This week in The Dabbler I confess to my teenage crush on Harold Wilson. Required reading, I think, for anyone interested in pipe-smoking premiers, political paranoia, spiders, and bedridden teenagers who have lost the use of their lower limbs.

For younger readers, here is a photograph of Harold Wilson. On no account should you confuse this with December’s daily advent calendar picture. While there is always the possibility that Wilson may appear on your calendar at some point, that day has not yet come.