I wonder though what happened to Littlewood? Some of my old Arc books were published by "Littlewood Arc" rather than Arc alone. And what of the related printing firm, Arc & Throstle Press, now no longer? Have Mr Littlewood and Mrs Throstle finally got together leaving Mr Arc on his own? The catalogue tells us about the books, but we want to know the gossip.

Yesterday I mentioned Ivor Cutler. I once wanted to include Ivor Cutler in an anthology of Jewish writers - Passionate Renewal. His publisher, Arc, was keen, but left it to us to contact him. Fortunately the editor bumped into the author in question. Unfortunately Cutler said he had no interest at all in poetry any more, such a standpoint being understandable if only slightly unbelievable as the chance meeting happened to be in the Poetry Library in the South Bank Centre. Afterwards we received a letter in spindly blue writing, saying that Ivor Cutler had no desire to be in any anthologies whatsoever. And that was that. Too much time in his early years "in a Scotch sitting-room" perhaps to sit easily with others.