Yawn Again? Is this year's Boring conference too interesting?
The 2010 Boring conference was such a hit that this year tickets sold out. Trouble is, attendees say it's now too interesting
Saturday 19 November 2011
Latest in Home News
On Facebook
From the blogs
The ugly face of TV: How Jeremy Clarkson brought facial prejudice to a head
If you saw someone with a facial disfigurement walking down the street, would you A) Laugh at them B...
Atlantic Odyssey: Exclusive first hand account of how a world record attempt ended in near disaster
Writing exclusively for The Independent, Mark Beaumont recounts the incredible events that saw an at...
Stacking shelves won’t help career progression
Over the last week, we have seen a series of dodgy manoeuvres by the government regarding unpaid ret...
Is catastrophic global warming, like the Millenium Bug, a mistake?
"The whole idea of climate being one number driven by another number is nutty." Prof Richard Lindzen...
The organiser of this year's Boring conference – a London gathering dedicated to the delights of the mundane, obvious and overlooked – has a problem. He is worried it is in danger of being too interesting.
Such was the success of the inaugural event last year that the series of talks has attracted a line up of speakers including author Jon Ronson and documentary maker Adam Curtis who, it is feared, could have the undesired effect of entertaining the sell-out audience.
This might seem unlikely considering some of the subjects on offer today. These include a morning discussion on the evolution of the electric hand dryer by a man who has installed a Dyson Airblade in his home, and an exposition on the history of Budgens supermarkets.
But the prospects for this year's get-together are already being talked down – or up, depending on your perspective – to prevent disappointment.
In a sign of the level of expectation, a Canadian documentary team has already been despatched to record proceedings. Canada is said to be a hotbed of activism in the emerging global boring movement.
However, James Ward, who founded 2010's Boring conference initially as a joke on Twitter following the cancellation of a rival "Interesting" conference, believes there is still scope for failure.
"I'm hoping that because I am putting it together things won't work, I will forget things or someone will pull out," said the 30-year-old who works for a DVD distributor.
Nearly two dozen speakers will be given 10 minutes to discuss a subject they find personally fascinating.
Four hundred tickets have already been sold – twice as many as last year and Mr Ward said he had plans to take the event international, possibly launching in Berlin next year.
The irony is that boring stuff is not actually boring at all, said Mr Ward who is delivering an introductory lecture on the first 10 years of Which? magazines.
As with his other interests in stationery, he believes there is a nostalgic thirst for the workaday among the predominantly 20-30-year-old crowd the event appears to attract. "That is the paradox. At the heart of the boring thing is what people consider to be interesting in the newspapers and in the media is actually quite boring.
"What we are talking about is the stuff people take for granted, which is considered trivial mundane. Because it is so familiar when you look at it in detail it is incredibly interesting," he said.
A glance down the list of topics is certainly enough to get the pulse racing and delight sponsors Hi-Cone, the packaging firm that makes the plastic strips that hold cans together.
Before lunch, conference goers will be able to hear about toilets and hand dryers. Later, the action hots up with a seminar on the square root of two and a talk on civil aircraft. The tricky final session reaches a dizzying finale with discussions on health and safety, vending machines and concrete overpasses.
The Independent's Rhodri Marsden, who will be discussing his inability to make social small talk, said anyone expecting to be bored would be let down. "It's a bit of a misnomer. I went along last year and no one knew what to expect," he said. "People are intrigued by the idea of stepping back and considering stuff that we wouldn't normally ponder."
Dull Debate: Has the schedule become too sexy?
2010
Cataloguing ties
It might seem arcane, but building an index of cravats and ties remains a sartorial skill. Conference-goers learnt that logging should be based on colour, material and fabric.
4/5
Milk matters
Everyone knows semi-skimmed is better for you than full fat but how do various types rate? Pitting "skinny" milk against UHT, audiences lapped up this taste test.
4/5
Plug-in laptop
Thanks to the BlackBerry, laptop and mobile phone, everyone is "always on". But how much does it cost to re-juice those electronic devices in municipal buildings? The answer: not much.
3/5
Beauty of car park roofs
Inside they are depressingly, gear-crunchingly narrow and harrowingly expensive. But once you reach the top of an NCP building you're rewarded with a bird's-eye view.
5/5
2010 Verdict (out of 5) - 4
2011
The first 10 years of Which? Magazine (1957-67)
With accounts including the best way to use a fridge, this decade of early consumer writing takes us back to a lost age.
3/5
The life and times of Budgens supermarkets
Little did John Budgen know, back in 1872, that he was founding a supermarket dynasty not to rival Tesco or Sainsbury's.
5/5
The advance of the hand-drier
Electric driers had advanced little from George Clemens's first patented invention in 1948. But 45 years later Mitsubishi devised the Jet Towel and revolutionised the world of hand sanitation.
3/5
Locations from About a Boy
Hugh Grant starred in the high-grossing 2002 adaptation of Nick Hornby's paean to irresponsibility. Locations include Oseney Crescent, Kentish Town, Hanway Place, Fitzrovia and the London IMAX.
3/5
2011 Verdict - 4
Result: Snore Bore
- 1 How an A-grade prank by a hacker closed a school for a day
- 2 Gallery: Rio Carnival in full swing
- 3 Journalists killed in Syria rocket strike 'were targeted'
- 4 Prosecutor tells Mubarak he faces death by hanging
- 5 Paradise lust: the man who sexed up America
- 6 New RBS bonus storm
- 7 How did a man buried in this frozen car for two months come out of it alive?
- 1 How an A-grade prank by a hacker closed a school for a day
- 2 Last bow for Blur at Brit awards?
- 3 How did a man buried in this frozen car for two months come out of it alive?
- 4 Copenhagen, probably the best city in the world
- 5 The sci-fi movie Hollywood would not dare to make
- 6 Ian McKellen: What's wrong with us? Should we not aspire to happiness?
- 7 Mark Steel: Iraq was such a laugh, let's do it to Iran
- 8 Robert Fisk: 'If only Hague and Clinton would listen to Yusuf Islam'
- 9 PM tackles racism and homophobia in football
- 10 Aborted baby lived 45 minutes
Win an adventure with Subaru XV
Enjoy a three-night family adventure for four to Slaley Hall in Northumberland.
Delivering network infrastructure for London 2012
Cisco is maximising connectivity for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Free trial of our new iPad app
Get your daily dose of the best of British journalism, sponsored by American Airlines
Amazing restaurant offers
Three glasses of free champagne and a special menu at 46 top London restaurants.
Latest Independent competitions
Win anything from gadgets to five-star holidays on our competitions and offers page.
Commercial thought leaders
Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.
Career Services
Day In a Page
Can we pull the plug on the plug?
The 10 Best Lecture Series
Michael Frayn: Still making a big noise




Comments