Kind girls shouldn’t have been out so late

TWO girls of 17, Hannah Wells and Maisie Clarke, came across a frail and disorientated dementia sufferer of 90, shivering beside the road after midnight.

One of the girls gave him her coat and they called the police, remaining with the old chap until they arrived.

Congratulations to them and to the parents who brought them up to help others. At first they were a bit anxious because it was so late and it would have been understandable if they had hurried past but they were sharp enough to recognise that the man posed no threat except to himself.

Nevertheless should two girls of that age have been walking the streets after midnight? Why did ANY of us who has ever bought a lottery ticket can give ourselves a pat on the back for putting in a penny or two to the funds that have ensured our sporting success in the Olympics. It was a magnificent achievement for a small island to beat the mighty Chinese and in turn be beaten only by the USA.

I admire it all but I am glad the Olympics are over. The saturation not a parent collect them from their friend’s house? Supposing the man had been fit, strong and malevolent instead of helpless and ill? Supposing there had been two men?

Hannah and Maisie are sensible and kind but I think they now need to think about their own safety and so should their parents.

GLAD TO SEE THE BACK OF THE OLYMPICS

coverage has been quite an imposition on non-sports fans.

In 2012 I went up the Mekong and this time I cruised the British Isles. I am already making plans for escape in 2020 so why is it that every day I have checked to see the medal score? Probably for the same reason that, although I am bored silly by cricket, I regularly ask how we are doing when we are playing for the Ashes.