Morning:
9°c
When Chelsy Davy announced her break-up from Prince Harry this weekend, she took control of the story, acting with speed - and stealth - to pre-empt the press. She used Facebook to spread the word.
The second she changed her status to "Relationship: Not in one", all her Facebook friends received a broken heart icon to tell them the news.
With this cleverly dispersed story, the social networking site came of age. It is officially the new town crier. And what better way to leak an awkward story than make Facebook your first port of call.
Everyone's doing it. Amy Winehouse has already been "divorced", by jailbird husband Blake, via Facebook (he changed his status from "married" to "single" after she was pictured in St Lucia with rugby player Josh Bowman).
But it's not just bad news. Facebook fans use the site to announce engagements, births, new jobs, even book launches (cheaper than a publicist). Britney Spears has just advertised for a web networking manager on her Facebook profile (Ivy League graduates only).
Facebook has overtaken the court and social pages. Gossipy types can pore over profiles of ex-lovers to see if there are any wives in shot. Dodgy home furnishings imply eternal bachelor. Maternity dungarees, well, you get the picture
Your relationship status is key. People reveal things online they'd never tell you in 20 years of friendship. My current favourite on a friend's site is: "Gordie never fought for love because he really couldn't be bothered."
There is a downside to this "access all areas" culture, of course. If you innocently remove your relationship status (maybe you're nervous about too much personal information onscreen), Facebook immediately sends a message to all your friends saying you've split up. Cue dozens of condolence emails.
Recently I changed my status to the neutral-sounding "it's complicated" (when isn't it?) and before I knew it friends were informed that I was having a desperately dysfunctional affair. Horrified, I changed it back - and am now on record as having the shortest ever Facebook romance - 19 minutes!
But play your cards right and the new stealth announcement can save you time - and money. After all, it's far cheaper than taking out an £200 engagement notice in The Times.
