Captain Moonlight

THE TELEPHONE trills. It is my trusted BBC informant, Bert. Bert relays to me the results of a private BBC survey into the 'public perception' of its political interviewers. A sample of 3,170 people interviewed voted John Humphrys the best interviewer, and, surprise, Jeremy Paxman the rudest, by more than 20 per cent. Sue MacGregor was the most polite. Overall, the sample was satisfied with the way politicians are treated. The message is clear: get tough, Sue]

Meanwhile, Bert tells me, the imminent arrival of Radio 5 Live, the rolling news and sports station, is beginning to concentrate paranoia. On Radio 4's Today programme, they have changed the computer password to prevent their plans for the future falling before the wrong eyes. The only problem was that they forgot to tell most of the staff. More from Bert very soon]