Reason to be cheerful

Despite a Summer of scrutiny for the Tories commitment (or otherwise) to the NHS, today's Guardian poll suggests that support for the Conservatives has actually increased. A Tory PM in 2010 looks more and more likely and the outlook bleak for traditional Labour supporters like yours truly.

Admittedly, there is very little to 'support' in the Labour party right now: Iraq enquiries continue to be fudged and covert and the expenses scandal attacked the very core of the party - many suggested that it was behaviour they expected from Conservatives, but deplored in so-called socialists. Indeed, this past year could be seen as a woeful failure of the Left in all its guises: the economy crashed and capitalism was exposed as being a fragile system, based on greed, exploitation and virtual accounting. This was the time for a radical change - what we got was slapped wrists and empty gestures.

Personally, I was cheered by Alastair Darling's increased taxation on those earning £100,000 or more (which, don't forget, includes pretty much everyone in the media and was therefore never going to be met with a fanfare) but still couldn't help feeling it was too little, too late.

So, is there a reason to be cheerful?

If there is, his name is Jon Cruddas. The war in Iraq aside (which he now openly admits was a mistake) Cruddas has an admirable voting record - opposing all Blairite evils from tuition fees to trust schools and nuclear weapons. If Labour are crushed next May, he's precisely the sort of person they need to elect. MP for working-class, industrial heartland of Dagenham, Cruddas seems refreshingly reluctant to maintain the status quo and his political record reflects firmly held principles.

In terms of presentation too, Cruddas doesn't seem as slimy as the Millibands or as smug as Harmen. Like Alan Johnstone, he has the appearance of a bloke trying to do a good job - the perfect antidote to Cameron's fadish, vapid style.

Of course, this could well be the kiss of death for Cruddas. Ironically, rather than voting for Cruddas in the Deputy PM election, I opted for Peter Hain, who a few weeks later was being investigated for financial irregularities. So, if he can survive my poisoned 'thumbs-up', Cruddas may well be the man for the future.

Brazilliant

One of the most cliched aspects of my life lies in the fact that it was George Orwell's dystopian masterpiece '1984' which really got me into reading. I've met many people who were similarly inspired by Orwell and (without ever being ashamed of my love for his work) have always been slightly weary of its predictability as a 'modern classic', feeling that presenting myself to the world as a fan of Orwell casted me as somehow humorless and needlessly earnest.

It was my love of '1984' which recently led me to buy the film 'Brazil', a dystopian nightmare whose working title was '1984 1/2' (Nineteen Eighty Four and a Half).

But, the brilliance of 'Brazil' (Brazilliance, if you will) lies in its comic sensibility, its absurdly brilliant satire. Just as we should expect from director and ex-Python Terry Gilliam (co-written with Tom Stoppard, no less) it is dark, weird and hilarious in equal measure. Although occasionally the satire is ladled on a little too thickly, this is quickly forgotten as you sink into the lavish retro-futuristic sets and the wonderfully astute performances from a stellar cast (Jonathan Pryce, Robert De Niro, Michael Palin, Bob Hoskins to name just a few).

The real strength of Gilliam's 'Brazil' is that, unlike Orwell's vision of a slick, all-powerful totalitarian state, the powers-that-be in Brazil are often incompetent, work-shy, buck-passers. In 'Brazil', there is no Big Brotheresque villian. Rather, the enemy is bureaucracy itself, the nightmare is the nature of administration. Seen in this light, it is '1984' that reads like a wildly imaginative fantasy and 'Brazil' as a disturbingly realistic documentary.

I wholly recommend this film and am surprised it hasn't been packaged alongside the other Python masterpiece 'The Life of Brian'. In fact, watching 'Brazil', you're reminded that the best jokes in LoB are those that satirise administration and bureaucracy:

"Judean People's Front? Fuck off! We're the People's Front of Judea!"

Long, Long, Long

Josie Long is ace! I first encountered her refreshingly positive, awe-struck style of comedy on the Robin Ince Paramount podcasts, but didn't truly 'get' her until her excellent appearances on 'You Have Been watching' inspired a YouTube search.

In my more idiotic moments, (cowardly sheltering beneath my battered old irony umbrella) I've joked that there are no funny women on TV. Of course, I knew this wasn't really true and have laughed heartily at the routines of Jo Brand and Joan Rivers to name but two stand-ups, loved the writing of Jessica Stephenson on 'Spaced', the sly sensuality of Isy Suttie in Peep Show and the perfect timing of Sally Phillips in 'I'm Alan Partridge'. (Hmm, the very act of listing seems patronising and restrictive - make no mistake, I'm aware of the flaws of this entire post.)

Perhaps what I was really trying to say, though, is that I'd never seen a female comic who spoke to me in quite the same way as some of their male counterparts - I always felt slightly removed, slightly at-odds with the material. Well, I need squirm no longer: Josie Long's is a fresh, sharp, poetic voice and (if she wants to, which she may not) I'm convinced she's capable of storming British mainstream comedy in the next year or two.

Enough eulogising from me: hot-foot it to YouTube now, or (even better) read the fanzines at http://www.ilovejosielong.com