97 : Stuart Maconie
Stuart Maconie's subject is guilty pleasures, broadcast around 8.30am in Breakfast on 5th August. Or listen to it online right here the next working day.
Rita, London
There will always be snobs around - and I include so-called "inverted" snobs, although I've always thought that (snobbishly) begged the question . . . Surely de gustibus . . .if you like it you like it, then it's up to you whether and how you feel the need to justify your taste. Ironising it could be be seen as a lack of self confidence.
Harry, London
Before switching to Radio 3 from Wonderful Radio 3, Stuart should maybe have done a bit more research into current perceptions of Ravel. I don't think anyone today would consider his music a guilty pleasure. He's an acknowledged genius. Even Bolero can be justified on an intellectual level as a precursor of minimalism - though it's much more fun than anything produced by Glass or Adams. As for Verdi, another acknowledged genius, I'd say there are a few rough moments where he's a bit more guilty-pleasurish than the ever-fastidious Maurice.
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