THE Kingdom of Heaven has been and gone in Orkney. No, I don’t mean that Jesus Christ touched down at Kirkwall Airport. I’m talking about the movie. In his latest period re-creation, Sir Ridley Scott, of Gladiator fame, plunges us into the Moslem siege of Jerusalem.

SO, THE Barack Obama show is coming to Europe. In some ways, it will be a glamour show, with Europe’s political leaders just as keen to be pictured with the black Democratic candidate as he is with them. It’s meant to be a win-win situation. By being in conversation with European leaders, Obama will be seen to be a statesman on the world stage, comfortable with political power. The leaders, in turn, will be hoping that some of Obama’s magic dust will settle on them. Much smiling is expected.

THE school playground bully used to be big, strong and threatening. He or she was often easy to identify by the body language and the air of menace. Most kids tried to give such a person a very wide berth. Things are not so simple now. The playground bully has gone digital. As more and more people have access to computers and mobile phones, a new risk to youngsters has begun to emerge. Electronic aggression, in the form of threatening text messages and the spread of online rumours on social networking sites, is a growing concern.