Surrealism at the Victoria and Albert Museum was opened of course, by George Melly, who claims that surrealism is now all about us, and bless him, because what was all about us at the VandA was so lame, and acceptable, and self defeating. And so very un-shocking to the middle class crowd that gazed at the lobster phone and faded Dali lippy couch, under glass. The VandA’s very own gift shop diminished the event ever further to a joke shop Top Shop shop .

Mrs Monk and I were brought up on The Living Theatre and The People Show, where the middle classes were rendered uncomfortable by the shocking and the unexpected. I am glad to report that on the occasion of our visit to the VandA, a female scream was heard that turned heads and breached the deference of the crowd.

It could only be Mrs Monk who had inadvertently embraced and embarrassed a tall middle aged middle-class stranger thinking it was me. She ran screaming uncomfortably from the man to me through the milling crowd. Naturally, I did not enjoy the attention, and was unable to adopt my normal strategy of walking off in a different direction.

Before I was able to interrogate her about what she had done to the tall middle class man, I wondered if she had unwittingly goosed the stranger, in the same way she likes to goose me in public places.

Everyday Monk Surrealism.

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I wondered if she had goosed the stranger