The more things change, the more they remain the same.
History has plenty of examples to support the old tag.
But for certain groups and individuals the year nearly expired has seen strange and wonderful alterations in their circumstances. One week you are an elderly man having treatment for back pain. The next you are in every news bulletin around the globe. This story is one of the most important of the year. And it drew equally predictable derision from Pinochet's apologists in Chile and among the British right.