TENNIS star Emma Raducanu was in the middle of a tense match at the Cincinnati Open when a crying child broke her concentration.
“It’s been, like, ten minutes,” she appealed to the umpire who countered with, “It’s a child. Do you want me to kick the child out of the stadium?”
GettyA little boy with blond hair, two years old, is lying on the floor and crying hysterically after kindergarten at home. Parenting[/caption]
GettyYou wouldn’t let a baby cry in the theatre, so why risk wrecking Emma Raducanu’sperformance?[/caption]
Er, damn right. In fact, any tennis official worth their salt should have intervened first so the player didn’t have to put themselves in the position of attracting the following dumb comments on social media.
“Horrible and embarrassing for the family. I’d be furious if she did this.”
“How utterly pathetic and unprofessional to not be able to focus due to a crying child. Maybe give up playing.”
“Emma should be ashamed about her behaviour. It’s a child; don’t talk down to a child like that.”
Sigh. Thankfully, there are still some people with common sense left in the world, and the majority have quite rightly supported 22-year-old Emma in her obvious frustration.
How many times do you hear the refrain of “but he/she is just a child” as a get-out-of-jail-card when someone justifiably complains about excessive noise or bad behaviour from someone’s offspring?
The child always has a supposedly responsible adult with it, and that’s who is really being ticked off here.
Why on earth would you take a small child to a top level tennis tournament so they could ruin it not just for the players but all the other spectators too?
Instead of buying them an expensive ticket, just spend the cash on a babysitter. The kid would have a far better time on the swings at the local park than watching two people hit balls over a net, and everyone else could enjoy an elite tennis match in peace. It’s a win win.
Look, a crying child on a plane is just one of those things.
They need to fly to go on holiday and we’ve all been there when their ears hurt and they just won’t stop shrieking.
And unlike a wedding (or indeed tennis match) you can’t remove them (as all good parents do) as soon as the noise starts.
So no complaint from me.
Similarly, a bus or train ride, or any family-friendly restaurant. And even then, there are the well-prepared parents who bring snacks and distractions to try and thwart potential tantrums.
Brat Summer
But then there are those (we all know at least one) who thinks their precious “just a child” is God and that everyone within a 50-metre radius has to tolerate he or she kicking off without any attempt at distraction or reproach.
So someone should tell the parent of the tennis kid that this is not what Charli XCX intended when she inspired the Brat Summer trend.
You wouldn’t take a small child to the opera, or to see Shakespeare at the RSC, so why a top-flight tennis tournament where the players have spent years perfecting their skills and deserve better than to have their concentration broken by a screaming toddler, who shouldn’t be there in the first place?
To be honest, it’s surprising that young children aren’t banned at such events.
After all, there are certain hotels that don’t allow children under-12 because their clientele want peace and quiet by the pool.
So peace and quiet during such a high-stakes sports match shouldn’t be too much to ask.
SIGN OF TIMES
SICK of thieves plaguing his vintage store in North Wales, owner Rob Davies decided to put up a sign.
“Due to scumbags shoplifting, please ask for assistance to open cabinets. Thank you.”
Fair enough, you might think. But no.
Rob got a visit from police who told him they’d received a complaint (yawn) and it should be taken down for being “provocative” and “potentially offensive”.
Where to start?
Firstly, it could only be considered provocative to anyone who self-identifies as a scumbag and, quite frankly, who cares if their feelings get hurt?
And secondly, being a scumbag is not a protected characteristic under the laws that safeguard people against discrimination over age/ethnicity/disability etc.
So any suggestion otherwise is just a little bit thick.
LAUREN’S NEW GOAL IS A BIGGER RING
AFPFor a hot minute, Lauren Sanchez Bezos had the dubious honour of sporting the biggest celebrity engagement ring of the year[/caption]
GettySanchez’ ring is rumoured to be a $4million pink diamond[/caption]
InstagramGeorgina’s rumoured ten carat diamond boulder with an estimated worth of over $10million[/caption]
FOR a hot minute, Lauren Sanchez Bezos had the dubious honour of sporting the biggest celebrity engagement ring of the year – a rumoured $4million pink diamond.
But that was before superstar footballer Cristiano Ronaldo finally proposed to long-term girlfriend Georgina Rodriguez.
Check this baby out. A rumoured ten carat diamond boulder with an estimated worth of over $10million.
Mind you, Georgina has been very patient waiting for the moment Cristiano recently described as “when we get that click”.
After nearly ten years together, two daughters of their own, and her sterling efforts in helping to raise his three children born to surrogate mothers, it’s fair to say he’s a slow burner.
But he got there in the end, so congratulations to them.
Meanwhile, newlywed Lauren commented under their Instagram post: “So happy for you” with a red love heart.
Which basically means: “Jeff, we’re gonna need a bigger ring.”
PROVE IT WITH A TEST
THE plot thickens over whether Queen frontman Freddie Mercury had a secret daughter or not.
A 48-year-old woman known only as “B” says that, up until his death in 1991 when she was 15, he was heavily involved in her life and handed her his personal diaries that will be included in a forthcoming book.
But Mary Austin – Freddie’s former lover, lifelong friend and major beneficiary in his will – has cast doubt on the claims.
Making a rare comment, she said: “Freddie had a glorious openness, and I cannot imagine he would have wanted to, or been able to, keep such a joyful event a secret, even from me or other people closest to him.”
“B” says she is “devastated” by Mary’s response. In which case, there’s only one way for this troubling matter to be resolved.
Publishing the results of a verified DNA test.
PAS AG QUEEN IS NIC
InstagramBrooklyn and Nicola have renewed their vows… but his parents were nowhere to be seen[/caption]
“MUM, that’s so pas ag” is a regular refrain from my daughters.
Which, for anyone over 40, is Gen Z-speak for being passive aggressive.
And the ultimate “pas ag” poster girl has to be Nicola Peltz.
Rumour (and a lot of glaringly obvious clues) has it that she and husband Brooklyn are no longer on speaking terms with his parents David and Victoria Beckham.
So what would really rub salt in the wound?
Well, not inviting the groom’s parents to a lavish vow renewal after, er, three years of marriage might be a good start.
And then you could get a massive pestle and really grind it in by wearing your mother Claudia’s vintage wedding dress while getting your billionaire father Nelson to read out the vows.
Peak pas ag.
As for Brooklyn, he just seems to float gormlessly along in her slipstream like a useful idiot (© Meghan and Harry).
Quite why he’d want to exclude his own parents and siblings so publicly is anyone’s guess, but one suspects he’ll eventually regret it.
ANDY’S SO LIKE DADDY
NESTLED among all the scandalous stuff in the Prince Andrew book, Entitled, is a gem that author Andrew Lownie says “no one has picked up on.
“Prince Philip and Susan Barrantes being lovers. That all came from family information,” he claims.
Prince Philip was, of course, Andrew’s father, but for those in blissful ignorance, Ms Barrantes was the mother of Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.
She left her then eight-year-old daughter to be brought up by her father Ronald after running off with a polo player.
So, if searching for a partial explanation as to why certain people behave badly, perhaps consider that the apple rarely falls far from the family tree.
NEW research has suggested that blowing in to a conch shell before bed might help to ease your partner’s snoring.
Failing that, to ensure a good night’s sleep, you could always lodge it in their throat.
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