Hello!

Yes, I'm awake at 06.30. That's am, people. I have been awake all night.

This is mainly due to labyrinthitis. I should start by apologising to my library buddy, Alex, because there's not a hope in hell I'm going to be reporting for duty at Cardonald tomorrow. I've had a cold which turned into a chest infection. Antibiotics didn't shift it. Three weeks later, I'm deaf in one ear, a bit dizzy (only a bit? you ask) and absolutely pissed off with the whole affair. Bring me sunshine...now!

So what have I had to occupy my mind tonight?

I watched Call the Midwife. This is usually a pretty mindless programme, needing no great personal involvement. But tonight was about the birth of a Thalidomide baby and I found it very moving. Maybe it was the acting, which was superb, as it always is. The dilemma of the parents was not glossed over. The father's reaction in particular was very true to life. The midwife and her assistant, a C of E nun, were also convincing.

The Thalidomide horror happened 50 years ago. It took a long time for Thalidomide survivors to get a decent financial settlement from Distillers (now Diageo), and I believe not many Thalidomide children of that generation are still around, although sadly, there's a new generation of Thalidomide kids in Brazil.

From tonight's news, it seems one poor soul in France has died and others are very ill as a result of
a drug test. All properly organised and supervised. It's hard to know what to do: keep going despite the risks or abandon tests of new drugs? I'm thinking of friends who really would benefit from new drugs for MS, Parkinson's and Motor Neurone. I don't know, but my thoughts are with the people involved and their families.