Tuesday March 10, 1981

 _. Received a letter from Denise asking for £115 to cover our Ios accommodation. I phoned Ally. We decided to withdraw the cash from a building society account and pay Denise tomorrow. I marched around Leeds in the rain.

Sir Geoffrey Howe presented his budget. Petrol goes up by 20p a gallon from 6pm, and he's put 4p on a pint on beer, 14p on a pack of cigarettes, and £10 on car licenses. I refuse to become morose and miserable about this.

Queen: 1952, and Diana 1981

I spoke to Fred Willis on the EP newsdesk about a good picture story. The dress worn by Lady Diana last night is almost identical to one worn by the Queen in July, 1952, when she sat for a portrait by Dorothy Wilding. He was very enthusiastic. Stephanie Ferguson was amazed by the likeness, and for some minutes the three of us discussed high fashion to the backdrop of Sir Geoffrey Howe droning on and on. Stephanie says the wedding dress is to be made by a Mayfair fashion house, and is now besieged by the press. On the subject of the royals: Prince Edward is 17 today. One day will he be Duke of Sussex, Cambridge, or even Clarence? I'm beginning to doubt whether he'll ever be a royal duke. I do not think that the Queen enthuses about dukedoms.

Ally phoned tonight. She says Auntie Mabel phoned her to say thank you for the birthday card, and they planned that we should go to Pudsey tomorrow. She was all alone at Club St, knitting by her fire. At least she now has a telly to break the monotony of her secular existence.

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Monday March 9, 1981

 _. Up at 6:45. Ally took Dave G and I to Kirkstall from where we walked into town and I said farewell to the lad as we reached the YP. He disappeared into the grime of Wellington Street carrying his large, blue bag. It was an easy day because I completed most of my mundane tasks working on Saturday. 

Home at 6. Ally came to dinner again and afterwards sat knitting with Mum. The clicking of knitting needles was almost deafening. Lady Diana was on the 9 o'clock news, attending her first official function. She accompanied the Prince of Wales to a charity performance at Covent Garden clad in a black chiffon dress which brought the glamour of the 1950s back to the Royal Family. Obviously, Lady Diana will be criticised. Should a future Queen display her bossoms? But we who know differently, and have access to thousands of historic photos, know that Her Majesty wore an almost identical and revealing dress when she was in her 20s. We haven't had a teenage bride at the forefront of the Royal family since Alexandra of Denmark in 1863. I find Lady Diana's awkward shyness, and sudden blushes quite enchanting. 

Ally brought four books we've bought from a book club, including the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, which I buried myself in for the remainder of the evening.

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