Some old friends from The Scarman Trust South West asked me if I’d like to speak at a conference on community action they were holding at Central Hall Westminster today. Seeing DAVID BLUNKETT’S name as another speaker I readily agreed and mugged up on Blunkett’s commercial interests - columns in the SUN and DAILY MAIL earning him £200,000 a year for example. Blunkett with two police bodyguards entered the hall just as I was launching in to him. I finished by asking the audience to ask Blunkett a question when he finished speaking ‘ Why are you such a fucking greedy bastard?’

Words like lead balloon spring to mind - there was a deathly hush till Blunkett’s bodyguards grabbed me and said they were nicking me under the Public Order Act for uttering the suggested question!! After some argy bargy several members of the audience - cheers Lawrence Hoo and others from Bristol- gathered round and the cops decided I should just be ejected from the building. One of the cops shoved my coat at me and I headed for Westminster underground. Feeling for my Freedom Pass I found some tapes in the pocket - which were not mine. I’d only been given Blunkett’s crombie - very like mine -and was swanning round Parliament square in the former Home secretary’s fucking coat!!!

Some friends sneaked back and swapped the coats over - I didn’t want Blunkett swanning around on my pass - or the inevitable knock at the door which would have followed. Strange old day. Later reports from inside suggest his security staff were going frantically mental checking his mobile phone!