Time for lunch. (And not much else, in fact.)

I know. It looks like I've been on holiday again. I haven't, actually. And it isn't that I can't think what to write about, either. It's just that there's been too much to write about, and nowhere near enough time to do any of it justice. So unfortunately, the blog has fallen by the wayside. It's been an endless stream of early mornings and late nights, without much time to write anything in between. I guess it's that time of year. Last night's late one was at the e-Gaming Review annual awards, for which I was one of the panel judges. It was a fun thing to do and it was an enjoyable evening for lots of reasons - not least of which were catching up briefly with one or two old Betfair colleagues I haven't seen since I left; and laughing a lot at the host, comedian Jack Whitehall, who would have made me feel exceptionally old (he was born in 1988) had he not been so funny. Principally, though, it was for the lengthy (2-hour) chinwag I had with John O'Reilly - for so long an adversary as MD of Ladbrokes - as we laughed about some of the highlights of our more epic battles. He was great company, and told me about his early days at Ladbrokes, when Cyril Stein had taken him under his wing. He advised O'Reilly when he joined that the important thing in life is to know what you don't know. Nice line. Moving from one meal to another, as I seem to be doing at the moment, today's menu serves up the best racing lunch of the year (and arguably the best, full-stop): it's the Sir Peter O'Sullevan bash at the Dorchester. I've gone every year for the last six or seven years, and this year I'm delighted - not having a Betfair table to host myself any more - to be there with my wife, Miranda, as a guest of the great man himself. Sadly, the BHA have not taken their customary table this time around: I gather that the £1000 cost for ten has fallen victim to the savage cuts in racing, with a lengthy explanation given that Betfair's hiding illegal bookmakers who don't pay levy was the reason that the BHA were sadly unable to support the charity this time round. They have, though, managed to find the money to pay Olswang for a further submission to the Levy Board consultation, if you haven't noticed. I haven't had the time to read it myself yet, but if you are looking for it, you can find it here .