All those publicity shots of Prince Harry in Afghanistan: Harry on patrol, Harry on radio ops, Harry crouched over a machine gun and all the rest. You'd think some wide-awake PR man or one of the Palace flunkies who buttered his toast and pressed his combats while he was "fighting" in Afghanistan would have thought to have rubbed a little bit of red dust onto his uniform, or machine oil on his face wouldn't you? You know, to make it look like he was there for real. It reminds me of the Scorsese film The Last Temptation Of Christ where the director made his Roman legions rolls about in the dirt so they actually looked like soldiers. And to think that the props department had spent all morning polishing up those breastplates. This is what the Royal family need: continuity people. They've got no sense of narrative. 'I prefer being in Afghanistan,' Harry actually said to the massed ranks of photographers and TV film crews 'because it gets me away from the photographers back home'. Right.
The real soldiers won't be insulted by all of this. You know when you sign on that you're going to get all this garbage. All the real organisation and fighting is done by the NCOs. One thing the army does is make you toff-proof.
Creative writing: bugger it. Haven't done any in two weeks. I suppose I'm no more a writer than Harry is a soldier. Perhaps I should roll around on the carpet, splash some ink on my face.
Or just drink this (white and chilled because of the weather): a really good Chablis. Now I could easily recommend you a Les Preuses Grand Cru or something like it at twenty quid plus per bottle. But Domaine Louis Moreau 2006 will be nearer half that price and when I tell you this is bone-dry and has a lovely flinty property it will settle all you anti-Chardonnay brigade (of which I am one)to make you think that lower price Chablis really can recover its reputation. Summer's here. You bloody well need it if you're going to roll around in the dust