I forgot to say:

All credit (or at least the huge majority of it) goes to David this year; he's gone from recipient of my secret efforts, to willing aider-and-abetter (last year's incident of going to buy a new cake tin because the other one is 'lost in France' [rather than scrapping the idea of making a cake], and trying to find a dried fruit supplier even half as good as Julian Graves) to Head Cook and Bottle Washer.

[OK, no bottles were washed during the making of this cake, so perhaps not that, but you know what I mean!]

The post-surgery shoulder-crapness has lessened, but still persists enough that I couldn't cope with even the idea of mixing the cake, let alone the hours it actually took.  Actually I'm feeling hugely fortunate at the moment: my aunt has had her shoulder problems diagnosed as polymyalgia rheumatica, and she's on steroids...

And that's not the worst of it - she's currently in hospital, recovering from a blood clot and a minor heart attack, and the doctors are fairly sure that she had another minor heart attack about three weeks ago.  It makes me very unhappy to have to write that her visit to A&E, another visit to a local hospital and two visits to her doctor failed to notice that.  At least now she is receiving the care she should be.

So, here's wishing you a speedy recovery Click, and hoping all your ailments respond quickly to treatment!