I read in the paper that John Cleese is doing a one man show in Norway where, evidently, he is very popular – to pay for his divorce he says. This is divorce number three and the settlement to the ex-wife amounts to £12000000! Wife number two got off pretty poorly with only £2000000. There was no mention in the article of wife number one. Finding the twelve million settlement leaves poor Mr Cleese with a measly £10000000. Two questions arise from my seeing these figures: firstly, why do judges feel it incumbent upon themselves to constantly award these ridiculous amounts of money? Just because it might happen to be there? After all the marriage only lasted a few years during which time it was Cleese who was earning the brass so what entitles her to this enormous amount? The second question is, how do people like Cleese manage to amass these fortunes. Has it all come from constant reruns of Monty Python and Fawlty Towers? Twenty four million is a pretty sizable sum. These days one is aware of bankers’ bonuses, pop singers’ royalties, footballers’ wages and people like Jonathon Ross but artistes of an earlier time surely were not in the same league even though those who were in a popular TV series never have or had to work again. But Are You Being Served, It Ain’t Half Hot Mum, Dad’s army, never generated that much income surely?
Well, we obviously will never figure in the Sunday Times rich list but we have something much more important that riches can never buy and it has been brought home to me by the current situation that has naturally caused problems and that is – friends – not just friends but good friends, wonderful friends who have been standing by with all their offers of help and encouragement. They are many: English, Greek, South African Australian, German, American, and not to forget the Irish. It has been a constant ‘If there is anything we can do.’ ‘If there is anything you need/want.’ ‘Anytime, don’t hesitate.’ There was of course the problem of Douglas in hospital in the UK and my going into hospital in Herakleo in less than a fortnight now, most folks’ summer holidays, I will have had my groin prodded as Dame Edna might say and undergone the second heart procedure and even if it’s only for a few days, who would look after the house and the animals? My sister Ceri offered to come over from South Africa but, much as I would have liked that, we gratefully declined the offer as it would have been enormously expensive (all things are relative but to both the Wiercxs and us it would have been enormously expensive). The problem has been solved though by our lovely friend Diane Shaw in England who has offered to come out and, much to our relief, take over.
Chris has been keeping everyone up to date with a round Robin ostensibly from our dog, Merrill and nearly everyone has really appreciated them, some replying in as camp a mode. What the hell, there was no intention of being facetious, it is simply a case of laughter being the best medicine and we’ve all, including Douglas whose wish was to have it treated this way, had a good chuckle over them.