No entries last week (I'm sure that left a huge hole in your life), partly because my deputy was away and I had to do some work for a change but mostly because it was a hectic week with the dreadful Algarve tragedy that claimed the lives of three people in Wootton Bassett.

A tragedy on such a large scale always presents problems for papers like the Gazette because when it makes national headlines it invariably brings with it national journalists.

Naturally they swamp the area looking for angles on the story and in many cases (but by no means all) they are not much fussed by how they get them or who gets offended in the process.

It leaves a bad taste in the mouth of the locals and the local newspapers are left to pick up the pieces and take the flak.

A policeman told me the other day there were 40 journalists tramping round the town on Tuesday and Wednesday and there were complaints about harrassment and criminal damage.

That is the last thing you want at such a sensitive time, when people's feelings are already fragile.

We all have a job to do and I see the role of the newspaper to report what has happened as accurately and as sensitively as possible. We don't always manage it but I hope people appreciate that our intentions are honourable.

I'm not sure the same goes for a few of the more unscrupulous journalists working for news agencies. They have no loyatly to any particular paper, and no involvement in the community so they don't care what effect they have on it. They are not concerned if they upset people because they don't have to come back again.

If we upset anyone, and regrettably we do from time to time, we have to live with the consequences. You can accept that when it is down to your failings but it is hard to live with when someone else's actions have reflected poorly on you.

Hopefully the mania for the story will have subsided this week and we can go back to doing our job in peace.