I’m still in Manchester. 
Wow this city is changing. I walked through the Northern Quarter to have a coffee and
go to my event at the Crown Plaza on
Shudehill.   I stop at a place called
Teacup which uses Mr
Scruff’s designs to sell great tea and stuff. Good stuff.  While sat in there I meet all kinds of people
I know from Matt of Manchesters  legendary
venue Matt and Phreds   to Segun
Lee French.  It makes me miss Manchester
even more.

My friend Maxine from
A national Voice comes to meet me and we shuffle over to the newly built
Crown Plaza where I read poems and speak of my life to lots of people in the
Care Services for children. It is a serious conference. Here I meet  Mick Stein who has
a manuscript he wants to show me. It documents a booklet  from Black and In Care
with my poems in it, dated 1984.  1984! In
minutes i am on stage.   The event is good to go.  I have never felt as at ease as I do now in  talking to professionals about my
experience.      

Afterwards  I travel
back to the hotel. The Pirates of the caribean actor   Bill Nighy is outside signing
 autographs before checking in and he is spending a generous amount of time with waiting fans. He is on
the national treasures list isn’t he.     I met him with David Hare some time ago in a
theatre in the west end  where we were
both performing.  (oh that sounds so luvvy)   We are both of us Grumpy Old Men.   I
decide to book the hotel for an extra night rather than do the three hour jounrey home.   
A few friends descend on the Malmaison and I sit there until I realise I
haven’t eaten and have a craving for Chinese so back out in the rain we spend
midnight at Kwok Man in Chinatown, a restaurant for whom Christmas can not come too
early.