And the latest?

Well, I didn't get onto the Music in Hospitals thing. As I suspected, they didn't like me talking to the imaginary inmates during my songs and thought I should have dressed in evening dress to play Dylan covers. Funny old world.

On the other hand, the busking continues to go well. Fifty pounds last Saturday morning, talking the total to about £500.

Also did an open mike with Rachel last week in the Ship in Raglan. Her usual guitarist wasn't about so I learned half a dozen of her songs and played them. Had a good time. There's another one tonight. Don't know if I can face another one so soon, though. Not when television has reached such a highly developed level of entertainment.

Reminds me: I Said to Charles Fountain after the Ship, "These open mikes are conclusive proof of evolution. At the age of fifty everyone has developed a distinctive style and repertoire and is now fossilised in that."

How did the audition for Music in Hospitals go?

I really enjoyed it but I don't think I really fit in so I'm not expecting too much.

I arrived in Bristol with a couple of hours to spare and I was fortunate enough to find a parking space just round the corrner from the Victoria Halls where the audition was. Wandered up and down Park Street for a while.

A lady called Diane showed me into the warm up room and I had a chat with a lady harpist who was going on after me. Very nice Bosendorfer grand to warm up on.

What a nice surprise when I went in! "This is Bill", "Nice to meet you, Bill." "This is Lisa." "Nice to meet you."

"And this is Heather."
"Not Heather Jones?!"
"Yes"
"The singer?!"
"Yes."

At the end of the audition I said I was unfeignedly thrilled to have met her. After all, she was absolutely central to the early success of Meic Stephens (qv). She was very positive throughout the audition, too. She even said she'd heard of the busking tour when I talked about it. She also said she sings the kind of things I did when she goes into care homes but they tend to want things like, "Pack up your troubles."

They pointed out to me that they were expecting rather more forrmal dress than I had on collarless shirt, black linen trousers with my piano belt. I don't think they really liked my efforts to chat with them during the songs either and they thought I could have spoken up more. Still, there were only four of them, and they were only pretendding to be a hospital/care home audience.

Played the Entertainer. Piano was a bit dead, I thought. Then I sang Blowin in the Wind and You've got a friend.

I should hear about it in a couple of days but as I said, I don't really think I'm what they are looking for.

Still, I'm off to the Royal Welsh Show tomorrow to be on the Roy Noble show so I'll be able to recount my meeting with Heather Jones and explain that she quite fancies busking!

It's all gone quiet again, hasn't it?

Yes, but I've been busy.

I've been working out my audition for Music in Hospitals.

Also. on Saturday, my usual busking day, I had to go to a funeral. I was glad to do that, of course.

I've also been writing a talk for the Roy Noble show on Wednesday from the Royal Welsh Show. Guess what it's about? Auditioning for Music in Hospitals, of course.

I did write to them asking if I could busk on the field but they somehow got the impression I was offering to provide entertainment and they declined my kind offer.

Oh well, must get used to being misunderstood when writing simple prose, I suppose.

So you're a professional musician now?

I think that's a very interesting question.

Certainly, I could easily live on this kind of busking money if it wasn't going to the church. Then there's all the piano teaching and sundries.

But something has just happened to me that only happens to professional musicians and it's made me think.

There's a charity called "Music in Hospitals" that does what it says on the tin except it also works in care homes and so on. It exists to bring music of the highest quality into those settings. That's very creditable, I think.

A couple of friends, Catherine Handley and Huw Chidgey have been doing gigs for Music in Hospitals for some time so when Catherine put something about it on Facebook I thought I'd look into it and sent off for a form.

I filled it in thinking it was wasted effort because it says you need to be a professional musician and asks you to put down your qualifications and experience.

So, I put down that I could play grade 8 piano stuff and I mentioned about Frost at Midnight - www.myspace.com/frostatmidnight and the songs on the radio and the busking tour and thought nothing of it.

And now I've got an audition. Now, by talking to Catherine Handley I've found out that it's entertainment first in this world and not by any means all classical although that's included. So I'm thinking at the moment about playing the Scott Joplin rag, The Entertainer and a couple of songs people can join in with like Blowin in the Wind and You've got a Friend.

Whether I get the gig or not, I'm quite chuffed to have been asked. In any case, I'm giving a talk on the Roy Noble programme from the Royal Welsh Show next week the day after the audition so I intend to use the experience to talk about how we need to find ways to make our faith and experience work together.

I'll let you know how I get on.