelson's new Digital Fascism, the Paul Clarke case and the proposals that the PCC regulate bloggers.

Mark started well, and within less than 10 seconds had steered the conversation to his favourite topic, Proportional Representation. Mark has a way of discussing PR that makes even other PR evangelists shuffle their feet and try to change the subject to Eastenders, or Snooker, but the panel heard him out.

When the news was broken to him that even the hungest of hung parliaments might not let the Lib Dems bring in immediate and everlasting PR as a condition for co-operation, his disappointment was almost palpable. His quiet sobs can be heard in the background for most of the remainder of the debate.

Charlotte freely admitted having a 'Northern Accent', and indeed so distorted were her vowels that it was virtually impossible to understand most of what she was saying. Above the barking of her five pet whippets, the rattle of coal being removed from the bath, and the distant noise of rioting mill workers, it was just about possible to make out her views on a variety of subjects.

She was particularly strong on Mandelson's proposals for controlling our internet usage, and had some very useful technical tips on how to hide one's collection of Scandinavian special-interest movies from the digital police. She also provided all attendees with a link to download a free copy of Microsoft Office, but CF can't get his download to work.

Stu would not deny that he is slightly 'to the Right of Centre' (well, at least politically he is), and this was never clearer than when discussing the Paul Clarke case. He appears to believe that people should be sent to prison not just for committing crimes, but also for "being stupid". As host, Mark had to act quickly before Stu could develop this theme and propose that those with fewer than 10 GCSE's be driven into the sea using flamethrowers, then shot as they flailed in the icy waters.

Stu was also the editor, and what a job he had. Cutting out Charlotte's torrent of blasphemous obscenities must have taken some time. He also completely excised the section where Mark 'phoned Andrew Sachs and left a message on his answerphone containing various allegations about where his granddaughter stood on the Single Transferable Vote issue.

Notwithstanding, the podcast is well worth a listen.

Pop over to the House of Comments web page for more details. You can listen to the podcast there, or download onto your flashy iPhone through iTunes. You sheep.

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