The Foreman: 5 September 2007
It shouldn't happen to a roofer
Contractors working for Berkeley Homes recently got more than they bargained for while working on its St George Wharf development in London.
The shiny green block of flats and offices (pictured), which sits next to the equally verdant MI6 HQ in Vauxhall, was affectionately christened the Jolly Green Giant due to its looming presence on the south side of the Thames.
Berkeley is currently putting the roof on the fifth and final block of flats, but the I hear the roofers may be scrambling for a ring-side seat if their experience putting the top on a previous block is anything to go by.
One of the St George residents is Lee Ryan who, I am told, used to be in a boy band called Blue and is currently to be found in the kitchen with Marco Pierre White on ITV show Hell's Kitchen. As I understand it, Ryan did not exactly appear to be a stickler for privacy - not bothering with blinds in his penthouse flat while, er, entertaining. All of which meant the roofers in question got a good view of him during well, what would you expect a boy band member to be getting up to at the height of his fame? Let me give you a clue - Blue's first hit was called All Rise.
X+Y=?
It seems my comments about a workshop that tried to build bridges between the sexes a few weeks ago didn't go down too well in some quarters.
I refer to the day-long soiree organised by Bespoke Training Consultants that included a session called 'The difference between X and Y'. It was billed as "an explanation and examination of the main scientific differences between the psychological, emotional and behavioural differences between men and women."
Well, one reader, Paula Garsden from refurb contractor Lengard, seems to have the answer. She wrote me a letter with just a hint of irritability to explain: "You might like to know that the real difference between X and Y is that the Y chromosome is unravelling, whereas the X chromosome is strong as ever. Women have two X chromosomes, men one X and one Y. I hope that's not too difficult for you to understand."
Frankly Paula, the biology is a little beyond me, but there was no intention to be sexist on my part - sorry love. (Foreman - see me now, again, Ed).
It's written all over your Facebook
And finally, thanks to Alex Hilton for getting touch. You may remember Hilton was the guy who, days after Metronet went under, so pertinently wrote on the "I am sick of the joke that is Metronet" Facebook page: "Our work is done here now."
His email sadly didn't offer much more by way of insight into the firm's collapse. He got in touch after he saw my mention of him to simply say: "Wehey! - I'm famous!".
Well, you'll be pleased to hear that you can now dispense with email Alex and make me your online friend of Facebook. That goes for anyone else too. Join me on the Foreman's Hut group to vent your spleen. On the 'wall' you'll be able to read the story of a Romanian construction worker who travelled hundreds of miles back to his homeland in a coffin, but wasn't actually dead. See you there maybe.