Your stuff on the lovely Janette yesterday reminded me of a wonderful
story doing the rounds. The former head of the PM’s Department, Max
Moore-Wilton, is fond of referring to Janette as “Mrs Bucket” – in
memory of the leading character from BBC-TV’s Keeping Up Appearances.

Recently he opined to a few of his mates that John Howard wouldn’t be
retiring for quite some time yet: “Mrs Bucket won’t let him retire
until she’s had a few more trips to Buck Palace” were his words.

And a Bennelong voter writes:


Christian
Kerr’s piece yesterday reminded me of the letters sent by the Governor-General and assorted
elected officials to nonagenarians etc for their birthdays. One such letter is
supposed to be from the Prime Minister but at a recent 90th birthday I attended,
I was appalled to hear one such letter read to the gathering: it started along
the lines “Janette and I ……”. Now, since when is Janette an elected
official? I know we get her when we get the small man but why does she insist
on being such an interloper?

On
the question of the phrase “The Prime Minister and Mrs Janette Howard,” perhaps
Hyacinth occupies her spare time by reading the pompous and archaic Vice Regal
notes published each day (in something like 8 point type) with the Shipping
movements and Mail closure times by, inter alia, the Sydney Morning Herald. Here you will find the Governor-General and his wife described as “Their
Excellencies the Governor-General Major General Michael Jeffery AC, CVO, MC and
Mrs Marlena Jeffery.” Is she simply trying to ape her sometime Kirribilli
neighbours, or is she trying to establish herself as the de facto head of the
Bunyip Aristocracy?