Went to WHSmith in Croydon (34 North End) for my first signing of the day. This was my first time here, so I wasn't sure what sort of a crowd I'd get. I was delighted to see a small line when I arrived, and that increased as the session wore on, with some fans finding out about it by chance and happily joining it -- one guy even bought the entire series to have signed, even though he had them all at home already!!!! One family had come all the way over from Cardiff, in Wales, to see me!!! I feel a bit guilty that I haven't been to Wales on any of my recent tours. My tours are arranged by my publicists, so it's not that I've been deliberately avoiding a return to Wales!! But I'll put in a request to go there the next time I'm going on a biggish tour ...

I was signing at the shop for over an hour. Then went for lunch with my editor, Stella, and a lady called Jayne Nelson, who writes for the magazine SFX. She interviewed me, and the interview will appear in the issue of SFX which goes on sale in January -- so watch out for it!!!! Had a bit of a scare after lunch -- our driver had got a bit lost on the one-way systems in Croydon and was half an hour late picking us up!!! Luckily we made good time to our next event, in Ottakars in Bromley, and I was able to start signing a bit early, as planned. I had a great crowd at the second event, even more than at the first, and was signing solidly for over an hour and a half! I also signed lots of books for fans who couldn't make the event but who'd ordered books in advance. And I signed loads of stock too, so if you hurry, you should be able to get some signed copies of my books if you're in the area. (You might be able to ring the store and have books delivered -- I'm not sure. I don't have their phone number, but the address is 100, The Glades Shopping Centre, High Street, Bromley, Kent BR1 1DJ.)

Was driven over to Waterloo after my event, where I went to see "Richard II" at the Old Vic with a big group of family and friends. Kevin Spacey was starring in it, and Trevor Nunn directed. (He's the most famous theatrical director in the UK at the moment.) I thought the play was good, and Spacey too, but I didn't enjoy it as much as a version I saw at The Globe a couple of years ago. I'm not convinced that Spacey's really suited to the Old Vic. I think he might enjoy more success running an American theatre than an old, traditional British one. I know his shows are packed out pretty much every night, but that's just because people want to see Spacey in the flesh. If the plays had to bank on reviews, the theatre would be in BIG trouble now!!!!

It was the last night of the play, so there were lots of celebrities in the crowd. The most famous person I sa was Patrick Stewart, who, of course, played Jean-Luc Picard in "Star Trek: The Next Generation". It was fun watching people's reaction -- virtually everyone who saw him did a double-take, then followed him with their eyes until he passed out of sight. Some people (Trekkies, no doubt) looked like they'd had a religious experience!!!! When I went to the toilet at the interval, I ended up stading beside him at the sinks as we both washed our hands. I used to have a model of his head (I collected models of actors' heads for a short while -- don't ask me why!!), and thought of saying something like, "I used to have your head in my house!!!" But that would have made me sound like a COMPLETE nutter, and besides, I'm sure he'd much rather not be bothered by star-struck fans when he's on a night out, enjoying himself.

Went for a few drinks with some of the gang after the show, and ended up in the Roadhouse, where we drank some more and bit a little bit of dancing. Got home quite late (3ish), went to bed and slept until midday. Went to my grand-aunt Nora's for dinner, stayed a few hours afterwards, took a couple of my young cousins (Jordan and Yasmin) to play in a nearby park, then came back to my flat. Next up -- a nice, hot bath. Then I'll probably answer some fan mail and turn in for an early night, before heading north for Birmingham in the morning.