He laid his rod down, moved along to the shady end of the log and took the sandwiches out of his pocket.

That took care of the main outline planting, but at the shady end of the garden I started a fragrant corner with Daphne odora, the deliciously scented, white-flowered Osmanthus delavayi and that trusty bloomer Mahonia japonica.

When they reached their destination, I made a medium-term home for them, crowding the pots and crates, together with iron plant supports tied into bundles, empty urns and other garden paraphernalia, in the shadiest end of the garden, popping the odd slug pellet in among everything for good measure.

Set back at the shady dead end of Burnt Church Road, surrounded by woods on three sides, it was a place that felt like surcease from pain.

No matter where you go, around 10pm, you may be approached by belly dancers and/or professionals working the shady end of the bar.

The shady ends of the bolted-down benches were normally occupied on a hot summer day like this.

The latest "lobbygate" sting, conducted by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, reminds one and all that they are often perceived to be at the shadier end of the public relations industry.

It was of such a kind that the snapping of a pipe-stem too long for him by old Solomon Longways, who was one of those gathered at the shady end of the room, seemed a harsh and irreverent act.

The dark dance-floor thumps with hip hop and gleams with mirrors and bronzer-enhanced skin, while professionals lurk at the shady end of the upstairs bar.