14 APRIL 2001, Page 55

Q. Since she began watching the television programme Who Wants

To Be a Millionaire? my wife has developed a maddening habit, All our conversations now seem to be punctuated by 'Is that your final answer?', 'But we don't want to give you that' and/or 'I'd like to phone a friend'. The unfortunate thing is that these phrases are genuinely applicable in many areas of daily life, so how can I cure my wife of what seems to have become a compulsion?

M.H., London W10

A. Why not emulate Chris Tarrant by going to your local male outfitters and buying jackets, shirts and silk ties in variations of grey or brown? Start to wear these around the home. Meanwhile, reposition the furniture in your drawing-room to replicate the Millionaire studio, with your wife's chair on a podium lit by a spotlight. The error of her ways will slowly sink in.