Blair's guest list revealed under Freedom of Information act

[Kipling]

Tony Blair's interview on the Richard & Judy show last February was widely thought to be the softest he had ever had.
The king and queen of daytime TV are known for their informal style, and they were so gentle with the Prime Minister that they even prompted him when he was struggling to get the right answers on a phone-in quiz. As cosy chats with public figures go, it was only rivalled by Cherie Blair's appearance on their Channel 4 show the previous September, when some commented that they nattered away like old friends.

Secret Cabinet Office papers published this weekend suggest this was no act. Documents released under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan are among the movers and shakers invited to dinner at Chequers, the Prime Minister's country residence in Buckinghamshire.

They show that Richard and Judy were at Chequers on Saturday, 17 May, 2003, when their fellow guests included actor Ben Kingsley, Sir Christopher Meyer, the former British ambassador to the US, and cabinet minister Peter Hain.

http://politics.guardian.co.uk/foi/story/0,9061,1509927,00.html

I know this isn't very important in the grand scheme of things, but I think it's worth posting for the sheer wierdness factor.

[Beaver Tail]

1. It Is Important

I shows political interference in the Media

[mr blur]

2. Did you know that...

this pair of clowns (R&J) are "the most powerful people in British publishing"? Now that is scary - they're not even in publishing. It seems that they have some book club on their sofa show and whatever they give the thumbs-up to shoots to the top of the sales chart. Thus influencing the type of books that publishers decide to put money behind.

[T_i_B]

4. The power of advertising eh?

You could argue that the Richard and Judy book club does at least encourage people to read a bit more, and reading novels is surely that little bit more worthwhile then watching daytime TV.

[oly]

3. I try to be reasonably informed, but I didn't realize that

the Brit media are being Americanized. I'm not surprised.