Newspaper offices can be surreal places...
We have a story in tomorrow's paper about a blind lurcher called Stevie Wonder.
Stevie was abandoned and staff at Deerness Kennels, in Langley Moor, Durham, are appealing for an animal-lover to give him a new home.
Eager to get every ounce out of the story, I instructed newshound Lauren Pyrah to get a quote from the real Stevie Wonder, via his agent.
Lauren looked at me as if I was barking mad: "So, let me get this right - you want me to get a quote from the real Stevie Wonder about a blind dog called Stevie Wonder needing a new home. Don't you think Stevie Wonder's got better things to do?"
In the face of such a defeatist attitude, I dug my heels in. I wanted that quote from Stevie Wonder. I am the editor, after all.
Lauren called Stevie's agent and left what she described as "the most embarrassing message imaginable".
I instantly had a vision of Stevie's agent, calling the superstar in the States with the breaking news: "Hey, Stevie, baby. There's a newspaper in the UK looking for a comment on a story about a blind dog called Stevie Wonder. What do ya wanna do?"
For reasons I'll never understand, the agent hasn't called back.
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