Karlin has picked up on a story in the Washington Post today. It is something I wondered about as I was watching the news at 3.10am GMT on March 19. The White House is apparently none too happy with the BBC for broadcasting 1 minute 37 seconds of Bush, before his address started. It shows him drinking water, doing his lines and having his hair combed.
But while I was watching the BBC, I also switched to ITN’s Euronews, being broadcast on RTE’s TG4. They actually showed much more, about 5 minutes of Bush sitting in his chair, before the address.
I recorded 3 mins 50 seconds of it. After playing it back an ‘Oh shit’ can clearly be heard in the background, I can’t be sure if it was Bush who said that – but his lips moved when it was said. It might have been the technician realising that he had flicked a switch accidentally. Oh shit indeed. It all proved quite hilarious.