11January1997

Saturday 11 January
My dear folks,

I do believe that it is all of a week since I last sat down & wrote to you. I’m never quite sure whether this comes more as a matter of relief than regret. But since I’m in receipt of faxes from both Mum & Cath this a.m., a response from London is surely timely.

It’s a grey Saturday. Although temps are up above zero for the first time in a week or more, the ice still lies thick enough on the canal to tempt the local boys on to it. I warned several kids as we returned from an excursion yesterday that if they fell through, they were dead. They were unimpressed, as kids usually are by the predictions of old men.

Jones muttered darkly that it would serve them right but dying’s a hard way to learn. There are regular reports of deaths from just such forays, mainly involving either adventurous youngsters or walkers who perish trying to save their dogs. Ironically, the dogs usually survive the experience. Speaking of which, the rescue of the British yachtsman who spent four days in his capsized craft in freezing waters has to rate as one of the greatest stories of our times. How wonderful to have a really heart warming story dominating the headlines instead of the usual doom & destruction.

Jones & I have been sitting down to update our Quinta guides to guests. Inevitably, we have slightly different ideas on how each shop or restaurant should be described & the hardest part of the task is reconciling our ideas. I did descend to a brief suggestion that if only Jones learned to use the blessed computer herself, she could write whatever she chose. But I retracted the thought, not because it’s not true, but because it was below the belt. I suspect that we probably achieve a better product for weighing up each other’s suggestions. Yet the art of graceful compromise is not easily attained, even by such gentle & rational creatures as the Bensons & the Joneses.

I’ve been working on an Asia programme all week. It’s a Sunday to Thursday shift, running from 11.00 to 19.00 & involves setting up as many elements as possible of a bulletin transmitted in the early hours & aimed at a breakfast audience in Asia. It’s a bugger since you’re anticipating tomorrow’s stories & working with yesterday’s pictures, not to speak of trying to persuade people to come in for interviews at 01.30. The main advantage is the ability to paddle one’s own canoe up a quietish creek. The bosses stay out of your hair, unless you screw up - when they’re worse than fleas on a dog.

It does mean too that Fridays & Saturdays are off days. We celebrated yesterday by going to The Shining, a remarkable Australian film about a pianist who struggles to overcome severe mental handicaps. That description does the film little justice, however. It’s inspirational. Do see it! The music alone is worth paying for. There’s a moment in a restaurant which is as strangely moving as when “pig” silences the sceptical crowds by herding the sheep in Babe. We were lucky enough to see the film at the Curzon in Mayfair, an old fashioned auditorium specialising in serious cinema; no popcorn chewers, paper crinklers or heavy breathing gropers. What bliss!

Judy Cornell joined us for the outing & fully shared our pleasure. We met her at a convenient point & then walked to a vegetarian restaurant (which Jones had earmarked) for a lunch both scrumptious & healthy. Jones & I have been eating carefully since our return from the delights of Christmas in Germany. I confess I was slightly alarmed when Cathy checked my blood pressure to find it at levels which called for attention. On my return, I booked myself in for a full medical next Friday under a scheme run BUPA medical insurance, bought a blood pressure apparatus myself & went on the straight & narrow.

I’m pleased to report that my BP has been falling steadily to reassuring levels.
We made a couple of stops during the walk from the restaurant to the cinema, including one at a computer spares outlet that was closing down. The owner said he was moving to another location. Whatever the position, we did a quick negotiation on Microsoft Word 6, software for which he accepted £50. The aim was less to get Word 6 than to get the upgrade to the painfully expensive Word 7 which has just arrived on the market. In fact, with this in mind, we’ll be setting off shortly to a computer fair (Jones coming strictly for the walk) which is held each Saturday near Tottenham Court Road. Barclays Bank is about to offer on-line banking to its customers & for this purpose I want to get the latest version of Microsoft Money as well.

Cathy, a special thank you for your fax this a.m. I hope Basil & Sybil bring you lots of pleasure. Mum, ditto for yours. I shall reply ASAP to your various queries. Meanwhile, let me get this off. It will be dark by 16.00 and I want to be safely back home again by then.

Blessings ever,
T