But do you remember the rules? Because I certainly don’t. For an afternoon, or more usually a damp British summer, I would have been able to quote you chapter and verse on the game we were playing. Thirty years later and my memory gets a little hazy. Don’t fear though gentle reader because this is the internet and everything is here.

Behold the rules of every card game you have ever played. Don’t thank me, thank a gentlemen called John McLeod who has put this collection together and posted it on the web for us to view. Thank you sir, you are a gentleman and a scholar and damp family holidays can fly by once more.

Something similar has happened in our house. One of the junior members of the team (no names, no pack drill) has made a habit recently of climbing into our bed in the middle of the night. The occasional cuddle is OK but this had been happening every night for a number of weeks. I’d tried rational discussion, encouragement and even a little bribery but it still was carrying on. As a last resort I reached for the metaphorical stick. I said to the cuddler that every time he got into our bed I would charge him a dollar. He even paid up for the first two nights.

But then he got wise to this and, rather than stopping waking his Mum up as hoped, went for what I can only call the cunning angle. He has, on several nights this week, snuck into our room; tapped his Mum on the arm and whispered – “Can you come and cuddle me in my bed, if I get in with you Dad will want me to pay him money and my piggy bank is nearly empty.”

You have to admire the ingenuity of the little fellow. Now I’ll just have to resort to a sound thrashing each night before bed.

For more information on this kind of behaviour check out this article.

• Outbursts – the last track on Outbursts by Turin Brakes
• Glad and Sorry – track 3 on CD2 of There’s a Whole New World Out There by the ever marvellous Francis Dunnery
• The fine work of Graeme Swann on Twitter
• Halting State by Charlie Stross
• OK Go – This Too Shall Pass, hat tip Neil Gaiman

Which is not to say that these are the only things in my life that are good, hello SWMBO, JFGP and MIGO.

Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to present this week’s winner, spotted on an internal email at work – “Irish Fears”.

Accompanied by stories about the events and people that inspired the songs he was singing Francis managed to engage and entrance an audience largely made up of people unfamiliar with his work. Well, to be honest, apart from Chris and Tom (who came with Francis) I was probably the only one in the room to have listened to more than one or two of his songs. But at one of Francis’ house concerts it doesn’t matter whether you know every chord (and word) of every song or if you’ve never heard a note of his before. With wit, warmth and an infectious enthusiasm he draws everyone into “the jacuzzi” and shares stories, insights, philosophy and a side order of therapy to entertain and inform. For the best part of two hours he had a room full of people firmly in the now and not worrying about their pasts or their futures. What a top bloke. What a top evening.

Then to top the night off rather than jumping in the car and driving off with the last notes of “Good Life” reverberating around my lounge he stayed and chatted, signed every CD of his that I own and was a total gentleman.

I’ve been telling the 70s Throwback that I was going to host a House Concert for the best part of two years, but didn’t really think it would happen until the last few days. And when it did the evening lived up to every expectation. Certainly the finest gig I’ve ever been to – even better the Midlands Arts Centre in June, 2002. To puff myself up a little I think a few of the people who came have seen the light and are joining the Francis Dunnery fan club.

If you ever have an opportunity to attend, or even better host, a house concert then don’t hesitate – just jump into the jacuzzi with both feet and be prepared for a fantastic night.

Thanks again to Kate, Erica, Chris, Tom and Francis (of course). Thanks also to everyone who came, it wouldn’t have been half as good without you.

Update We’ve made it onto the news page at FrancisDunnery.com. Apparently I make a killer chilli which is very nice to hear. Francis doesn’t tend to keep archives on his site so if you visit and can’t see the bit about us don’t panic.

Francis Dunnery has been making music for the best part of 30 years, first as the singer and lead guitarist of It Bites and since the early 90s as a solo artist. He combines great songwriting and virtuoso playing that never fails to entertain. In his spare time he has played and recorded with such artists as Robert Plant, Carlos Santana and the Fugees.

On the 19th of November he is bringing his acoustic guitar, some truly great tunes and a lifetime of stories and insights to entertain us in our lounge in Sydney.

Francis’ house concerts have a theme that he explores through anecdotes and songs. You don’t need to be familiar with his music to enjoy the evening. But if you do want to familiarise yourself with his work I can happily suggest a playlist of songs that will demonstrate his style and body of work.

If you would like to join us, and we would love you to, there will be a small ticket price of $20 to go towards the cost of hosting the evening. For that you get an intimate concert with Cumbria’s finest singer songwriter, assorted nibbles and the pleasure of my company. Spaces are limited so please let me know by email or phone whether you would like to experience the concert of the year.

For more details of Francis’ tour down under take a look at the House Concert page on his web site – http://www.francisdunnery.com/house.html

So we are having a typically British holiday. The jumpers are on and any child friendly facility that is indoors is on the agenda. Photos may be forthcoming if I don’t ruin the electronics by getting them too damp.

It’s a bit more than the calendar says, but we will call this month 2. I would try and give you a running commentary on changes, but apart from hair a bit longer (MIGO) and shorter (JFGP thanks to a haircut) I can’t really say that a lot of things have actually, you know, changed. See you next month.

In appreciation of the delights of the global financial crisis and the corresponding impact on our incomes we aren’t going on a big summer holiday this year. We may ‘go large’ next year and given a following wind and a decent bonus are planning to visit the UK next July – mark your diaries dear readers.

But this year is going to be more modest. Last year SWMBO and I had a couple of days away and followed it up with a week on the Gold Coast. In October 2009 we are being more modest and spending a long weekend in Port Stephens. This year is the first one that we are constrained by school dates, but luckily my birthday falls in the middle of the final school holiday of the year. So that is when we are going. And burglars, we are leaving the large, hungry pet dinosaur loose in the house in case you get any smart ideas.

This presents a dilemma for you, of course. Because you will need to get my birthday cards and presents to me early. No pressure.

There is one other slight adjustment this year. The wish list is no more. Well, at least not for you. By some strange mystical force everyone who bought me things from the list ended up buying multiple copies of the same thing. So to avoid this I decided to replace the list with something that I would absolutely love multiple copies of. If you are thinking of buying me a present and you live in the UK I would love as many packets of KP Dry Roasted Peanuts as you can send me. Trust me when I say that this is one present I can never have too much of.

I’ve been a fan of his for (more than) a few years; starting with discussing Big Lad in the Windmill with Craig Elston in our Economics class in 1987, watching It Bites at the Birmingham Hummingbird in 1989. The 70’s throwback introduced me to his solo album Fearless in 1994, and I bought every album he has put out since then. Other highlights include the best live concert I’ve ever seen at the Birmingham Mac in 2002 and a great night at the Union Chapel in Islington including an appearance by Chris Difford. Heck, we even played his music at our wedding.

Which is all a long winded way of saying that I’m very excited to be welcoming him into my home for a performance and hope that you, dear readers, can join us. I think it would be pretty good if it was just SWMBO and I but it will be even better with a room full of friends to experience it with us.