[lovebites123]

Loving Johnny Robinson in the hub!!!!!

xxxxx

[Flumps96]

whose the bloke in pink

[who me?]

Originally Posted by Flumps96

yes i know that's all quite true and i know i shouldn't get excited but i can't help it:o

eta Morning Elphie and Morning Spaceoddity1 i don't think we have met so Hiya and welcome

Just so long as it's not because of my often wayward speculation... I'd feel bad!

I found some pics last night..

I'd seen one like this but not this one.


Lovely one of Johnny with a fan

I absolutely love this but I think the photographer understandably doesn't like her pics reproduced..but it comes up on google search so here is the link just for looking at!

[disneynut1973]

Originally Posted by Flumps96

whose the bloke in pink

Johnny Robinson he was on X Factor

[Flumps96]

more blonde i like the top look at those arms

[lovebites123]

Johnny!!!!!!!!!!!! Looking gorg again today!!! GUH!!!! Loving the spiky hair!!!!!

xxxxx

[elphaba7589]

Johnny looking yummy

[disneynut1973]

Oh and Morning!

Having a sneaky peak at Johnny, his shoulders look huge today

Thanks for the pics who me?

[Flumps96]

Originally Posted by disneynut1973

Johnny Robinson he was on X Factor

oh thanks Disney

[elphaba7589]

Who's that woman, she talks too much. Eamonn talking too much soon.

[Flumps96]

oooh yard of Ale my dad's got one of them

[elphaba7589]

I love his giggle

[lovebites123]

Love the giggle!!!

Totally not swooning

Aaawww, Johnny's a happy drunk!!

Johnny reckons he has bits he don't like, but I can't see any...

xxxxx

[Flumps96]

i have got bits i don't like, i like all your bits Johnny

[spaceoddity1]

why is that woman wearing trainers and socks with a pair of leggings

[Flumps96]

Originally Posted by spaceoddity1

why is that woman wearing trainers and socks with a pair of leggings

she looks a mess, i haven't a clue who she is surely they could have called one of us up

[lovebites123]

Nice 5/10 minutes there!!

xxxxx

[lovebites123]

Just noticed, congrats Disney on your milestone!!!

xxxxx

[Flumps96]

Originally Posted by lovebites123

Nice 5/10 minutes there!!

xxxxx

yes, its never enough though, i think he ought to present the show with Ruth and get rid of her husband

[BcUhTrTyEeRdCUP]

Evening all
How are we all?

[spaceoddity1]

Originally Posted by Flumps96

she looks a mess, i haven't a clue who she is surely they could have called one of us up

It just said she was a broadcaster, she probably isn't a celebrity
That Eammon Holmes or however you spell it is so annoying and rude- he kept butting in I was like shut up!!

[demented yoyo]

Originally Posted by AlexinBrum

I wondered whether I should share this, and decided I should.

We've had lots of really nice responses to the ChryedCon discussion panels survey (link here for anyone who missed it). Thank you for everyone who has completed it so far. However, one respondent left this comment: "I'd like to see the men in the white coats come and take you mentalists away. Get a life."

Now, I'm perfectly aware that some people don't love Chryed, or have even heard of them, don't watch EE, don't like soaps in general, don't get obsessed by TV programmes, find obsessed fans odd, or pity them, or even get irritated by them. I know that some people wrongly assume that anyone who spends ages discussing fictional characters online has no other interests, no real life friends, no social skills and is wasting their life.That's all fine. Some people don't understand us. I get that.

What I don't get is a person who feels like that then spending their own time lurking on fan sites of things they're not even fans of. The link to the poll has only been posted on Chryed-specific place - the Con website, Twitter and FB group; this discussion forum; the Chryed FB group. Why would you spend time on fansites of something you DON'T like? Surely that's even sadder than those of us spending time on something we DO like?

But, OK, let's give this person the benefit of the doubt. Maybe someone they follow/know retweeted/reposted the link to a non-Chryed-specific place. Did they just ignore it or delete it? Did they simply roll their eyes and shake their head and think to themselves how silly these Chryed fans must be? No, they went out of their way to click on the link to have a look. Again, spending time and energy on something they profess not to be interested in.

Then, to top it all off, they leave an unpleasant comment telling us to 'get a life'.

So having an interest, finding an online community of people who share that interest, organising an event to meet up face to face to further discuss that shared interest and make real friends and have a good time, that is not having a life. Whereas seeking out fansites of something you have no interest in then sending messages abusing the fans is having a life?

I thought twice about posting this because I didn't want to upset, annoy or anger the genuine fans who read this forum.

However, just in case the person who posted that comment is reading this, I wanted to point out a few things:
1. Some mental health experts are women.
2. They don't wear white coats.
3. I would not like to see anyone 'taken away', even if they had genuine mental health issues.
4. Mental health is a serious issue and to describe fans of a fictional TV couple as 'mentalists' because you don't share their interest is, quite frankly, offensive to those fans and to anyone living with mental health issues.
5. I am not going to tell you to 'get a life' because I don't know you and it's absolutely up to you how you choose to spend your time and energy. However, I would suggest that there are many activities that would be more worthwhile than using the anonymity of the internet to abuse and potentially anger or upset other human beings who you have never met, merely because they enjoy something you don't.

Now, if you would like to discuss Christian and Syed from Eastenders, come out of the shadows and share your views. Come to the convention, make friends, have a good time.

If you have no interest in them and think people who do are 'mentalists', just go away and get on with your life. We'll be just fine without your input.

Sorry Chryedians. Just had to get that off my chest!

Originally Posted by Lyra500

Thanks for sharing this Alex. Nothing that anyone (or any group of people) does will ever be universally popular. Some people think the world is flat, some people think the world is 6,000 years old and some people think everyone should not be treated equally under the law and that it is valid to discriminate against your fellow citizens and to treat them as less than because of the way they happen to go about living their own life. No doubt there are people who will think that the money this fandom raised for a charity that goes about tackling such discrimination was all a publicity stunt. That those of us who work with, laugh with, love and share our lives with fellow humans being who happen to fancy girls instead of guys or guys instead of girls are crazy for wanting our friends, family, colleagues and loved ones to be treated as we ourselves would wish to be treated. Maybe they even think that the members of the fandom who are parents, cousins, aunts and uncles are crazy for teaching the message of tolerance and acceptance to the children in our lives.

There is no shame in enjoying spending precious time out of our busy lives enjoying the company and companionship of other people who enjoy celebrating the highs and lows, shallow pictures and deep thoughts, musings and mutterings swirling around a particular couple in one of the UK's most popular soaps and the BBC as the Olympic broadcaster has the world's eyes on it right now. There are approximately 196 sovereign countries in the world, 192 of whom are members of the United Nations, a body founded on the principle enshrined in Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights," and there are even more - some 204 nations - competing in the Olympics in the UK this year plus a small number of athletes, often left out, who for one reason or another have no country at all.

Maybe we are crazy. Crazy for loving musical theatre and soap operas and the dramatic arts and a couple in love. Crazy for thinking that Syed and Christian are as interesting as any other couple on the show just because it so happens that they're actually both men. Crazy for thinking that the UK can have a positive, tolerant influence through its television shows' visual representation of diversity in a world where 40% (78 out of 196) of the countries in it have persecution against some of their citizens enshrined into their laws, for nothing other than those citizens being born gay (or lesbian, bisexual and transgender) the way that Syed and Christian were born gay.

So, call me crazy. I don't care. I am proud to be part of the quirky, crazy, excitable world of fandom. Yes, fandoms have their dark sides. There will always be a line that is crossed by someone. An argument here, a falling out there. We cannot account for or defend the odd individual who pops up from time to time forgetting the consideration that others deserve whether these others are fellow fans or fellow human beings who happen to be in the public eye sometimes or who happen to act on a certain show we all love; but ninety-nine percent of the time we are thoughtful and considerate and cheerfully argumentative people. We love to laugh and joke around and debate and sometimes have a good old British grumble about how terrible everything is until something comes along, like a glimmer of sunlight on a dull day, to make us happy and shiney and all REM dancing-y and I don't think there is anything to be ashamed about in any of that.

If someone out there thinks I'm crazy for all this that's fine. Lets be crazy together. Who's in?

If having fun while raising money to help Stonewall & Imaan continue the amazing work they do makes us crazy I'm glad I'm not one of those sane people

[MrsPartridge]

Originally Posted by Flumps96

i have got bits i don't like, i like all your bits Johnny

[Flumps96]

Originally Posted by spaceoddity1

It just said she was a broadcaster, she probably isn't a celebrity
That Eammon Holmes or however you spell it is so annoying and rude- he kept butting in I was like shut up!!

oh right i didn't have a clue who she was and i know i think he is an awful presenter but that's just me.

[spaceoddity1]

Originally Posted by Flumps96

oh right i didn't have a clue who she was and i know i think he is an awful presenter but that's just me.

I don't understand why she didn't make an effort- she was going to be on TV after all