Tuesday 13 December

Feeling very cold, although the mercury was around 5 or 6C. However, conditions were downright atrocious in the southern Hebrides. Malin Head, the northwestern cape of Ireland, reported sustained winds of 60 mph with gusts to 80 mph at one point during the afternoon. Winter is turning very messy, as heavy snow is currently blanketing the southern Highlands. A major road traffic accident, involving 7 vehicles, closed the A9 at Drummochter Pass during the afternoon.

I was pleased to learn that Matthew Wright, of Channel 5 infamy, is to have his program The Wright Stuff investigated by media watchdog Ofcom. More than 2,200 complaints were raised with Ofcom following a program on December 6th, in which Mr Wright joked about the murder of Liam Aitchison at Steinish last month.

A gunman has killed at least people and wounded dozens more in the Belgian city of Liège by opening fire indiscriminately and lobbing grenades into a square. He then shot himself. Liège was in the news last year, when an apartment block collapsed to the ground, leading to the death of several people.