Today, Minty Tours, on behalf of its readers, interviewed the BBC.

Dominic Cotter from BBC Radio Gloucestershire, appeared at the front gate at 8AM, and was pounced on by Peter with a microphone. The result is on the Audio diary.

Dominic and I, with his microphone on, went through the background to my trip across France and even tried my tent for size! To make sure he edited it correctly and only said nice things, he was then subjected to an “Ulster Fry” breakfast. This is the reason why the good people of Northern Ireland used to have one of the highest incidence of coronary heart disease in the country. Anything that will go in a frying pan does. Bacon, egg, sausage, tomato, mushroom, potato, potato bread (freshly made by me that morning on the AGA), and scotch pancakes. Only I forgot the pancakes!

Happy had eaten something that she shouldn’t last night and had been in and out of the house like a yo-yo. So I had ended up sleeping on the living room hearth rug with her. She was much better after a one hour walk down to Abbotswood, before Dominic arrived.

Then desperately sought to find third party french travel insurance for the dogs, and very helpfully, the Dogs Trust came up trumps. (Trump came to mind later in the afternoon, as all internet signal disappeared, and I did wonder if the military had turned it off because Trump USA was nearby in RAF Brize Norton, or if special jets were landing there for the Fairford Air Show at the weekend). Extending my car insuarnce beyond 90 days seems impossible, so the last day I am covered in France is the 18th October. So it looks as if I will be back in the UK by then. The RAC are providing European cover.

I was very little use to the good people of the Stow Motor Show today, apart from helping with advice to Stewards at a meeting at the cricket pavillion at 6PM. Then on to The Queens Head to recover, where old schoolfriend Adrian, who is visiting, kindly bought me dinner.