On UTV's Insight programme on Monday night, Bertie Kerr threw David Trimble the sort of question to which politicians can genuinely say, "I'm glad you asked me that . . ." Bertie was a star turn.
Here was the first head-to-head between David Trimble and Jeffrey Donaldson, the big players from the Yes and No camps, plus a few others including Bertie, a pro-agreement man, and Peter King, an anti-agreement young barrister.
The whole affair would have been jaded and predictable but for Bertie, a Fermanagh councillor with a refreshing country way about him. And cute with it.
His opening question to Mr Trimble was: "The bottom line is if Mr Donaldson and Mr Paisley win this vote on Saturday, and the whole thing goes belly up, and you walk away - and I wouldn't blame you for walking away - what are we going to do next?"
Mr Trimble would have loved the coupling of "Mr Donaldson and Mr Paisley" - while Ulster Unionist Council members may have doubts about the merits of the IRA statement they are almost equally as contemptuous of Dr Paisley and his political brethren. Bertie's line allowed Mr Trimble again to assert that the No side has no alternative.
The essence of the response from Jeffrey and Peter King was that no alternative was a better alternative than Martin McGuinness and Bairbre de Brun back in charge of children's education, and the health of the "province".
It didn't wash with Bertie. "The Ulster Unionist Party and the Ulster Unionist Council should back their leadership team that have brought the IRA farther in two years than the rest of the unionist party that are whingeing have brought them in 30 years."
By the end of the 30-minute debate Bertie reckoned he had Jeffrey sounding like a politician who, with an eye to the future, wanted to keep in with all shades of unionism. Jeffrey conceded that the real difference in approach was over "tactics".
Bertie smiled, scenting a victory of sorts. "We have dragged him another wee bit," said Bertie.
But where stands John Taylor? The Strangford MP is rather elusive these days. Was he in Tokyo, London, Belfast? London, as political correspondent Eamon Mallie discovered for Downtown Radio, possibly en route for the Japanese capital.
Mr Taylor told Eamon by mobile phone that he wanted more concessions on policing, adding, "I would hope that David Trimble and I will be singing from the same hymn sheet [on Saturday], but naturally if we are not I would do the honourable thing and resign as deputy leader."
So will he, won't he vote Yes? David Trimble's chief lieutenant Sir Reg Empey appeared on the evening news to say Mr Taylor "is making his contribution in his person and his style" - shorthand for Sir Reg admitting that he was as wise as the rest of us on Mr Taylor's ultimate intentions.
BBC Radio's Morning Ulster programme roused Gerry Adams from his slumbers to allow him complain in a husky, tired voice that the "republican base" was in "backlash" mode.
"Get real," snorted David Ervine of the Progressive Unionist Party on BBC Radio Ulster's Talkback programme in the afternoon.
But why didn't the UVF reciprocate the IRA statement, pressed presenter David Dunseith. "If people like Adams would wind their neck in and give an opportunity to the people in this society to have confidence in a political process then they [the UVF] are not likely to do anything negative in the process," retorted Mr Ervine.
By evening time Bertie Kerr's and David Trimble's gibes about the No side's lack of a credible, workable political policy hit the mark. Jeffrey Donaldson said the anti-agreement bloc was working on an alternative to Hillsborough that would be presented to the UUC on Saturday.
What was in it? Wait and see, said Mr Donaldson.
