Gyles Brandreth for Specsavers
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00:00Hello, I'm Giles Brandreth, lover of the English language,
00:04and today I'm here to address a growing issue
00:07that plagues our conversations and relationships.
00:12We have many great sayings, but they're being misheard,
00:16then repeated in butchered form.
00:18But we're too polite to correct each other,
00:20so the issue goes on and on,
00:22leading to confusing and often awkward consequences.
00:26Take, for example, saying a scapegoat when it's scapegoat,
00:32or saying damp squid when it's damp squib.
00:36And don't forget, it's a dog-eat-dog world,
00:39not, dare I say it, a doggy-dog world.
00:42And then there's this, and this, and this.
00:46For goodness sake.
00:48I stand before you today not merely as a guardian of language,
00:53but as a herald of clarity.
00:55I myself have recently found out I suffer from hearing loss,
00:59and know the cringe-inducing situations one can find oneself in as a result.
01:04So here is our misheard manifesto.
01:07Let us all take a moment to get our hearing checked
01:10and make certain our treasured sayings are heard as intended.
01:14Because it's not just about hearing words,
01:17it's about understanding the whole conversation.
01:20Remember, OK hearing is not OK.
01:23Together, let's put an end to this mishearing madness.
01:27Don't you agree?
01:29He does agree.
01:30Yeah.