Left a good job in the city

Actually, it’s not – he is one of the Greatest Living Englishmen, but that title was too good to pass up. It’s a shame he got shot (I’m talking about Ray Davies, singer, songwriter, leader of the Kinks, and general good bloke, by the way – recently shot while chasing a mugger in New Orleans), but the Queen was dead right in honouring him with an OBE or whatever it was (CBE - I checked, and apparently CBE is better. Good.). Not as if she’s got anything to do with it – it’s probably all decided by Trendy Blair’s specially convened honours think-tank. Since Ray practically invented Cool Britannia about the time that uncle Tony was still bossing around his school chums and copying Alastair Campbell's homework, he is one of the more deserving recipients of a gong. Him and Sir Clive, obviously. Say what you like about Tony, but he does populism pretty well.

Quote from Ray himself, when asked in one of those daft interviews "what do you never leave home without?"
"My front door key."

Listening to: The Kinks, obviously – Waterloo Sunset’s fine