The translated American adaptation of the Cirque Du Freak manga arrive this morning, and I spent most of the day reading through it, editing pen close to hand. I'm delighted to report that I rarely needed to put that pen to use. The translation is VERY good. The translator has captured the style of the book, not just translated literally from Japanese to English. I made a few small tweaks here and there, when I thought it was necessary (e.g. to make sure Mr Crepsley's speech patterns were JUST right), but for the most part I was just a happy reader.

I think the manga works splendidly. That was my opinion when I was "reading" the japanese version as it came out, and that opinion has been fortified now that I can properly read it. The artist has made changes, of course, to the structure and plot, but kept the feel and spirit of the story. And the changes are all positive changes, necessary to make the story work in a visual format. That's what fans who moan about the changes movie-makers and comic-artists make to books often don't realise -- you can't be TOO faithful to your source material if you want to make a story work in another medium. Books work in a certain way. Movies work in a different way. Comics work in another way. For a story to survive an adaptation, it needs to be re-thought.

To give an example. In Cirque Du Freak, I spend a lot of time describing the freak show when Darren and Steve first attend. I describe each performer and go through their act in quite a lot of detail. The plot slows down to a standstill in those sections -- apart from Steve's gasp when he recognises Mr Crepsley, and Darren's reaction to Madam Octa, there's nothing in those scenes which is essential to the book. But they work regardless, because readers of books are happy to be sidetracked every now and then, to be taken on detours and treated to non-essential scenes. I've never had a letter or email from a fan complaining about the "slowness" of that section, because in a book it doesn't matter if you slow things down occasionally -- indeed, sometimes it's vital that you do, so that chracters have a chance to breathe and develop.

In comics, especially manga, it's different. Because it's a visual medium, movement is vital to maintain interest. Not just physical movement, but plot movement, character movement. If the circus scenes had been laid out in comic format the same way I laid them out in the book, those scenes would drag. Big time. The story would start to lose readers, no matter how nicely the characters were drawn, and minds would start to wonder. So the artist, wisely, trims the circus scenes down a lot (as, I imagine, the movie-makers will do too). Fans of the books might not like that ("Hey! I wanted to see Truska's act! And Hans Hands running! And Sive and Seersa twisting! And ..."), but trust me, the story is better off this way. Any good adaptation must be made for neutrals, people who have never read the books. If a movie or comic is to be worth the making, it needs to stand on its own two legs, in its own right, and work in its own way.

The Cirque Du Freak manga does all that. It will be a blast for those of us familiar with the story, and provide us with a fresh way of seeing the story. But it will also hopefully prove just as much of a winner with manga fans who haven't read the books. And if some of those decide to come check out the books afterwards, well, that's good for all of us. It will give me more fans, of course, but it will also give YOU guys more people to discuss the books with and gloat in front of ("Hah! I was a fan way back when!!!!") I'm always trying to expand the Darren Shan family. The more of us, the merrier, as far as I'm concerned!!!!!

Finished my latest edit of City of the Snakes today.There's another 18 months or so to go before it sees print, but I'm very happy with the shape it's currently in. The last few chapters in particular please me every time I come to them. A good ending can be vital to a reader's final impression of a book. There are few things more disappointing than having a whale of a time with the first four fifths of a book, only for things to fall flat in the final stretch. I'm not saying the ending is the MOST important part of a book -- if the first four fifths are no good, people won't stick around to see how things work out!! But a good finale is like icing on a cake, and it's often what readers will remember best. I think I've pulled off an ending that will satisfy pretty much every reader, especially those who read all three books. That's a dangerous prediction, I know, but I usually have a good idea as a writer how fans are going to respond to particular books and sections of books, and I reckon this one will prove to be a winner ... touch wood!!!!

The ninth volume of the Darren Shan manga was released in Japan today. I think it's the best volume to date -- the artist keeps getting better over the course of the series. I recommend it very highly to all my Japanese fans. And to those in the States and other countries -- please be patient, we'll get there eventually!! In fact, the translation of Cirque Du Freak is on its way to me even as I type. I plan to go through it and tweak it wherever necessary, to give it as authentic a feel as possible, i.e. to try and make sure the tone of the books comes through. So hopefully, when it's all done and dusted, the words will be as slick and carefully thought out as the artwork. I've loved following the Japanese editions, and I can't wait to read the whole thing in English! In a way, I'd like it if I didn't have to get involved in the translation process, because then I could just read it as a fan, like the rest of you. But I just can't resist the temptation to be part of the team responsible for unleashing it on the western part of the world!!! By playing a direct part in the process, I can hopefully give the translation a bit of an extra shine, and ensure that no mistakes are made, so that none of the details get "lost in translation".

It's typical, of course, that all this should be happening in a very tight window of time that I have between the end of my holiday and the start of my tour!! In addition to my edit of City of the Snakes, I have to go through the manga, I had to check the Americanised proofs of Wolf Island a couple of days ago, and I also have to do another edit of Dark Calling!!!! But that's the way things go in writing, as in life in general -- if you've all the time in the world, nobody bothers you; as soon as you're working to a tight timeline, everything comes crashing down on you at the same time!!!!!! But I'm not complaining -- I love challenges like this, where I'm juggling several different pies at the same time, trying to do a good job on them all and not lose track of where I am on each of them. It keeps life interesting!!!!

Oh, and for any of my Japanese fans who want to buy volume 9 of the manga from Amazon (fans in other countries can buy from them too, if you can figure out the system and don't mind paying the high international shipping costs), this is the link: Japan Manga 9 Or you can look it up on my Japanese publisher's site (and check out some of the characters, too!!) by clicking here: http://websunday.net/rensai/set_darren.html

I can reveal exclusively here (after breaking the news for the first time anywhere on my Message Board yesterday) that the title for Book 9 of The Demonata is ... DARK CALLING. It's a title I'm especially pleased with, partly because it suits the book very well and has a few different meanings (which will become apparent when you read the book), but mostly because it's the most difficult time I've ever had coming up with the title!!!! Titles vary from book to book. Sometimes the title will come to me first, and I'll have it in place from the very beginning. Other times I'll come up with it during the writing process. And occasionally it will only come late in the day, when the book has been edited and is nearing the printing stage. In this instance the first working title was The Divine Horror. I was never happy with that, but at least it gave me something to call the book!! A year and a half later, I shortened it to Divine Horror, in case that would grab me any more, but it didn't. Nearly a year after that, I changed it to Eternity's Crux. I really liked that title, as it ties in very neatly with the storyline and hints at the sci-fi elements that play an important part in this book. But I suspected it was a title that other people wouldn't warm to, and as soon as it went to my editor, that was confirmed. The trouble was, we couldn't come up with anything else that both of us liked!!! It needed to be short and snappy, yet it also needed to relate to the plot. But book 9 has a very complicated plot!!! We bounced ideas back and forth. Some of the titles in the mix included Destiny's Eyes, Creatures of the Dark, Dark Matters. We both liked the "dark" theme, so I played with it a bit more and came up with lots of titles, such as Dark Eyes, Monsters of the Dark, and Call of the Dark. That last title struck a chord with me. I knew it wasn't quite right, but I sensed I was close. With the production team baying for a title (we literally came within 24 hours of the deadline!!!), I played around with Call of the Dark on my way to the theatre (I was going to see a play called Fat Girl), and came up with ... Dark Calling. I instantly knew the problem had been solved, and luckily my editor agreed straightaway as soon as I sent it to her. And so the title of book 9 came to be. I hope you like it as much as we do -- tough luck if you don't!!!!!

I've been busy editing City of the Snakes. I like this one. A lot. It brings together the best elements of Procession of the Dead and Hell's Horizon and blends them to a chaotic, frenzied, apocalyptic tee. It's taken me far longer than I ever imagined to unleash it on the world, but I think, in 2010, those D B Shan fans among you will agree that it was worth the wait!!! I've also been busy answering fan mail and watching Torchwood. Oh, and I had to go through the Americanized proofs of Wolf Island last night -- everything was in order, so that's all ready to go -- it hits stores in the States next spring. (For those who might not know, Death's Shadow comes out in the States this October, and I'll be touring to support it -- see the Shanville Monthly on my web site for more details.) Busy busy busy!!!!!

I've been busy over the weekend, editing more of City of the Snakes.I haven't needed to make any major structural changes, but I've found lots of ways to trim things down, to tighten up lines, to get the rhythm just right. This is one of the most important parts of the writing process, and something that every young writer needs to come to understand before they can move forward with their work. With very few exceptions, writers don't get things right the first time round. (Indeed, I can only recall one writer, Mickey Spillane, ever saying that he only did a first draft. And while I'm a big fan of Spillane's fast-paced, trashy, throwaway work, he's probably not the best role-model for would-be authors!!) A first draft is a starting point, and it's normally longer and flabbier than it needs to be. When I started out writing novels, my first drafts were very rough -- I had to re-write them afterwards, sometimes a few times, before they began to click into a shape that I could work with and edit down. These days I usually do a pretty good first draft, in terms of writing something that's close to the final structure of the published book. But it's still only a starting point. I never worry about the finer details of a novel when I'm doing a first draft. I throw down anything I think the story might need. Sometimes I'll know I'm not going to use what I'm writing, but I'll write it anyway, just in case anything good comes out of it. Then, when I'm done and I have a finished draft, I go back through it, time and time again, editing, tightening up, searching for the right way to structure each line, working on the pace, the style, the flow. It's like whittling down a piece of wood -- you carve out the rough shape of what you want, then spend a lot of time patiently working on the finer lines and curves. It's important in this business that you learn to put together a good first draft. But it's even more important that you prepare yourself to devote the time and effort required to see through the editing process. Don't be disheartened when you don't get things right the first time -- nobody does. You need to go through your work again and again and again. By the 5th or 6th edit, if things are going well for you, you'll start to have something.

Went out with my friend Kenny last night for a few drinks. Limerick was heaving -- the busiest I've seen it in a long time. I don't like going out when things are hectic. I know some people love the buzz of a crowded bar, but I like to have a bit of space. A good crowd is certainly preferable to a very slim crowd, but I get grumpy when I have to jostle for space. I guess I'm just getting grumpy in my old age!!!

A young, would-be writer called Paul Carroll has asked me to give a quick mention of a book he's contributed a short story to. It's called the Literary Den Book of Fiction 2008, and most of the stories have been written by 14 to 19 year olds. I haven't read it, so I've no idea what the quality is like, but it's by new talent, and funds raised will go towards a charity called the Laura Crane Trust, which supports teenage cancer patients. If you're curious, you can order copies by clicking on this link: http://www.lulu.com/content/2619890

Spent most of Thursday catching up with office stuff, sorting through mail, replying to emails that needed replying, chasing up some bits and pieces. Today I started another edit of City of the Snakes, the third book in my D B Shan The City series. I haven't written a lot of new material this year (just one new first draft so far), but I've done a LOT of editing, and for me that's vital. By staying on top of the editing, and giving myself plenty of time to work on books ahead of their publication schedule, it allows me to ensure quality control -- I never get in a position where I have to rush a book to meet a deadline. City of the Snakes won't be released until March 2010, but by getting in a couple of edits this year, it means it'll be in good shape in mid-2009 when it's time to do my final draft, so i won't have anything to panic about!!!

I started to reply to fan mail tonight. I have a quite a bit pile at home, and I'm sure I'll be collecting another towering stack of letters from Pablo when I meet him at the weekend. I'll do my best to get through everything that's here before I head out on tour later this month, but, as ever, if you've written to me and are waiting for a reply, please be patient -- I do reply to every letter, but it can sometimes be a lengthy wait!!!

I was delighted to get tickets to a performance of Hamlet in London in December, starring David Tennant (of Dr Who fame) and Patrick Stewart (Captain Picard from Star Trek: The Next Generation). These are currently the hottest tickets in town -- the two stars are a big draw, and it's been getting rave reviews from its current run in Stratford. Tickets went on sale to the general public today, and there was a mad rush to secure the last remaining seats. I'd pretty much resigned myself to having to buy seats through eBay. Tickets for popular shows or concerts are very hard to come by legitimately in London, and good seats are like stardust! Touts buy up almost every seat going, especially those close to the stage, and then charge whatever the market will support. I'd love it if the situation was sorted out, e.g. by introducing ID measures so that the person buying the ticket has to be the one who uses it, eliminating the possibility of re-sales. But until that happens, like everyone else who wants a good seat at a top venue, I usually have to go through a tout and pay way over the odds. But today, somehow, I got lucky, and managed to get two seats in a very good position, on the date that I wanted -- RESULT!!!!! I practically bounded up the stairs to tell Bas, I was so surprised and delighted!!

Speaking of Dr Who, I started watching Torchwood yesterday, the spin-off series for older viewers. I'm surprised by just how "mature" it is -- extremely explicit, especially when compared with the family-friendly Dr Who. It's the sexiest sci-fi show I've yet to see, certainly in terms of shows made in the UK!!! I've only seen two episodes so far, but I've been impressed by what I've seen, and I'm looking forward to the rest. Though I think the "climaxes" of the second episode (those who've seen it will know what I'm talking about) will be hard to top. I was laughing out loud at several points!!!! Naughty but hilarious fun!!!!!!

Went to see The Last Supper by Leonardo DaVinci in Milan. WOW!!! As with David, I thought that something so familiar from photos and TV couldn't be overly impressive in the flesh. Again I was wrong. Big-time wrong. This is simply one of the most impressive paintings ever, a magical work. Knowing about it certainly adds to its allure, sure -- its importance to the history of art, the way it began to degrade almost as soon as it was painted, its miraculous survival in WWII when the building was bombed and only the wall on which it stood was left standing. And, yes, the intrigue created by The DaVinci Code adds a touch of spice to proceedings (the officials there don't talk about the book, and it isn't on sale in the shop, which made me smile!!). But I think this is one of those works that would blow you away even if you'd never heard of it. It's just an incredible piece of wondrous marvel, captured for us to admire all these centuries later, and even in its battered, decayed form, it still takes your breath away.

After Milan, we headed up to Lake Como for the final leg of the holiday. For the first time in the trip we ran into rain -- it bucketed down when we arrived!!! Our hotel was lovely, with incredible views over the lake and mountains, but it was hard to get too enthused when the weather was so bad!! But luckily it cleared enough that evening for us to walk around, get a feel for the town (we stayed in Bellagio), and go for dinner. There's a lot to do in and around Lake Como, so after weighing up our options, we devised a rough itinerary. Our first decision was to make a round trip to Switzerland. It's a lovely-sounding day excursion, where you get a boat down the lake to Como, then a bus and train to Lugarno in Switzerland, which you can explore for a few hours, then a boat across Lugarno lake, and finally a bus and boat back home. We rose early, before 07.30, on Sunday and trotted down to the dock. We paid for our tickets, then asked where the boat went from. The guy behind the desk frowned, then checked his itinerary ... and re-checked ... and re-checked!! Eventually he told us that there was no early boat to Como on Sundays!!!! So that was the end of that plan! We decided to do it on Monday instead, then did a couple of walks over the course of the day, one around the hills of Bellagio, the other around Varenna. Both very beautiful -- it's a lovely part of the world.

On Monday we got up bright and early again, bought our tickets, and this time -- success -- the boat arrived!!! We headed down the lake to Como, where we got off, had a bite to eat, then explored a little bit. Como isn't the prettiest town on the lake, so we weren't too bothered about spending much time there. After a quick look around, we went to the bus stop and waited ... and waited ... and waited. No buses came. There was no one to ask for help, no way of fidning out what was going on. Eventually a local guy told us that there was a bus strike!!!! We had come unstuck again, and had to make our sad way back up the lake to home. I guess Switzerland will just have to wait for another time...

Anyway, we enjoyed our time there even with the disappointment and frustration of the Swiss miss(es), and were sad to leave on Tuesday, when we caught the boat and train over to Bergamo. We had a little wander around the town, then enjoyed a quiet night -- we stayed in and watched National Treasure 2 in our hotel room!!! On Wednesday morning we packed our bags and caught the flight home. I spent most of the rest of the day going through my post and catching up with emails, then watched Ireland draw away to Montenegro in their second qualifying game for the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. Not a bad result, though a win would have been a lot sweeter. It's back to normal now for the next couple of weeks, before I hit the road for the first of my mega autumn tours. Enjoy me while you have me, folks -- soon I'll be back in intermittent contact again!!!!!

Sorry it's been so long since my last post, but I've been having too much fun!! Florence was lovely. We went to see David by Michelangelo, of course, and it was absolutely stunning! I would have thought, having seen so many reproductions of it over the years, that it wouldn't have much of an impact on me (familiarity breeds contempt...), but in the flesh it's simply stunning, one of those rare works that seems to belong to a different zone than most of the other art one comes across in life. It's wonderfully displayed too, with lots of space to walk around and admire it from different angles. A definite must-see -- it should be on evrybody's list of things to do before you die!!!

We went to the Ufizzi Gallery as well. That didn't impress us as much, though we pretty much knew it wouldn't -- as I said in my last post, we're not that bothered about Renaissance Art. Having said that, there were some lovely works by Botticelli, and a couple of top-notch paintings by Da Vinci. Still, to be honest, we much preffered two other "museums" that we visited. One was a fun museum where they have on display recreations of machines designed by Leonardo Da Vinci. You can touch most of them and even play with some. The scope of what he got up to is incredible -- I don't think the word "genius" even comes close to describing him!!! Everything there was pretty amazing, but when I saw a design he had to tap into the power of the sun and generate the equivalent of today's high-tech solar panels, I just burst out laughing and shook my head in wonder!!!! On rather less lofty lines was the Serial Killer museum!!! The Italians love bloodshed, and torture museums are common all across the country. But the Florentines have gone one better and dedicated a museum to the works and minds of serial killers!!! There wasn't much to look at, mostly just pretty dodgy waxwork displays of the like of Charles Manson and Jack the Ripper, but the audio guide was fascinating (if a bit on the long side). It's pretty gruesome, a museum like this, but it does provide a morbidly intriguing look into the workings of the world's more abhorrently inclined villains...

Next up was beautiful Siena, where we mostly just wandered around, enjoying the ancient streets and buildings. We had a fun night where we found a bar overlooking their main Campo square, and sat out on a balcony quaffing beer and watching local life pass us by. The next day we went on a tour of Tuscany and visited a vineyard. Neither of us are strong wine drinkers, but we gave it a go. I'm still to be convinced by wine. I've tried lots of different types, and liked quite a few of them, but I've yet to find anything that makes me want to become a regular wine drinker. Which is probably a good thing!!!!!

Today we caught the train to Milan. We had a walk around the Duomo and its surrounds. You can go up onto the roof of the Duomo and it's lovely up there. We've gone up several towers and viewpoints in Italy since we arrived, and while they're all satisfying in their own way, this was a league apart -- it's like strolling through some architectural playground in the sky!! There was also an incredibly cool statue inside the church, of a man who has been stripped of his skin -- he stand with his bones and veins exposed, holding his skin like a cloak -- awsome!!! It was like an early prototype for the works of Gunter Von Haagens (spelling??). Anyway, we're off out soon for dinner -- we've been eating like lords here, and pretty much every meal has been delicious! We're going for simple pizza tonight, but I've no doubt even that will be special!!! I'll try and blog again before we leave on Wednesday, but if I don't get a chance, I'll bring you all up to date once I get back home.

Ciao!!!!

This will have to be brief -- it's 7.20pm here in Florence, Italy, and I haven't had dinner yet!!! The holiday in Italy has gone fabulously so far. We flew to Venice, where we'd been before, and had a couple of relaxing, enjoyable days. We visited the cemetery island (you can't beat a good graveyard when you're on holiday!!), had some great food, including a dinner in the famous Cipriani Restaurant (expensive, but a delicious treat!), popped over to see the Lido (the Venice Film Festival was in full swing; I might have been interested in that another time, but I watch loads of films when I'm at home, so I resisted the urge to check out the programme and go see a few films!), and just wandered around a lot. That's one of the best things to do on holiday, but particularly in Venice, which is a wanderer's delight -- it's one of my favourite cities in the world to stroll around.

We caught the train over to Florence on Monday. It's my first time here. It's a quaint, lovely little town, although it seems like a buzzing cosmipolitan compared to teeny Venice!! We had a nice stroll around when we got here, and explored more of the town today, including a few museums -- it's musuem heaven!!! I've got to be honest -- a lot of the art here isn't to my personal liking, since most of it's of the Renaissance variety, very religiously related. I kow how important the Renaissance was, and I love the work of Da Vinci and Michelangelo, but a lot of the rest of the stuff doesn't float my boat. I'm much more of an Impressionist and modern art kind of guy! Having said that, some of the work blew me away, particularly Michelangelo's Pieta, and a stunning wooden statue of Mary Magdalene by Donatello. In fact, the Donatello piece is one of the most amazing pieces of art I've ever seen. It doesn't really look like anything else that I've seen from that time period, and could easily have come from Rodin or any 20th century artisan. It was one of those few pieces that made my jaw drop, up there with Starry Night by Van Gogh, or the best of Picasso. While the statue has a strong reputation, it doesn't really draw the huge crowds that some of the more famous (stodgy!!) Renaissance work here does, so we were able to examine it without anyone else around. Incredible!!! The masses don't know what they're missing!!!!!!

Right -- I'm off to track down something to eat, which, thankfully, is never a problem in Italy -- this is my favourite country in the world to eat in!!! We had a great meal in a place caleld Il Latini (I think) last night -- it's famous for its meant, and we had a big platter of mouthwatering cuts, along with other courses recommended by the waiters. It wasn't fancy, but it's one of the best meals I've had in a long time. It'll be hard to top, but I have faith in the restaurants of Florence!!!! Ciao!!

On my way to cach my plane, but I had to respond to this email which came in this morning:

Hi Darren, it is Mark xxxxxxxxx here again (Galwayman and aspiring author!). I really need your advice. My agent has got my novel in to a big publisher, who are keen on it but are insisting on major changes, so much so that it would change the essence of the book. I already revised once for them, so I am not afraid to do it, but now they want more. My agent says another publisher is waiting to see it, but they are not as big a publisher as the one my book is at now. So, I am in a quadry. My agent says it is up to me. If I have the book shown to the other publisher, will the current one drop out altogether? Are major changes always inevitable for first time  authors? I really would appreciate any advice.

This is how I responded to Mark, and how I would respond to any author in that situation:

Only you can decide whether the changes will work for the book or not. In my experience, my editors are usually right when they suggest changes -- but not always. Normally we can reach a compromise -- but, again, not always. A publisher wanted to publish one of my early books many years ago (before I'd sold any of my other work), but I couldn't accept the changes they wanted me to implement, so I said no to them. The odd thing is, looking back at it now, I think they were probably right!!! I hated having to say no at the time -- there was no guarantee that any of my other books would sell; maybe this was my one big chance, and if I blew it, I was finished as a writer. But I couldn't bring myself to do what they wanted me to do, so I went ahead, ignored my fears, and made what I believed was the right decision for the story.

My advice, if you can, is to take some time to think about this. Give yourself a little break from the novel. Try and push it from your thoughts. Then, when you come back to it, look at it with a fresh eye. You might find that the suggested changes (or some of them) will actually improve it -- as I said above, suggestions from editors are normally pretty accurate on the whole, and they see things that readers are going to see -- sometimes writers get too close to their work and need a third party to tell them that it isn't working as perfectly as they think it is. But if you still can't live with the suggested changes, and can't find a compromise that wll keep both sides happy... Well, difficult as it would be, you might have to say no to them. But only YOU can decide that -- you have to weigh up the pros and cons, look deep into your heart, make a decision, and be prepared to be happy with that decision afterwards. I would suggest you not let fear dictate your answer, but that you do what you believe is best for the book. Ultimately, it's all any author in your position can do.

Right -- that's it -- gotta dash -- HOLD THAT PLANE!!!!!!

Went to Regent's Park Open Air Theatre on Monday night to see a new production of the musical, Gigi, starring Topol (who starred in the movie of Fiddler on the Roof all those years ago). This is probably my favourite theatre in London. It's set in a lovely, green section of a beautiful park, and the stage is surrounded by trees, which sway hypnotically throughout the the play. On a nice night, it's a magical place to be, and luckily for us, the rain held off when we were there. I actually prefer this theatre to the Globe, London's other open air theatre, partly because it's more comfortable, but also because they generally stage very nice, easy-going plays or musicals!!! You won't find cutting-edge theatre here, but on long summer nights, it's often better to just be entertained. Gigi was perfect on that front, and it was like stepping back in time to a simpler, more colourful period. You haven't really experienced London at its whimsical best until you've tried out the famous Regent's Park theatre of dreams...

On Tuesday I went to see Hancock at the cinema. Very uneven, though it had its good moments. Ultimately it as too befuddled to work -- in the big climax, the rules seemed to change every minute!! A failure, but an interesting failure. Later I went to see a play called Fat Pig, which was excellently acted. A cutting look at our society of the thin, where people are not only actively encouraged to keep their weight down, but also to avoid people who break with the norm and carry a few (or a lot of) extra pounds. It had a very good point to make, though it fudged things a bit at the end, and failed to deliver the fireworks that it seemed to be leading up to.

Today was a major pain in the backside!!! I decided a while back to install a foldaway bed in my London flat, for visitors to use when they come. I went ahead and ordered it to be delivered on Tuesday, and arranged for a handyman to put it together today, Wednesday. But the bed didn't come on time -- I was told it would arrive this morning before 09.00. When it didn't, I had a hell of a time trying to find out where it was and when I could expect it, and eventually the handyman had to leave and come back again in the evening. It all worked out fine in the end, but my ears were read with frustration earlier in the day!!!! Anyway, in between the aggro I popped out to see a new film called Somers Town, a sweet little black-and-white British film by Shane Meadows, one of my favourite UK directors of recent years. This short flick (70 minutes) was funded by Eurotunnel, and is very modest in its ambitions, but works perfectly for what it is. Lovely.

And that's about it for my London break. In the morning Bas and I are heading for Italy, where we plan to see lots of amazing sights, wanders several incredible towns and cities, catch some staggering artwork (The Last Supper! David!!), and eat lots of many fine meals!!!! Oh, the bliss!!!! You probably won't hear too much frm me over the next couple of weeks, but I'll try to post a few blogs as and when I can... in between main courses and dessert!! Ciao!!!!