Typical. 29 years of livng in Scotland with little or no top level cricket to watch, your work moves you to Manchester the weekend before the Ashes starts and where is the Old Trafford Test? Cardiff, that's where. Bloomin' Cardiff. I repeat, typical.

Now, I accept that the chances of getting tickets were slim anyway, (although I was offfered one for the Saturday) and Manchester is only two and bit hours from Lords and the Oval, an hour from Headingly and an hour and a half from Edgbaston but that's beside the point. I'll also be able to watch every ball on an outdoors big screen with a cold pint of Red Stripe at £2.95 a pop so it's not all bad.

Anyway, the move to Manchester has left me without internet connection outside work for the time being, so have to leave it at that. Best of luck England for day one, and I'll be reporting on day two's play for worldcricketwatch from an internet cafe somewhere.

And did those feet, in ancient........