Even with my self-imposed news blackout, I couldn’t avoid the shocking news of Drummer Lee Rigby’s death.  It was beyond awful, beyond sick, beyond unbelievable.  What was even more awful, sick and unbelievable was that someone actually filmed the killer, covered in Lee’s blood spouting rubbish and that all sides of the media showed it, in the case of the newspapers on the front pages and in the case of TV channels on the News, time and time again before the Watershed. 

I was also sickened by the rants on social media; the hatred and the bitterness.  Yes, what happened was dreadful and something we never expected to see in a so-called civilised country.  But some of the comments on Facebook and Twitter beggar belief and make me wonder if I now have to stop looking at both as well as newspapers and TV news bulletins.  Although I gather that the BBC gave a disproportionate amount of air-time to Islamic extremists which is nothing more than stirring up trouble.  They and their views should be ignored and not given weight or importance by being constantly shown.  If you deprive a fire of oxygen it goes out.  If you stop giving them publicity then you won’t wind people up and cause the usually mild-mannered to consider joining the BNP or the English Defence League.

I only have two more comments on this subject: I’d like to ask New Labour if what happened in Woolwich last week and all the fall out and aftermath was diverse enough for them.  And while I applaud the Muslim Council of GB for the calm, sensible statement they made very soon after the murder, I’d like to see ordinary muslims marching and waving the Union Flag and placards saying “NOT IN MY NAME”  in the same way they pour into the streets to call for the death of someone they’ve never heard of, who lives in a country they couldn’t point to on a map, who’s allegedly written words or drawn a cartoon they find offensive although they haven’t ever seen them/it.:

For my own part I had good and bad news this week.  The good news is that I haven’t got the kidney failure that my GP suspected.  Thank God!  I had ten days of suspense – agony more like waiting for my test results and it turns out that I’ve got type 2 diabetes.  I never thought I’d be happy to say that, but it can be controlled with diet and tablets and I am, apparently,right at the beginning, so I’m lucky it’s been diagnosed so early on.

And more good news – I’m going back into the Ladykillers!  Woo hoo!  Thrilled to have been asked and excited to be doing it again.

And ITV is showing the French Open on ITV1 and ITV4.  Great stuff!  It makes up for all the hours that bloody football’s on. But just like BBC and other sports channels, the brilliant Sam Smith can only commentate the women’s matches and she has to have a man – this morning it was Mark Petchey (remind me what he won or why he should know more than her) – in the commentary box with her and not another woman.  They still don’t get that because you once played a sport it doesn’t make you a great commentator as the ex-football players who’ve had personality by-passes proves.  Sam Smith and Sue Barker are two outstanding exceptions.  There was some excellent play; I was sorry to see Lleyton Hewitt lose after such a comeback in fifth set.  But why was Venus Williams wearing what looked like a 1920s bathing suit and a hairdo that woould be unattractive on a woman her grandmother’s age? 

And I thoroughly enjoyed Clare Baldwin’s programme tonight on Suffragette Emily Wilding Davison.  It covered so much I didn’t know about the movement and what the women went through and came to the conclusion that she hadn’t intended to kill herself under the hooves of the King’s horse.  If you missed it I thoroughoy recommend you watch it on Catch Up.  And having seen it I will never not vote again!

And this week we said goodbye to two fabulous, brave women who both fought that bastard cancer for years.  Rest In Peace, Tess and Denny.  You will both be sadly missed.

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