For the record: 02/11/2009

<i>"A tone that is more friendly and less forbidding than sometimes, at our weakest, we were,"</i> Controller Mark Damazer explains the record ratings at BBC Radio 4

No court for Cole

We have been denied our big day in court. The action brought in April 2008 against The Sun and Mirror Group Newspapers by footballer Ashley Cole for invasion of privacy has been quietly settled.

Cole was seeking £200,000 damages over stories of his alleged affairs and his legal action was being billed as potentially the end of tabloid kiss-and-tell stories. "The parties have resolved their differences amicably," I'm told by The Sun in a statement. I understand that a deal was reached after concerns at Cheryl Cole's record label, Universal, that her new album, Three Words, might not get enough support from the red tops if her husband was taking them to court.

Mail's cafe society

Here's an offer you can't resist: Coffee with Martin. It's the new blog from the chief executive of the Daily Mail and General Trust, Martin Morgan, designed to inspire two-way dialogue between the chief exec and DMGT staff. The name for this important addition to the blogosphere was, according to Martin's blurb, inspired by his "fondness for the delicious roasted-bean beverage". It promises to be a heady brew. Let's hope he doesn't resort to dousing Jan Moir with a virtual mocha latte.

News in brief

The big legal story of the moment about alleged racism and sexual liaisons in London's Lincoln's Inn prompted the following headline on Friday, set against full-length photos of a female barrister and a female clerk: "My affairs with two judges didn't affect our briefs." The Daily Star or The Sun? No, it's your nudging and winking Daily Telegraph.

Frosty reception

Congratulations to that icon of news and current affairs, Sir David Frost, who is to be honoured as "Journalist & Producer" at the International Emmy Awards in New York later this month at a glittering show hosted by another titan of broadcasting from this side of the Atlantic, Mr Graham Norton.