Thanks to everyone who read our blog and joined us on a London Walk today.The full programme for tomorrow can be found at www.walks.com.
Just before we swap our walking boots for our slippers, here’s one final thought…
I was intrigued, earlier this evening, wandering by some of the university buildings in Bloomsbury, to see these marks on the wall…
Then later, on the way home I picked up the Evening Standard and all was made clear…
Turns out that the Hindu societies at the School Of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and University College London Union (UCLU) were celebrating the Hindu festival of colour Holi. Part of the celebrations involved the throwing of coloured powder to celebrate love and the start of spring. Sounds rather lovely and lots of fun.
However, it seems that former LibDem MP Lembit Opik was caught in the colourful crossfire… and was none-too-happy about it. And he duly called the constabulary.
He is quoted in the paper: “I think I’m known for having a sense of humor but frankly this kind of thing is incomprehensibly stupid. I wonder if the people who did it will think it was funny enough to deserve the convictions which they are likely to get as a result.”
The Standard noted that Mr Opik was famous for his romance with “one of the Cheeky Girls” – the singing Romanian sisters who were briefly famous for their appearance on a TV talent show.
That the reporters had neglected to check which of the Cheeky Girls had been the subject of Mr Opik’s affections made us wonder … in pop music magazines do they write about “Cheeky girl Gabriela Irimia who used to go out with one of the LibDems”?
All of which makes me think: our many overseas readers must be asking:
Who on earth is Lembit Opik?
Who the devil are the Cheeky Girls?
Well, one of them took a tilt at the big time hoping for national fame, glamour and riches untold, but failed to win the votes of the people at home… and the other is a Romanian pop duo.
Happy Holi!
Read the full story in the Evening Standard.
A London Walk costs £9 – £7 concession. To join a London Walk, simply meet your guide at the designated tube station at the appointed time. Details of all London Walks can be found at www.walks.com.
