To wonder what has happened to the word "Me"?

[Mrsbennington]

Everything I read is "myself and...." or "X and myself...." It doesn't make sense. Why are people using this more and more. What is wrong with good old "me" and "I" ?

I think the reason why it irks is because not only is it wrong - that's ok, everyone gets stuff wrong - but because it sounds so fecking pompous at the same time.

Pompous AND wrong. Bad.

Aww, I quite like it in an Irish accent though!

I think of it as the 'estate agent's me' (much like the grocer's apostrophe) but it's everywhere.

Yes, it bugs me because it's not only wrong, it's an attempt to sound more impressive and it ends up sounding pompous and badly-educated. Argh. I have depths of feeling I hadn't realised until right now!

A Southeastern reply tweet this morning 'the trains are maintained by ourselves'

YANBU. I think it comes also from the reliance on emailing as opposed to telephone calls. For example, at work when emailing about an issue with a team, whist I know it is grammatically correct to address a team as 'you' I tend to write 'yourselves' so as the person reading the email does not take it personally IYSWIM? Don't get me started on 'innit'- never acceptable.

Carper Diem, instead of writing the incorrect "yourselves", why not write "all of you" or "both of you"?

A Southeastern reply tweet this morning 'the trains are maintained by ourselves'

We maintain the trains...

....no, that's all wrong! How can I dress it up?.....

The trains are maintained by us.....

better, but it lacks panache! How can I make it sound better?.....

The trains are maintained by ourselves....

bingo! perfect.

It's an obsequious affectation ?

Myself is just coming back to this thread and realise that Olivepip asked me a question.

olive I'm often to be found on a balcony after lunch, megaphone in one hand, plovers egg in the other, reciting poetry to an audience of undergraduates.

I don't know why, but Brideshead Revisited is one of my favourite books. Makes me laugh every time I read it.