Good on Peter Garrett for publically pointing out what's been pretty obvious to me and many others for some time: that Australian politicians make a show of being mad about footy and cricket but don't give a rat's about the arts. "Politicians continually associate themselves with sport and sporting success and yet at the national level are virtually absent from any meaningful discussion or involvement with the arts." I'd add that it's not just sport per se that they get into - it's popular mainstream sport that strikes a chord with the voters. Now if one of them got up and said, "Well, actually, I'm rather fond of bareback backgammon*", then I'd have a little more respect. More here.
* I just made tha

Reports of the death of Paul Vance, writer of the song Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini have been, in the words of Mark Twain, greatly exaggerated. A 68-year-old man named Paul Van Valkenburgh, who claimed the novelty hit as his own, is dead, but the man who really wrote the song is still alive at the age of 76. "Do you know what it's like to have grandchildren calling you and say, 'Grandpa, you're still alive?' " the real Paul Vance has said from Florida. Details here.

Doctor Who has been officially confirmed as the longest-running sci-fi television show. The show debuted on November 23, 1963, and was revived in 2005 after 16 years off the screen. Nevertheless, it has clocked up 723 episodes featuring 10 different Doctors: William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davidson, Sylvester McCoy, Colin Baker, Paul McGann, Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant. American series Stargate SG-1 holds the record for longest-running consecutive sci-fi show.
PS: In unrelated TV news, congratulations to new father Shannon Noll. There's more at the ie blog.

This morning on 612 ABC, Spencer Howson and I spoke about the things that go wrong in supermarkets, the location of the Dendy cinema, Australian TV networks screening (and promoting) shows that have already flopped in the US, and the most dangerous show on television, Australia's Funniest Home Videos.