Now, this is truly an embarrassment of riches!

We also have box seats for the Friday night, thanks once again to Our Blessed Angel of the Giant Bull.

Amazing!

Yesssssss!!!!

Yet again, deliverence from Newgate Street!!!

In the stalls, Saturday May 28th.

Yowsa.

just a minute, though......!

Phone to Albert Hall has been on constant redial since 08.55... nuthin' but a busy signal. Same thing with the three online outlets. Just getting a "service unavailable" message.

Yet, unsurprisingly, something called the Ticket Ferret is already advertising seats ranging from £195 to £600 a pop. They're by far not alone.

Collusion? Naaaaah. Coincidence, innit......

This one's interesting, though... it's even representing itself as a "Royal Albert Hall Ticket Hotline".

Wonder if they know?

Hah. In any case, looks like they have put up a proxy error message to discourage folks.


It's all just a big scam.

And knowing it makes it way worse than the Saturday morning in 2002 I came into the office at 8am and spent an hour on Ticketmaster to get seats for the DC and Madison Square Garden shows. (Worth it, though...)

My esteemed colleague has an item in his column this evening based on this - supposedly completely genuine - corporate memo....


From: XXXXXXXXX
Sent: 19 April 2005 02:36 PM
To: PC Users - BRM
Subject: Important - Please read
Importance: High

It is with regret that I have to raise an issue that was thought to have been resolved. Unfortunately we still have an individual within the office who is urinating in the footwear of female members of staff. I can assure you that when the culprit is caught that person will be subject to disciplinary action. As these disgusting acts constitute gross misconduct, summary dismissal will result.

We are again actively trying to identify the culprit. In the meantime, please can I ask you all to store your personal belongings out of sight and preferably, if valuable to you, to leave these at home. If you observe any individuals hovering by desks or in offices where they have no reason to be, please inform HR, Security or me.

XXXXXXXXXX
Partner, Head of Office
Extension 3418



Sometimes, in the circles we have to move in, life just comes way too close to this.

Two days into the new project and it's been, shall we say, mixed.

My end of it, the editing and production, has been fine - thanks to the brilliant graphic designer I'm working with - if a little tight on deadlines.

But yesterday we saw how a comparatively simple computer glitch - a corrupted font in Quark Express - can just derail the whole thing for two hours. Got on the street and deivered to the corporate clients eventually, but way past the scheduled time.

Interesting thing - this is the second major start-up project I've been involved with at the paper, both at a relatively senior level, and the same trends are there (just they are everywhere in the corporate world, I guess) - "Success has many parents, disappointment a lonely orphan."

Have a beautiful day.

Message from our New York bureau:

White steam is rising from the cooling vents on the roof of the Hilton Hotel across the street....

Wonder how this guy will celebrate?

Dog and a beer here? Don't think so. According to his biography, "Cardinal Ratzinger was a member of the Hitler Youth and in 1943 was part of an anti-aircraft battery guarding a BMW factory outside Munich......."


Vatican sources say Ratzinger has already been given the affecionate nickname Pope "Eggs" Benedict XVI. But no confirmation as yet that his first official visit will be to, er, Poland.


"Springtime for ...."


Bloomberg, as always on the case, have said it’s the quickest papal election since 1978... hmmmmm.


UPDATE: A devout catholic in our office has just told colleagues that Ratzinger "was forced into it..." Just following orders, eh...?

Sounds like the old Kurt Waldheimlich manoeuver, where you're forced to cough up Swiss bank account numbers.... (hat tip)



OH, FOR GOODNESS SAKE.....

Our story reads:

"Amid scenes of confusion and excitement in St Peter’s Square Rome on Tuesday a plume of white smoke from the Vatican signalled that the conclave of cardinals had elected a new Pope. The bells of St Peter’s pealed to confirm the news but the identity of the new pontiff was not known until he appeared on the balcony of the basilica to deliver his first pubic address."

Must have been something to see.