Janet will swap her Barbican apartment for a week at the Nant Gwrtheyrn National Language Centre, where she will be taught how to speak Welsh. Joining her are actress Ruth Madoc, former One True Voice singer Jamie Shaw, athlete Tanni Grey-Thompson, Steve Strange of the 1980s band Visage, singer-songwriter Amy Wadge and Hollyoaks actor Bernie Latham. Hmm.

Janet said of the challenge ’I’m looking forward to learning Welsh. It’s never too late to acquire a new skill." A programme insider said there would be limited contact with the outside world during filming and the celebrities will be asked to perform a number of different tasks - including a visit to the local pub. Sounds a tricky one.

The show will be the hit Welsh language show cariad@iaith. A combination of live and highlights programmes following their progress will be broadcast in early March on both S4C and S4C digidol, available outside Wales on satellite channel 184.

North Wales ’Racist’? - 15/08/03
Does Janet Street Porter think she can pull an Anne Robinson?

Janet has criticized the Welsh people for making her ’feel like an alien’ during childhood holidays spent in North Wales. She called councilors from North Wales "racist" as they would only let people born in the area live in local council houses.

"I have spent quite a lot of time in Wales and I don’t think the people in north Wales are quite as friendly as they would have you believe," she said. But Janet went on to say South Wales was a much brighter, cosmopolitan place. Phew, bet they are relieved.

Edinburgh Success - Aug
Barbican resident Janet Street porter may have a success on her hands with her one-woman show at Edinburgh’s fringe.

This depends on whether you are a Guardian or a Telegraph reader though - the former pronounces that ’it pains us to report that her show is an unqualified hit’ while the latter says ’Street-Porter recounted in dreary detail what she called, without irony, "my funny journey through life". Ouch.

By all accounts though - her show is unmissable whether you like it or not. She strides on stage in a ball gown and hiking boots, slags off her parents, her Welsh childhood, the Welsh, herself and nearly everyone she has every married or worked with.

She has this to say about her mother ’Now she’s gone I feel great standing here saying: ’She’s dead, the bitch.’" Of her stammering husband who gave her his surname ’We love a stammer, we can speak over it." Of her mother in laws ’I’ve had seven mothers-in-law and they all hated me’ Of Clive Anderson ’he is nothing without a script’ - this woman has some grievances!

She has apparently come to Edinburgh to relaunch her career -as what exactly no-one knows, or dares to guess.


Janet on Janet - 16/04/03
Sometime Barbican resident Janet Street-Porter has commissioned a one-woman play on herself.

The inspiration behind this idea apparently came after she watched the play ’Latin’. This play stars David Benson, who has produced one man shows on Frankie Howerd and Kenneth Williams.

So his new topic will be a stage version of Janet’s life - from childhood to running a BBC department, producing opera, editing the Independent on Sunday, running the Ramblers’ Association and building her own house, where she sleeps on a British Rail trolley. Should be a right riveting performance.

Janet’s night of Love. - 13/02/03
Singer Courtney Love that is. Barbican girl Janet Street Porter was at a fundraising concert, which saw Courtney being the star of the show.