The Tory conference was a pseudo-sacred affair, with devotees paying homage in front of Thatcher’s old shrouds — and your reporter, initially barred, only need mention he’d once met her to gain access. But would she consider what was on offer a worthy legacy, asks ANDREW MURRAY

THIS winter’s endless storms have, I fear, done for my purple sprouting broccoli.
It’s not that they’ve been toppled by the winds. I long ago learned the hard lesson that tall, overwintering brassicas need to be thoroughly staked if they are to survive. Preferably, the stakes themselves should be taller than the plants, even once they’ve been driven 18 inches (46cm) into the ground. The stem of the plant must be tied to the pole in several places.
My stakes had held, and so had the old bootlaces I used as string, but when I went to check the purple sprouting after one of the recent gales I found the fine-mesh netting had blown away.

MAT COWARD looks back to a 1931 protest against mass unemployment featuring a young Ewan MacColl

Cat show killer, avenging the pawns, women hunt the Ripper, and running dry in the outback

Spice up your life – and your greenhouse – with MAT COWARD’s gardening tips

Doomed adolescents, when the missing person is you, classic whodunnit, and an anti-capitalist eco-thriller