Jack…with your face like a knackered puffin.
Oh I can’t stand radio 4 - my FIL used to listen to it ALLLLLL day from the second he got up until he went to bed at high volume 
it made me want to scream and do something very nasty to his radio!!! Perhaps a decade or so later I may feel differently but tbh I never turn the radio on, I don’t even have one!
Oh that is so sad! I always get them playing on you tube! Great idea for the kids, I’m going to do some this week in my French lessons! We did Christmas vocab last week.
Oh dear, and I’m guessing that will be every other family in France as well! As you say quick coffee (by an open window) would be the safest but of course so hard to say no to family!
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Sorry but so hard to say no to family!, emmmmm nope.
The choice of maybe giving or receiving covid to your family for the sake of a 4 hour meal together and the chance of dying and lying in a box for the rest of eternity, I wouldn’t be playing the covid roulette Christmas party game I am afraid.
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I agree, which is why we’re against it, some in the family have already had it and come through it OK which makes others more relaxed with the whole idea. We’re all in full-time work, run several shops beween us so are all in constant contact with the public too. The biggest risk is for my in-laws who are isolated on the farm and should remain so for their own sakes but don’t want to!
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Andrew… if you’re all in full-time work… imagine the upset if you all had to “quarantine” or whatever, 'cos one of the “Christmas Dinner” gang tested positive afterwards…
that’s a reasonable argument, I reckon, for your family to stay safely at home…
why not try that tack, if simply saying NO is not allowed… 
How Are they going to check this ?
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Nice idea, Stella, but nobody’s going to do that (quarantine) when there’s a business to run and work to do 
it’s as if we’re already no longer in confinement anyway; went to the huge out of town centre commercial in Albi yesterday afternoon and there were queues just to get into the carpark and no spaces! The third wave in January is going to be horrendous 
The worst in all this is one of our nieces has a new born and wants to bring her back from Carcassonne to meet all the family in the Aveyron. 5 of us have already had covid, perhaps more, watch this space…
Andrew… I meant that you could use that very serious excuse… 'cos you meet the public and need to be the “responsible” ones
it takes guts to go against the very persuasive family folk… I’m sure you will do what is right/best/safest for those closest to you…
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No worries, Stella, that’s what we’re working on
Meanwhile, this is what I saw yesterday (different centre commercial but same scene) and what’s happening across “urban” France
They say the natural progression for BBC radio stations is 1 ➨ 4 ➨ 2
I was never much of an R1 listener - Tommy Vance or occasionally John Peel, I used to listen to R4 but gave up when “Today” started to let Tory politicians spout balderdash unchallenged (a tradition sadly also adhered to by “Breakfast” on BBC1) and I’m too young for R2 (and probably always will be).
So it tends to be Planet Rock these days 
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My progression was Luxembourg - Pirates - R2 - R4/World Service. 
It will be interesting to see if the government fudges the figures or gives in to ‘Christmasitis’ next week as the numbers are still above the set limits.
Seems like they’re already paving the way to maintain some sort of confinement from the 15th onwards or as you say, they’ll have to fudge the figures/move the goalposts.
My progression was the BBC Home Service (Gilbert Harding, Uncle Mac and Childrens’ Hour with Larry the Lamb, Arthur Askey, Sandy McPherson at the organ in the Tower Ballroom, Workers’ Playtime, Mrs Dale’s Diary etc etc), then Radio 4…er that’s it 
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My French family had a zoom call to discuss the 6 adult rule and decided that unless the government didn’t forbid it, then they didn’t care. So, 8 adults will be around the table for Christmas. However, the critical point is that there are often two celebrations to cover the inlaws. So, while there maybe only 6 adults recommended, if four of those adults then continue to two addition dinners each with 6 adults the bubble gets up to…
6+4+4 =14
Still, the grandparents were ‘uninvited’. So, maybe there is some common sense. I am just happy that our celebrations start on the 24th, and all the in-laws have theirs on the 25th. The size of our bubble will be markedly smaller than if it was the other way around.
Onto the tangential topic, I am still enjoying David Mitchell’s The Unbelievable Truth on R4.
Tim
And the shipping forecast.
We had to be quiet whilst it came up to Irish Sea as if there was bad weather Dad might have to spend the night on his boat in case the anchor dragged.
I believe 6 adult family members is the max now… (although less is preferred)
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It’s only a recommendation and would be impossible to police.
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