It’s almost certain that Roald Dahl penned this first; the eccentric billionaire in the preposterous hat launching a competition for a place in his glass elevator. It’s won, not by Veruca Salt, the 10-year-old daughter of a peanut magnate, but by Oliver Daemen, the 17-year-old son of a hedge fund manager. But fear not, everybody’s heart will eventually belong to the outsider – in this case, the unassumingly named Wally Funk, 82 years young and (finally) a true space pioneer.
Michel Barnier as France’s PM: are they having us on?
Brits who view the appointment of Barnier as a wind-up are flattering themselves. The present crisis is all about France.