Appropriate today. Hat tip Pete Moore.

It’s always good to go to bed having had a good laugh and so it is that I commend this Monty Python "Cheese Shop" sketch for your entertainment. John Cleese was actually born John Cheese, you know, so what more apt sketch for this great man to take part in. Now then, let’s explore the world of cheese! 

Is it COINCIDENCE that the Spice Girls (Baby, Posh, Ginger, Sport and erm..Scary) have announced they are making a comeback the same day as Gordon Brown announces his new cabinet, several members of which are ALSO making a comeback? (Not that the media want to talk about the recycled Cabinet Ministers in their Gordie-euphoria) I think not! It seems to me that Brown must be a major Spice Girls fan. After all, he has been a "Wannabe" Prime Minister for more years than the Spice Girls have been, um, spicy. He and Blair were very much "Two become one" and now that Princess Tony has said "Goodbye", it’s "Viva Forever" Gordon! Yet should PM Brown ask us "Tell me what you want, what you really really want" the answer is – not you, your miserable dour caledonian clown. Forget Zig-a-Zig ah! 

PS. Has Baby been eating the Pies or is she about to have a baby?

For once I am linking to the Guardian. That headline is not made up. Communities in Yorkshire are still underwater after more than three days and this can happen again if we get another spell of bad weather. I dont give a crap whether this is caused by Global Warming or just freak weather such as we have experienced before – but if this Government, flush with cash and able to provide the underclass with all the booze they can drink, all the Playstations they can zone in front of and all the social workers they can stomach, cant find money for this, what the hell are we bothering to pay a penny of our extortionate taxes for?

Let’s see if I have got this one right.

The European Parliament has BANNED the small amount of mercury used in barometers, with which I guess we are all familiar. Meanwhile, the European Parliament PROMOTES the use of millions of long-life bulbs which contain….mercury!  Since the greater likelihood is that bulbs will get broken more than barometers (Have you EVER broken a barometer? Have you ever broken a bulb?) isn’t this an environmentally hazardous position adopted by the Eurocrats? Or maybe they actually do want to poison us all!!

A quote from Conservative Home, regarding public attitudes to David Cameron:

"A Populus poll for today’s Daily Politics programme on BBC1…found that 48% agreed that Mr Cameron was "superficial and lacks any clear convictions".  40% disagreed.  36% said Mr Cameron had the "strength and judgment to be a good prime minister".  49% said he did not.  54% agreed that it was "no longer clear what the Conservative Party stands for".  36% disagreed."

Looks like the public has the measure of the man.

Firstly, I wanted to sincerely thank ATW contributor DSD for gaining an exclusive interview for ATW READERS  with Nigel Farage – leader of the UKIP. Because of my current pc problems, I’m going to post this early on next week to ensure maximum traffic gets to listen to what Nigel has to say to the questions YOU posed. I also want to publicly thank Nigel Farage for having the guts to give such an interview – and I hope you will giving it a listen next week.

Do you like cheese? I do – I love the so many different varieties of this fine food, and have a particular liking for..gasp..French cheeses! (And the fine French wine that best accompanies these!) But guess what? My love of cheese is endangering the Planet apparently, and along with most meats, I’m going to have to give it up – should I choose to listen to Ruth Fairchild from the University of Wales. She reckons that there is a lot of energy used to produce cheese along with feeding most forms of livestock and this is maximising our environmental footprint. It seems though that whilst we will lose cheese and most meats, we keep lentils, eggs, milk veggies and bread. Back to the Stone Age then – and au revoir my beloved Brie!

So, have you honestly considered how DANGEROUS an allotment can be? I mean, have you properly reflected on all the perils that await the enthusiastic gardener..the thorns, the sharp stones, the metal tools? A Council in Somerset has and insisted that those who want to garden in the council allotments take out…wait for it…£5m public liability insurance. The cover is going to cost £375 per person per year, the annual rental of the land is £10! Makes you want to bury your head!

Here we go with a lovely duet for a Friday evening – Emmylou has a great voice and EC is passionate in his delivery. The odd thing is the possible double meaning to the punchline lyric "Accept this heart shaped bruise"or is it "Except this heart shaped bruise" A great song for grown ups.