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What a week it's been in good ol' New Brunswick. From buzzing bees to wayward whales, we've just about seen it all! With the summer heat finally here, Sleuth has been relaxing on his back deck, soaking up the sun and suds. But he's still got a well-trained ear attuned to the latest gossip, of course.

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Somebeachsomewhere is a highly successful New Brunswick-bred race horse whose name is bound to conjure up pleasant thoughts of the Maritime shore, so long as it isn't some beach anywhere near Chignecto Bay!

The normally sweet-smelling bayside village of Rockport located just south of Sackville has recently acquired a new mascot the locals have not-so-affectionately christened "Stinky" in honour of the dead finback whale's nostril-curdling stench.

Despised by all and pitied by none, Stinky arrived on Rockport's shores several days ago and has sparked a debate among various levels of the bureaucracy, Rockport caught in the middle.

First, the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans disavowed any responsibility for Stinky since he (or she) is not a "right whale," which apparently means any other kind is the "wrong whale" and therefore the province's problem. But the debate doesn't end there.

Perhaps recalling the woeful incident on the Strait shore a couple of years ago when they towed a dead sperm whale out to sea and blowed it up real good only to cover themselves with a shower of liquefied rotten blubber, officials with the provincial Department of Natural Resources insisted early in the week that Stinky would receive a Christian burial right where he (or she) landed.

But on the same day, other DNR officials were insisting ground conditions were unsuitable for burial and Stinky would have to be towed offshore for a burial at sea. This, despite the fact this has been tried numerous times before with the critter usually breaking its anchor and rolling right back to shore. Now Sleuth hears Rockportians are wondering if anything will be done about Stinky, muttering under their breath about "those somebeaches at the DNR."

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The "Red Team" again won this year's charity ball game in Moncton for the Kidney Foundation this week, but not without a little bruising for Premier Shawn Graham. The premier hit a pitch that was scooped up by second baseman Yvon Perry of the "Blue team", who threw it to first baseman Wayne Beattie. The ball bounced off Beattie's glove and beaned the premier on the cheekbone, requiring application of ice and a quick quip from the star guest that "it's a good thing it didn't hit my nose!" Later the premier was overheard to say it's the second injury he's had in recent weeks. During the flooding in the Fredericton area this spring he apparently fell off a ladder and badly bruised a shoulder.

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Sleuth is usually spot on when it comes to finding celebrities in a crowd around these parts. So one of his most trusted spies did a double-take last week when he spotted one leather-clad motorcyclist in town for the big Atlanticade Festival. Was that really Eagles' singer Don Henley?

Alan Cochrane, the Times & Transcript's intrepid motorcycle-mounted editor-at-large, had a possible close encounter of the Eagles kind during Atlanticade. Last Saturday, he was downtown checking out the bikes when he spotted a man matching the height, hair colour, facial features and dour expression of the one and only Henley. He was dressed in a brown sport coat, jeans and brown leather boots, walking along Main Street looking over all the cool motorcycles. Alan gave chase, but the mystery man vanished into the crowd, not to be seen again. Was he afraid of being recognized? Did anyone else see him?

If this mystery man actually was Henley, it's likely he was in Moncton scoping the town in advance of the Eagles big show at the Magnetic Hill Concert Site on Aug. 2. It's common for big singing stars to stop into Moncton before or after their shows. The Eagles tour actually begins this Monday.

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Speaking of performers, Moncton's own fiddler/vocalist/composer Samantha Robichaud is making her mark in the music world in the U.S. these days. Samantha was recently asked by millionaire Warren Hellman to perform on the main stage at the Hardly Strictly Concert in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. She shared the same stage as artists such as Alison Krauss, Earl Scruggs and the Del McCoury Band. Samantha has also been asked by multi-Grammy Award winner Mark O'Connor to join him in New York City in October for a concert in memory of slain journalist Daniel Pearl. And it doesn't end there. Samantha has been asked by King Motion Pictures to compose a piece for an upcoming documentary on the history of the U.S.

If you want to catch a Maritime performance of this talented young lady, better get to this weekend's Stan Rogers Festival in Canso, N.S.

Samantha's latest CD -- A New Stage -- will be available later this month. It consists of vocals and fiddle music composed by Samantha herself.

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And finally . . .

More honours for another Metro resident who few may know by name but whose work is known far and wide. Michel C. Belliveau of Dieppe has been involved in the pageant business as an organizer for 40 years. Two weeks ago in Nashua, New Hampshire, Michel's work was recognized by his peers when he received the Director of the Year Award from North America Pageant Inc.

n Have you heard the latest gossip? Do you know some juicy rumours? Sleuth wants to know. Send your best info to sleuth@timestranscript.com, fax it to (506) 859-4904 or drop it off to Sleuth c/o Times & Transcript, 939 Main St., Moncton.