“I think it’s the build-up to the big party in Edinburgh.” She smiled up at him. “I kept the volume down so that I could hear you arriving.”

“Josh is going to be there.”

“Is he?” Battersea Gran exclaimed, walking across to the screen and peering at it. “Do you think we’d be able to see him?”

“I doubt it. There are hundreds of thousands of people there. It’s the largest New Year’s party in the world, you know.”

“Really? I do hope he’ll be all right,” she said, continuing to squint at the screen. “It looks awfully cold up there. I hope he’s wearing lots of clothes.”

Dan raised his eyebrows behind her back. “Come on, Mum, let’s get settled in to watch it, then. Did you buy some drink?”

“Oh, yes, of course,” she said, breaking away from the television and hurrying off towards the door.

“I’ll get it. You sit down.”

“All right, then. I got some cans of lager for you, and because you’ve been in Scotland, I bought you a bottle of whisky. It was on offer at the local supermarket for nine pounds. It’s all on the kitchen table.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll just have a glass of sherry, please, dear.”

Dan went through to the kitchen and returned a moment later with a can of beer and the glass of sherry.

“Don’t you want a tumbler for that?” she asked as he handed her the sherry.

“No, this is fine.”

“You’ll get germs drinking it like that. You don’t know who’s been handling that can.”

“I think I’ll survive.” Dan sat down on the sofa, and leaning back against the white lace antimacassar, pulled the ring off the can. “Mum, I noticed that there were only two glasses laid out on the kitchen table. I thought you were having a few people round tonight.”

His mother stared at the silent television without answering.

“Mum? I said that I thought there were others coming in to spend New Year with us.”

His mother turned to look at him, and he could see from the way that her lipsticked mouth drooped at the corners that there was something wrong.

“What’s happened?” he asked quietly.

“Nothing really, dear. Just a small misunderstanding.”

“About what?”

“About the residents’ committee.”

“Tell me about it.”