WITH VLAD ON A K-19 RIX WAS LUCKY THAT HE ONLY GOT HIS P45

MAKE no mistake folks, being charged £13.50 for a large gin and tonic (and remember, I'm talking "large" in a hotel bar kinda way) was undoubtedly a shocker, but there's no question about the biggest eye-popping moment during my midweek trip to London.

It occurred on Thursday morning when I noticed that even the English tabloids were plastered with stories about the latest shenanigans at Tynecastle.

Considering aWorld Cup victory for Scotland, courtesy of a 5-0 victory in the final against Brazil, would probably be squeezed off the page to make way for the Gloucestershire Under-15s cricket results, it just shows you how much Hearts have exploded over the past 12 months.

And apologies for refusing to jump on this week's big bandwagon but I actually think Vladimir Romanov is doing a great job.

In fact, you know what? When the administrators moved in at Motherwell a few years ago and I had gloomy visions of the Fir Park gates being padlocked by KPMG's equivalent of the Grim Reaper, I started preparing to switch my allegiance to Hamilton Accies.

But if my club went bust tomorrow, I think I'd go and watch Hearts. Poor old Vlad's been getting it in the neck but what he's achieved at Tynecastle has been nothing short of miraculous.

This time last year the Jambos were about 40 points behind the Old Firm in the SPL and any supporter who speculated about cup finals and Champions League football would have been accused of sniffing glue.

But now they're a clear second in the league, 90 minutes away from playing either Dundee or Gretna in the Scottish Cup Final and there's every chance the Barcelona team bus could be parked outside Tynecastle next season.

Yep, despite all the hysterics in the Scottish media this week I don't see too many suicidal Hearts fans chucking themselves off the top of Edinburgh Castle, do you?

That's b ecause they're smart enough to know the script. They know there would be no Tynecastle without Romanov. There would be no Rudi Skacel without Romanov.

And, if it wasn't for Romanov, they know only too well that talented players like Craig Gordon, Andy Webster and Paul Hartley would already b e strutting their stuff at Parkhead or Ibrox.

This week, Romanov told the Hearts fans not to be worried or upset and he promised this is just the very beginning of a hugely successful era.

I reckon the supporters should hold on tight and enjoy the ride.

Sure, it's sad to see Graham Rix getting punted - now we'll never know if he was "a fit and proper person" to manage Hearts - and criticising his signings seems a tad harsh considering he didn't really have much say in the matter, but hands up all the Hearts fans who are genuinely gutted to see him go?

Thought so.

Rix's recent excuse about the windy conditions at the Caledonian Stadium was pathetic (did the hurricane drop to a gentle breeze whenever the Inverness players were on the ball?) and he should be glad Romanov only hit him with a P45.

Don't forget, the decision was made while Vlad was on board a Russian nuclear sub. Bet the whole of Gorgie is glad he didn't have an itchy finger.

So what now for Hearts? With web - sites awash with daft rumours that the Hearts fans will be the next ones sacked by the club owner, stand-in boss Valdas Ivanauskas has been put in charge until the end of the season.

Which, in Tynecastle terms, probably means until the end of next week. But it remains to be seen who Romanov appoints as Rix's full-time successor.

It's hard to rule anyone - or anything - out. What about Larry the Lithuanian Llama? Or perhaps he'll really experiment and make Hearts the first club managed by computer?

On the back of Zippy from Rainbow being revealed as a Dundee United fan, perhaps Vlad will opt for a real puppet (instead of these human versions) and give the job to Zippy's old mucker Bungle.

He certainly seems to have the right sort of name for a job at Tynecastle these days. But I reckon there's only one man for the job.

According to the bookies, Vladimir Romanov is 16-1 to appoint himself as the new Hearts boss.

Anyone else spot an extremely easy way for the Lithuanian millionaire to make even more money?

Taken from the Daily Record