Plunged into a silliness over Python’s reaction to Thatcher’s recital of the ‘Par­rot Sketch’. (She had likened the Liberal Democrats to a dead parrot, only to find two weeks’ later the Liberal Democrat candidate had overturned a big Conservative majority at Eastbourne). ‘The Parrot has Twitched’ said Paddy Ashdown after Eastbourne and in a sense the by-election slap round the face has made Thatcher look very silly and the Parrot indeed will not be mentioned by her again…

TJ is the only one who still wants to sue her. Anne has come up with a press release reflecting Eric and JC’s wish not to sue but to issue a silly statement about Thatcher being ‘tired and shagged out after a long squawk’. Too late to sue anyway. Impact lost now I feel. But I have to ring TJ and tell him this. He doesn’t push his view and we make amicable arrangements to meet next week.