[Anguirel]

The Day will end at 7:30 pm GMT-in precisely five hours...

A final point. The Saucepan Man, in the Saucepan Man, made a point of stressing that dull characters had to go, and interesting characters had to go. This means that we are not judging evictees on morals, or even overmuch on usefulness-we are judging them, to a large degree, on fascination.

Now-apart from the fact that his eviction would be completely irrelevant to the challenge at hand-Curufin simply cannot be called dull. He's cunning. He's a superb stage/screen villain of the old tradition.

Remember Errol Flynn's ouevre, or even The Mask of Zorro? Remember the tradition of the cool, caustic, calculating aristocrat, second to none with the rapier (except the film's hero, naturally), equipped with by far the best one liners, with the cut-glass-posh English accent? Don't we secretly feel some sympathy for him, wish he could start to beat up the big, brawny, goody-goody hero occasionally? I know I do. He is Curufin.

But Curufin is more than that. Curufin is the Talented Mr Ripley. Curufin the Crafty, Curufin who defied Elf mores to entrap Nargothrond in his cautious power-hungry speeches, Curufin who dared to carry off Little Miss Prissy-I-Can-Defeat-The-Forces-Of-Evil-By-Singing Luthien. Curufin is the mastermind, the wit, a vital part of what makes the drama of the Silmarillion succeed.

That is why I believe he will be a real loss. That is why I exhort you to listen to other sources than a piece of sentient yet spiteful kitchenware.

Vote Thingol!

PS Yes, Gothmog, both will go if there's a tie...