With the cold of winter descending, Bill spent the latter part of November and the early part of December inside, only venturing out from his place in Gedding to check on the ducks following heavy frosts. Instead, it was a great opportunity for Bill to get his head down to some serious project work, spending his days slaving away at his desk and making significant progress on the vast array of projects, work and activities connected to his musical life.

By Saturday, December 6, Bill is ready to head back outside, but not before debating the 100 greatest singers list printed in The Times Magazine. It listed Bob Dylan in seventh place (Bill reckons that is too high, purely in singing terms), and he also was surprised that Aaron Neville, who Bill says has a great singing voice, wasn’t listed. In the evening, Bill went out and took some photos of the fireworks at the school Christmas fair (pictured).

On Monday, Bill spent a lot of time running through his Christmas card list, sending huge amounts of cards (both paper and e-cards) to friends both in the UK and around the world.

There was a three-page article in Hello! magazine on Tuesday that featured photos of Bill and Suzanne from Sarah Brown (the Prime Minister’s wife) and Gloria Hunniford’s charity dinner at Number 10. Which was a bit ironic, as Bill and Suzanne were back at 10 Downing Street today for the Dyslexia Action Reception, along with the likes of Ken and Barbara Follett, actor Charlie Borman, and MP Ed Balls.

Following a quiet few days, on Thursday, December 11, Bill was still working through his pile of Christmas cards throughout the morning. In the evening, Bill and Suzanne headed out to an exhibition of paintings by Elaine Ferguson at the Scream Gallery. The event was well-attended, with Jerry Hall, Elizabeth Jagger, Sabrina Guinness, Jo, Jamie and Tyrone Wood, and Jack Macdonald also attending.