JUST when you thought it was safe to stop talking about the Solar Pyramid, the blessed thing is back in the headlines.

Of course, the good folk of Baiter, who opposed the notion so vociferously late last year, will be very relieved to hear that the pyramid roadshow has moved on to Southampton down the coast.

It's interesting to look back on this strange, but passionate episode in the life of Poole and look at the lessons learned.

Certainly the project architect doesn't mince his words about the process, calling it a "debacle" and a fair few residents will side with him on that one.

But it is clear that if any innovative scheme, certainly of this size and nature, is to successfully run the gauntlet of public opinion and gain backing from the people whose lives it will affect, more work has to be done on the hearts and minds rather than the figures and shapes.

Or the local council simply has to believe its plan is 100 per cent right for the town and build the thing anyway.

Let's not forget that back in the mid-80s, the building that generated the most readers' letters, the strongest level of vilification and consistently prompted coughing and spluttering among the genteel folk of Bournemouth was its very own International Centre, now better known simply as the BIC.

Who'd have thought a building dismissed as the town's biggest white elephant would eventually become its most celebrated centre of attention?

The Solar Pyramid was a tough idea to sell, but one day another idea will come along that might just be right... and that's when the really tough decisions have to be made when the locals start revolting.