Russell Brand (unlike his masters) has redeemed himself with a fulsome and thoroughly convincing apology to Andrew Sachs and the Satanic Slut. He must have been under a lot of pressure –  in the video footage on the mediaguardian site he seems to have lost weight, with something Edvard Munchian about his elongated visage. And, just as puzzling, his beard has grown substantially in the couple of weeks since his misdemeanour. Has he refrained from trimming his stubble in an act of self-deprecation.

Whatever… he’s apologised and resigned, and that’s laudable.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Yesterday I wrote about the News of the Screws feeble effort to put the boot in while the Shadow C of the E was down. I mentioned that their story of Osborne and the alleged hooker, Natalie Rowe had first appeared three years ago. I failed to mention my other well-documented theory that this first story – when Andy Coulson was editor – was in fact a subtle piece of spin to suggest that the otherwise saintly and over-squeaky-clean young prodigy did in fact have a human side to him. I still believe that.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Far more interesting than the fifteen minutes of fun being enjoyed by the excitable British media (keep your hair on, Nick Robinson) at the expense of the normally flawless George Osborne are the possible reasons for Nathaniel Rothschild coming so vigorously to the defence of Peter Mandelson. While not wishing to sound like the man from the Mail, it seems to me that few people would invite Mandelson to join them on a private holiday unless they had some powerful political or – more likely – commercial purpose.

Perhaps this reason will emerge in time, long after Mr Osborne’s nonexistent crime has been forgotten (which, I predict will be by next Thursday).

Popularity: 1% [?]

During last night’s third face-to-face bout in the McCain/Obama contest, Senator McCain referred more than once to that Unicorn concept, the ‘American Dream’, and it occurred to me that he had unwittingly identified one of the culprits behind the mighty melt-down of the US (and everyone else’s) economy.

For sure, the more obvious human perpetrators were the hard-nosed realtors and unscrupulous operators selling impossible mortgages on behalf of the avaricious sub-prime loan sharks, named with deceptive cosiness, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

But they have been aided and abetted in their crimes by the fraudulent fantasy of the ‘American Dream’, as embodied by the cheaply constructed, tawdry-trimmed vaguely colonial, part-clapboard dwelling, complete with basket ball hoop over the garage door and token swimming pool squeezed to fit on a basic plot.

Popularity: 1% [?]