It's been a bad time communication-wise for Keith Mitchell, pictured, the leader of Oxfordshire County Council.

First, emails sent to his account were bounced back and then his mobile phone kept switching itself off mid-conversation.

And if that wasn't trouble enough for the man known at County Hall as 'Kaiser Keith', he referred to Ted Maxwell - the grandson of pension fraudster Robert Maxwell - as Ed.

Ted has a rickshaw business in Oxford, but no licence to allow him to pick up fares on the street.

Mr Mitchell said: "I thoroughly enjoy using one of Ed's (sic) rickshaws to get from one part of the city to another, particularly when the weather is good.

"The law is lagging behind this innovative and green approach to short-distance public transport."

We'd like to tell you whether Mr Mitchell is still incommunicado, but we can't get through.

Last week was also a bad one for Craig Simmons, the leader of Oxford City Council's Green group.

Mr Simmons, the very embodiment of a football fan, managed to get his hands on a pair of tickets for the crunch England v Croatia Euro 2008 qualifier at Wembley Stadium.

Good news, one would have thought.

Not so. It poured with rain and as for the result, what a shower.

If some had their way British National Party leader Nick Griffin and controversial author David Irving would have been given Asbos preventing them from entering Oxford on Monday night.

Others resigned from the Oxford Union in protest at the decision to allow them to appear at the debating society.

In truth, this was about students being students - trying to be outrageous.

The "storming" of the union by a mob of undergraduates was hardly likely to frighten anyone.

Come on, what were they armed with - a copy of The Guardian and a bag of lentils?

But the last word goes to Ed Vaizey, the Conservative MP for Wantage and a member of the Oxford Union for 21 years.

He said: "It's a bit silly to deny Irving a platform, when the Iranian President is just as bad and is free to trot along to the UN.

"Similarly, however unpalatable Griffin's views, his party wins seats.

"He will continue to win if we ignore him. By engaging them we defeat them."

Another case of 'do you know who I am?' came when George Reynolds, the Cherwell district councillor, arrived at Oxford Town Hall last week.

He was there deputising for council leader Barry Wood, who was tied up with something more important.

He introduced himself at the front desk, but a bemused receptionist replied "sorry, who are you?"