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Actress tips water over man sat in seat for not giving it up

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pemma

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Huffington Post said:
Miriam Margolyes prides herself on being unshockable, but even she was dismayed when a young man at Waverley Train Station in Edinburgh refused to give up his seat for her.

So indignant was the 'Harry Potter' star, in fact, that she emptied her water bottle on his head.

Miriam, who was recently the undeniable star of 'The Real Marigold Hotel' on BBC Two, tells the Daily Mail that she was carrying a backpack, wheeling a travel case and hobbling with an arthritic knee, when she looked for a seat on the station platform. We should add - Miriam is also 74 years old, 4'11' and, by her own admission, slightly overweight. When he refused to give up his seat and pointed to one further down the platform, she was beside herself.

She tells the Daily Mail: "I was really p****d off. It's really hard being old — it's horrible. I was in pain. I was really hurting.

"So I just thought, 'F*** you!' and I took my bottle of water out, took off the lid and poured it over his head."

According to Miriam, a woman shouted at her, accusing her of assaulting the youth and called the police, "who did nothing".

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/201...4.html?1455716135&ncid=tweetlnkushpmg00000067

Unless it was marked as a priority seat and she was 100% certain the younger man sat in has no form of disability or injury (which she wouldn't if she didn't know him) then I don't see how she thought she had any right to try and get him to move.
 
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DarloRich

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Clip

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Whilst she didn't have a right to demand the seat good manner suggest it should have been offered.

Good manners work both ways though and he reaction is way overboard to say the least.
 

sprinterguy

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http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/201...4.html?1455716135&ncid=tweetlnkushpmg00000067

Unless it was marked as a priority seat and she was 100% certain the younger man sat in has no form of disability or injury (which she wouldn't if she didn't know him) then I don't see how she thought she had any right to try and get him to move.
Is there such a thing as priority seats on station platforms? Other than that, I'm inclined to agree: Being older and encumbering oneself with luggage does not give an individual licence to act as they please against other members of the public.
 
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chris89

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Whilst she didn't have a right to demand the seat good manner suggest it should have been offered.

Problem is, how did she ask etc? I would always give up my seat, if was none near by and was asked nicely, if it was demanded im sorry i would refuse, as respect is a two way thing. Also got to remember a lot of disability's are hidden as well.

Saw this when it 'broke' on a Edinburgh News facebook page, back then and still now, i can't see why couldn't go to another seat and still would love to know, if she picked out the person in question.
 

WestRiding

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She comes accross as a rather ignorant person herself, good on the youth for not moving. Somehow i just cant imagine her asking for the seat in a nice tone or attitude.
 

DarloRich

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She comes accross as a rather ignorant person herself, good on the youth for not moving. Somehow i just cant imagine her asking for the seat in a nice tone or attitude.

I assume you weren't brought up to offer seats to the elderly, infirm, pregnant or disabled then. Perhaps people are just more selfish these days.

Problem is, how did she ask etc? I would always give up my seat, if was none near by and was asked nicely, if it was demanded im sorry i would refuse, as respect is a two way thing. Also got to remember a lot of disability's are hidden as well.

You shouldn't have to be asked.............
 

Clip

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indeed - if quite funny

Oh aye would've been great to see.

One question as I cant quite remember but are there any 'single' seats at Waverly station anywhere? Seems an odd concept to have one seat randomly placed somewhere
 

pemma

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I assume you weren't brought up to offer seats to the elderly, infirm, pregnant or disabled then. Perhaps people are just more selfish these days.

Let's say you were that man and you were 25 and you suffered from arthritis and didn't feel you could stay standing until your train arrived. Then she had approached you in an impolite manner when there was another seat available further down the platform would you have explained to her your condition or just got up and moved to the other seat?
 

pemma

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One question as I cant quite remember but are there any 'single' seats at Waverly station anywhere? Seems an odd concept to have one seat randomly placed somewhere

Is it possible the man was sat with two elderley people so he got targeted as being the young person who she thought wasn't entitled to a seat?
 

DarloRich

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Let's say you were that man and you were 25 and you suffered from arthritis and didn't feel you could stay standing until your train arrived. Then she had approached you in an impolite manner when there was another seat available further down the platform would you have explained to her your condition or just got up and moved to the other seat?

I would say i am terribly sorry but I have X,Y or Z wrong with me and so cant really move although I will do so if you really need this seat more than me.

I have done that when I damaged my leg and foot playing rugby. It tended to bring the conversation to an end quite quickly.

People shouldn't expect it either though.

Before say, i have been brought up to give/ offer seats when possible and generally get told no thank you or just ignored.

At least you offered. That is the important thing.
 

pemma

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Before say, i have been brought up to give/ offer seats when possible and generally get told no thank you or just ignored.

I recall one day on a train with standing room only an elderly lady gave up her seat at the station before hers and started making her way to other end of the train, presumably to be in a good place when alighting the train. She kept getting people offering her a seat on her way through the train. An old person not seated doesn't automatically mean they want a seat.
 

chris89

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I recall one day on a train with standing room only an elderly lady gave up her seat at the station before hers and started making her way to other end of the train, presumably to be in a good place when alighting the train. She kept getting people offering her a seat on her way through the train. An old person not seated doesn't automatically mean they want a seat.

I know that without question, On trains, it depends on how busy etc it is. Normally i don't offer as no need to do so. Although longer distances i may not. Locals without question and same for buses.

I know my dad isn't a massive fan of doing so, as many years ago when he was younger and on the tube. He offered a pregnant lady his seat and she had a all mighty go at him, about thinking not fine to stand etc.
 

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Good manners work both ways though and he reaction is way overboard to say the least.

As with almost any area of life, if it's demanded rudely it will not be vacated.

"Excuse me, could I sit there please, I can't stand for long"? Certain giving up of the seat.

"Move" or similar? Certain *not* giving up of the seat.

(I don't tend to offer by default these days unless the need is *absolutely* obvious as it seems to create an embarrassing situation for too many people and it is almost always declined)

Even if it is someone with a reservation, if they are rude, I will take my time over moving. "Excuse me, I think you are in my reserved seat" = a very quick move provided I actually am and reservations are placed.

Manners cost nothing and get you everywhere.

Meanwhile, if she threw a bottle of water over me I would be pressing assault charges.
 
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Bletchleyite

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I assume you weren't brought up to offer seats to the elderly, infirm, pregnant or disabled then. Perhaps people are just more selfish these days.

...

You shouldn't have to be asked.............

The problem is these days that too many people don't take the offer gracefully, and, bluntly put, it can be hard to tell if someone is pregnant or just fat.

Therefore I these days wait for an obvious move towards the seat at the very least.
 

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A couple of years ago, I was making a regular evening journey back from Bradford on their 72, 'Hyperlink'.

A man boarded on crutches and hobbled over to a rail. Five minutes into this I was tutted at and sworn at for not offering the disabled seat I was sat in. I politely replied that I was, in actual fact disabled, and was then interrogated as to exactly why I was disabled and what entitled me to sit in the seat I was in when he was standing.

I think people these days expect far too much, and should in fact ask courteously. That doesn't excuse the actress' actions in any way, shape or form.
 

me123

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Well there's someone who's gone down in my estimation. What a thoroughly unpleasant woman.

If the account I'm reading is correct; There was another seat on the platform. She demanded that someone move. He was not required to, and did not. (It may have been courteous, but not required). She then proved just how courteous she was by assaulting him. By her own account, he appears to have sworn at her only after the assault (and after she swore at him). If we're talking courtesy and manners, swearing at a stranger and pouring water over their head in what was by her own admission a malicious attack is very rude and discourteous.

It may have been courteous to offer her the seat, but her behaviour was simply unacceptable. It is assault, and I'd have been keen to press charges if I'd been in that situation (although I probably would have moved in the first place). There was another chair on the platform (we don't know where, but there was one). Presumably there were other people in seats nearby as well. But no matter what the actions of the victim here, they were not illegal.
 

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It was reported in the Daily Mail, so I wouldn't give it much credence. However, if it did happen, and if another seat was vacant nearby, she should have used that. I like MM on screen, but if she is even a little like most of her characters, she would probably not have asked overly-politely. I will readily give up my seat to those I perceive as in need (sometimes the need is not obvious) if no others are available, but, as I generally use first class (he says, probably sounding just like MM!), that doesn't arise often.
 

scotsman

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It was reported in the Daily Mail, so I wouldn't give it much credence. However, if it did happen, and if another seat was vacant nearby, she should have used that. I like MM on screen, but if she is even a little like most of her characters, she would probably not have asked overly-politely. I will readily give up my seat to those I perceive as in need (sometimes the need is not obvious) if no others are available, but, as I generally use first class (he says, probably sounding just like MM!), that doesn't arise often.

It was also reported in The Scotsman and the Edinburgh Evening News.
 

Tempest3K

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As someone who suffers from a hidden disability, I find this behaviour disgusting - there are a number of conditions which aren't visible and the effects can vary in severity.

Also, if she'd tipped that water over me, the after effects (being on a cold station hours from home) would have probably caused me to be bedridden for days after - I'd definately be taking action.
 

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Assaulting someone is not a reasonable reaction to not being given a seat, when there is another seat available anyway. What planet is this woman on, and why is she clambering for hero status over it? Can you imagine the outcry if this was the other way around.
 

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It was reported in the Daily Mail, so I wouldn't give it much credence. .

You let yourself down so badly with starting your sentence off like this that I hate to shatter your dreams but the OP posted it from the Huff post. Does that give the story more weight for you now because it may be a rag you like?


Generally, most stories are true, its the slant on them that gives certain newspapers bad press but your total disbelief of the story because you saw it in the DM says more about your arrogance than any sensational story the DM could come up with.
 

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You let yourself down so badly with starting your sentence off like this that I hate to shatter your dreams but the OP posted it from the Huff post. Does that give the story more weight for you now because it may be a rag you like?


Generally, most stories are true, its the slant on them that gives certain newspapers bad press but your total disbelief of the story because you saw it in the DM says more about your arrogance than any sensational story the DM could come up with.

Oh dear. I didn't see it the DM - it was reported here as being there, and I didn't display "total disbelief" - I said "much credence", mainly for the reason you give - the slant given, possibly by MM herself, and also probably not suppressed by the DM. None of my dreams have been shattered here, thanks. I have never read the HP, so have no view there. Regarding the DM, arrogant it may be, but on the few occasions when I have read anything there I have found the journalism to be shoddy at best.
 
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