Assistant are talented

Now, obviously, Pete, Ali and Andy are all bloody good musicians and only need to practice on their respective instruments once every six years in order to be able to master the Assistant back catalogue - leaving them free to pursue all manner of exciting side-projects and day-outs. But me and Anne-Sophie weave a thread of blind panic, confusion and hamfistedness into our slow-blossoming musical talents, and are frequently handcuffed to our respective instruments by a cackling Ali until we can master the piano/guitar part from 'What It Means'.

All the more incredible, then, that one or the other of us occasionally rises from our malaise and does something useful, arty or creditable. Granted, I've not much to shout about at the moment, but Anne-Sophie is entitled to grin and gloat because she has just taken one of four runners up prizes in the competition to design a new baddie for the ace TV show 'The Mighty Boosh'. Her character, Papagei, is below. Well done Anne-Sophie!

Papagei, if you are interested, having "completed a BTEC in Media Studies and Performing Arts from the Gloucester Institute of Adult Education, took an HND in Creative Geology from Brighton University of Sport. He now works as a technical botanist for the GLA.

He lives in Epsom with his parner Shelly and his cat Kipper. He enjoys reading, swimming, current affairs, evil sadism and world domination."