My mum is still in hospital where further tests are being carried out as some results caused concern. The main thing is that her spirits have improved.

I was waiting at the front door of the hospital when she arrived to be admitted last night, she had travelled there with my sister Rosalind. She looked very rough, but pride in her youthful appearance made her insist on vehemently refusing a wheelchair to be taken to her ward. She looked at it with total disgust as if to say: "over my dead body".

The medical assessment ward turned out to be mixed, I didn’t think they still existed, and that was initially a shock. I don’t think my mother would have objected had the male patients been dishy, but they were not the type to attract Loula’s flirtatious attention.

She was then asked 101 questions by a nurse and Loula’s weak and despairing countenance swiftly changed to one of wickedness and joviality. She did not realise they were routine questions and found it very offensive to be asked if she used a hearing aid, walked with sticks or a frame, and about the amount of alcohol she drank.

My mum is virtually teetotal, but her answer was defiant:

"Can’t you tell I’m an alcoholic!"

She responded similarly when asked about smoking:

"It’s never too late to take up a bad habit!"

That’s the mood my mum was in last night, I think she has since calmed down. Like me, my mother is a people watcher and she has keenly been eyeing up the dishy doctors. She was telling me about them on the phone this morning when I called her.

My mother is very proud and ageless. She wants to remain glamorous and youthful for ever and will never wear sensible shoes, they have to be totally unsuitable to win her approval.

Her motto is: "Live and love your life away…"

Yes, let’s hope she can continue to do this for many years to come. Now you can see how she leads me astray ….

Update 8.30pm: I’ve just had a phone call from a deliriously happy Loula telling me she is on her way home. But will she be a good girl and do as the doctor tells her? I give you one guess.