My relatives and I had been in the pub for hours. Then two strangers were unlucky enough to join us …

“Can you even call it a reunion if it happens every year?” Mr Z asked, saltily. This might have indicated that he didn’t want to come to the Williams family reunion, but he had Covid so he couldn’t attend anyway. I have to assume, therefore, that it was a genuine question. Here is my genuine answer: yes, you can.

The first time it didn’t happen was 2020. The first time it happened in my house was 2021 (almost no one came). The first…