It was a "post-modern" experience on 612 ABC this morning when Spencer Howson and I briefly eavesdropped on Nova 106.9 to hear Lord Mayor "Can-Do" Campbell Newman give a showbiz report (I think). Spencer and I also spoke about the difference between "blonde" and "blond" and other misuses of the English language, the level of comfort at Brisbane's theatres, and Jacki Weaver's performance in The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead.

Cliff Richard says he gave British Prime Minister Tony Blair use of his villa in Barbados because the PM was looking tired after deciding the go to war in Iraq. I've been pretty tired lately, too, Cliff. I wonder if you could see your way clear ...

One of my questions from the previous post has already been answered - Jabba will be replaced by a Sydney announcer called Simon Kennedy. As I reported on the ie blog, Nova GM Sean Ryan reckons it's all about keeping things fresh.

Nova 106.9 is losing Jabba to troubled Sydney sister station Nova 96.9. It's just been announced by new program director Adam Williscroft, who used to call the shots at Nova in Brisbane. The questions now are: who (if anyone) will replace him on nights in Brisbane, and will other big names follow to help bail-out the Sydney station, which has plummeted in the ratings over the past 12 months?

Can "Can-do" Campbell Newman do just about anything? Tomorrow Brisbane's Lord Mayor will be reading the 7am and 7.30am news and the 7.15am traffic update on Nova 106.9. Can somebody run a tape over it for me? I'll be talking on 612ABC around the same time.

Scene: The Fox Hotel, South Brisbane
Time: last night
Characters: Me and Stav Davidson from B105.
Me: So, Stav, tell me something I don't know.
Stav: I had a Brazilian today.
(I believe he'll talk about it on air this morning.)

Can't get enough of me? Or maybe you want to test the sound card on your computer. I'll be talking southeast Queensland showbiz to Mary-Lou Stephens on ABC Coast FM sometime tonight and every Wednesday night until they wake up to me. You can listen in by choosing your preferred player in the left-hand menu on the Coast FM home page.
* Yes, she's heard that one a thousand times ...

Here's an inspirational story: a 92-year-old woman has begun a writing career. Laura Lipari's Gramma Shares Her Faith is a 66-page book that tells the story of Adam and Eve in question-and-answer style. It's planned as the first in a series of Bible stories. Not the kind of books I'd be writing, but I'm inspired by the thought that it's never too late ...

I notice a number of reports and commentaries today (including this one) refer to Queensland Liberal leader Bruce Flegg's "blonde moment". Surely Flegg, who is a man, would have had a blond moment. Blonde is the feminine form.

As much as I'm aware that smoking is a health hazard, I can't agree with plans in the UK to edit-out smoking scenes from classic cartoons like The Flinstones, Tom and Jerry, The Jetsons and Scooby Doo. It is, quite simply, vandalism. If health officials are worried that kids might follow suit, the shows could carry warnings at the beginning and end. Just as Road Runner cartoons could carry warnings against putting on roller skates and strapping Acme brand fireworks to your backpack.

"This is what happens when you don't mock Scientology." That's what producer The Simpsons producer Al Jean said when accepting the show's ninth Emmy award for best animated series. The Simpsons beat South Park, which was nominated for its episode parodying Tom Cruise and his religion. There's more about the "creative arts Emmys" here. The real Emmys (which, presumably, aren't for creativity or art) get handed out next week.

Tom Cruise has come last in a poll that asked people which star they'd like as their best mate. The top three were Jack Black, Johnny Depp and Will Smith, with Jack Nicholson, Colin Farrell, Orlando Bloom and Jamie Foxx also rating. Even Mel Gibson beat Cruise - but you wouldn't want to go for a drive with him, would you?

In case you haven't noticed, poker is back big time - here in Brisbane (where it seems to have taken over from trivia nights in pubs) and just about everywhere else. I guess it was only a matter of time before strip poker was back in vogue, too. British writer John Young has won an eight-hour competition, and ended it off by baring all when the organisers said they'd give 10,000 pounds to cancer research.

I didn't catch the debut of David Tench Tonight on Thursday because I was at the theatre. But I did get a personalised DVD - which, unfortunately, seized up before I could play it all the way through (or copy the video). I managed to rescue this audio grab though. Pity he can't pronounce my name properly. It's deb-ritz, not de-britz. Before I start to feel too special, I notice that the Tench website offers you the chance to send a friend a message from the man himself (albeit only by email).

In case we needed any reminding, let this story about two German office workers be a warning to us all. The two were having an email discussion about their partners' lack of sex drive when one of them accidentally replied to everyone in her work group. The conversation has now been broadcast globally - although it has not yet reached my inbox (which I find a surprise, since I seem to get lots of other inappropriate sexually-related messages).

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I received some interesting feedback on my item about uncomfortable theatre seats. I'm not sure if my correspondent wants to be named, but here's what was said:

The same thought had crossed my mind. Especially the seats at the Powerhouse. After sitting through Johnno my back was killing me. Fortunately, Keating was shorter! Hope Lano and Woodley do come back to the Lyric. The seating (and parking) influenced my decision not to book.

I know that the Brisbane Powerhouse folk - and nearby residents - are aware of the dearth of parking, but I'm not sure what's being done about it. It's funny that new businesses are often refused council permission unless they provide sufficient parking. When the council owns the venue, it's another matter altogether.

The hardest part of writing a theatre review - or anything else, really - is devising an introduction that makes the reader want to continue to the end. The Evening Standard's Nicholas de Jongh certainly got my attention with this:

Never in my theatre-going experience has a first night failed to continue after the interval. Peter Stein's flamboyantly mediocre production of Troilus And Cressida achieved this feat ...

You can read the rest here.

I'm not taking sides in the Queensland election here, merely passing on this amusing song by Gary Clare from radio station 4KQ about the competing leadership ambitions of Liberal leader Bruce Flegg and Nationals leader Lawrence Springborg.

The much-derided British city on Milton Keynes is to get a high-speed Wi-Max broadband network. If I understand the technology correctly, it could pose a further threat to traditional media - in particular radio. With some people already installing Mac Mini computers into their car dashboards, the ability to connect to the internet while on the move makes listening to web radio as easy as listening to local radio. With the choice of thousands of channels, will people be necessarily content with what's served up locally? And will the licensing system - under which broadcasters have paid millions of dollars to the government for access to the airwaves - become redundant?