Tuesday 18 September 2007

Callum McCarthy: queuing savers are strange

'People are strange when you're a stranger,' Jim Morrison once sang, and the FSA chairman Callum McCarthy seems to agree with him. He has said that the Northern Rock savers who are queuing outside the bank's branches are acting strangely.

He doesn’t know the half of it. Jerome Johnson is a saver with Northern Rock and he says, 'I've taken your advice, Michael, and I have been standing outside my local branch of Northern Rock and waving a placard. It says – the end is nigh. I've been screaming at people, telling them to withdraw their money and run for the hills before the devil arrives and takes everything.'

For the record, I gave Mr Johnson no such advice. I hardly know him. I met him once at a gathering for mystical workers in the City, and now he won't leave me alone. He considers me his guru. Callum McCarthy should thank his lucky stars that he doesn't have to deal with some of the people that I have to.