Some of my colleagues and associates

I share my house with a number of other bears, and so I thought it might be of interest if I introduced some of them to you.
It's likely that I will be mentioning them again in the future, so it's probably as well that you know exactly who I am talking about.

Firstly, then, this is Polar. Polar is instantly recognisable on account of his white fur and red scarf. If you live in London, you'll know that we've been experiencing a heat wave of late. I asked Polar why he was wearing a scarf in such hot weather, and he replied that it's because he comes from a very cold country. I believe there is a flaw in his argument somewhere, but I haven't quite pinned it down yet.

This is Fred. As you can perhaps see, Fred is a good deal older than me. He's very old indeed, actually. For instance, he can remember watching Yogi Bear on its original transmission. He doesn't go out a lot and can be a bit grouchy at times, but I dare say I may be the same when I get to be his age. However, that won't be for absolutely ages.

This is Boris. Boris likes to go snuffling in the local woods where he thinks up his ideas. Some of them, like his idea to have the whole of the woods carpeted, don't really amount to much. Occasionally, however, he comes up with a very good one. His plan to make ice cream free to all bears is already at the petition stage, and we are expecting the government to reach a decision on it very soon.

And lastly, here's me, Bob, Polar, Edward, Lou, Humphrey, Lattimer, Fred and Polar's nephews and nieces watching a television broadcast of the film Bear Island, based on the bestseller by Mr Alistair Maclean. Overall, we felt it was one of those films that didn't quite live up to the expectations of its title, though there was plenty of exciting action.