Part 15 (2/2)

'Oh yeah,' Ji on the end ofThe Ti - most unlike him

'Switch on your TV' he says without explanation, 'they're running it on every channel'

Together atch the horrors unfold in New York I assuic accident, until we both witness a second jet flying into the other tower of the World Trade Center To begin with, I feel the coerated But later, when I realize the full extent of the devastation and loss of life, I a, 'Who is responsible?'

Although I am mesmerized by this vile piece of history as it continues to unfold, prison ti place in the rest of the world If I don't report to the gym by three fifteen, they will coyh several of the prisoners continue their bench presses, oblivious to what's taking place in the outside world As soon as the hour is up, I rush back to on has been hit by a third doht to have been heading for the White House has crashed just outside Pennsylvania

430 p the snippets of news offered between the continual replays of the two planes crashi+ng into the twin towers is a stateue; he has postponed the announcement of ill be the next leader of the Conservative Party as a mark of respect to the American people

The prihton and hurries back to Downing Street, where hePresident Bush, and describing terrorisht of innocent people juers trapped on a do to their next of kin onent and ht of my day It now seems somewhat irrelevant

DAY 56 WEDNESDAY 12 SEPTEMBER 2001

544 am

Yesterday was doe W Busha press conference at No 10 for 2 pm, which would be seen by the citizens of New York just as they aking I don't want to appear cynical but, at the end of the press conference, when the prireed to take questions, did you notice who he selected from a packed audience of journalists?

The BBC (Andrew Marr), ITV (John Sergeant), CNN (Robin Oakley), Channel 4 (Eleanor Goodh) I sense Alastair Campbell's skills very much in evidence: only the major television companies and two Murdoch newspapers However, to be fair, by recalling Parlia statesman in Europe, and that on the day when the Tory party are planning to announce their new leader

900 aoes on at Wayland, so I report to the art room for my pottery class Our clandestine accoled in the special materials that Shaun needs to complete his art work for this volume

1115 am I call Alison at the office for an update She tells methat the pressure has shi+fted onto KPMG to deliver an interi until they've coation which apparently now includes soainst the Red Cross which have nothing to do with me Can't spare any oodbye

200 painst RAF Marham is, to my surprise, still on Not that I expect there would have been hter pilots in the visitors' teaoals Three of our teaht players on the field, having led 3-2 at half-time By the way, all three players deserved to be sent off As soon as I return to my cell, I switch on the TV

400 piance to America, as they ives blood to prove his solidarity with the citizens of New York The prime minister continues to underline his support for the United States, as he considers the atrocities in New York to be an attack on the democratic world I suspect he views this as his Falklands Let's hope it's not his Vietna Item No 1, he confirms that the suitcase and contents have been delivered to his friend in north London Item No 2 The emerald has arrived in London, with all the correct paperwork coue of his brother's will be flying into London on Saturday, bringing with hiue raisonne of Botero and four photos of Botero oils that are for sale He pauses and waits for ood to be true

800 ple of the A into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York All the commentators are in no doubt that the US will seek soe, once they can identify the culprit Who can bla man to oversee this whole operation President Kennedy proved to be such a man when he was faced with the Cuban crisis I only hope that George W

Bush is of the same mettle700 pm I phone James He tells me that he's tired; he's just started his new job in the City Because of the upheaval in the American market they expect him to be at his desk by 7 am, and he doesn't leave the office until after 7 pm

However, he confirms over the phone that the emerald has arrived, so out of curiosity I ask hinificient, Dad,' is his simple reply 'But I've no idea if it's worth ten thousand dollars'

'When are you hoping to see the expert?'

'Sometime this weekend'

I don't ask anyunits for Mary

Quite a lot see this weekend Mary will visit Wayland on Friday liana will have news of the Botero paintings on Saturday Sergio's friend flies into London on Sunday, by which time James should have a realistic valuation of the emerald I only wish I could read Monday's diary now

Don't even think about it

DAY 57 THURSDAY 13 SEPTEMBER 2001

603 aht, and for the first tih to keep me warm I had to lie very still if I was not to freeze It re school As two blankets are the regulation issue, I shall have to speak to Darren about the problem I'm pretty confident he will have a reserve stock

815 a ton is that the State Department seems convinced that it was, as has already been widely reported, Osama bin Laden who orchestrated the terrorist attacks We e W

Bush plans to retaliate The president's description of the terrorists as 'folks' hasn't filled the commentators with confidence Rudy Giuliani, the Mayor of New York, on the other hand, is looking more like a world stateston to New York, I a over the city It's only when the cameras pan down onto the rubble that one isit will be before that city's physical scars can be healed900 a to officers' staff training

1000 am Pottery I make my way quickly across to the art class as I need to see Shaun, and find out if he now has all the art materials he needs I'm disappointed to find that he's not around, so I end up reading a book on the life of Picasso, studying in particular Guernica which he painted in support of his countrymen at the time of the Spanish Civil War I know it's a masterpiece, but I desperately need someone like Brian Sewell to explain to ramme, and feel fitter than I have done for years

621 ped onto the end of the news is an announcement that Iain Duncan Smith has been elected as the new leader of the Conservative Party He won by a convincing in of 155,935 (61 per cent) to 100,864 (39 per cent) for Kenneth Clarke A far better turnout than I had expected Having spent years trying to convince my party that we should trust our ives ree with Michael Brown, a former Conservative MP who is now a journalist with the Independent: a year ago you could have got odds of a hundred to one against a aret Thatcher's or John Major's govern up as leader of the Tory party in 2001

1000 pm I watch a special edition of Question Time, chaired by David Dimbleby I only hope the audience wasn't a typical cross-section of British opinion, because I was horrified by how many people were happy to condemn the Americans, and seemed to have no sympathy for the innocent people who had lost their lives at the hands of terrorists