Nice work... but no falling down on the job
One lucky Scot has been appointed Scotch whisky tourism development manager - a position that, no doubt, will require stamina and a strong constitution.
The Scottish Executive has unveiled ambitious plans to attract more tourists to Scotland by using the national tipple.
The Scotch Whisky Tourism Initiative was launched last week and comes after latest figures showed that the value of Scottish whisky exports had risen.
The only Java's in the geography class
Reports that a franchised Starbucks outlet was to replace the tuck shop at the private, 400-year-old Charterhouse school in Godalming, Surrey, caused a flurry among traditionalists but has proved to be no more than a storm in a coffee cup.
"We were approached by a catering firm to supply coffee to Charterhouse school," explained Cliff Burrows, managing director of Starbucks in the UK. "Starbucks coffee isn't currently available at Charterhouse, and it won't be because it's absolutely not our policy to supply Starbucks coffee to schools."
A Charterhouse spokesman confirmed that the approach by its in-house catering team had fallen through.
Banking on the call of the coffee and croissants
International bank Credit Suisse has decided that food is the only real incentive in life. After months of difficulty trying to let office space in its Whittington House building in London WC1, it has announced a novel incentive.
Rent one of the building's 900sq ft floors, and Credit Suisse will send your company as many as 100 breakfast boxes for two weeks after moving in. This means croissants, jam and coffee all round to ease the stress of moving.
After all the furore, he could do with some Hush
If David Blaine's looking for something to think about up there in his egg-splattered glass box, he could contemplate his first meal after 44 days of starvation.
If in doubt, he could take up an offer from Geoffrey Moore and Jamie Barber of Kensington restaurant Hush, and eat his first dinner at their new venture, Shumi in St James's.
A letter of invitation has been sent but no reply has been received yet. The intrepid Blaine probably finds it hard to reach the letter box.
Afternoon tea and tasseography
London's Athenaeum Hotel is enlisting the talents of a tea-leaf reader throughout the month.
Amber McCarroll was taught the art of tasseography as a child by her grandmother, and has worked closely with the British Tea Council for many years. Along with afternoon tea, she'll be available to tell guests the meaning of everything from an acorn (a humble beginning leading to better things) to a zip (a fling that could go wrong) when you see them at the bottom of your tea cup. She's also holding classes on the mysterious art of deciphering tea leaves.