We've been slaving away this week, getting gigantic pots of evergreens ready for the annual open-air opera. Why they plan it for October is anyone's guess, but maybe it's the luck of the aristocracy: as always it's dry and clear. It's a rather select affair in the summer house, and there's quite a lot of work needed to get it ready. By a lucky stroke, I managed to get a bit of extra work for Rod the manure man, so what with supervising him it's been rather a busy week…anyway, I digress…

Rod's not really into opera, so I asked Suze to come along. What a mistake. She completely misjudged the tone of the evening and arrived in a slinky velvet top, looking a dreadful strumpet. She shivered loudly all the way through the performance, crunching polos that she didn't think I knew about, tongue hanging out at the male lead. She was last seen at the bar, giggling flirtatiously with Don Giovanni, and I doubt it was her love of opera he was admiring…

I'm surprised Annie had the energy to attend the opera last night - what with Rod the Prod being around all week at the House, she's been kept fairly active. All those secret meetings in the folly, supposedly discussing the stage structure… Anyway, I'd been looking forward to it all week, and as Annie had said it would be posh, decided to wear velvet. Unfortunately it proved far too chilly for the job, and besides, everyone else was in Barbours. Annie, of course, was extremely well prepared: four layers on her lower half and a waterproof cushion. She could hardly move at all, and I know from the look on her face that she was desperate for the loo the whole way through.

Not that that stopped her swigging from her hip-flask: she got very red in the face, and read clever bits out from the programme in a loud voice. During the interval, she hobnobbed embarrassingly with the musical director: I'd forgotten what a dreadful opera snob she is. I pinched her cushion and passed the time by secretly eating polos and admiring the not unimpressive contents of the doublet and hose before me…