And today in the Times Cornelius Lysaght clears up the little matter of how his name should be pronounced. Was I alone in imposing a Frenchified pronunciation on the name? Advice from the BBC's Pronunciation Research Unit, endorsed by the man's office, is that it should be said as Magna as in Carta. Very useful as he is much in the news, not because of Coolmore but because he and J P McManus have been unwise enough to invest in a football club.

