HIGH politics or palace politics? The choice this week really should have been simple. Readers have dined royally on the Di divorce in recent times.
Diana, not Her Royal Highness, the Princess of Wales, had already taken refuge on the French Riviera (with Fergie, of all people), while Britain's MPs had to wait until yesterday to take their leave of Westminster.
The end of the parliamentary term is usually an occasion to take stock. But, truth be told, the spirit sags before the uninspiring state of British politics - while it proves more and more difficult not to write about her.
Even on holiday, as a nearly private person, Diana still dominates the headlines. There have been moments of farce in the past week. French policemen fired warning shots to scare off intruding photographers. Then there was time out to dictate letters of complaint to the Press Complaints Commission.
On Tuesday night editors enjoyed a number of possible front page leads. In extremis, there was Mr Major's reshuffle. Better still, that lightning attack on the Queen's garden party. Three of Her Majesty's guests were hit by lightning as they sheltered from torrential rain - a frightening experience for them which prompted wags to suggest: "God might be a republican after all."
But, not for the first time, Queen Elizabeth and her prime minister had to play second fiddle to the "Queen of Peoples' Hearts". The headline grabbing news was that Diana's press secretary, Jane Atkinson, had quit after just six months in her post.
The official explanation was that, given Diana's abandonment of some 100 charities last week Ms Atkinson would be left with nothing much to do. But the authentative Richard Kay told Daily Mail readers: "The pair were on a collision course. Jane jumped before she was pushed."
She had already been summoned once to Kensington Palace for a dressing down. The princess was reportedly unhappy about "sloppy press briefings" and a failure to get her message across.
Mrs Atkinson for her part felt she was being excluded from major decisions in Diana's life. And there was a strong suggestion in ether reports yesterday that the press secretary had difficulty divining her boss's wishes - torn, as she appears frequently to be, between the desire for publicity and the craving for anonymity.
It's certainly hard to imagine the professional PR woman having a hand in those "tears in the park" pictures which appeared in the aftermath of the divorce announcement. The decision to drop all but six favourite charities was royally botched. And while Diana was reportedly unhappy as Ms Atkinson's "hands on" approach to the job - one can imagine the press secretary's unease at Diana's propensity for do it yourself initiatives.
We can also accept the accuracy of Mr Kay's report that things came to a head after Diana's visit to Chicago last month. Although the trip was deemed a huge success, Diana was apparently "disconcerted by the publication of flattering newspaper articles about Mrs Atkinson".
You can see how that would rankle - and that the woman simply had to go. In going, Ms Atkinson joins a lengthy cast list of officials who have left Diana's service in recent months.
Long standing Buckinghan Palace spokesman, Geoff Crawford, quit after the Panorama interview last November. Two months later, it was the turn of her private secretary, Patrick Jephson.
And while royal watchers yesterday asked, again, why Diana has such difficulty keeping staff, friends of the princess were offering a quite different explanation. "Diana no longer has a public life," said one. "She is to all effects a private citizen and she can no longer afford the luxury of paying for media advice."
In simple terms, added another, no public role meant Diana simply didn't need a press secretary any more.
She can hardly be serious. Even as these words appeared, experts were drawing up a short list of suitable candidates. Some suggested she look to America, where they have greater experience dealing with superstars. But maybe they're on the wrong track. Perhaps Diana is going to go private after all. Time, as they say, will tell.
Meanwhile, if the princess has a problem keeping staff, Mr Major clearly finds it impossible to get rid of any of his. The reshuffle came and went on Tuesday, with just 14 posts in the middle and lower ranks affected with less than a year to go to polling day. The prime minister clearly meant to keep his promise of "business as usual".
And, as if to illustrate the point, the hapless Douglas Hogg reappeared on our screens - this time to assure us that lamb is safe to eat.
It was a complete damp squib. Not one member of the cabinet, it seemed, deserved the chop. Not Mr Hogg, whose handling of the beef crisis brought such odium on the head of this administration. Not even Sir Patrick Mayhew, who has already confirmed he's standing down at the election, and whose comments post Drumcree convinced many he was well past his sell by date.
All for one, and one for all, was the message. Well, almost. The unfortunate prime minister wasn't even permitted to ring the "no change" changes without a row. Mr David Heathcoat Amory defected to the Redwood party, in protest at the cabinet's refusal to rule out British membership of a single currency in the life of the next parliament. And in doing so, he enabled Mr Blair to land a powerful right hander (never a left) in the last question time exchange before the recess.
Seizing on Mr Heathcoat Amory's complaint about the "paralysis of policy", the Labour leader challenged Mr Major to say if he agreed with Chancellor Clarke, and could foresee circumstances in which he would recommend joining. The whole essence of Mr Major's dilemma, of course, is that he can't agree with the chancellor or anyone else about any of this. And Mr Blair taunted Mr Major: "Enough is enough. The only reshuffle that matters is to reshuffle this government out of office and give a fresh start to the country.
And to think, Mr Major is determined to subject himself to another nine months of this. Happy holidays.