Probably everyone living in England already has heard about this, but there was a wonderful story on National Public Radio about the London Review of Books' personals column and a book that has been published recently, They Call Me Naughty Lola, featuring some of the more outrageous ads. A sampling:

quote:

Mature gentleman, 62, aged well, noble grey looks, fit and active, sound mind and unfazed by the fickle demands of modern society … Damn it, I have to pee again.

To some, I am a world of temptation. To others, I'm just another cross-dressing pharmacist. Male, 41.

Text version and audio link are on this page.

WM

Thank you for that link. Lovely, little, poetic mini-novellas. If it weren't for NPR, the CBC As It Happens, and the BBC World News, I would go mad in traffic during my commute to work.

"They call me naughty Lola" is the first line in Marlene Dietrich's song "Lola." Coincidence?

quote:

Coincidence?

Probably not. The ads were composed by some highly literate people.

This current crop of ads are under "Personals" at the LRB site.

I think I will pass up the "middle-aged, flatulant and overweight man".

In the LRB site, I saw an ad with this abbreviation: WLTM...what is that? She is apparently mentally a size 8, but a compulsive eating female. She's 52 but wants a 25 year old WLTM?

WLTM = Would Like To Meet.