Rather warm night in the hotel and then a day swimming, relaxing and ‘enjoying’ the beach whilst the children had fun and found friends and things to do and another press censorship row develops as it is revealed that MI5 has been vetting BBC executives and vetoing appointments.
A poor night, which was far too warm for my comfort. We are on the eastern side of the Hotel Continental, which has a nice sea and cliff view, but the breeze is from the west and can only blow hot air from the body of the hotel into our room. Eventually asleep and then awake with the whole family at 7.00am and our morning drinks at 7.15am. Washed, dressed and all down to the restaurant for breakfast, but Daniella ate well, but became very tired and weepy afterwards and had to go up to bed. The rest of us stayed in the nursery and pool areas, Debbie first playing in the sand pit with some newly made friends and then playing on the swings and in the nursery. I read today’s Sunday Times and then played Daniel at table tennis in the games room. A sunny and warm day today as we relaxed and ordered morning drinks in the television lounge. Then Debbie braved the swimming pool again with me watching from the side. She is now becoming a competent little swimmer and doggy paddles out of her depth across the pool with no qualms at all.
All ready and, there being no sign of life from the baby by 12.00 noon, we woke her anyway and made off together along Mundesley’s beach road. Della had not slept very much during the day yesterday and was evidently very tired. We searched everywhere for Henley Cottage and eventually found it in Beach Road at the opposite end of town. There was Daniel’s friend Jonathan Bloom at his Aunt and cousins summer cottage and, after exchanging greetings, we arranged to go away for lunch and meet in the afternoon on the beach. A snack lunch, being so very well catered for at breakfast and dinner, but well enjoyed with orange squash to slake our thirst. I returned to the hotel for our swimming things and we all enjoyed the beach on an afternoon, which by then had become overcast, but still warm. Della and Debbie paddled freely on a landlocked strip of water and I was upset to find that my video camera developed a fault and I was unable to picture them. Luckily there are three days of a one year warranty to run and I will contact them in the morning to organise a repair. Back to the Continental, high tea for the children, as I finished my paper, and then they watched a video until it was bed for them and dinner for us. News tonight that the Welsh railway guards are defiantly out on strike and others are coming out in sympathy. A row today over the vetting of BBC executives by the security service, MI5. This is confirmed by past officers and several have been denied jobs in the past including Stephen Peat, who keeps in touch with his brother in East Germany. The French President Mitterrand has ordered a ban on vessels close to the nuclear testing zone in the South Pacific. Green Peace have commissioned an alternative boat to the Rainbow Warrior sank earlier this year. It is now estimated that 59 are dead so far in the Beirut car bomb yesterday. More success for the British athletes in the European Cup in Moscow, with McKean and John Herbert adding golds to those of Steve Cram and Zola Budd yesterday. The best positions in recent times with the women’s team third and the men’s fourth. It seems from the weather report that we had the best of the countries weather today and it will be bright tomorrow morning, but rain will spread from the west later.