Suzanne Harrington: The queen had charm, grit and endurance - but can we just stop with the forced sorrow?

My daughter delivers a fiery impromptu kitchen speech about the queen, slavery, colonialism, empire, commonwealth, and how the wealth is anything but common. I forward her links to Jedward.

I owe my boyfriend a Twix. On account of the mass media saturation around a significant event in the UK last week - no, not the Brighton manager being poached by Chelsea, although as a Brighton supporter this was what had me reaching for the black armband - my chap and I made a pact.

When we realised that the POG - Public Outpouring of Grief - was set to run and run, its crescendo still some time off, we agreed not to refer to, mention, discuss, analyse, comment, or side-eye - we would go about our business, refraining from comment even on the mass cancellation of all football fixtures, including children’s football in the park. We would say nothing. The first person to break the pact would buy the other a Twix.