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Talking on Sky TV, the U.S. charge d’affaires here, Barbara Stephenson, mentions the black ribbons worn by London Marathon runners as a mark of respect for the three killed and 170 injured in the Boston Marathon bombings. Jolly-looking Ms Stephenson said an official at No.10 told her this demonstrated perfectly the ‘special relationship’ between Britain and the U.S. Might the well-intentioned gesture also demonstrate our growing addiction to American-style public displays of sentimentality? These are useful from an official point of view. They take away the focus from what happened before and after an act of terrorism. American-style public displays of sentimentality: Black ribbons were worn by London Marathon runners as a mark of respect for the three killed and 170 injured in the Boston Marathon bombings Such as, in this case, how were the Tsarnaev brothers able to bomb the Boston Marathon while the elder one, Tamerlan, 26, was supposedly under FBI surveillance? This is th

Operation Yewtree began in October 2012 as an investigation into the abuse of young people by the disc jockey Jimmy Savile, who died in 2011 Now a ‘TV comedy legend’ is being investigated by police from Operation Yewtree, which is pursuing alleged ‘historic’ sex crimes by the famous. He has been placed ‘under caution’ while they decide whether to arrest him, according to a report yesterday.  The ‘household name’ denies the allegations. I wonder how ‘historic’ they are on this occasion? In another Yewtree investigation, they date from 1966. Presumably, the crimes alleged are either rape or indecent assault. Serious offences, no doubt about that. Especially if the victims were underage.  But what if you were the victim of a serious assault in the past which was not sexual in character — a mugging, or a savage beating, say, by a famous person which took place in 1966? Would the police begin proceedings against the celebrity you say was responsible? A QC friend of mine thinks not. E

Don't speak too soon: When Nigel manages to win a Parliamentary seat, that might be the moment to talk about re-aligning British politics. At present, he's running before he can toddle After his party’s success in the local elections, UKIP leader Nigel Farage went fishing for bass off the South Coast. Did he use a hook, a net or a stick of dynamite? Saying he’ll consider an electoral pact with the Tories ‘as long as David Cameron is no longer leader’ isn’t fishing subtly for support in the Tory ranks. It’s inviting the Conservatives to commit suicide on UKIP’s behalf. When Nigel manages to win a Parliamentary seat, that might be the moment to talk about re-aligning British politics. At present, he’s running before he can toddle. Most of us didn’t bother voting in the local elections. The minority who did vote last week weren’t concerned about re-moulding politics. They either voted for the party they usually support, on the basis of tribal affiliation. Or they voted for

Why will David Cameron be  in Washington  on Wednesday ‘having talks about Syria’ while as many as 100 of his own MPs plan to vote against him in the Commons? Because the U.S. trip was pre-arranged, of course. But it’s fortuitous, too. Being out of the country means he’ll suffer less personal embarrassment from his party’s revolt. The amendment in question — framed by angry backbench Tories — regrets that a referendum on the EU wasn’t announced in the Queen’s Speech last week. Cameron's absence this week carries a risk that one of his ministers might jump ship and join those voting against him Labour and the Lib Dems will vote against the amendment. They don’t want a referendum. They fear the public would take advantage of the opportunity to vote against remaining in the EU. If the polls had suggested voters were warming to the EU — instead of making it clear we’re massively opposed — Labour and the Lib Dems would be urging a referendum to settle the matter once and for all

Winston Churchill's Tories were in coalition with Clement Attlee's Labour Party for the duration of World War II. Although there were many rows, it held together from 1940 until 1945 Those who grew up during the Hungry Thirties, and fought in World War II, were called ‘the greatest generation’ in a 1998 book by U.S. author and broadcaster Tom Brokaw. They were ‘the greatest generation any society has ever produced’ he said. Winston Churchill’s Tories were in coalition with Clement Attlee’s Labour Party for the duration of World War II. Although there were many rows, it held together from 1940 until 1945. Now it’s suggested that Tory David Cameron’s 2010 coalition with Nick Clegg’s Liberal Democrats won’t last as long. In an interview, the PM mentions the possibility of it ending prematurely, and facing the new circumstances ‘in whatever way we should’. In 70 years, have we gone from the greatest to the weakest? In 1943, our coalition government was threatened by a German

Losing another toss like that must have been a real kick in the teeth for England, so to respond the way they did by taking seven wickets on the first day was an outstanding effort. There really wasn’t much in the Eden Gardens pitch and it is to Alastair Cook’s credit that he has quickly learnt from his mistakes in the first Test and has used his bowlers intelligently. Cook made sure Jimmy Anderson was fresh enough for when the ball was reversing and still had enough energy to strike late on with the second new ball. Not up to the pace: Sachin Tendulkar struggled against Jimmy Anderson Anderson was excellent. Long gone are the days when we used to say that he was only the man for the job if the ball swung conventionally. Now he has great control and variations and gave us a reverse-swing masterclass. Jimmy is all over Sachin Tendulkar at the moment and not many people have been able to say that over the years. He’s almost playing with the great man and the ball he got him with

The first time I saw Alastair Cook was during one of my many spells when I was struggling to score runs as England captain. I wanted to clear my head, get back to basics, so I asked my former coach Keith Fletcher if I could play for Essex seconds. I turned up at Colchester and was quickly dismissed so I went for a walk round the boundary edge with Fletch, the wise old ‘Gnome’, to ask him what I could do to get my game right. Suddenly Keith stopped, pointed to the middle and said: ‘That lad is going to be one of the greats.’ I couldn’t see it to be honest. All I saw was a left-hander whose head fell over when he played his shots and was full of nudges and nurdles. His name was Alastair Cook and he scored his 23rd Test hundred, more than any other Englishman. At the time I just said to Keith: ‘That’s all very well, Fletch, but I’m worried about my game here, not him!’ Eye on the ball: Alastair Cook takes a catch at the launch of the Under 15 World Cup at Lord's in 2