Joining the unemployed

An unfortunate but expensive accident occurred in the newly carpeted Picture Gallery at Buckingham Palace, when a trolley with a faulty wheel and laden with tea, tipped over spilling its contents onto a newly laid carpet, which had just been installed two days previously at the staggering cost of GBP250,000.

Despite attempts to clean the stain, it remained. Read the rest of the story in yesterday's Daily Mail.

Oops! It just goes to show that accidents will happen, and we are none of us immune, and we are quite often unamused by them.

Minding your (p)agers & (q)ueens

An amusing anecdote from the diary of the junior minister in Tony Blair's government:

As important as the Queen?
June 26, 2002
George Foulkes, who has just been made a Privy Counsellor, tells the following tale. Some time ago Clare Short and Mo Mowlam were attending upon the Queen when Clare's pager started vibrating. Clare surreptitiously checked the message. Whereupon Her Majesty looked up and enquired: 'Someone important?'

Or as the saying goes: "It's nice to be important. But it's important to be nice." And obviously "we" weren't very amused, either.

* A View From The Foothills, by Chris Mullin, is published on March 12 by Profile Books at £20.

* Photo: The Monarchy, by Robert Hardman. The Queen and her Privy Council prepare to swear in two new members at a monthly meeting, Buckingham Palace.

These boots are made for walking

The personal walking tour past Buckingham Palace began at Spencer House in St James's. Having read Peak of Chic's recommendation, I thought it was time to visit, as I had not done so before. However, I misread the opening times, and discovered that it was only open on a Sunday, hence the outside photograph with obliging greyhound, and less obliging Royal Mail van. The other pictures are reproduced from the Spencer House leaflet, the beauty of which pains me for what I missed.

I had every intention of going the following Sunday, but Saturday night's partying activities rather put a damper on that good intention. Next time perhaps.

The most ironic thing that occurred to me was the close proximity of Spencer House to St James's Palace, (the former home of the bachelor Prince of Wales), and the adjacent Clarence House, (the current home of the same remarried prince, aka The Duke of Cornwall). Whilst Diana never lived at Spencer House, this twist of history is one that amuses me.

I will not add to the very interesting descriptions that Peak of Chic made about the history of the house, its architects and interior designers.

London in fine weather is a fantastic city for walking, and the Queen's Walk in Green Park a pleasant stroll from Piccadilly to the Victoria Memorial. But our journey went much further on that day alone, about which more later. Good walking shoes are essential, but despite being appropriately shod, my shin splints are still aching after nearly two weeks.

I've been to London to visit the Queen...

...Victoria Memorial

...an autumnal sun-drenched Buckingham Palace

...the glistening gates of Green Park

Pussy-cat, pussy-cat where have you been?

Taste doesn't always help...

"Taste," the Queen is supposed to have said, "doesn't always help." It's a brilliant thought. Taste – she obviously meant advanced visual discrimination, not finer feelings – doesn't always help. I've known people with perfect pitch in clothes, houses and food whose manic quests were so obsessional they brutalised everyone around them in the search for the perfect bleu marin or knocked-back green Connemara marble.

(Read the rest of this article from "The Independent" here:http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/house-and-home/interiors/buckingham-palace-a-right-royal-makeover-926740.html)

Illustration by Noma Bar