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Never one to miss out on a food gimmick (and rarely one to miss an opportunity to inflict food gimmicks on others) I brought in a handful of Marks and Spencer’s new, limited edition strawberry and cream sandwiches to the office this week. Upon tasting them, few of my colleagues thanked me. They found them sickly and ridiculous, but I personally relished the creamy, fruity nonsense.
These controversial sandwiches have of course been launched to mark the start of Wimbledon on Monday, but their arrival on Conversation desks is only the latest chapter in a long and storied history. Strawberries and cream were staples of British summers as far back as the 17th century. And in 1889, it was estimated that Londoners alone consumed 12 million berries a day. Find out just how deep our love of the dish runs in this potted history.
Tennis players warming up for the championships should perhaps thank their lucky stars some updates have been made to the rules since the sport was first created in the 16th century. Here, we learn that taking to the court once meant dicing with death.
If you’ve been struggling with the heat this week, it might just be because it is, well, quite hot. But it might also be linked to your medication. Have a look at five prescription drugs that affect our ability to cope with sticky weather to check if yours are on the list.
The prize for least edifying political intervention of the week, in an admittedly strong line-up, must surely go to Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte for calling the US president “daddy”. Didn’t need it, didn’t want it and hope never to hear it again at an international summit.
But while Rutte has plumbed fresh lows here, he’s not the only one pandering to Trump. From Keir Starmer handing the president a letter from the king live on camera to Volodymyr Zelensky calling him a “teacher”, even the most sensible politicians realise they must kiss the ring to get ahead these days.
Also this week, how the vegan diet backlash began, why your cat is a loudmouth and what the British government forgot to “add to cart” when placing an order for a new set of F-35A fighter jets.
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