At a cursory glance, the UK and Spain appear to be converging. The rate of car-related deaths among the British young is soaring rapidly and more than 50 per cent of kids are receiving financial assistance from their parents until well into their 30s. Perhaps global warming will result in the widespread introduction of the siesta.

My sister brought an iced fruit cake to my mother's flat for her birthday yesterday. The box contained a page of instructions - complete with 3 diagrams - on how to cut it. And the railway operators are bringing in scanning machines at stations to check for knives. And the refuse collectors ['binmen' in this part of the UK] won't take your household rubbish unless you save them time by leaving the bin with the handle facing the street. So, on reflection, perhaps there's some way to go before the cultures become identical.

April 1 is the date in the British calendar when one is allowed [though only until midday] to play practical jokes on one's friends. And, indeed, on strangers. Even the serious newspapers contain one spoof report and I have to confess I was taken in by one which reported Cherie Blair had had the door of no. 10 Downing Street painted red. I even missed the reference to a consutlant whose views they'd sought - one April Fewell. Doh.