Thatcher and Redknapp: a South Pacific riddle

Harry Redknapp – a football manager ascribed messianic qualities.

Baroness Thatcher – well, she certainly made her mark on UK FC.

Could they be related? Apparently so, we can reveal, after receiving evidence from the South Pacific. On the remote Vanuatuan island of Tanna is a delightful small resort called Whitegrass (bear with us). The managers are an Australian couple, Ted and Robyn Redknap.

Laurie Margolis, BBC News editor and a recent visitor to the resort, asked the couple if, despite the missing ‘p’, they were related to the Spurs manager. “Oh yes,” said Ted. “Harry’s a cousin. I didn’t know much about him, but I gather he’s pretty famous in the UK.” A beer or so later came a further revelation. “On my mother’s side,” said Ted, “we’re related to Margaret Thatcher. More cousins.”

“So let me get this clear,” said Margolis. “ ’Arry Redknapp and Margaret Thatcher, former PM, are related as cousins, via you?” “Yup, guess that’s true.” The Beeb man found that quite amazing. So do we.

John Sergeant cannot dance, but can he sing? The Strictly departee is taking part in a Christmas concert at St Paul’s Cathedral in aid of Cancer Research UK. “It’s a grand setting and a great cause,” he says. Sergeant has also been offered a role in Snow White at Hull New Theatre – as Lord of the Dance.

Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws, QC, filled in for Barbara Follett, the Arts Minister, who was unable to attend the Arts & Business awards, because of Pre-Budget Report duties. “Barbara is so committed to the arts,” the peer assured her audience. “She is the only person who asks you to perform a Shakespeare play before serving dinner.” We ask the minister if it is a soliloquy before the starter, but are rebuffed with a curt: “No comment.” As you like it.

The Curse of Steptoe, a BBC Four drama, has lived up to its name. A BBC investigation has ruled that the corporation is not allowed to repeat, in its current form, the biopic about the relationship between Wilfrid Brambell and Harry H. Corbett, stars of the classic 1970s sitcom.

The brother of Corbett’s deceased second wife, Maureen, complained that the drama gave the impression that her relationship with the actor might have contributed to the breakdown of his first marriage, among other alleged inaccuracies. A BBC inquiry upheld the complaint and the drama must now be reedited before any repeat.

Could “Laughing” Leonard Cohen score the Christmas No 1? His Hallelujah, already perfomed by Diana Vickers, a contestant on The X Factor, is tipped to become the winning singer’s single.

Postscript

Quentin Tarantino’s scripts don’t quite come up to scratch for Mickey Rourke. “It all comes down to respect,” he tells Empire. “On . . . two occasions, I just didn’t rate the material. But there was no telling him.”

Stephen Merchant complains to Q magazine that his middle-class childhood curtailed his comic potential. “ Richard Pryor had all the breaks: raised in a brothel, addicted to coke, set himself on fire . . . my biggest problem is buying a pair of trousers.”

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