Beyond The Commons

Beyond The Commons

Aaron Wherry covers all the goings-on in and around Parliament Hill. Follow Aaron on Twitter: @aaronwherry

Let there be television

by Aaron Wherry on Thursday, July 14, 2011 10:55am - 6 Comments

A clip from the first televised Question Period on October 17, 1977, back when desk thumping seemed like a good idea.

Bookmark and Share
  • Anonymous

    Which accounted for a lot of deafened sound technicians no doubt.  LOL

  • Anonymous

    I’m a big proponent of the desk thumping.  Bring it back I say.

    It was also good the see the dapper presence of George Hees behind Joe Clark’s left shoulder.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Dale-Smith-Journalist/100001578573543 Dale Smith-Journalist

    Desk thumping was still the order of the day when I was in the Alberta legislature, and I much prefer it to the constant ovations.

    What I found most interesting about this clip were the fact that they had reaction shots from the other side of the aisle, which we could certainly use more of today.

  • http://twitter.com/DavidJGagnon David Gagnon

    I thought Mulroney’s bunch started clapping because they thought it was ‘classier’ … didn’t seem to have anything to do with oft repeated ‘sound problems’. Microphone is only on for speaker and deskmate, isn’t it – only one potential pounder.

    No cheering here either. Another big time waster and noise maker.

  • Anonymous

    BRING BACK DESK-THUMPING!

  • http://twitter.com/ipoliticseh iPolitics, Eh?

    Joe Clark thumped the desk as he spoke his reply to Trudea:
    We (thump)
    Will Wait (thump)
    With Interest (thump)
     
    One More Day

    To see (thump)
    If in fact (thump)
    There is (thump)
    To Be (thump)
    A Clear (thump)
    Proposal (thump)
    In the Speech (thump)
    Tomorrow (thump)

From Macleans