10 OCTOBER 1987, Page 53

No. 1495: First time a Max Beerbohm, who hated going

for walks, said he'd never heard a lark, and no doubt Bernard Shaw never attended a Burns Night celebration and Ronald Fir- bank never fox-hunted. You are invited to provide a famous writer's account (max- imum 150 words) of an unexpected and untypical first experience. Entries to 'Com- petition No. 1495' by 23 October. The top winner of this and next 11 competitions will receive a bottle of Champagne Palmer Vintage 1979, kindly presented by Marie- Pierre Palmer-Becret.