With apologies to Simon and Garfunkel, it was actually a Bridge Over Troubled Water which allowed the coronation of king Peter to go ahead yesterday.

It came after The Sound of Silence from Sinn Fein - refusing to say whether they were going to nominate their own Art Garfunkel look-a-like - seemed to have turned the DUP leader into The Boxer. With the result that for a few days there, absolutely nobody up at the Big House was feelin' groovy.

And it seemed like Wednesday Morning 3AM before the deal was done.

Mind you, even Mr McGuinness had been suffering for his Art, penning a poem to present to his own former partner, Ian Paisley.

Its Irish title referred to bright trout - a reference to Martin's love of fishing rather than Mr Paisley, one hoped - and it compared the oppression of the north American indians with the disappearance of sea trout off the west coast of Ireland.

It managed to mention the Last of the Mohicans, peaty waters flowing over tribes and shoals and stones like wigwams in a Donegal river.

All hugely symbolic and Paul Simon himself probably couldn't have done better in the lyrics department.

But as if that wasn't enough Mr McGuinness wrapped it up with a framed copy of Seamus Heaney's famous poem, written out in longhand, about hope and history rhyming.

Strictly speaking, however, timing in politics is usually more important than rhyming, Simon.

Mr Paisley, being warmly praised from all sides of the House, said it was one of the few elected chambers he had never been thrown out of.

And he managed a last chuckle in the chamber when Gerry Adams recalled it was Mr Paisley's desire to visit the Falls Road in 1964 which first whetted his interest in Irish politics.

It was left to the Ulster Unionists' Sir Reg Empey, SDLP North Antrim MLA Declan O'Loan and Alliance's David Ford to turn party poopers - the DUP and Sinn Fein the parties being pooped on.

But it had taken less than an hour to appoint Peter, restore Martin and enjoy or endure their opening remarks.

And then we were all Homeward Bound.