The Garrick Club

[bitchstewie]

This has been in the spotlight a little bit this week.

Garrick Club’s men-only members list reveals roll-call of British establishment

With Simon Case and the head of MI6 resigning their memberships today.

Quite literally the old boys network.

Edited by bhstewie on Wednesday 20th March 19:20

[119]

bhstewie said:

This has been in the spotlight a little bit this week.

Garrick Club’s men-only members list reveals...

With Simon Case and the head of MI6 resigning their memberships today.

Quite literally the old boys network.

At least post a link that works, or did all the frothing cover your keyboard?

[Ridgemont]

Hm. As very regularly and rightly pointed out by some of the liberal posters on here shurely their club, their rules?

[vaud]

Ridgemont said:

Hm. As very regularly and rightly pointed out by some of the liberal posters on here shurely their club, their rules?

It's not the point. It's the optics of leaders in Govt departments talking about equality and then attending a male only club with their peers.

[bitchstewie]

vaud said:

Ridgemont said:

Hm. As very regularly and rightly pointed out by some of the liberal posters on here shurely their club, their rules?

It's not the point. It's the optics of leaders in Govt departments talking about equality and then attending a male only club with their peers.

I agree with both of you.

Their club their rules but if being "outed" as a member causes you resign your membership within 24 hours it might hint at the "optics" issue around what you're promoting in your dayjob v what you do when you think nobody is looking.

[S600BSB]

bhstewie said:

This has been in the spotlight a little bit this week.

Garrick Club’s men-only members list reveals roll-call of British establishment

With Simon Case and the head of MI6 resigning their memberships today.

Quite literally the old boys network.

Edited by bhstewie on Wednesday 20th March 19:20

Steady Stewie, it’s one thing to point out the failings of our st for brains government, but quite a different thing to point the finger at one’s club. Shame on you fella.

[Digger]

Genuine question - Are there any female only clubs in Central London?

[CraigyMc]

The first rule of Garak club is that there are four lights.

[jeff666]

Digger said:

Genuine question - Are there any female only clubs in Central London?

Quite a few according to Google.

[Ridgemont]

bhstewie said:

vaud said:

Ridgemont said:

Hm. As very regularly and rightly pointed out by some of the liberal posters on here shurely their club, their rules?

It's not the point. It's the optics of leaders in Govt departments talking about equality and then attending a male only club with their peers.

I agree with both of you.

Their club their rules but if being "outed" as a member causes you resign your membership within 24 hours it might hint at the "optics" issue around what you're promoting in your dayjob v what you do when you think nobody is looking.

Sorry don’t get it: membership of the Garrick is not an equality issue. It’s a gentleman’s club in the same way the WI is for females only. It’s only an optics issue because some people want that changed. Membership of the Garrick does not make you a member of a misogynistic organisation. The Garrick has a policy. Like the MCC it may change that policy but if ‘optics’ are the driver then it’s all about ‘not a good look’. Well that’s very much up to the members to change and I suspect with Stephen Fry a member I have no doubt that that may become a thing (even if I disagree).
As to the resignees I don’t have an enormous amount of time for the likes of Simon Case who strikes me as a modern day Vicar of Bray..

[Ridgemont]

CraigyMc said:

The first rule of Garak club is that there are four lights.

Well done!

[Vanden Saab]

Plenty, the university women's club and Allbrights are two of the best known. Same clientèle lawyers, heads of the civil service and politicians etc. but for some strange reason of no interest to the likes of BS. No idea why .

[bitchstewie]

Ridgemont said:

Sorry don’t get it: membership of the Garrick is not an equality issue. It’s a gentleman’s club in the same way the WI is for females only. It’s only an optics issue because some people want that changed. Membership of the Garrick does not make you a member of a misogynistic organisation. The Garrick has a policy. Like the MCC it may change that policy but if ‘optics’ are the driver then it’s all about ‘not a good look’. Well that’s very much up to the members to change and I suspect with Stephen Fry a member I have no doubt that that may become a thing (even if I disagree).
As to the resignees I don’t have an enormous amount of time for the likes of Simon Case who strikes me as a modern day Vicar of Bray..

Nothing to do with misogyny.

Think power and cosy little deals in smoke filled rooms and all those kinds of cliches.

[119]

bhstewie said:

Ridgemont said:

Sorry don’t get it: membership of the Garrick is not an equality issue. It’s a gentleman’s club in the same way the WI is for females only. It’s only an optics issue because some people want that changed. Membership of the Garrick does not make you a member of a misogynistic organisation. The Garrick has a policy. Like the MCC it may change that policy but if ‘optics’ are the driver then it’s all about ‘not a good look’. Well that’s very much up to the members to change and I suspect with Stephen Fry a member I have no doubt that that may become a thing (even if I disagree).
As to the resignees I don’t have an enormous amount of time for the likes of Simon Case who strikes me as a modern day Vicar of Bray..

Nothing to do with misogyny.

Think power and cosy little deals in smoke filled rooms and all those kinds of cliches.

So, did they tell you why they refused your application?

You seem a little ‘hurt’.

[Ridgemont]

bhstewie said:

Ridgemont said:

Sorry don’t get it: membership of the Garrick is not an equality issue. It’s a gentleman’s club in the same way the WI is for females only. It’s only an optics issue because some people want that changed. Membership of the Garrick does not make you a member of a misogynistic organisation. The Garrick has a policy. Like the MCC it may change that policy but if ‘optics’ are the driver then it’s all about ‘not a good look’. Well that’s very much up to the members to change and I suspect with Stephen Fry a member I have no doubt that that may become a thing (even if I disagree).
As to the resignees I don’t have an enormous amount of time for the likes of Simon Case who strikes me as a modern day Vicar of Bray..

Nothing to do with misogyny.

Think power and cosy little deals in smoke filled rooms and all those kinds of cliches.

Well. Quite. Given the membership I suspect the vast majority would react with horror with the idea they are a male establishment clique of powermongers secretly directing the fate of the country.
I sometimes wish such a fantasy were true but as the last few years have shown I suspect the reality is somewhat different..

[119]

Ridgemont said:

bhstewie said:

Ridgemont said:

Sorry don’t get it: membership of the Garrick is not an equality issue. It’s a gentleman’s club in the same way the WI is for females only. It’s only an optics issue because some people want that changed. Membership of the Garrick does not make you a member of a misogynistic organisation. The Garrick has a policy. Like the MCC it may change that policy but if ‘optics’ are the driver then it’s all about ‘not a good look’. Well that’s very much up to the members to change and I suspect with Stephen Fry a member I have no doubt that that may become a thing (even if I disagree).
As to the resignees I don’t have an enormous amount of time for the likes of Simon Case who strikes me as a modern day Vicar of Bray..

Nothing to do with misogyny.

Think power and cosy little deals in smoke filled rooms and all those kinds of cliches.

Well. Quite. Given the membership I suspect the vast majority would react with horror with the idea they are a male establishment clique of powermongers secretly directing the fate of the country.
I sometimes wish such a fantasy were true but as the last few years have shown I suspect the reality is somewhat different..

Plenty of non politicians are also members.

But hey, Tories.....grrrrrrr.

[Ridgemont]

119 said:

Plenty of non politicians are also members.

But hey, Tories.....grrrrrrr.

The very concept of the ‘establishment’ is that it is a lacuna of influence that goes across all manner of professions (politics, judiciary, police <tho they have the Freemasons for that>, academia) which as Stewie observes may collude together in a world view and therefore act as an unofficial cohort of influence.

The reality I suspect is rather different. It’s all abit of a 1950s view of the world.

[DeejRC]

The Garrick Club is an elitist male members only club with a membership list containing many of those who might be called The Establishment.

This is news how exactly? It’s been well known, well publicised and bloody promoted for over a century! We’ve even heard of it up north as somewhere the poncy London tossers hang out to be poncy London tossers.

I look forward to next weeks news that water is wet and Spurs are still crap.

[Randy Winkman]

bhstewie said:

Ridgemont said:

Sorry don’t get it: membership of the Garrick is not an equality issue. It’s a gentleman’s club in the same way the WI is for females only. It’s only an optics issue because some people want that changed. Membership of the Garrick does not make you a member of a misogynistic organisation. The Garrick has a policy. Like the MCC it may change that policy but if ‘optics’ are the driver then it’s all about ‘not a good look’. Well that’s very much up to the members to change and I suspect with Stephen Fry a member I have no doubt that that may become a thing (even if I disagree).
As to the resignees I don’t have an enormous amount of time for the likes of Simon Case who strikes me as a modern day Vicar of Bray..

Nothing to do with misogyny.

Think power and cosy little deals in smoke filled rooms and all those kinds of cliches.

Exactly. That's the point of the story. If the UK was doing brilliantly, it wouldnt be so much of an issue. But that's not the case and we should be looking at the various reasons why.

[mwstewart]

Nothing wrong with it. We have black only theatre nights, the WI, and more. So it isn't even like it stands alone in the sense that it's a single category group.

There's no need to look any deeper than that - we abolish all such groups or we don't.