OF all the cities in the world, which offers the greatest night out? Three spring to the mind of one telly star: Barcelona, New York and, er, old York.

These are the nominations of diminutive "driving god" Richard Hammond, presenter of Top Gear on BBC2 and BBC1 consumer show Should I Worry About?

In a showbiz questionnaire, Richard was asked: which city is the best for nightlife and why?

"Barcelona is always fantastic," he began. "I've also had some really good times in Manhattan."

So far, so chic. With such a start, how could he possibly spoil his impeccably cosmopolitan street cred?

"I love York as well," said the 35-year-old. "I don't know what it's like these days, but there always used to be a tremendous amount of live music there.

"I love watching and encouraging new bands."

It should not be a spectacular surprise that York features on his list. Richard was brought up in North Yorkshire and left Ripon Grammar School in the middle of his A levels before studying visual arts at Harrogate.

And his first broadcasts emanated on BBC Radio York. "It took me about a week just to put one piece together," he once told an interviewer. "And I only got paid about £10, so I worked part-time in a bookshop and a petrol station and collected chicken eggs on a farm."

In 1989, he was despatched in the radio car to give his first live report.

"I got as far as saying: 'Hello, here I am live from...' and a traffic warden came up and said: 'You can't park there.'

"I had to break off in the middle of my broadcast. It was terrible."

Come back to York, Richard. The parking is very different these days.

NO one has come forward with a plausible explanation as to why a bird was dragging balloons around the skies of Huntington last week, as witnessed by another Radio York star Ivy Eden.

Only one suggestion has flown the Diary's way: "Perhaps it was his birthday."

AS promised, Mrs Bradford's recollections of the night of the Minster fire in July 1984.

"My son and I were sitting up late watching television when we noticed flashes of light so bright they could be seen through the closed curtains," says Mrs B, of Hull Road, York.

"We went outside to see the sky lit up by great flashes of sheet lightning, but no thunder. I have never seen anything like it. It did remind me of the bomb flashes during the war, but then of course it was very noisy. This was about 12.30-1.30am and eerily quiet."

IT is five years to the day since the Evening Press revealed that campaigners had won the battle to keep York's three municipal pools open.

Former council leader Rod Hills was his usual magnanimous self: "Just don't whinge at me in five year's time because your new school hasn't been built," he chirruped.

Observant readers may have noticed that, five years later, there are only two public baths open, and that's on a good day. The Barbican't pool closed more than a year ago, and it is nine months on Friday since the rest of the sports facilities on the site were shut.

Never mind. We've got a lovely new nightclub to look forward to.

Updated: 11:40 Monday, July 25, 2005