In the first hour of today’s programme we heard about the Austrian man who thoughtlessly lay down on an exhibit in an Italian museum.

Why on earth would you do that?

But yes a 50-year old Austrian man inadvertently damaged a plaster-cast of Paolina Bonaparte, by sculptor Antonio Canova at a museum in Possagno, Italy.

Apparently as he draped himself on the model, he successfully managed to knock two toes off the exhibit.

Initially the miscreant, beat a hasty retreat from the museum before the alarm was raised, however it appears that after reading of the damage in an Austrian newspaper, the man was hit by a pang of conscience and wrote to the President of the Canova Foundation, admitting his responsibility.

He said that during his visit to the museum he had sat on the statue “without realising the damage he’d caused”.

He then went on to apologise and offer to do whatever might be necessary to put things right.

The museum staff are now trying to establish how best to achieve a full restoration of the exhibit.

In the second hour of today’s programme I was joined by MARGARET MILLS for her regular book review.

Her choice this month was “THE CHOSEN DEAD” by M R HALL.

Well to be totally accurate, just for a change, I actually picked this month’s title for her review.

To set the scene the book, which happens to be the fifth in a series, revolves around a Bristol coroner, JENNY COOPER, who in the course of investigating the fatal plunge of a man from a motorway bridge, uncovers a number of connections including that of the sudden death of a friend’s 13-year old daughter from a deadly strain of meningitis.

It’s a fairly complex tale of what at first appears to be an obvious suicide, but the investigations point to less than mundane circumstances involving high tech medical research, issues concerning the security services, and the murky underworld of international aid.

Now I was struck by the similarities of some of the things we have been witnessing in connection with the Coronavirus and I was interested to see if the same thoughts had occurred to Margaret.  

Listen here to Margaret’s views on his and whether she thought the book to be a good read worthy of consideration: – 

To re-cap, the book is called “THE CHOSEN DEAD” it’s by M R HALL and is available in various versions from Amazon and good booksellers everywhere.

Anyway Margaret and I will both see you again tomorrow,
Scott