Fighting fit (or something like that) after her mini-stroke, Lady Thatcher has consented to be guest of honour at a glittering literary lunch in April to celebrate the fifth anniversary of Politico's, the publishing bookshop. The occasion, at a secret London venue, will also mark the publication of her governance book, Statecraft. It distils the wisdom of her years as a stateswoman, and friends say she wrote it all herself - apart from the bits that Robin Harris (her former No 10 aide who is now at the Thatcher Foundation) might have contributed.
Literary lunch? In his waspish new offering, The Rise of New Labour, Robin Ramsay, editor of Lobster magazine - which attempts to monitor the intelligence services - reminds us that Maggie only read (and reread) one novel during her years at the top: Frederick Forsyth's The Fourth Protocol. Its theme was that the KGB controlled the Labour Party, and that any Labour government, no matter how "moderate", would be overthrown by an internal coup and replaced by the hard left. "Mrs Thatcher, it may now be acknowledged, was rather dim," observes Ramsay.
Suspicious lobby correspondents detect the hand of Jo Moore in the timing of a forthcoming lunch appearance of the Transport Secretary, Steve Byers. He will address the press gallery on 6 February, the day that Tony Blair resumes his global meanderings, this time in tropical Africa. Perma-tan Byers's speech also clashes with Channel 4's political awards ceremony. So a good day to bury bad news. Alas, the hacks are on to that, and will attend in force - mostly to see if the disgraced spin-doctor turns up.
David Triesman, the new Labour Party general secretary, was practically on the bus to see Spurs thrash Chelsea in the Worthington Cup semi-final, when he received a summons from the PM. Could it be that, with his background as a union leader, he had been called in by Blair to sort out the rail strike. If so, the great helmsman would have been wiser to go to the match with Triesman. Mick Rix, the Aslef leader, was in the next seat.
Who tipped off the lobby that Rose Addis, the 94-year-old NHS victim, had refused treatment from "one of those" nurses (meaning black or Asian), thus causing what was, it is generally agreed at Westminster, a public relations disaster for new Labour? I am told that the responsible party was Darren Murphy, special adviser to the Health Secretary, Alan Milburn.
Lord St John Stevas made a great fuss in the Upper House about their harrumphness's Christmas cards, which (as this column pointed out) identified Westminster Abbey as the cathedral. But nobody seems to have noticed that the Palace of Westminster jigsaw, on sale at the Commons bookshop, has a picture of the Lords printed in reverse.
MPs are scratching their heads about the number of classic cars that grace the Commons underground car park for long periods. Sometimes, they move overnight from one position to another. Mostly, they are sports cars, including a Lamborghini Espada worth a quarter of a million. I wouldn't know a Lamborghini from a fettucini, but those who do are pondering whether a member or an officer of the House is using the most secure car park in the heart of London as a useful stables for his classic collection. I think Mr Speaker Martin should act.
Some teenage scribbler claimed in the Times's media diary that I had been "rebuffed" by David Blunkett, after seeking his "acquiescence" over a book project, but that I had none the less signed a contract with Little, Brown to write his biography. Wrong on both counts. I have never approached the Home Secretary, and no publisher has yet bought the biography, provisionally titled Blind Ambition. But I expect to sign a contract soon, and would like to hear from friends (and enemies) of this fine politician. In the meantime, the ill-informed Times nincompoop should avoid dark alleys.
Paul Routledge is chief political commentator for the Mirror
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