The recent series Nemesis was a bridge too far for me. Any industry or profession's congratulatory navel gazing is desperately unattractive.

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From the few reports and clips I've seen it was the right decision to give Nemesis a miss. Perhaps as someone who worked in Parliament for about a fifth of a century said, "You've heard it all before." Listening to friends talk about it was enlightening. So let me add some perspective.

The program is not about life in Parliament. It doesn't pretend to be. It's about the intrigue amongst those who aspire to leadership. Leadership battles are brutal and ruthless.

Leaders and aspiring leaders are a breed apart. An entirely separate species in many respects. They are hard-wired differently from the rest of us. They have egos that sometimes defy belief and self-perceptions that are frequently nothing like what their colleagues or the public think of them. Yes, about themselves they can be deluded. Before you start to ridicule them for all of that consider that having those egos is a prerequisite for the job.

Everyday either to get the job or whilst you're in it there's a bevy of people who wake up refreshed at the prospect that today they might be able to cause you grief, loss of reputation or your job. They might be colleagues in your own party who never liked you, or wanted your job, or wanted someone else to have it. Then there's the media. We all know they don't wake up deluded that a nice happy profile piece will get great billing or win them a Walkley. And then there's the public. Many of us are regrettably quick to criticise without........

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