Barry Sheerman, chairman of the select committee on education, met his old sparring partner “witch-finder-general” Chris Woodhead in a debate at the Oxford Union on whether the comprehensive ideal had failed. (Guess who was on which side). Unfortunately, Mr Woodhead is not a natural debater and when soeone attempted an intervention he snapped: “No, sit down!” Predictably, the rest of the evening was taken up with Woodhead-baiting with the man himself, of course, being told to sit down every time he tried to make an intervention. “He ended the evening in a bit of a sulk,” Mr Sheerman said.