April was a turbid time in Italy, with two focal points of leadership coming to an end.

This column, when not taking a shifty break (as may have been noted by its absence for almost a fortnight), was focused primarily on the power changes going on in the Holy See. At the same time, though, Berlusconi’s government fell, or dissolved (it’s hard to pick an appropriate term for it) – after various coalition partners, primarily the UDC, got the jitters following disastrous regional election results for the centre-right government.

Immediately post-election defeat, Berlusconi took the unprecedented step of appearing on Ballar