Column by David in The Times.

The other day, my friend Martin brought round an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm — the American comedy series written by and starring the Seinfeld-creator Larry David — on DVD. It’s called The Ski Lift. In The Ski Lift, Larry, a Jew, wants to avoid having to donate a kidney to his dying friend Richard Lewis, a Jew, and so fabricates a friendship with the head of the “Kidney Consortium”, Ben Heineman, a Jew, but in this case an orthodox Jew: a frummer. In order to butter up Ben, Larry pretends to be an orthodox Jew himself, and because Cheryl, his regular wife, is blonde and clearly not Jewish, he gets his agent Jeff’s wife, a Jew, to pretend to be his wife, and wear a sheitel (a wig that orthodox Jewish married women wear). He then invites Ben and his very frum daughter, Rachel (who is suspicious of Larry’s motives), to a ski weekend. While at the lodge, Ben says of Larry/Jeff’s wife, “Ah, you remind me of my dear wife, Alav ha-shalom.” Larry says: “Really? I’d love to meet her.” Rachel looks askance at Larry.

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Column by David in The Times.

THIS WEEK I HAVE A NEW NAME to add to the list of those who have had a key impact on my life as a reader. Joining John Donne, William Shakespeare, John Updike, Philip Larkin, Jane Austen, Philip Roth, George Eliot, William Blake, Roland Barthes and George Orwell will be Sue Clark, who runs the Hampstead branch of Dollond & Aitchison.

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Column by David in The Times.

Unwittingly — or perhaps untwittingly — I seem to have become a spokesman for Twitter. Since I’m not that bothered about Twitter — I tweet, yes, but sense the pressure, often, of having nothing to say to my 28,000 followers (a very anxiety-creating word, which makes me feel like David Koresh) — this is an object lesson in how one thing leads to another.

About a month ago, I was rung by a producer on the Today programme saying that John Humphrys had slagged off Twitter, even though he had never tried it. Would I defend it? I said no. I had just taken myself off Twitter for a month to finish a novel, I wasn’t up to speed with it and I didn’t like being a rentagob. The next thing I knew I was bantering with John about our soundbite culture.

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Blurb from Amazon.

‘An Atheist Goes to the Movies’, a piece David has co-written with friend and colleague, Arvind Ethan David,  features in this Christmas charity book. Avind is a producer on David’s brilliant new film, The Infidel.

42 atheist celebrities, comedians, scientists and writers give their funny and serious tips for enjoying the Christmas season. Last year, Guardian journalist Ariane Sherine launched the Atheist Bus Campaign and ended up raising over GBP150,000, enough to place the advert ‘There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life’ on 800 UK buses in January 2009. Now Ariane and dozens of other atheist writers, comedians and scientists are joining together to raise money for a very different cause. The Atheist’s Guide to Christmas is a funny, thoughtful handbook all about enjoying Christmas, from 42 of the world’s most entertaining atheists. It features everything from an atheist Christmas miracle to a guide to the best Christmas pop hits, and contributors include Richard Dawkins, Charlie Brooker, Ben Goldacre, Jenny Colgan, David Baddiel, Simon Singh, AC Grayling, Brian Cox and Richard Herring. The full book advance and all royalties will go to the UK HIV charity Terrence Higgins Trust.

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