The voice of L J K Setright
Discussion
coppice said:
Indeed - I'd be appalled if everybody liked LJKS anyway . Then I'd have to find another divisive writer to admire , Chacun a son gout, as we rarely say in Thirsk market place . Time to re- read my 50 odd year old copies of CAR
Fool that I am, I binned mine several years ago now!! Complete set from mid eighties till about 2010 or so if memory serves, with a few seventies editions also. Perhaps I view them through the dreaded rose tints now I no longer have access?biggbn said:
Fool that I am, I binned mine several years ago now!! Complete set from mid eighties till about 2010 or so if memory serves, with a few seventies editions also. Perhaps I view them through the dreaded rose tints now I no longer have access?
I binned all of mine from the same sort of period a couple of years back when I moved house. Just seemed I was going to move them from one loft to another.coppice said:
Indeed - I'd be appalled if everybody liked LJKS anyway . Then I'd have to find another divisive writer to admire , Chacun a son gout, as we rarely say in Thirsk market place . Time to re- read my 50 odd year old copies of CAR
He also wrote for Bike magazine, for their Handlebars slot.Riley Blue said:
carinaman said:
I wonder how many lunches with car launches attached George Bishop attended having got there via regional airports that are now no longer? .
The reason for that was deteriorating eyesight. As a motoring hack I once attended a car launch in the west country at which GB and LJKS were present. On the way home I came across a gent peering at a finger post from two feet away, it was GB.The car was the SEAT Ibiza so anyone with the relevant copy of CAR may be able to remind me what I had for lunch.
Edited by Riley Blue on Tuesday 10th March 13:42
Well played, sir!
coppice said:
Indeed - I'd be appalled if everybody liked LJKS anyway .
I suspect he would be appalled tooI know there are plenty of people who dont like my writing over the last 30 years. Shrugs. Lesson learnt from my editor was that the backpage opinion column was there to fill the letters pages in the next issue...
Strongly recommend the Mel Nichols collected writings book BTW
Breadvan72 said:
Those of us who were children in the 1960s may recall the Setright ticket machine, a strange looking metal contraption of cogs and wheels that hung heavily from straps slung over the shoulders of a bus conductor, who would do some mysterious whirling and clicking with the machine, and produce a detailed printed ticket for you, in return for some small pre-decimal coins that he or she would put into a leather satchel. The machine can be seen in use in films of the period.
Wow I remember them. Had no idea that was LJK's family. Slight thread hijack , but cue my only encounter with Jenks .
1993 European GP , Donington - yes THAT race, . Morning untimed practice .Craner curves, F1 cars going through them at 160mph plus . Liitle scruffy beardie guy appears on a very well patinated Moulton bike.
Big breath -
Me - 'err... morning , I think you are Denis Jenkinson ?'
DSJ - 'I am indeed , and good morning to you ' .
Interruption by sundry very loud V8 and V10 noises and then
Me - 'So....you must be enjoying the return of Grand Prix cars to Donington after all these years. it's wonderful isn't it ? '
DSJ - ' Hmm , I dunno about that , dunno about that at ALL . It's all a bit Mickey Mouse for me '
1993 European GP , Donington - yes THAT race, . Morning untimed practice .Craner curves, F1 cars going through them at 160mph plus . Liitle scruffy beardie guy appears on a very well patinated Moulton bike.
Big breath -
Me - 'err... morning , I think you are Denis Jenkinson ?'
DSJ - 'I am indeed , and good morning to you ' .
Interruption by sundry very loud V8 and V10 noises and then
Me - 'So....you must be enjoying the return of Grand Prix cars to Donington after all these years. it's wonderful isn't it ? '
DSJ - ' Hmm , I dunno about that , dunno about that at ALL . It's all a bit Mickey Mouse for me '
coppice said:
Slight thread hijack , but cue my only encounter with Jenks .
1993 European GP , Donington - yes THAT race, . Morning untimed practice .Craner curves, F1 cars going through them at 160mph plus . Liitle scruffy beardie guy appears on a very well patinated Moulton bike.
Big breath -
Me - 'err... morning , I think you are Denis Jenkinson ?'
DSJ - 'I am indeed , and good morning to you ' .
Interruption by sundry very loud V8 and V10 noises and then
Me - 'So....you must be enjoying the return of Grand Prix cars to Donington after all these years. it's wonderful isn't it ? '
DSJ - ' Hmm , I dunno about that , dunno about that at ALL . It's all a bit Mickey Mouse for me '
Love it!1993 European GP , Donington - yes THAT race, . Morning untimed practice .Craner curves, F1 cars going through them at 160mph plus . Liitle scruffy beardie guy appears on a very well patinated Moulton bike.
Big breath -
Me - 'err... morning , I think you are Denis Jenkinson ?'
DSJ - 'I am indeed , and good morning to you ' .
Interruption by sundry very loud V8 and V10 noises and then
Me - 'So....you must be enjoying the return of Grand Prix cars to Donington after all these years. it's wonderful isn't it ? '
DSJ - ' Hmm , I dunno about that , dunno about that at ALL . It's all a bit Mickey Mouse for me '
TR4man said:
Unfortunately, the YouTube video mentioned in the opening post doesn’t appear to be available anymore.
I'm note sure what the original video in this thread was, but LJKS does pop up in this film on the Bristol Owners Heritage Trust's Youtube channel:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Uc82H_aVsI
biggbn said:
Gavin Green was a decent editor and a decent writer, but that piece is probably the most quietly passionate advocation of something (or, in this case, someone) that I can remember him penning. As an editor he was always for me a poor replacement for Cropley; as a writer of LJKS' obituary he rose to the occasion well.I think the difference of opinion in this thread points to a clash of views over what journalism and writing ought to be. I wouldn't call LJKS a journo so much as a writer, in that regard. It's a wonder to read his articles about a Ferrari 400i or a luxo-barge comparison test -it is so completely removed from the make-everything-transparent writing you find in most modern car magazines/internet publications. Of course, many people read car mags/internet sites because they want a quick read, not because they want to read something well-written (those are things that may overlap, but are often quite different from one another).
I think a large part of the problem might be the idea of what intelligibility looks like - who is the assumed reader? Setright reminds me of Jonathan Meades in that he doesn't assume that his reader is a 12-year old child. If I don't get a reference to something, I look it up and I'm amazed at his breadth of reading. In prose terms, it is certainly not verbose - quite the contrary. Compared to a page of someone trying very earnestly to tell you that the new Fandango can skid slightly more under conditions I will never see, I'd welcome the Setright every time.
It's a way of writing you couldn't copy - I think there have been a few pale imitations over the years, but you can spot right away that the depth of reference isn't present. The entire point for me is that you're reading, so why not have what you're reading be as good as it can be? People bemoan the banaality of the Youtube influencer crowd, but I find the early-noughties-reared journos with their I'm-trying-to-come-across-as-an-ordinary-bloke mannerisms just as tedious.
I think a large part of the problem might be the idea of what intelligibility looks like - who is the assumed reader? Setright reminds me of Jonathan Meades in that he doesn't assume that his reader is a 12-year old child. If I don't get a reference to something, I look it up and I'm amazed at his breadth of reading. In prose terms, it is certainly not verbose - quite the contrary. Compared to a page of someone trying very earnestly to tell you that the new Fandango can skid slightly more under conditions I will never see, I'd welcome the Setright every time.
It's a way of writing you couldn't copy - I think there have been a few pale imitations over the years, but you can spot right away that the depth of reference isn't present. The entire point for me is that you're reading, so why not have what you're reading be as good as it can be? People bemoan the banaality of the Youtube influencer crowd, but I find the early-noughties-reared journos with their I'm-trying-to-come-across-as-an-ordinary-bloke mannerisms just as tedious.
Couldn't agree more. I too made the Meades comparison a few pages ago and , like him , LJKS was hard going for some , but making the effort was always worth it. I like good writing , regardless of subject and some of the current crop's prose is simply dire - but maybe that reflects an audience with a shorter attention span ?
Having endured some Chris Harris podcasts recently, Setright sounds the model of self deprecation in comparison .
Having endured some Chris Harris podcasts recently, Setright sounds the model of self deprecation in comparison .
biggbn said:
I grew up reading Car in the early 80's and had forgotten about a lot of his writing,Interesting to be reminded that "he .....detested 4x4s for their wastefulness, and ...also detested diesels (because of their noisome fuel, heavy engines and lack of refinement)".
AC43 said:
biggbn said:
I grew up reading Car in the early 80's and had forgotten about a lot of his writing,Interesting to be reminded that "he .....detested 4x4s for their wastefulness, and ...also detested diesels (because of their noisome fuel, heavy engines and lack of refinement)".
AC43 said:
Breadvan72 said:
Those of us who were children in the 1960s may recall the Setright ticket machine, a strange looking metal contraption of cogs and wheels that hung heavily from straps slung over the shoulders of a bus conductor, who would do some mysterious whirling and clicking with the machine, and produce a detailed printed ticket for you, in return for some small pre-decimal coins that he or she would put into a leather satchel. The machine can be seen in use in films of the period.
Wow I remember them. Had no idea that was LJK's family. As they say , you learn something new everyday.
As an aside , those machines seemed to stop working on the last bus out of town every Friday and Saturday back in the day , help subsidise the conductors pay iirc.
biggbn said:
AC43 said:
biggbn said:
I grew up reading Car in the early 80's and had forgotten about a lot of his writing,Interesting to be reminded that "he .....detested 4x4s for their wastefulness, and ...also detested diesels (because of their noisome fuel, heavy engines and lack of refinement)".
These are the aspects he didn't like.
Edited by AC43 on Thursday 12th March 08:15
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