I flew back to Manchester, where after a CT scan I was admitted to Manchester Royal Infirmary with  Malignant Otitis externa, where I have been on IV antibiotics.

I have been very well cared for, and I am both surprised and delighted with the attention of the nursing staff, specialists and doctors, though it seems patients are no longer supposed to sleep.

If you are reading this Mr Gavan, by attention I mean “medical attention” not bed baths, of which there were sadly none and yes I have lodged a complaint; however my sister who works at MRI tells me that this will fall on deaf ears.

à propos – when the ward manager asked amongst other questions “Are you given enough privacy?”, I answered that yes I was and in some cases far too much. He turned beetroot red, so I was easy on him after that.

I’m out of hospital about two weeks now, and I am heading back to the hospital tomorrow for another blood letting and a review by the rather excellent Mr Green and his staff, who are as capable, attractive and interesting as they are culturally diverse – and being Manchester they are delightfully culturally diverse.

In the next week or so Ill post an update with a couple of pictures. I’m feeling OK, but very tired at times. My body is dealing well with such large amounts of drugs and although there are some unpleasant side effects they are manageable.

Meantime, thank you everyone who has sent me emails and messages, I very much appreciate your support and will reply to you soon.

PJ