What is the point of this menopause campaign?

Forget Sober October, the month has a new claimant – the menopause. October is now Menopause Month, with October 18 designated World Menopause Day, a fact I'm sure the women in war-torn Beirut and flooded North Carolina will be pleased to know.

There's not a month that goes by that's not harnessed for some issue or other, to spread the word. 

When this is used to raise awareness and funds to combat diseases such as Alzheimer's or prostate cancer, there's certainly a point. 

But menopause is not an illness. It's a fact of women's lives. It happens to all of us – not the unfortunate few – and occurs for every woman just as periods do for teenage girls.

There aren't any new terrifying statistics showing that the menopause is on the increase that might justify a campaign.

As someone who is, in theory, post-menopausal (though I'm not entirely sure that is an accurate term since the deprivation of oestrogen which is the primary driver of menopause remains a constant in our body), I know what menopause is. It's no fun for anyone and considerably worse for some.

However, I doubt there are many people who aren't aware of the occurrence of menopause, since even those who aren't experiencing it can't have failed to notice the hailstorm of information on the subject.

But, really, does endless discussion about the issue make a huge difference, and surely designating and treating a natural condition as a disability is the wrong way to go about it? 

While talking is a good therapy for many conditions, menopause isn't one of them. The successful women I know, both professionally and personally, will all have experienced menopause and pre-menopause but they've never found the need to make everyone around them aware of it.

Menopause Awareness Month, with its clarion call to action – what action? – is not of much use.

More helpful to the 60,000 women in the UK who are said to leave the workplace because of it would be a targeted campaign for GPs. 

There's a lot of misinformation around the subject and many GPs need specific education on correct HRT dosage for individuals rather than plumping for standard doses, and more exposure of the unfortunate truth that in some cases HRT can trigger oestrogen-related breast cancer.

Email blunder that cost us thousands

I sympathise with Laura Kuenssberg, who had to cancel her BBC interview with Boris Johnson because she mistakenly sent him her briefing notes. I know how she feels.

When I was at Vogue, occasionally designers would complain that they didn't feel they were getting enough attention in the magazine. 

One autumn, the Italian duo Dolce and Gabbana were unhappy with their coverage and wrote to me and my publisher, Stephen Quinn, in no uncertain terms, stressing that they were going to remove their very substantial advertising budget from the magazine.

I typed an email to Stephen to say that he shouldn't pay much attention – they were egotistical bullies who often threw tantrums and we should stand our ground. Eagerly, I pressed 'send', only to find that instead of going to Stephen, I'd sent it to Stefano Gabbana.

I still remember the instant, sickening moment I realised what I had done and hoping there was some way to claw the email back from its journey to Milan.

We did lose several thousand pounds of revenue but within a year we were all friends again. I think, as Italians, at heart, they understood my similarly robust words. Business is business.

Mark had the very best of send-offs

Grazia editor Hattie Crisells's forthcoming book, In Writing, quotes me as saying that the best parties are those filled with journalists and writers. After attending the funeral last week of long-time journalist Mark Edmonds, which he organised in great detail from his hospice bed, I would add 'and the best funerals'.

Mark, a man of tremendous social appetite, ensured that he was sent off with a lively attendance, terrific addresses, good music, and excellent food and drink at his favourite pub. Had he been around, I imagine he would have enjoyed using his favourite phrase 'time you invited me to yours' to the assembled guests.

Joaquin's Joker is made for a big screen

A few nights ago, I made a rare expedition to London's West End to see the Joker on an enormous cinema screen. 

It's not exactly a hilarious evening, though Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga deserve Oscar nominations for their performances. But it made me realise how powerful the big screen can be.

We've become so used to watching everything on TV that it's easy to forget how immersive a big screen can be. Pity about the noisy popcorn-eating in the seats behind us, though.

How lace tights lit up the City of Lights

Alessandro Michele's first show for Valentino was a big deal last week in Paris. Would he do for Valentino what he did for Gucci, turning it into one of the most desirable brands of the moment?

It looked good in all its exuberant luxury. In gloomy times, who doesn't think a silk turban might be just the ticket. And the lace tights brought back fond memories of how the white lace tights I was proud to wear as a child seemed the most glamorous items ever.

We should thank our lucky stars

Yesterday morning my boyfriend David said he was feeling a bit 'off'. My son reported a cold he can't shake off. I'm fretting about the garden looking a mess. But at least we aren't facing tanks crossing into our country and ballistic missiles raining down on our city.

If there's anything remotely good coming out of the awful conflict in the Middle East, it could be that those of us at a safe distance, might start to count our blessings.