Dearest Gentle Reader, this Friday brings revelations so rich in scandal that even This Author's pen trembles slightly - from a disgraced financier's hidden network in the Capital's most fashionable borough, to a certain American president who has appointed himself spokesman for the entire Kingdom. And if that were not sufficient to detain you, a knighted rock legend has confided his lifetime philosophy in seven words, and it is considerably wiser than anything uttered in the Grand Assembly this session.

Dearest Gentle Reader, this Sunday brings a prime minister in desperate need of better advisers, a community in desperate need of protection, and a life jacket that has, against all odds, appreciated in value over the past century. This Author has opinions on all three - and a raised eyebrow firmly in reserve for those who claim ignorance most loudly.

Dearest Gentle Reader, this Friday brings a prime minister in a fury of his own making, a duke accepting footwear from veterans on the far side of the world, and a machine so alarming it has sent the entire world of high finance into a collective swoon. This Author has rarely encountered a day so thoroughly stocked with the improbable - and she has covered rather a lot of days.