SO yesterday Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn announced his new Shadow Cabinet. Today bookies Betfair opened a book on who would be the first to resign from it with Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell 11/4 favourite, which suggests a stormy time ahead for Labour. Mind you, perhaps not everyone is riveted to the stories about Labour's machinations. As Labour activist Duncan Hothersall commented yesterday morning: "There are people on the bus not talking about politics. Weirdos."

OF course there was much comment on the fact that after months of campaigning in an open-necked shirt, Jeremy was wearing a tie in the Commons yesterday. To be fair to Jeremy, it is convention that male MPs wear ties in the House so it is hardly surprising. Nevertheless someone asks us: "I hope that's a hand-made by Venezuelan orphans on a living wage tie."

A READER swears to us that he heard a toper in a Glasgow bar at the weekend tell his pals: "I got so drunk last night that I ate a salad."

WORRIED about too much reliance on technology by younger folk? A reader on the train into Glasgow yesterday heard a young woman tell her pal: "My mobile was on the blink all weekend so will see if I can get it repaired today. But I can tell you this, after a few days without my phone, I've learned what's really important in life.

"My phone."

GREAT to see the new Borders railway - although locals tell us the first cancellation happened less than 24 hours after the Queen opened it. Writer Deedee Cuddihy tells us: "My brother Bob took a trip on the steam train and got off at Galashiels, where he used the Gents in the new £5.2m transport interchange building. Noting a row of what appeared to be very modern, minimalist, urinals, Bob was about to use one when the occupant of one of the cubicles emerged, walked over to the 'urinals' and, noting Bob's preparedness, said out of the corner of his mouth, 'These are for hand washing.' Oops. "

WELL are you still a fan of The X Factor? We pass on TV host Graham Norton's acerbic view from this week's Radio Times where he comments: "I haven’t watched X Factor the past few years because it just seems so long now – it’s endless. Also, the people aren’t very good, so to all the judges’ comments of, 'I’d buy your album tomorrow', you think, 'You’re never having an album'. You wouldn’t throw 50p at them if they were busking in the Tube.” Ouch.

THE Herald story that Scottish universities were accused of not moving with the times reminds Strathclyde's former director of education Frank Pignatelli: "The conservative nature of the University Principals in Scotland was acknowledged some years ago by the former Principal of The University of Glasgow, the late Sir Alwyn Williams, when he described his colleagues as 'a hotbed of cold feet'. It seems that things have not changed much over the years."

MEANWHILE in Australia, their much lambasted Prime Minister Tony Abbott has lost the leadership of his party and will be replaced as PM. Amongst his many gaffes was the time he described the opposition as being "a bit like the Irishman who lost 10 pounds betting on the Grand National and then lost 20 pounds on the action replay”.

The Irish Embassy asked him to apologise.