Digging a hole

Cartoons, dogs and the 2012 Olympics; a fine menu for a Wednesday afternoon. Add a dash of deadline, a seasoning of sketches and serve hot on tomorrow morning’s front page.

By now you (or your bank manager) will probably know whether you’re one of the lucky 420000000000000 to get tickets to watch the event of your choice at the Olympics. It was a bizarre way to allocate tickets but presumably someone thought it a good idea. Probably the banks, as they’ll profit hugely when everyone goes unexpectedly overdrawn.

I didn’t apply. Partly because I thought I’d let you all have a better chance. And mostly because I’m busy trying to get to see the final space shuttle launch in July, which I regard as considerably more interesting than watching drug-enhanced athletes running round a circle.

In other news, two dogs were lost down a hole in the ground. They were out with their owners hunting squirrels at the time. At night. Yes, I thought so as well. Once they went down the hole, they got stuck and were down there for several days whilst their owners mobilised the forces of western technology to get them out. It all had a happy ending: The dogs got out and the squirrel got away.

Two cartoons on each subject were submitted for the gimlet-gaze of my esteemed editor. You can see them below. The choice to adorn the front page will be revealed in The Westmorland Gazette tomorrow morning. And on my website, in full colour, around the same time.