The Real Marigold Hotel

Some seem to have missed the point that it is supposed to be amusing and light! It has obviously been very edited and does not actually show the 'real' India! The producer has given us what he/she thinks we want and has, imo, perpetuated some old perceptions. Yes, the streets really are crowded and some people really are poor and some rich but the contrasts are not as stark as it would appear. The slebs will also have bean told what to say for the camera in some cases and they are really not being themselves they are doing what the producer wants them to.

You haven't so far seen 5 people on a motorbike for instance! Look out for how clean most people's clothes are as another example. I will be surprised if you see anyone smoking, they generally don't, they chew tobacco. I think these are the real India.

What was wrong with Wayne's tap dancing? I think it was good at any age and none of us could probably do it.

All we're doing is commenting on each other's posts, just like you Nonnie. I think everyone understands it's a light entertainment programme and edited for maximum effect.

I don't think there was anything wrong with Wayne's tap dancing.

I thought Wayne's tap dancing was absolutely fine, I am sure, having recovered from cancer, that he will not be leaping around doing the sort of acrobatic dancing that he did as Principal Dancer with the Royal Ballet - for a while anyway.
He has also does a lot through his Foundation to help youngsters achieve their dreams through scholarships.

grammar, oh dear

I think Wayne's had a hip replacement too.

Well I passed Miriam's autograph to DS and his Hungarian fiancee was thrilled to see it was Professor Sprout! Harry Potter reaches to all corners

MM and I have something in common! She said she made a rule of not doing housework she's my kind of gal.

One or two of them were really porky. How they cope in the heat I don't know. Maybe they will lose weight in their new environment.

I thought tonight's episode was very revealing, they're all showing their more vulnerable sides now. Poor Jan is really very lonely isn't she? Can't believe she's 74 though...

Watched the second episode tonight. Very interesting that they've all gone for medical checks which apparently are as good as anywhere. Miriam and Rosemary are coping extremely well considering their particular health issues. Trying to get around in that heat, in those crowds and with the lack of decent loos would try somebody a lot younger and fitter.
It's a great programme for showing India though, really gets the atmosphere. Love it.

I thought the whole feel of the programme was different tonight, much more serious. I didn't expect the show to tackle head on the vulnerabilities of each person and I was rather touched by it all.

Actually I think Jan does look her age, but she's great at looking her best though. Long hair suits her and the colour is very flattering - not quite grey, but not blonde either. Hate those daft things she wears on top of her head though, plus I think they're very aging. She wears clothes in styles and colours which suit her too and her accessories keep her style young. She had great jewellery on tonight. But she's really thin and if she put on a little bit of weight, I think it would suit her.

Did anyone else think that Roy and Jan should think about trying to become friends, so they could be companions for holidays and things? And Rosemary and Jan could become friends too. It would be nice to think the ones who are lonely could become friends that keep in touch with each other after the series.

Will definitely keep watching.

I thought it got really interesting tonight. The fortune teller was amazing unless it was a set up by the programme makers, or the driver had given him her name in advance and he googled it! Why can't British doctors speak so plainly to overweight patients? They needed telling - and helping. A few months of Indian food might do the trick for them though! I'm looking forward to next week!

We wondered about the fortune teller too and decided that the taxi driver told him and he googled Jan. Shame we only saw Jan visiting him though.

Well I must admit I enjoyed this little series.

I actually want to go to India and if it wasn't for my health I honestly think I would give it a bash, not to move there or live there for any length of time but say a months holiday. I think the fact they all said they loved the experience surprised me but Bobby George getting his wife out to experience India and possibly spend time out there was not why I expected would happen, Jan Leeming yes not Bobby.

I guess they had the opportunity to experience India with the safety net of being in a group and researchers doing the groundwork but I think they all were totally genuine in expressing their love for the country and it's people. Nice one.

I loved the programme. We have had ten holidays in India and it has a special atmosphere. As I have asthma though, I do have to restrict my visits to very busy towns because of the dust.

The last programme of the series and several of the group seem to be seriously considering moving there, even if only for part of the year. They've all had a very positive experience and it's lovely to see. I am surprised that they managed the heat and Rosemary and Miriam loved the festivals and threw themselves into the dancing, some feat for a couple of ladies carrying extra weight!
I'd like to see a follow up series if any of them do actually take the plunge and move to India. Especially Bobby, I never thought he'd take to it as he has.

Yes it would be interesting to find out how they get on if they do decide to stay. My husband was quite taken with the lovely flats that can be rented and is muttering about renting one for four months of our winter!

I would want a pool and air conditioning to cope with the heat so India is not for me I guess.

I thought Jan came across as very vulnerable . Which made me feel differently about her but she really needs to ditch the fake flowers i think her hair , put up looks lovely and then its topped with something that looks like a shower pouf thingie !

I haven't seen this weeks episode [been away with no catchup tv and kept missing things]. I thought Jan Leeming was lovely. I still keep thinking the chubby cook lady is Clarissa Dixon Wright though .

I thought she was too, a real effort to remember that she is Rosemary! I think CDW lived in India as a child and was confused that she didn't mention it, then I realised it wasn't her anyway. Bobby proved so much more open minded that he appeared at first, shows one shouldn't make assumptions.
Jan Leeming does seem to have had bad luck, or maybe bad judgement, in her personal life. Lovely dress sense but she looked as if she had sunburn when she went to the fortune teller.
Overall a very good series, I wish I were brave enough to take my arthritis (and similar urgent needs to MM's!) there!

What a beautiful programme and series. Whe Jan got on the horse, it made me cry. I do hope she goes out there for a few months and feels the companionship she seems to need. And it has seemed to touch the rest of them too, apart from Sylvester who didn't say very much at all.

The people themselves, the Indian communities, were all very welcoming, gorgeous, friendly people. I really loved the films of the Marigold Hotel but to follow it up with a series in which it shows the real India and it still comes across as a very warm and generous place to live and visit, then I, for one, am envious of the people who can go there. Maybe in this country we could learn something from these wonderful people.

Find Miriam a foul mouthed bore, absolutely self obsessed and her constant references to her bodily functions turns my stomach. Patti is self obsessed too, fantastic skin though. Rosemary is very loud and in your face but I think she is a very kind person and quite sensitive underneath the bluster. Jan is very needy but lights up when a man pays her any attention. The others just merge in somehow. Be interesting to see how they all gel together.

I think they are a lovely group of people. I've always been a fan of Miriam M. I loved her performance in one of the Black Adder series.

I've always wanted to go to India. Two of my sons have and were very upset by the poverty.

The Taj Mahal looks soo beautiful. I had tears in my ears thinking about my dh who passed away in 2012. It's wonderful monument to true love.

I was impressed by the honesty of the group and alarmed by how unwell some of them looked but maybe they were affected by the intense heat.

It was interesting to hear about the philosophy of the caste system and to see how friendly and accepting the people seem to be.

We were lucky enough to get to India the winter before last and do the "Golden Triangle". We went with a wildlife touring company so got off the beaten track and into the countryside as well as Delhi, Agra etc.

It's a wonderful, fascinating country. So much to see and we really, really want to go back. I loved seeing the groups reaction to the first glimpse of the Taj through the gate. It was just the same as mine. I had thought, "well, if we're going to India I want to see the Taj Mahal" but hadn't expected it to be such a mind blowing experience. Some of the places we stayed had been maharajas palaces (one still was!) so it was quite an experience. It is a vast country and we want to visit the south next time.

However, I could never contemplate living there. The poverty is terrible among some of the lower castes and the caste system is so impossible. You are what you are and it CANNOT be changed. Not in this life. There are low caste families living in rags under fly-overs next to de-luxe apartments. And the women sweeping. Always sweeping. But no one clears the rubbish as the money allocated for it has been sidetracked into someone's new swimming pool, so the pigs, goats, cows and dogs spread it all out again. So much to do. Too much to do. Two weeks was enough for my emotional abilities! The best I could do was 'twin' my toilet for one of the villages. Every little helps!

I intended to add that I think if Jan did go out there for longer she may see more of the poor areas and find it too distressing. But they were in Jaipur? I don't know what that's like, perhaps better run?

I empathised with Jan when she was upset during the funeral scene. My father died alone and it prays on my mind. My neighbour tried to console me by saying most people die alone. Other cultures seem to do it in a different and probably better way.
I have enjoyed this series, the views of India and the people. The celebs mostly seemed to find life in India suited them especially Wayne. Some careful editing though no doubt.
It put me in mind of when The Beatles went there too.