John Gibson: Get those gloves on Mr Hughes

Used to be a roustabout ringster himself (gets on his wick when I refer to him as a former horizontal light-heavyweight), so no surprise that the Bercola Carlton Hotel’s general manager Lennie Hughes is swinging into the new year confirming that former ex-Arsenal Paul Merson will be back in the North Bridge hotel in May with ex-Scotland goalie Bob Wilson.

Again the night will be in aid of Bob’s Willow Foundation charity. It’s hoped that cheerful Charlie Nicholas, who starred with Arsenal, will come up from London to guest.

It’s another boxing fund-raiser for the Army, again at the Bercola Carlton, with Leith Vic’s amateurs gloves-to-gloves with the soldiers.

Keep your vest on, Lennie if you slip between the ropes on impulse.

Kate grates

“Duchess Dazzles for the Armed Forces’’ screamed the front page headline in a national paper. No, she didn’t. Our dearest beloved Duchess of Cambridge dazzled for herself at a glitzy Christmas thrash in London for the Military.

Nobody would be in any doubt. As is her custom, she had to be the scene-stealer. Our heroine. Obviously she’d dug deep into her trinkets drawer . . . earrings, wrist bracelet, sparkler on her wedding finger, enough jewellery round her neck to feed and clothe India’s poor if Wills ever had to pawn it.

Where’s your respect for the monarchy, Gibson? Okay, maybe I’m a wee bit over the top. Just pass me a dollop of that caviar from your plate, Kate. You’ll never eat all that.

Afterwords . .

. . . according to American poet Robert Frost, “The brain is a wonderful organ. It starts working the moment you get up in the morning and does not stop until you get into the office.” Untrue in my case.