One of the benefits of having a satellite dish is being able to watch euro tv channels not otherwise available. Although, national stereotypes do tend to get reinforced especially if the viewer cannot understand what it is being said.
French television seems to have numbers of psychoanalysts who are quite willing to take part in discussion programmes. It all seems quite natural. The last two UK based analysts I saw speak were Adam Liementani and Elizabeth Bott Spillius. Dr Liementani, I remember spoke about homosexuality and Dr Bott Spillius did not.
Listening to Dr David Bell, current president of the British Society, last night at the scientific meeting struck me as a natural for either tv or radio. He is bright, committed, clear and articulate. It is a pity some free lance programme maker to float the idea and see if it takes off. There is still a gap unfilled since After Dark....
Given my sleeping pattern there needs to be a programme called After Tea.
It is such a pity that psychoanalysis does not see itself as part of the national conversation (yet to get going, in my view).
Even, even?, French Catholic tv has its psychoanalysts in its talking heads programmes. Hard to imagine that in the UK. http://www.ktotv.com/
what do you think?
Was that THE Elizabeth Spillius? Kleinian analyst of one's acquaintance. In passing, I always smile that the word "psychoanalysis" has "anal" in the middle.
ReplyDeleteI used to really love After Dark. For me, it was the open-endedness that particularly appealed. The problem with scheduled programmes is that you know when they're going to end, and you know the discussion will be curtailed just when it's getting interesting. And charlatans can get away from scrutiny because there's not time to disassemble their arguments.