Rich pickings (From Durham Times)

Rich pickings

7:40am Friday 25th May 2012 in Spectators Notes

THE Halfords Tour Series raced through Durham last week, with thousands – apparently – lining the streets to catch a piece of the action.

Spectator’s young colleague, who coincidentally added another candle to his birthday cake this week, was despatched to report.

However, keen – perhaps too keen – to witness any crash offering itself on Crossgate corner, he was caught in the large crowd prevented from returning to the finishing line for the grand finale.

The thought ‘‘Don’t you know who I am?’’ crossed his mind, he later admitted, but thankfully not his lips.

However, the rules didn’t seem to bother the more boisterous sports fans, as they happily hopped barriers and darted in front of elite cyclists travelling at who-knows-how-many miles per hour to cross the cobbled streets.

Accidents were somehow avoided – probably more due to the contestants’ ability than the wisdom of the rule-breakers.

US comic Rich Hall was in town last week, playing to a sell-out and highly entertained crowd at the Gala Theatre.

Between slagging off his home country and turning the air blue, Hall praised Durham to the hilt. York, however, did not fare so well.

Now, we Durham-ites often have a chip on our shoulder about York. It’s got an Archbishop to our Bishop, its city walls dwarf ours and it attracts many more American tourists.

Whether Hall knew this or not, he certainly didn’t hold his tongue on our southern rival.