Jon Snow

Treat: The Guardian is printing extracts from the autobiography of broadcaster Jon Snow. It's called "Shooting History". From Part One:

I won election to the executive of the students' union as first-year representative. Politically, Liverpool was a sea of red, well beyond the wilting rouge of old Labour. There were anarchists, Trotskyites, Maoists and assorted communists.

The university was awash with issues that fought daily pitched battles with the sheer fun of simply being there. Where else in a year could you see the Who, the Animals, Georgie Fame, George Harrison, the Supremes and the Stones live in concert? The raves were all staged in the capacious Mountford Hall. And there, amid the detritus of the Who's guitars, smashed the night before, we would gather in political solidarity and protest over a gamut of disparate causes......

I left Liverpool with a heavy heart

And here for Part Two. I'm sure all fellow Liverpool graduates, political extremists and liberal media devotees will find it a must read.

Aside from being the best newscaster in the world, Jon Snow possesses a famous collection of ties, as highlighted in the portrait at the top of this post, by Mania Row. The ties come from Jane Keith Designs, and in The Scotsman Snow says:

"I was lucky enough to discover her and her ties at the Chelsea Craft show and have been a convert ever since.

"It would not be an exaggeration to describe her as a star in the tie firmament, because what she produces are so beautiful and strident.

"My particular favourite is one that is electric pinky purple and blue but I can’t get enough of them and shall probably buy some more.

Other devotees include Friends' Chandler Bing (aka Matthew Perry), David Dimbleby and Lenny Henry. Jon sports a wonderful tie here, and demonstrates a simultaneous passion for socks here. (Incidentally, this is my favourite tie.)