Actually the royal family were very gracious and good to me. But I also found that the British establishment were never quite sure what to make of me. I was a Labour figure, but I'd come from a very middle-class background. In one sense I offended both traditional right and traditional left. But I thought that was no bad thing.

I'm an avowed centrist, and I believe that - centrism is often - it's almost the wrong word to use, because it's often seen as sort of splitting the difference between right and left.

Ah yes, liberal democrats unified as ever in opportunism and in error.

Before people crow about the absence of weapons of mass destruction, I suggest they wait a bit.

Those who wish to cause religious conflict are small in number but often manage to dominate the headline.

Stirring is OK. It just depends what happens in the end.

No one is to blame for the breakdown in trust between politics, media and the public.