³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

August is always a dangerous month for business journalists to be away from their desks.

Stuff tends to happen. Big stuff.

Two years ago, we had the credit crunch. August was when the paralysing fear of risk and default spread like a poison - turning a little local difficulty in the markets to a crisis that almost toppled high street banks.

In earlier years, we had the Asian financial crisis, a Russian one, and a bit of a to-do over hedge funds that - for a few wild moments - seemed destined to bring the world to its knees.

If the world is ever going to end, it will probably happen during August.

So - it feels like a slightly odd time for us to pack our bags for the month. It's one of those Working Lunch traditions that I've had to get used to over the last year.

And you've become used to us. We changed the programme a lot since last summer - new faces, new set, new colours. Fish were out, pigs in.

We know it was unsettling for some of you - many of you have been loyal viewers for years, and you weren't shy about telling us in your emails and letters that you thought we'd misjudged some things.

We listened. And we tweaked and adapted some of our changes.

But we also knew that those changes were attracting many more viewers to the programme, viewers who were hungry for advice and information about that credit crunch and the recession.

Unless there's a nasty surprise waiting for me in September, we're not planning changes of the same magnitude this summer.

When we come back, we'll still give you the best tips and knowledge about your money and your work.

But we also want more of your stories about how you've survived and thrived through the recession - or how you've taken any bad news, and used it as an opportunity to refresh your own career.

And we want to lay the groundwork for what's next.

We're probably too early to talk about the road to recovery. But we're all hoping it's not too far away. And we want you to help us plot the map.

Enjoy your summer. And thanks for sharing your many comments and thoughts. I may not reply here directly, but I do read every one - on the blog, in the email box and on .