February 2011

Pub Landlady 1 - 0 Premier League

Posted on 04. Feb, 2011 by catherine in europe, judge, landlady, pub, rights

As readers of my blog will know I’m not a huge football fan, but I am a European so I was delighted to hear that a UK pub landlady could be about to win a match against Sky Sports and the Premier League. 

The case brought by Karen Murphy, landlady of The red, white and blue pub in Portsmouth, could make changes to the way Premiership games are shown, if the European Court of Justice rules in her favour.

Ms Murphy refused to pay the £480 per month subscription which Sky charge pubs to be able to show Premiership games. Instead she bought a package from Greek company Nova at just £118. The Football Association Premier League prosecuted Ms Murphy who was forced to pay £8,000 in fines and costs, but she has appealed to ECJ. Yesterday EU judge, Advocate General Juliane Kokott advised the court to find in favour of Ms Murphy saying that the the block breached EU laws.

If the court does indeed find in Ms Murphy’s favour it could have huge implications for the way films, music and sports are shown within the EU. Can they be licensed on a country-by-country basis or not? 

Lock up your husbands it's Santa Águeda

Posted on 04. Feb, 2011 by catherine in celebrate, girls, men, party, saint

Tonight I’m going out! It’s the first time since the baby was born three and a half months ago, and what better night to choose than Santa Águeda.

Technically Saint Agatha is tomorrow (5thFebruary) but it is often celebrated the night before.

Traditionally hoards of partying women hit the bars and clubs on a massive girls’ night out and on this one night of the year, the ladies have the right to relieve any unsuspecting men of their shirt. (And anything else that takes their fancy!)

This annual party, celebrated throughout Spain, is in honour of the early Christian martyr, Santa Águeda (or Saint Agatha) who was cruelly tortured and eventually put to death, but not before both her breasts were brutally cut off.

Somewhere along the annals of history Santa Águeda’s stoic Christian beliefs and high moral values of virginity and chastity have been replaced by a more hedonistic attitude, but she still represents strong women. And as a final honour to her sacrifice, desserts served on the night of the 5thFebruary are two round cakes with cherries on top.

Should be fun!

Learning Spanish

Posted on 21. Feb, 2011 by catherine in class, English, language, learn, spanish

‘You can’t help me with my homework Mummy, you don’t know Spanish!’

And with these words my eldest daughter threw down the gauntlet challenging me to do something to improve my Spanish. 

The six-going-on-13-year-old now has homework every weekend which, after some cajoling, she sits down and does beside her father. But when I tried to persuade her to do some before Sunday evening, so we could forget about it and enjoy the weekend, this was the response I got.

As her father and I speak to each other in English it has been great for the children as they get Spanish at school and plenty of English at home, meaning success on the bilingual front. However, and as my mother-in-law would doubtless agree, it has been no good whatsoever for my Spanish. We also have English TV, which I couldn’t live without, but that too means I’m not so immersed in Spanish. I always thought that by just living here I would pick it up. Now I see I have rather plateaued and as nobody corrects me I fear I shall continue to make the same mistakes forever.

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