Technology | 2009.11.06
Michael White's diary
Our man on the aircraft: the spy who came in ahead of the banker and bore
Talking of spies ( Karzai\'s brother, Castro\'s sister ), Sir Richard Dearlove , former head of M16 who now runs an Oxbridge college, occasionally tells of the Friday night he flew to New York at taxpayers\' expense on Concorde, such was the urgency of his trip. In a cabin full of over-achieving US bankers and hedge fund managers going home for the weekend, Dearlove was unavoidably seated next to one. The preening banker spent his three-hour flight regaling the intelligence chief with every conceivable detail of his financial prowess and family life. But when they arrived at Kennedy airport, New York\'s senior FBI man bounded up the steps and asked passengers to stay in their seats "until we deplane our VIP from London". Only as our unobtrusive spook padded down the aisle did an all-too-familiar voice call out in bewilderment "Who the fu-u-ck are you?"
William (friends call him Billy) Hague is still demanding an apology over Latvian Nazi "slurs" from David Miliband despite being seen off by his fellow geek on air yesterday. Shaven-headed Billy, who would only need a tattoo to pass for a Nick Griffin minder up a dark alley, should be grateful. Swivel-eyed Labour loyalists have been fuming all week that George ("we have never proposed a tightening of fiscal policy this financial year") Osborne ("oh yes you have") gets away with so much. As for Hezza saying (correctly) that a Cameron cabinet will have to go bra up on its Euro-phobic policy, swivel-eyed lefties say "Can you imagine the fuss if it had been Prezza, not Hezza, and he\'d attacked Brown like that?"
Radio 4 is doing brilliantly in the ratings, less well among crusty second world war vets who heard one of its reporters refer to D-Day as "July 6". As any fule kno, the first outside invasion of Europe since the Ottoman Turks arrived took place on June 6 1944. Old Fartonian blood pressure had barely dropped before Wednesday night\'s BBC TV News at Ten sent it soaring skywards. The backcloth to its account of the Nimrod accident investigation read: "DAMMING REPORT." Out with the beta blockers!
Sir Christopher Kelly\'s committee on standards in public life has leaked like the proverbial condom on MPs expenses. Confidentiality no longer a standard worth maintaining?
Ex-BBC radio musical suit, now tough guy chairman of the National Heritage Memorial Fund, Dame Jenny Abramsky CBE was among the Great and Good who sat through Tory culture spokesman and free-market zealot Jeremy Hunt\'s heritage thoughts at the heritage-sodden Globe Theatre. Among the Cameroon-era ideas floated by Japanese-speaking Jeremy is to merge the Heritage Lottery Fund (run by Dame Jenny\'s NHMF) with English Heritage, all to save money. MP Hunt once attracted ridicule for claiming 1p for a phone call. But when the G&G emerged into the autumn sunshine the only cab waiting, engine running, bore the sign "Abramsky".
Diplomats are never too grand to ignore pond life politicians like newly installed Europe minister, Chris Bryant . An e-press release arrives under the controversial headline: "Minister reaffirms passionate opposition to death." Further perusal reveals that Chris is talking about the death penalty and his determination to end it "everywhere in the world", including China and Texas. And there we were thinking the FO might launch a missile strike against the creepy Dignitas clinic. Shocked Swiss may close it anyway.
Guardian Diarist Hugh Muir\'s temporary assistant last wrote this column in 1976. Almost all is changed utterly, not least technology (we still used hot metal in 1976); but not the steady trickle of stories, angry, funny, mischievous. Thanks. Hugh is back next week.
For more information, please visit
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/oct/30/diary-michael-white-dearlove
