The imagery displayed by those who project our multiples to the media knows no bounds. We've seen bright striped blazers and boaters, not to mention the spats worn by one Cheshunt figure a few years ago. But colour tinted hair? Surely not? Yet, a reliable informant tells me, that's what one multiple spin doctor tried a few weeks ago. Persuaded by his Reading barber to put "just a little purple" on the top of his silver locks, our man was horrified to see rather more of a purple hue than he would have liked. With a meeting with the chairman looming, he sped home to urge his better half to mix a strong shampoo with which to rid himself of the offending shade. Unfortunately, it took 17 scalp grinding washes before our man dared face the outside world. Who was he? This is one occasion to play safe and keep stum. Mind you, our spin doctor's discomfort was as nothing compared to what National Farmers' Union leader Ben Gill suffered at the hands of Customs officials on a recent trip Down Under. "They took my shoes away, scraped them, fumigated them and then handed them back in a sealed plastic bag, and I wasn't offended at all," said Ben, stoically. Safeway's top brass also endured discomfiture the other week. A colleague tells me they were showing off the fish counter at the chain's flagship Woking store when an eagle eyed hack spotted that one of the fresh lobsters was past its sellby date. Red faces all round. And the lobster was whisked off for a fate worse than death. Presumably. {{COUNTERPOINT }}