Water, water, everywhere

Finally, somebody has had the courage to debunk the myth about bottled water. The British Medical Journal has confirmed that National Health Service advice to drink eight glasses of water a day is nonsense. It is also based on research by the manufacturers of bottled water. The earth exhales.

Billions of pounds have been spent every year for the past few years on the strength of the NHS advice. It has become impossible to walk around London these days and spot anybody under the age of 50 without a bottle of water clutched in his or her hand. They used to give out announcements on the Tube telling you why your train was late. Now they give out announcements telling you to carry a bottle of water with you on your journey. Please.

Bottled water has become a fashion accessory. In my day we used to drink straight out of the bathroom tap, and loaded up sufficiently to last us for as long as we were likely to be out. If we were lucky, we would have a bottle of cream soda to take with us on special outings, together with a cheese bun in a brown bag, which doubled as a cure for hiccups. It never did us any harm.

If you’ve ever wondered why people spend two pounds on a bottle of Evian water, try spelling ‘Evian’ backwards.

chris@merlinco.com