Terry Waite, still stuck trying to free a few hostages in the Lebanon by secret bargaining with Pro-Iranian Shiite Moslems
Terry Waite, still stuck trying to free a few hostages in the Lebanon by secret bargaining with Pro-Iranian Shiite Moslems

A milder but mixed day after an ‘alarming’ start, working on my history project as the river ice melts, Diana and the girls goes to Biggleswade and Daniel to school before all together for a ‘Happy Eater’ lunch and the afternoon until Daniel leaves with his friend Paul’s family to a firm’s disco and I could resume working. Civil unrest outside Murdoch’s Wapping plant on the first anniversary of its sacking of printers with 150 injured and Terry Waite still seems to be stuck trying to free a few hostages in the Lebanon by secret bargaining with Pro-Iranian Shiite Moslems

Awoken with a start at 6.00am by the burglar alarm suddenly sounding for no apparent reason. It could be that in my haste last night, I did not disable all of the internal zones and that Daniella had opened the relevant door whilst doing her normal early morning ramble. Down, and having disabled it, an early morning drink with Di in the kitchen. Sat and chatted for a while and then went to shower and dress for the day’s activity. Chose a spare sports jacket and trousers for a mixed day. First to the office and the whole morning continuing my transcription. Di and the girls were shopping in Biggleswade, Daniel was at school, and so I stayed in and worked on.

Stopped at 11.00am to get out and feed the ducks and doves and then made myself a cup of coffee and sat and read today’s paper for a while. Back to it, until Di arrived back at 12.00 noon and it was time to lock and alarm the house and go off to St Neots together to collect Daniel. Then to the Happy Eater, where we enjoyed our meal and the children behaved for once. Back home and much of the afternoon watching, first, the televised report of the latest cricket (England thrashed the West Indies for their third one-day international win recently) and then an exciting Great Britain vs France rugby league international, where we manage to win 52 points to 4 to give the team some chance in a world competition. Out to feed the ducks and doves, before finding a little time for my transcription before tea. Then the evening hard at it. Daniel went to a disco with his friend Paul and the boy’s parents. It was a firms event (Kent’s of St Neots) and not only did he enjoy himself, but he was back on time at 11.15 to 11.30. I had lectured him about not having any alcohol (he is only 14) but I need not have worried. At least this late night gave me a good chance to type more of my scrap book transcription, and still went asleep at the same time as Di. Late news tonight was of civil unrest outside ‘Fortress Wapping’ on the first anniversary of the Fleet Street printers getting the sack by Rupert Murdoch. Over a hundred and fifty people were injured, many policemen amongst them, by stone and bottle throwing. Also many of the crowd were injured during police attacks with batons and riot shields and then mounted policemen charged the crowd at a gallop and injured more. The latest opinion poll has put the Tories well ahead now and the reliability of these extreme swings is most questionable. As Terry Waite, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s envoy, is still trying to free a few hostages in the Lebanon by secret bargaining with Pro-Iranian Shiite Moslems, many more foreigners are taken hostage, most of them Americans. Lebanon must be the most dangerous and depressing place in the world. The weather has turned milder these last two days, all of the snow and most of the river ice has gone, and it is a welcome relief. It is still a way to go before we get the more optimistic weather of spring.