Vine and chums

If Jeremy Vine's 'show' gets preserved, do try and catch today's, as I did driving back from a meeting.

First up we had what I call 'The Newsnight Twofer' (seems to apply here too) , where two extremes are brought in to comment, on this occasion on the latest expenses scam... er.. diversion.

I am not up to speed on the facts, but it seems taken as read there is someone leaking, though I have yet to find out where this originated. Oddly, no news reporters seem too concerned about that.

So we get some ex-Sun type, now a commercial London station DJ, basically in full 'geezer' mode. And in calm rebuttal, we have... a Guardian political commentator. Hey, balance! Thing is I was with the Guardian guy most of the way until he 'suggested' that it 'may' have been leaked by a Tory mole.

Er... at their distracting best, I thought the BBC, via its tame, carefully-selected invitees, were just try to push the £300k greed angle? Now it's a Tory plot? What the heck?!!!!

And while I think that touting for money does weaken our 'hero's' (I don't see the person, if they exist, as anything like that) case, there are a few points that came up that seemed not to get mentioned.

First, our Jezza and his mate from the Grauniad were pretty keen on the 'Why now when it was all coming out later?'. Er... with the state of our government these days, I imagine most that would have come out was going to be accidentally shredded waaay before Dear Leader's new deadline. Also, and this is no excuse, what are the prospects for an honest whistleblower? I say fired and stripped of pension at best. So £300k doesn't seem too bad really as compo for exposing the sick, hypocritical farce that is our government.

Speaking of which, we then get that paragon of fiscal probity and moral rectitude, ex-DPM Prescott on to pitch his book... um... discuss his inspirational relationship with his protege and poster child for the Labour revolution.... assault your teachers, get expelled, meet a 'celeb' pol given airtime, 'stay in touch', get a job, get knocked up ('...it were after I met John,' she confirms, sparing us a mental image too far. I guess we'll have to hark back to his secretary for word on his advice on contraception to those he mentors), leave job, stay in touch... and get touted as inspirational for being a bit miffed she hasn't be shoved up the benefits register further by now. But... she does want to be a lawyer. Bless.

Even Mr. Vine and almost all his callers were having trouble keeping that load of b*llsh*t down. Though one was accused by Mr. Prescott, of being a Tory troll (rhymes with 'mole'). If I were them I would sue the S.L.O.B (Senior Labour Outdated Bruiser) for libel. And the BBC and Mr. Vine for letting such a thing pass as a defence at their expense. Just because most folk are heartily sick of the sordid lot of them, the results of their failed experiments, and feel moved to comment, does not make all of us Tories. Though to the BBC, anyone not Labour must deafault this way.

But I am sure the Tristrams are delighted with the result, and ratings, but if called to account on Newswatch at dawn this weekend will grumpily assert that it was the public's right to be kept informed on senior Labour Party thinking and the aspirations of their voting, grateful, democratic power base, innit?

DD getting cancelled very soon. Anyone know what happened to Charles Moore?