Is Philip Hammond the New Prince of Darkness ?

Are we alone in thinking that the Secretary of State for Transport, Philip Hammond, bears some resemblance to Christopher Lee's portrayal of Count Dracula ?

Please see www.dft.gov.uk/press/ministers/philiphammond

Or might this just arise from our intuition that some unappetising road schemes may be resurrected ?

Either way, as we hot seated this morning - Janet in Rocco's place - yesterday's sense of satirical void was replaced by a feeling that we are due for a spell of gothic satire well suited to the witching season !

THE SAD STORY OF BEAUTY & THE BEAST

With the Season of Saturnalia just around the corner, the time has come for "The New Politics" to receive some satirical treatment, were it not already the case that some aspects of these are "Beyond Satire" !

Take "The Story of Beauty and the Beast", as we shall call it. ""The Beast" - aka Lib-Dem MP John Hemming who also has a very informative blog @ http://johnhemming.blogspot.com/ - is a self-confessed serial adulterer, whose wife recently stole a kitten, called Beauty, from the home of a (? former) mistress with whom he has a child*

Reference to the old story of "Beauty and the Beast" seems particularly appropriate here because the tale is, in fact, rather a sad one. Mr Hemming's wife has been charged with theft and the poor kitten is, it seems, still lost and much missed by his child and the little cat's brother. I can feel the tears welling up even as I write this !

So would the Coalition Government please dish up a good old-fashioned scandal, of the kind to which we became accustomed under the Conservative premiership of John Major, such as his own affair with Edwina Currie.

*A lovely photo of Beauty and her brother Twinkle appears in Mr Hemming's post of 21 October.