Well, didn't it cause one almighty, ring-a-ding-ding of a row!

The astonishment and outrage of the majority of commentators at the leaked news was glorious to behold.

And how Old Rubber Lips himself must have sneered and snarled - in between hysterical laughs. Sir Mick Jagger indeed. And the silly season has not even started yet.

Should we have been surprised? Jagger is hugely rich, an internationally glamorous figure (of a kind), regarded as the ultimate in "cool" by many young people and still able to generate vast amounts of publicity and money.

In short, precisely the sort of personality Tony Blair and his acolytes seem to want to be associated with.

His sleazy private life, the drugs, the women, the seven children with four mothers are of no consequence to the Prime Minister.

Jagger's greed, immorality and lifelong devotion to hedonism make him very much a man of today - the ultimate rock star.

And, given his somewhat ambivalent attitude to loyalty down the years, his current imbroglio concerning his former chauffeur's autobiography Baby You Can Drive My Car is astonishing.

Why should he expect any loyalty from an ex-employee? Yet he is an icon for all these aspects of his life and career as much as for his music.

While his performances with the Stones may still be spectacular affairs, it is a long, long time since he produced anything fresh.

His knighthood will be a sort of belated acknowledgement of the enormous pleasure he has given millions of rock fans around the world during the past 40 years.

"However, what should really be provoking our anger is the way Downing Street shamelessly leaked the news - yet another example of its penchant for manipulation, an attempt to make Blair look cool to younger voters. And leaking to friendly journalists helps keep them on your side."

Leaking items from honours lists has become endemic. You will not be surprised to learn the Prime Minister's right hand man Alastair Campbell, spinmeister supreme, is on record as saying: "It is very unfortunate and reprehensible if people leak news of the forthcoming honours list."

Potential recipients are warned in advance to keep their awards secret until the official announcement. There used to be a fear the honour may be withdrawn if news leaked out. Yes, really.

The Bee Gees gongs were leaked two weeks before the last New Year honours, as was England cricket captain Nasser Hussain's OBE.

A year ago, the Paddy Ashdown and Michael Heseltine peerages slipped out. Before those, Frankie Dettori's MBE and Michael Caine's millennium knighthood joined the long leaky list dating back to those happy days in 1997 when everything seemed possible.

The spinners got it disastrously wrong on one occasion, leaking the "news" cookery queen Delia Smith would receive a peerage. In fact, she had already declined the offer. Ouch!

Well, you have to have a laugh, don't you?