Joseph Farman: television interview on the ozone hole

Joseph Farman tells story of his response to persistent television interviewer concerning the ozone hole and Margaret Thatcher's environmental policy, 1980s.

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Oh [sighs] I spent a whole television interview [sighs], which went on for three quarters of an hour I think, and they wanted me to … what shall we say, before forthright about such a series [laughs] on the environment and things like that. And I said, politely, that it wasn’t my job to criticise the Prime Minister [laughs] and if they persisted in asking this question I’d just cover my face up. And so they agreed and we started off and then just as you’re sort of talking some sense, they suddenly switch back to try and get it. And I spent, you know, most of that flipping hour’s interview putting my hands in front of my face [laughs] and saying, ‘You’ve forgotten what I told you.’ [Laughs] ‘I’m not there to openly criticise the Prime Minister, you know, not my job. I’ll tell you about ozone and I’ll tell you about what policy should be, I’m not going to say whether she’s going fast enough or not on this. It’s not a personal matter, it’s the advice she gets from elsewhere which causes it all.’
  • Interviewee Joseph Farman
  • Duration 00:01:15
  • Copyright British Library Board
  • Interviewer Paul Merchant
  • Date of interview 12/13/2010
  • Shelfmark C1379/07

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