Wider seats are available on request…

The Diary is always interested in learning about other cultures, and so a copy of Meet in Finland, the magazine of the Helsinki-Finland Congress Bureau, was eagerly torn from its envelope.

This glossy title covers an admirable variety of issues, including “Mapping the genes of birch” and “It’s crayfish time!”.

However, one article in particular caught the Diary’s eye. Apparently, the Helsinki Fair Centre is hosting the European Congress on Obesity. What was really interesting was the fact that the centre has recently been “expanded” and is now 50 per cent bigger.

Are the two events connected? The Diary would love to know, but sadly is far too engrossed in birching a crayfish to call Finland and find out.