UAE | General
Renowned author Amis slams English press
'Everything I say gets twisted and distorted,' Amis says
- By Alice Johnson, Deputy UAE Editor
- Published: 21:56 March 10, 2010
Dubai: Renowned English author Martin Amis has spoken out against the English press, saying "everything I say gets twisted and distorted". He spoke out in reference to a quote printed in January, 2010, of euthanasia and the elderly.
"There’ll be a population of demented very old people, like an invasion of terrible immigrants, stinking out the restaurants and cafes and shops," Amis was quoted in The Times earlier this year.
The quote was "immediately taken up by literalists and humourless everywhere", he said at the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature on Thursday evening, continuing that "when Sir Terry Pratchett made the same remarks, it was not taken up at all".
Amis was sure to specify which segment of the British press he was speaking about, saying that he had "no problem" with the Scottish, Irish or Welsh, but with the English, "metropolitan journalists". "There's nothing controversial in what I say," he said.
Amis also labelled Italians "a marvellously ungovernable people" continuing that when he sees someone Italian, he always "apologises for Berlusconi".
Amis, speaking to a full house at the second Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, is known to be outspoken and has been accused of mysogeny and islamaphobia in the past.
"They're ashamed of the political culture in Italy", he said of the country's citizens.
However, Amis was highly complimentary about Italy's landscape, saying of the times he visited that he felt like he was "in an oil painting".Even the poverty in Italy has "a certain grace" he said.
Amis' most recent novel The Pregnant Widow follows a group of young people on holiday during a heady summer in an Italian castle.
Latest news
- Youngsters dance and raise cash for charity
- Dubai departments upgrade services
- Get yourself a free test for diabetes
- Ensuring a safety net for intellectual property
- Reader's issue addressed
- 5,552 illegals held in Dubai this year
- Man cleared because he took drugs in France
- Man charged with trafficking women
- Auditors to probe Mizin graft case
- Transfusion centre launches new toll free number
- Mirror, mirror show me the way
- Last minute ID rush is on
- Breaking down cultural barriers with photographs
- Abu Dhabi Crown Prince visits Islamic centre
- Smart e-Gate system launched
Community Reports
-
Mirror, mirror show me the way
Driver on Salam Street had so many boxes and fruits piled into car, he would not be able to view rear or right side mirrors
-
Parents should be more vigilant
Reader's picture highlights risk of negligence by caretakers
-
Warming up to ‘Mobilise the Earth' theme
Dubai school dedicates a whole week to celebrating Earth Day with can-collection drives, sapling plantation and painting competition among others
-
Drivers using mobiles put others' lives at risk
Speeding is dangerous for the driver and other motorists
