Watch the eyebrows
This morning we had a European big wig, Hans-Gert Pottering, at Stormont to address MLAs in the Senate chamber. He tried to tread carefully through the terminological minefield, checking at one point whether it was politically correct to refer to Northern Ireland as a "region".
However it's hard not to put your foot in it at some stage. When the EU Parliament President dealt with questions on funding for a conflict transformation centre at the Maze, his warm words went down well with the Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness to his left. To his right, the First Minister Peter Robinson looked fairly impassive.
Behind him the Ulster Unionist, sorry, Tory MEP Jim Nicholson looked on approvingly. But then Professor Pottering referred to him by name expressing the view that Mr Nicholson would no doubt work hard for funding for the Maze centre. Come again? That's the "IRA shrine" isn't it? Mr Nicholson's didn't intervene but his eyebrows headed skywards. That was a photo opportunity he probably could have done without. You can watch it on Stormont Live this afternoon.
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