Princess Margaret, younger sister to the Queen, died on Saturday after a long illness. She was known in euqal parts for her glamorous beauty and her rather vicious wit. She could be cold, gracious, haughty, rebellious, and distant but could never quite find happiness balancing love and her sense of duty. Constitutionally she had no place or duties and seemed to have battled that in her life. She was 71.



Saturday was the Pop Idol climax. For weeks, we've heard very little but the Pop Idol television competition -- where people audition to be viciously cut down by rather nasty judges. The winner won a record contract and the last two in the running were the topic of most conversations. Will is 23, posh, a bit of a queen. Gareth is 17, an angelic-faced boy who worked to overcome a very serious stutter. They both sang quite well, but may be destined to suffer the same fate as the insufferably insipid Pop Stars winners, Hear'say. Well that's really more than this whole thing deserved, though it's worth noting that more people voted in this competition than in the last general election.

Jubilee Day. Today is the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth's ascension to the throne. In 1000 years of British monarchs only five reigned for more than 50 years. So I think queens everywhere should celebrate. The mood of the country is mixed -- some refusing outright to celebrate, others mindful of the considerable amount of public service she's done over the 50 years, still others happy for any reason to get to the pub. I believe that the monarchy is a powerful part of the British culture and the future (Wills) certainly looks golden.