Saturday 10 November

Quite a reasonable day, with showerclouds in abundance, but not much rain falling. The result was the inevitable mix of cloudscapes and rainbows. We maintained a reasonable temperature of 9C, and while the barometer rose, the showers started to peter out.

I could not help but notice that the leaves on the fuchsia bush are turning yellow. Not something that merits the news headlines, but in previous years, the gales had blown both blooms and leaves off by now. Not this year. We have had very few days with high winds this year, and (likewise in the Castle Grounds) has allowed mother nature to put up a fine display of autumn colours.

I have made a good start with my two new books. The first one, If Britain had fallen, gives a chilling account of what might have happened if the Germans had mounted a successful invasion. I'm about 1/3 of the way through, and I'm blessing my stars that this never came to be. The second one, Crime and punishment, is a very wordy but intriguing novel by Russian writer Dostoevsky, and the first twists and turns are already appearing - I'm on page 37 (of nearly 500).

Want a mince pie? Sorry, they've all been eaten :-)