Yesterday marked 200 years since Danish story-teller Hans Christian Andersen was born. He rose above his humble beginnings (mother cleaner, father cobbler) to become one of the world's best-loved writers, and author of children's classics such as The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling, and The Emperor's New Clothes.

There were huge celebrations in Denmark and other countries to mark the anniversary and honour his memory, including a huge celebrity-packed concert in Copenhagen.

Although a children's author, many of his stories have a darker side. The mermaid endures pain to appear as something she is not; the duckling is mocked and derided. In his stories, as in life, there was not always a happy ending. The little boy who declared aloud that the emperor wore no clothes at all, despite the adoration of the crowd of flatterers, was the one punished. The emperor continued to rule, and the crowd continued to praise the non-existent clothes.

I see something of Blair's Britain and the spin machine in this story, but therein lies part of Andersen's power. His stories are sufficiently timeless for everyone to see in them echoes of their own time.