Marc

Marc and I reunion after four years on the Bankside - behind us, across the river, an old friend - wherever you are, there is the Wren. Marc and I formed a poker club back in '99 with a number of new media luminaries who have made a fortune or started over. Many of them now gone from London, including Marc who lives in Texas and invests for a family office. He is a pretty good poker player and probably has some of my money yet. So here is the latest sign the world is going to hell: the wonderfully named "lollypop ladies," who stand curbside and ensure our children cross the streets safely, are being armed with cameras secretly placed in their signage to capture aggressive motorists (at a cost to the counsel of £1,000 a pop). These mostly elderly volunteer gentle women and men are a treasure which I recall from my earliest memories. To think that British drivers go out of their way to ignore them or worse, threaten their safety and the children is outrageous. Unfortunately I don't have the facts to suggest whether this an over-reaction somehow similar to cameras everywhere in London but the local councils taking louts seriously, and to this I cannot argue. Another sign the end is nigh: Michael Jackson booked solid for 25 nights at the O2 Centre with tickets going for £1000s. Actually I wouldn't mind seeing Jacko myself . .. .