I RECALL, as a young man, looking at the array of Christmas cards taped to the wall of my parents’ hallway.

I was always a bit puzzled by the use of the word “prosperous” in the well-worn sentiment “We wish you a happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year.”

The idea of prosperity seemed illusory to me, growing up in a home in Liverpool, in the early 1980s, at a time when my mother and father were both made redundant within a year of each other. I looked out of the window and counted the number of houses in our street that I knew to be occupied by a wage earner. It was surprisingly few.

But perhaps prosperity refers to more than just money. There are ways of thriving other than by earning more salary. A child might be born, a student might pass an exam, a relative might recover good health.

Yet, at this time, when Europe’s leaders are warning of challenging times ahead, the challenges ahead seem to be very basic indeed. Will there be any economic growth, will inflation be brought under control, how high will unemployment rise, can we afford to heat our homes, are our savings safe?

The prevailing economic grimness reported in the news every day reminds me of the recession of the early 80s; more than the recession of the early 90s.

There are, of course, big differences between now and 30 years ago. Britain and Liverpool are considerably better off these days. Today, nobody is peddling the idea that there will never be a return to full employment, which was commonplace in the 1980s. Indeed, we were told unemployment would rise to 5m or more. It never did and probably never will.

The sense of despair felt in that recession is not around today, at least I haven’t detected it, though things are very different in Greece and elsewhere.

Instead, there is something more akin to frustration and impatience, particularly with the eurozone crisis.

Our immediate economic prospects depend on the ability of the Germans and French to lead the euro out of crisis. It’s going to be a nervous few months ahead, but, hopefully, this time next year, we will all be feeling more optimistic.

IF THERE is one thing that the recently filed accounts of Bill Kenwright Productions tell you, it is that the West End theatre impresario won’t be eating corned beef hash tonight.

With a dividend pay-out of £3m to Mr Kenwright, there is no sign that he will have to swap Fortnum and Mason’s food hall for Lidl. Not that I have any reason for thinking that the owner of Everton FC shops at the Piccadilly emporium, it’s just a supposition based on the fact that the shop is a five-minute stroll from London’s theatreland.

Oh yes, we shouldn’t forget to add in the £404,000 he was paid in salary by his company.

Musical productions like Blood Brothers, Evita, Joseph and others have remained popular.

By the standards of most people, it’s big money.

But it’s not big enough. Not big enough, that is, to compete in football’s Premier League. Clubs like Chelsea, the two Manchesters, Liverpool and Aston Villa have a lot more cash at their disposal.

I guess Evertonians knew that already. It’s been obvious for years. The latest filings at Companies House serve to underscore the fact that the Goodison Park club will only make progress after a new owner is found – and there is no sign of that happening just yet.