Coup

Got up late. Mum out, Dad in bed. Unlike yesterday I achieved nothing. The snow is thawing, and I spent most of my time reading or making notes on Stalin. It was announced today that Lady Diana Spencer and Chas are going to marry in July and this spewed out of the TV all evening; views of the ground staff at Sandringham popping champagne corks, interviews with the happy couple (which I saw three times). I’m bored already.

When the Echo arrived at five the news was splashed across the front page. As Dad was reading it I idly asked, “How much will that cost us?” Dad reacted predictably. “Oh shut up!” Of course in no time at all we were involved in a quite violent argument and he really flared up when I said that the monarchy was immoral. We argued about loads of other things apart from the monarchy. Soon enough though the sharpness softened into congenial, half-serious attacks. Mum says I’ll change. “Robert was just as communistic when he was your age.”

I was interested to see the attempted coup in Spain on TV, and I’ll have to ask Leslie Tyndall MP for Farnshaw about this tomorrow, as we are going on a school trip to the Houses of Parliament. I wonder whether it would be easy to take over Parliament? Are there any safeguards?

Five o’clock start tomorrow.