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I'm no Fergie fan. But he's proof that if you want to be the best, you have to breathe fire

ROY HATTERSLEY: The son of a Govan shipyard worker who made himself, through sheer bloodymindedness, talent and stamina, the most successful manager of all time. A comparison with other men and women who have - for a time - been the undisputed stars of their vocation leads me to the uncomfortable conclusion that Ferguson may well be the most successful professional person of our generation. That conclusion is uncomfortable because, although it is easy to admire what he has achieved, I still find it impossible to like him.

DAILY MAIL COMMENT: Worthy enough, but where's the Big Idea?

The Queen's Speech promises welcome moves to make it easier to deport people who have no right to be here

On the plus side, the legislative programme outlined yesterday at least tries to address deep-rooted social and economic problems that successive governments have ignored for too long.

A belated Boxing Day tip for ex-postman Alan Johnson? No, Sir Terry signs 'just two autographs'

Alan Johnson reminded Sir Terry Wogan that when he was a postman the broadcaster never gave him a Boxing Day tip

EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: Alan Johnson reminded Terry Wogan that when he was a postman delivering mail to Terry's Buckinghamshire mansion the broadcaster never gave him a Boxing Day tip...

What a handy place to rest a teacup, Prezza!

This is the third and final part of CRAIG BROWN'S political quiz, to tie in with the recent onslaught of new political biographies and memoirs. The correct answers are, I should assure you, all absolutely true.

QUENTIN LETTS: Charles's medals, like the grille of a vintage Lagonda

The Duchess of Cornwall sparkled to the left of the Queen. A champagne-coloured fringe, gems or sequins spangling like gold in a bandit's gums

Reading the speech, HM stumbled at the section about immigration controls being increased. That may be simply because it was casually written, containing a modern-politics cliché about encouraging 'people who contribute'. Contribute what? A few quid to the immigration inspectors' Christmas fund? But you also felt, for once, that the little pages of honour were doing important work, helping her with that long royal train.

Here's proof Kate McCann's right never to give up hope

Keep the faith: Let's refocus on the image of Madeleine and keep it fresh in our minds. Let's put up more stickers and posters. And let's pray that one day soon her mother's unerring faith will be rewarded

Yesterday morning's news that three girls who were abducted almost a decade ago have been found alive in America will surely have given Kate McCann new hope, writes SANDRA PARSONS.

Why the Eton crew could sink David Cameron

How would you define a snob? And come to that - since we are all too obviously discussing David Cameron - what qualifies as a 'raging snob'? Asks ANDREW ALEXANDER.

Arrest first - ask questions later: How dawn raids and ransacking houses became standard operating procedure

Innocent or guilty, Nigel Evans isn't the first - and won't be the last - to have his life turned upside down

Why the arrest of Nigel Evans further proves we are heading towards an American-style system in which every high-profile trial is played out in public long before it ever gets to court, writes RICHARD LITTLEJOHN.

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Politics can be a simple matter. You just take everything the voters hate and do the opposite

STEVE DOUGHTY: How Mr Farage must have enjoyed reading the Coalition’s latest attempt to counter UKIP success. As a demonstration that they simply do not get it, you could not ask for better.

CRAIG BROWN: Come dine with you? Actually, I'd rather not

A new survey of dinner party hosts reveals that their most common grievances against guests include failing to bring a bottle, smoking without permission, snooping around the house, and making boring conversation

Hosts and guests alike know that the dinner party is a source of irritation, and that an evening spent watching television is preferable. Here is my cut-out-and-keep A to Z of reasons to refuse that next dinner party invitation.

Nigel Evans denied his sexuality until his mother died

As shadow Welsh Secretary, Evans contrived to be absent from the vote allowing civil partnerships, and also managed to miss three votes on gay adoption, though in one vote he opposed the move

In 1992, Nigel Evans, the then new 31-year-old MP for Ribble Valley, had known since he was a teenager that he was gay, but desperately hoped it was a temporary phase he was going through, writes ANDREW PIERCE.

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DANIEL HANNAN: The idea that we can renegotiate with the EU is pure fantasy - and the voters will never fall for it...

Nigel Lawson played a role in bringing down Margaret Thatcher, largely because of her resistance to Britain joining the Exchange Rate Mechanism, which she regarded as the precursor to the European single currency. How things change. Twenty-three years later, the former Tory Chancellor not only accepts that Lady Thatcher was right about the euro, but he also argues that Britain would be better off outside the European Union. Lord Lawson's views are not especially unusual in today's Conservative Party.

Gwyneth is so perfect it can make you feel sick - but her honesty is heroic

Gwyneth Paltrow is to be admired for being honest about her marriage, and her parents marriage

I could never do the Gwyneth diet plan, which cuts out everything I eat and drink, but I admire her for being honest about the muddling along of her marriage, and her parents' marriage, writes RACHEL JOHNSON.

DAILY MAIL COMMENT: Can Cameron prove the sceptics wrong?

In the upper echelons of the established parties, the very idea that we might be better off outside the EU has been treated as an unmentionable blasphemy. Until now.

Hero who makes Biggles look like a wimp: He's flown more planes than anyone else in history - and took 2,000 Nazis prisoner single-handed

'Only doing the job': Among his many records is one for the most aircraft carrier landings in history: 2,407. A U.S. naval pilot who tried to beat him got as far as 1,600 before suffering a nervous breakdown

He has set aviation records that will almost certainly never be broken and is revered as one of the greatest test pilots of all time. But even if you take out the aerobatics, Eric Brown's story is remarkable, writes ROBERT HARDMAN.

MAX HASTINGS on a majestic stand against the selfish pests whose din blights modern life

When the thunder of drumming from a samba band outside threatened to drown out the cast's voices during The Audience, Helen Mirren stormed offstage and into the street to harangue the drummers

After Helen Mirren took to the street mid-show to harangue a samba band for disrupting a live showing of The Audience, MAX HASTINGS writes of a country that endures almost ceaseless persecution by the noise of others.

EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: 'Poor Nigel' publicly embraced by Respect MP George Galloway

Following his arrest on suspicion of rape over the weekend, Deputy Speaker Nigel Evans was embraced as he ventured out on to the Commons terrace for a drink yesterday by Respect MP George Galloway.

Don't panic yet, Dave. It's Red Ed who should be worried...

Ed Miliband has had it easy. He hasn’t had to moderate any great disputes in his party. Nor has he risked putting his name to any important new policies which might be attacked by rivals and regretted by friends, writes PETER MCKAY.