Other people’s lives

There was a sad moment in The Family (Channel 4, Wednesday) this week when Dad, the very long-suffering Simon Hughes, is inspecting his daughters’ bedroom, and doesn’t like what he sees. He has been assured that the room is neat and clean, so he responds with a blast of sarcasm. ‘Oh, look at this tidy, tidy, tidy room, oh crumbs, how tidy it is, all this stuff doesn’t exist, it’s a figment of my imagination…’ I felt a blast of pity for him. Most dads, like me, would have given up long ago but he goes onward, ever onward, in the quest for orderly bedrooms. Sisyphus had it easier with his rock.

Of course, the kids don’t see it that way. One of the girls has a voice-over (strange device for a reality show, inviting the victims to provide their own commentary) and says, ‘Who cares about a few plates and glasses? No wonder we don’t talk to him about serious things,’ which sounded like plain common sense, though all dads know perfectly well that even if they let the floor disappear altogether under a Jurassic stratum of plates, mugs and cups, there is no way the girls would breeze along for a chat about their latest boyfriend, his tattoos, and how far they should let him go now they’ve been an item for almost a week. As Emily says, ‘Typical dad, wants to know everything. Doesn’t he realise we need to keep a few secrets?’ As all parents know, cute little babies are nature’s bribe to make you have teenagers.