Conrad Black Against the Media, Ctd.

Grace Dent applauds what she describes as Black's "brazeness," and cheers him to repeat the performance on the show, Have I Got News For You.

It’s a nifty trick if you can pull this off. But not offering up so much as a teeny-weeny lickle fingertip of remorse for his wrongdoings is exactly the sort of chutzpah that people of Black’s social standing respect. I’m certainly not of Black’s social standing, but even I prefer brazen badness to crocodile tears.

Black’s appearance on Friday’s Have I Got News For You is much anticipated as his great showdown. People forget Black’s just spent three years in a Miami jail locked up with child sex offenders. I imagine a light buffet supper then a game of fill in the heading blanks with Ian Hislop might not scare him. Especially as, remember, HE DIDN’T DO IT. My advice to Black – perhaps he’d bend an ear to me as I see he has a penchant for feisty female columnists who know their way round a Net-A-Porter “What’s New For Fall” page, plus I’ve appeared on the show twice and, ahem, won twice, not that I like to – HHHRRRNK – blow my own trumpet – is to spend from now to then “reading the newspapers”.

The show records for over two hours, a tiny bit of which is willy-waving and “banter” and the rest NEWS. If you can’t tell George Entwistle from George Osborne, it will be a slog. Second, get into make-up early because HIGNFY has the best make-up ladies in the business. By 9pm, you could look like Ryan Gosling. If you’re going to be a bastard, be a good-looking one, too. Everyday folks don’t understand your crime anyway. That’s how people like you get away with these things.