A little while back, someone googled "persuasive speech on australian idol being worthwhile" and mistakenly came here. I would like to take this opportunity to direct them to Angus' thoughts on the recent "Live & Unforgettable" show. I particularly liked this bit:

...and what after all is wrong with not knowing whether or not you're being sarcastic? If people claiming to "ironically" like culturally devalued objects is merely a screen for their inability to admit to themselves that they really do like them (as I've seen plausibly argued), then surely being unsure about whether or not they're being ironic is advance on this. Indeed isn't it rather healthy for us to admit to ourselves that we're often confused about our own affective responses, that in fact at times we all teeter on the brink between our urge to embrace something and our urge to laugh at it....

Cool. Anyway, have been watching my birthday present from Amy and Guy, and man, does it reward repeat viewings. It just gets better every time, and you notice more and more how perfect the performances are. So good. And you don't have to wait a week between episodes. They're all just there, one after the other, so hilarity ensues. Brilliant. Ah, The Office.