And what's more . . .

A pre-emptive attack on the Booker Prize, due to be awarded on the 26 November: 'I accuse the Booker Prize of bullying the English novel. It distorts all other serious literary debate. Year after year it honours a dud example of the art form it claims to represent. It makes fools of us all - the patronised novelist, the public who buy the book and the media who shout when told to shout.' Auberon Waugh - see J'Accuse, 19 Oct, C4 . . . Which stand-up comic, a recent London sell-out, was described by one handler as 'the biggest cow since Ermintrude'? . . . 'Muff Diva' Lea De Laria will be back in London between 1 Dec and 8 Jan, for her 'Panty Mime' show (Call the Drill Hall: 071 637 8270).