Oh, but also ought to say - it’s utterly beautiful and utterly true. Don’t always get that combination.

That show always seems to find a lovely new groove when it needs to.

No ‘not the mind probe’?

I’m in the middle of reading Touched by an Angel right now! It’s marvellous, and brilliantly evokes so many periods of music and whatnot that I have lived through (I’m a handful of years younger than Mark). Thank you for writing it - it’s making me super happy right now!

No! Paint would be zapped back in time and end up covering innocent bystander in the 1960s who then becomes worshiped as a god and then something something something…

Scariest thing I’ve ever engaged with. I don’t do horror, and yet I found it a stunning experience. I talk about it all the time.

I really think they’ve held off the change long enough. The amount of phone votes had become vanishingly small apparently.

ENDLING by MARIA REVA - oh! My new favourite! This has it all, funny, sad, tense, slightly ridiculous, and even has time to play all my favourite tricks in novels, fourth wall breaking, meta-textualising goodness. Please shortlist @thebookerprizes.com please please!!

ONE BOAT by JONATHAN BUCKLEY - Righto, so we’ve hit the seem of virtuosity. Beautiful book, so cunningly crafted and sculpted that you don’t even realise, some deep philosophy rubbing shoulders with beautiful characterisation and scene setting. Very very fine indeed.

AUDITION by KATIE KITAMURA - Well.. so I think this is probably brilliant. It’s certainly beautifully written. But I need to let it sink way, way deeper in. Too twisty to make a snap judgement on. I could see this growing and growing in popularity and appreciation. Fascinating.

FLESH by DAVID SZALAY - Wowzers. A whole life in a book, which is a common thing to say, but I’ve never felt it so keenly before. Oddly empty, but in a gripping way, sharp and fast and compelling. I feel somewhat browbeaten by it in a very satisfying way. Very, very fine.

UNIVERSALITY by NATASHA BROWN - Punchy, tricksy, intriguing. More ruminations on woke, but with much more drive and focus. I need to let this one settle in my mind, and that’s a good sign. Good stuff

THE REST OF OUR LIVES by BENJAMIN MARKOVITS - Hummm… not really for me. Just felt a wee bit vague, couldn’t latch onto the point of the book, couldn’t suss the meditation of wokeness. Bit disappointed.

(Also, got to put this out there, the song that accompanies the novel is lovely, but the voice just isn’t Thomas’ and that’s weird. Like, I have the Thomas voice already complete in my head from reading the book, and it’s not the one on the song! But that’s fine, happy days).

SEASCRAPER by BENJAMIN WOOD - Utterly lovely. I’ve fallen completely in love with Thomas and his sincerity and resilience. Love the details of catching shrimp, the setting which seems so real. Such a rounded and beautiful experience.