As mentioned in last week’s post, the Applied Language Solutions Court fiasco continues to run. Fired up and angry interpreters across the UK are now finding their voice and fighting back.  In a topic centred around justice, it appears that the interpreters’ anger is justified.

However, dispelling in any way the thought that the interpreters might just be a bunch of insignificant whingers, they  have come up with a biting and incisive parody based on no less a figure than a certain A.  Hitler, as featured in the acclaimed film Downfall.

Hijacking the classic scene where Hitler launches a humiliating tirade against the perceived ineptitude of his Generals and advisers, the parody succeeds in capturing and highlighting the key facts of the ‘case’. The humour is infectious and deadly, and appears to have a huge insight and detailed knowledge of the goings on.

Reminds me of that line about  ’a lover scorned‘.

Watch the video below and see for yourself.  For any German speakers, try to ignore the soundtrack: a basic premise of this parody is that we Brits rarely speak a foreign language – hard to believe, eh?

Finally, this also serves to remind us all of the range of media options open to everyone and how quickly and creatively a community can respond to a perceived wrong.

For those interested in digging into the detail of the issue and finding out what ALS had to say, you will find, not surprisingly, an excellent piece on The Lawyer website. A quick browse of the comments gives a good idea of the depth of feeling in the intepreter community.

Humour and ridicule, as ever, prove to be deadly counter-measures.