Leverhulme's London season

A busy time for Leverhulme ... At the Leveson inquiry ... Covent Garden for a superb night with Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna ... Then to Royal Ascot to watch Black Caviar come home by a nose 

Robert Jay: gently, gently, catchy monkeyEVERY time the Leveson show appears on the telly, I am reminded of that political saw which runs: "Never conduct an inquiry unless you know the result first."

David Cameron hasn't got a clue about what the ex-criminal barrister Lord Justice will come up with.

One wonders what the man who prosecuted Rosemary West for 10 murders must be thinking as counsel assisting him, Robert Jay, clobbers urban beasts like Dad and Dave Murdoch, Piers Morgan and Gordon Brown with the soft end of the feather duster.

There is a school of thought that the Administrative Law barrister is under instructions from the judge to pull his punches and shore up the inquiry's image of impartiality. 

In fairness to Leveson and Jay, the Inquiries Act 2005 prohibits the panel from ruling on or determining any person's civil or criminal liability. And it could be argued that questions on credibility are collateral matters and counsel is bound by the answers.

Of all the glowing quotes on Jay's website about his ability to deliver legal argument, please judges and deploy his sharp brain there is nothing about his skill at skewering witnesses in the box.

Long questions inevitably breed long answers and Jay is good at them. But now and again counsel assisting gets one through a witness's defences.

The examination of Dr Gordon Brown was a theatrical triumph. I know lawyers are not allowed to coach witnesses but Gordon's performance should be shown to all prospective box-dwellers as a lesson in how not to give evidence. 

He looked a tad shifty; he didn't answer a lot of questions directly; he argued his case and once or twice tumbled off the credibility bus.

Brown fumed about the beastly treatment of his family by Red Rebecca who published details of his young boy's cystic fibrosis in November 2006. Brooks said on oath that Sarah Brown had given her consent. The date is important.

Jay asked a cracking question:

"Why did your wife in particular remain good friends with Mrs Brooks, to the extent of arranging a 40th birthday party at Chequers for her in June 2008, attending her birthday party in 2008 and Mrs Brooks' wedding in June 2009, if what you say is correct?" 

Brown's answer showed why his wife still lives with him.

"I think Sarah is one of the most forgiving people I know, and I think she finds the good in everyone."

Jay parried again:

"Are you aware that your wife wrote Mrs Brooks a number of personal notes and letters between 2006 and 2010 in which she expressed her gratitude for 'the support given to us'?"

Brown: "Well, I think my wife, as I said, is a person who is forgiving and would be kind to people irrespective of what had happened in this particular incident, and I don't think that that is evidence that we gave explicit permission for a story to appear in the Sun."

Gordon then reported Rupe's hint that if he called Becky, she would apologise.

Brown: "He [Rupe] then asked me again, and for a third time, to phone her, and I said, 'Well, look, out of respect to you, I will contact her', and that's how the conversation ended, with me agreeing that I would talk to her." 

Odd isn't it? A British Prime Minister doing the calling at a pressman's behest. Why couldn't Wade-Brooks call him? 

Of course, there was no apology. 

Sir Brian couldn't contain himself:

"I think that if I'd been persuaded to phone somebody to listen to an apology and to be greeted with the opportunity, as it were, to investigate further a private conversation, I think I'd be rather irritated." 

Brown shrugged that off and Leveson came again. 

"Well, you might have a thicker skin than I might have had." 

Brown (famous for hurling mobile phones):

"I think when you're dealing with some of these issues; you tend to be calmer when you're dealing with them." 

Gordon then denied that his aides had been authorised to undermine Tony Blair and capped it off with a delightful account of chief plotter Tom Watson's visit to his home in the frozen north just before the attempted coup. 

Jay: "In 2006, the media reported that he visited you at your house in Scotland before his resignation. Did you discuss any political matters at all with Mr Watson on that occasion?" 

Brown: "No. Our baby had just been born. He was bringing a present for our baby with his wife and his family, and we were talking about children. I mean, if I had known that he was planning any political initiative, I would have told him not to do it, but I knew nothing about it." 

The best bit was about the disputed call between Brown and Rupe, where Gordy is alleged to have threatened to destroy Murdoch. 

Brown's answer was curious:

"This conversation never took place. I'm shocked and surprised that it should be suggested, even when there's no evidence of such a conversation, that it should have happened. There was no such conversation." 

If the conversation never took place, that is the end of the matter. To go on and argue there was no evidence that it took place is odd. 

Some days later, Downing Street said they had no record of a call taking place between the two men. 

Lord Goff in Armagas Ltd v Mundogas (The Ocean Frost) [1985] 1 Lloyd's Rep. 1 at 57 has some advice for Lord Justice Leveson:

"It is frequently very difficult to tell whether a witness is telling the truth or not; and where there is a conflict of evidence such as there was in the present case, reference to the objective facts and documents, to the witnesses' motives, and to the overall probabilities, can be of very great assistance to a judge in ascertaining the truth."

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Gheorghiu and Alagna at Covert Garden

TO the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden for a reunion of former close friends Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna in La Boheme. 

There was a real European flavour to the night. Angela is Romanian. Roberto is French-Italian.

In the posh seats was Westland Helicopter victim Leon Brittan, formerly European Trade Commissioner and Vice-President of the European Commission. He now styles himself in that silly British way, Baron Brittan of Spennithorne.

In a slightly cheaper seat was ex-Labour leader and former European Commissioner, Baron Kinnock.

The audience was full of stuck-up types (particularly the men) who thought it important to be seen there but who clearly didn't know their arias from their elbows.

Proceedings got off to a shaky start when the E.R. monogrammed red curtains got stuck and failed to rise. The audience grumbled for 30 minutes. Then it was announced that the problem was fixed, though the curtains would have to remain up for the duration.

We would see the scene changes.

Once the performance got under way, a number of French people began filming on their mobile phones.

One pukka Englishman was driven mad and announced loudly that the man in front of him was the rudest chap he had ever encountered.

The Frog left the auditorium in a huff and his young blonde companion took over camera duties.

Still, the sets were superb and the singing, as Gough used to say, was magnificent and memorable.

*   *   *

Black Caviar gives Brenda a snort

AUSTRALIA was saved from a national disgrace on Saturday when a hulking brown mare fell in by a quickly diminishing head to win the Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Humiliation was averted when jockey Luke Nolen was jolted from his smug reverie by the fast-approaching hooves of two French fillies.

Thousands of Aussies who flooded the Berkshire track held their breaths awaiting the result.

The owners' powdered wives jostled to be in the monarchical snap and Brenda placed a fond gloved hand on the buggered horse's forehead.

Her Majesty never addresses a racing crowd, which is a shame because one longed for a few well-chosen words in the style of Sir John Kerr. 

The build-up to the horse's appearance was staggering. The English couldn't quite take in the enthusiasm of the hordes of returning convicts.

But there is nothing a Brit detests more than a show-off and I'm afraid there were far too many of my countrymen prepared to gloat before the starter's gun had popped.

From the time the trainer, Peter Moody, wondered why he was racing inferior opposition for inferior prize money, it was clear God was lining up a decent-sized custard pie.

The Brits worship royalty and wave red, white and blue flags at their Queen. Flags in Australia are salmon with black spots and the people pay homage to a horse.

But you can't blame them. When you live in a country where the only things akin to royalty are Julia Gillard and Gina Rinehart you cannot begrudge the decree: "Let them have caviar."