In Competition 2627 you were invited to submit a rhyming prophecy for 2010. The entry was short on optimism but bursting with wit and ingenuity. Hats off to Mae Scanlan, a more-or-less lone Pollyanna in a sea of Cassandras, who foresees global peace and economic prosperity. She narrowly missed out on joining the winners, printed below. It’s £25 each and an extra £5 to Noel Petty. Happy New Year!
January opens sunny,
Bankers vote for parsimony,
BBC sacks Ross (‘not funny’),
Burmese colonels all resign.
Waving fields of green shoots sighted,
City overtake United,
Ferguson says ‘Great! Delighted!’,
Climate change declared benign.
GDP continues palmy,
Scientists turn back tsunami,
Afghans form a model army,
Taleban apologise.
World Cup won by Rooney thunder,
Brown takes blame for Labour blunder,
England four-nil up down under,
Pigs observed in southern skies.
Noel Petty
Three men in a vote,
Out on the stump,
Whatever one offers
The others gazump.
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in