The Father of the House, Sir Edward Heath MP, and the Rt Hon Tony Benn MP, joined Sir David before Christmas. They discussed how Parliament and life as MPs had altered since they both entered the House of Commons - between them nearly 100 years ago. Sir Edward went on to criticise the current Tory leader's interventions on policing, saying that Mr Hague had "got in a muddle" over race and needed to clarify his position.

Chief Executive of the Dome, Pierre-Yves Gerbeau, defended his record and said he had met his target on visitor numbers.

Chairman of the Shadow Strategic Rail Authority, Sir Alastair Morton, talked about the structure of Railtrack and how it may be shaped in the future to avoid the sort of problems highlighted following the Hatfield disaster. Chairman of the Food Standards Agency, Sir John Krebs, talked about the risks of eating beef from all over Europe, and stressed the importance of proper labelling for GM foods.

Sir Edward Heath MP and the Rt Hon Tony Benn MP

P-Y Gerbeau, Chief Executive of the Dome

Sir Alastair Morton, Chairman of the Shadow Strategic Rail Authority and Sir John Krebs, Chairman of the Food Standards Agency