The SunTory had a re-launch yesterday, and I'm not at all impressed with the product. When I reviewed it last March, I spotted the paper's strengths as the arts, world news, sport, and television guide, while the domestic news section was (literally) all doom and gloom.

The good news: the domestic news is somewhat frothier. The bad news: it's cheered up by going for fripperies. The paper makes a lot of a "revelation" that Londoners use cocaine; their method of sampling differences in cocaine solutes near sewage plants may not be methodologically sound, and appears to ignore the fact that the Thames is a tidal river in that area. There's flimmery for the new Harry Potter motion picture, a headline "Government to tax view from your house" that could be repeated in the Daily Hell, and an obscene picture of Kate Moss (what other sort is there) in her skivvies.

Sport remains mercifully free of the Observer's obsession with football, but the 14-page section feels about four pages too light. Business coverage remains poor, and the Travel, House and Home, and Money sections remain unremarkable.

The old Review section has been combined with the television listings to create Seven, which is almost a carbon copy of the Sunset Times' ill-named "Culture" section, right down to the type of paper used. There are some meaty articles in there, but the coverage seems a little flimsier than in the old paper. Listings have certainly deteriorated - the previous guide has been chopped down to just two pages per day. BBC-3 gets detailed listings, BBC-4 doesn't, which is surely not a reflection of the audience's priorities. Oneword and the World Service vanish from the radio listings, as does Radio 1.

The new magazine is Stella, that's its name. While there were some decently long articles in the old mag, there was a lot of fluff. This new mag is all fluff, trying to ape the Hell on Sunday's women's mag, or the Sunset Times' Style section. Not at all impressive

Overall, this is clearly retrograde step. While the SunTory has managed to reduce its section count by one, it's come at the expense of the paper's character. The paper we knew - intelligent, witty, urbane, annoying, predictable - has been replaced by one that threatens to go all foolish on us. There's a clear gap in the market for a broadsheet Sunday paper that doesn't have the urban sprawl of the Sunset Times, or the tedious frivolity of the Observer. The SunTory's missed this boat. Oh for a Correspondent of our days...

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posted 07 Nov 2005, 15.38 +0000

To-day's Universaldailyregistertab reports that there was no authorisation to kill in the Jean Charles de Menezes shooting. The commander on duty reportedly told the officers that they must "stop him getting on the Tube at all costs," but did not authorise the use of lethal force. Police have admitted that there were difficulties keeping in contact with the police teams once they went underground at the station and the two marksmen from the CO19 unit believe that they were authorised to kill the Brazilian.

The radio calls in question were not recorded at the time, reports the paper.

What does this leak signify? The police want us to think it was cock-up, and not conspiracy, that led to the probably-unlawful killing. I'm happy to accept that as the most probable explanation of events, but it leaves us to wonder what the cops will be doing to stop something similar from happening again.

What does the fact that the leak's appeared in the New Labour house journal? That the government wants to give the police a bit of a break, perhaps in return for Ian Blair (head of London's police) providing a public front for Mister Tony Blair's ninety-day detention policy. That policy looks doomed, after the failure of talks between Seymour the Safety Elephant and his opposition counterparts to-day.

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posted 07 Nov 2005, 16.09 +0000

It's been one week since I last wrote to The Trainline, and they're yet to respond to my email. Next stop, a polite letter to head office. In Dingwall.

Anyway, on a similar topic, m'learned friend Dr Itchy has had some dealings with Parceline and with Vodafone. Or Vodaphone, I never could tell the difference. (Must read the Mary Whitehouse Encyclopaedia again.) If ever there was a good reason not to have one of these wretched mobile Handyphones, this would be it. The words "Breach of contract" spring to mind, surely...

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posted 09 Nov 2005, 18.35 +0000

"Sometimes it is better to lose and do the right thing than win and do the wrong thing," spouted Mister Tony Blair at to-day's PMQs. This is true, though not in the way Mister Blair is trying to spin it.

There is no evidence that a properly-resourced police force would require additional time to question suspects. At heart, this should be a debate about increasing the amount of money spent on the police, both to investigate a possible terrorist threat, but also to improve community relations. A visible "bobby on the beat" would help to calm fractured relations in places like Birmingham. In one way, it's surprising that the police aren't asking for more funds; in another, it's symptomatic of the way some elements think they are not so much above the law as the entire law - prosecutor, jury, judge, and executioner.

I suppose it comes to it when Michael Howaerd, a man who was prepared to trample all over civil liberties ten years ago, is now the man leading the charge on human rights. This is convincing evidence that the Interior Ministry, and not all of its occupants, are a grave threat to our cherished freedoms.

Seymour the Safety Elephant (the current head of the Interior Ministry, and a man whose critical faculties have clearly been turned) raises the spectre of chemical and biological attacks. A jury decided that there has been no cogent plot involving chemical or biological agents; anyone suggesting otherwise is committing a clear contempt of court.

It is unusual for cheap party political points to be scored in on the matter of terrorism. Throughout the IRA campaigns, there was a cross-party consensus. Only Mister Blair has sought to make political capital out of the matter. This, perhaps more than anything, will be his legacy.

Anyway. The Commons has decided, and rejected the 90-day proposal by a comfortable margin of 31 votes. Instead, they've voted for an increase in the detention to 28 days, a move that will still encounter trouble in the Lords. It's a tremendous blow to Mister Blair's personal standing, after he staked so much on the outcome of this vote. Not that he's going to be resigning to-morrow, but his authority has been clearly undermined, probably without hope of regaining it.

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posted 09 Nov 2005, 18.51 +0000

A listing of selected television and radio broadcasts, with a deliberate emphasis on culture and intellectual programmes.

Saturday

Sport dominates the BBC - England -v- Argentina is the big football match (4.35 BBC-1), and highlights of England -v- Australia at rugby (7pm BBC-3). In The Archive Hour (8pm Radio 4), Chris Bowlby recalls the way the Soviet Union tried to sell itself to the west. Gordon's Missing Billions (8.10 More4) explores the black hole at the heart of Labour's "economic miracle".

Sunday

Loyd Grossman goes in search of Benjamin Britten in Composers at Home (3.30 Radio 3). He'll be out, no-one stays in for a visit from Grossman. Still with the third, David Tennant fans will want to hear Much Ado About Nothing, in which the future Mr Bridgey stars as Benedick. Russian Sub Rescue (10pm Discovery) is an investigation into the recent recovery of a sunken vessel.

Monday

The first in a new series of I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue (6.30 Radio 4). Hurrah! Coast (7pm BBC-4) gets a welcome repeat on The Fourth Programme - it's also on to-morrow, and every Monday and Tuesday at this time until the end of the year. Walk Away and I Stumble (9pm ITV) tries to turn a Macy Gray lyric into a working drama. Ah, it's ITV, so no dice. Concludes to-morrow. Nature (9pm Radio 4) looks into the late arrival of autumn.

Tuesday

Basketball fans will be watching European basketball (7.30 Eurosport 2) each Tuesday for the season. Those taking Dinner With Portillo (8.30 BBC-4) ask why we're so miserable. Maybe they should watch Making Slough Happy (9pm BBC-2), where fifty volunteers try to smile at people. Or maybe they'll stick with the Fourth for G8 Can You Hear Us (9pm BBC-4), people who marched in Edinburgh. A short season of country music programmes begins with Country Comes to Town (8.30 Radio 2), the juxtaposition of New Amsterdam and country music. Night Waves (10pm Radio 3) looks into the links between country music and the Corporatist party.

Wednesday

Frequencies (8pm RTE Radio 1) examines how radio has been used to make art - this week, romance. Take That For The Record (9pm ITV) is the ten-year-on recap of the band who have a greatest hits album to promote. There's a repeat of House of Cards (10pm BBC-4)

Thursday

Must See TV (10pm ITV) features Kenny Everett, but Julian Clary hosts. Hmph.

Friday

Two signs of winter approaching - it's Celebrities In Need day across the BBC, and the first Bobsleigh World Cup (6.30 Eurosport) event of the season. Elsewhere, the second episode of Jazz Legends (4pm Radio 3) starring Humphry Lyttleton. Radio Ramadan (11am Radio 4) goes behind the mike at Islamic religious stations.

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posted 10 Nov 2005, 19.41 +0000

We mentioned last week how Melanie C was number two in Germany. She's now number one in Germany, and there must surely be a case to bring her single out in the UK. Indeed, with the Sugababes and James Blunt also in the top four, the British invasion is almost complete - spoiled only by Bert Bills' creative and tax exile in Das Angeles. Big new release of the week is from Swedish metal outfit Kent, whose Hjärta & smärta ep tops their domestic chart, and is second-best in Denmark. Local talent rules the roost in Finland, Sleeping sun is the latest single from Nightwish.

 20 re Juanes - La camisa negra
*19 NE Katie Melua - Nine million bicycles
*18 NE Melanie C - First day of my life
 17 15 Rammstein - Benzin
*16 NE Kate Bush - King of the mountain
 15 14 Bob Sinclar - Love generation
 14 11 Coldplay - Fix you
*13 13 Céline Dion - Je ne vous oublier pas
 12  8 Daniel Powter - Bad day
*11 NE Johnny Hallyday - Ma religion dans son regard
 10 12 Franz Ferdinand - Do you want to?
* 9 10 Kelly Clarkson - Behind these hazel eyes
  8  7 K T Tunstall - Suddenly I see
* 7  9 Arctic Monkeys - I bet you look good on the dancefloor
  6  6 Pussycat Dolls - Don't you
* 5  5 Tatu - All about us
  4  4 Depeche Mode - Precious
  3  2 Bert Bills - Tripping
  2  3 James Blunt - You're beautiful
* 1  1 Sugababes - Push the button

In the UK, chalk up another number one single for Ulvaeus and Andersson. The gentlemen from ABBA are responsible for the main hook of Madonna's otherwise disappointing Hung up, this week's best-selling single. Is it heresy to say that I've not particularly enjoyed anything she's done since Frozen almost ten years ago? Anyway, it's her 11th chart-topper, which still puts her behind Bjorn and Benny's nine with ABBA, one with Elaine Paige and Barbara Dickson, one with Erasure, and this one.

James From Busted's new band, Son Of Dork, go into the chart at number 3 with Ticket out of Loserville. James is now well ahead of bandmate Matty - his Fightstar (the new Nirvana to James' new Green Dull) have never risen above position 8. Blue's Simon Webbe lands at 4 with No worries, while the Kaiser Chiefs' Modern way can only make position 11.

Lower down, pleased to see the Duelers back - they made the top 30 last year by the simple expedient of busking outside some shops in Croydon, and their major label debut Truly madly deeply lands at 23. Old talent isn't limited to Madge, as Bananarama have their first hit in donkey's years, Look on the floor enters at 26. Slump of the week doesn't come from Billy Bragg (a positively gentle 11-15), but from Darren Hayes (15-36) and Texas (13-41). Daniel Powter should be on the listing, but his new single has been deemed Improper by those crazy people at ROPRA.

On the albums, annoyance for Kate Bush fans, who find the double album Aerial only enters in third place. Even worse, they've been outsold by Pestlife and Ill Divo, the spew-inducing singing ten pences. Anastacia does well to enter at 6, but Texas's run of hits seems to be over - Red Book can only land at 16, a far cry from the chart-topping success of their last studio albums.

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posted 13 Nov 2005, 19.26 +0000

An increasingly settled picture during this week, though not before it had become the sixth out of seven to leave an inch or more of rain.

07 Mo cloud                8/14,  0.0
08 Tu cloud, rain         10/15, 10.2
09 We sunny                5/10, 11.5
10 Th sun to cloud         6/14,  1.3
11 Fr cloud, showers      12/12,  3.3
12 Sa sun                  4/ 9,  0.0
13 Su sun                  6/ 8,  0.0

Nine degree heating days this week, the winter's total of 11½ is still below last year's equivalent, 37½/677½.

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posted 13 Nov 2005, 19.27 +0000

older writing... write to