ArianeGroup is a private company, yes. But Ariane launchers were developed by ESA and financed, procured and supported heavily by European governments as a way to maintain sovereign capability.

I can't get over the fact that a bunch of young nerds in Hyderabad did this on their first try.

10: Venki Ramakrishnan, from Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, India. Moved to Cambridge in 1999 after nearly three decades in the United States. His research into the structure and function of ribosomes earned him the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He served as president of the Royal Society.

9: Uta Frith, from Rockenhausen, Germany. Moved to London in 1964, aged 23. Became one of Britain’s most influential developmental psychologists, making foundational contributions to the scientific understanding of autism and dyslexia.

8: Jung Chang, from Yibin, Sichuan, China. Moved to Britain on a scholarship in 1978, aged 26. Wrote Wild Swans, an internationally successful family history and political memoir that has sold more than ten million copies.

7: Karan Bilimoria, from Hyderabad, India. Moved to London in 1981, aged 19. Founded Cobra Beer and developed it into an international brand. He later became president of the Confederation of British Industry and chancellor of the University of Birmingham.

6: Will Shu, from Connecticut, United States. He moved to London for work in 2001 in his early 20s. Founded Deliveroo in London in 2013 and developed it into an international food-delivery platform.

5: Yotam Ottolenghi, from Jerusalem. Moved to London in 1997, aged about 28. Built the Ottolenghi restaurant and delicatessen group and became an internationally bestselling cookery writer who strongly influenced contemporary British food.

4: Virgil van Dijk, from Breda, the Netherlands. Moved to Britain to join Celtic in 2013, aged 21. Later became Liverpool captain, won the Champions League and Premier League, and established himself as one of the leading defenders of his generation.

3: Anish Kapoor, from Mumbai, India. Moved to Britain in 1973, aged 19, to attend art school. Became a Turner Prize-winning sculptor responsible for internationally recognised works including Cloud Gate and the ArcelorMittal Orbit.

2: Magdi Yacoub, from Belbeis, Egypt. Moved to Britain in 1962, aged about 27. Became one of the world’s leading cardiac surgeons, helping establish heart transplantation in Britain and pioneering heart–lung transplant procedures.

1: Andre Geim, from Sochi, then part of the Soviet Union and now in Russia. Moved to Britain to join the University of Manchester in 2001. His work there isolating graphene earned him the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics, shared with Konstantin Novoselov, who has since moved to Singapore.

With other parties confirming they're not fielding candidates in the by-election, Clacton now has the chance to do the funniest thing.

The Ivory Throne, 2016. I discovered Manu Pillai through a twitter reco by William Dalrymple. This is a stellar book about the House of Travancore from early European contact to independence. He brings such a deep, insightful perspective. A review: confusedaccountant.wordpress.com/2020/04/11/t...

Dreamers, 2018. A collection of profiles focusing on small-town youth in India, who are quite literally the "future" of humanity. I love this book for the anthropological insight it brings and stories you would rarely, if ever, read elsewhere. FT review: www.ft.com/content/bef7...

Everybody loves a good drought, 1996. I grew up and lived in India and thought I understood the country, but this book told me how little I knew about how rural India - some of the poorest people in the world - lived, their struggles and challenges. Preview: books.google.co.uk/books?id=lTE...

Is it even a weather event if it doesn't bring down England's trains amd planes and buses?

If you liked this, you will probably like India by The Sartorialist. Full of amazing clothes and men looking sharp in a very different way!

When it's hot, most of the world chooses to wear loose-fitting cotton clothes that cover the entire body and usually a headdress like a turban or cape as well. There's a reason for this: sun protection + the cotton layers wick sweat out faster, so your body can stay cool more efficiently.

/ The prime ministers we get // The prime minister I'd like to see

I'm surprised a migrant did something and The Telegraph didn't run with a scary headline.

If capitalist dystopia had a caricature The Economist would take a lead role.

Enjoy this comment from a wealth manager I bumped into on Linkedin.

We can expect similar in the UK if Reform win the next election. Remigration doesn't happen by force, it happens by making life difficult for immigrants. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/30/u...

Leavers: "Brexit will mean the UK can get closer to the Commonwealth" Meanwhile, the Commonwealth:

this is the account that ran the ads Meta ad archive link: www.facebook.com/ads/library/...

Discovered something very strange. An influencer in India has spent £12K running political ads in the run up to local elections that are deliberitely obfuscated, linking to Amazon shopping but a variant with that links to a now-offline website cc: @niamhmcintyre.bsky.social @tbij.bsky.social

Not only does this man achieve quietly what every elected representative in the world would love to do, he communicates it with such emphatic confidence and panache. He is undoubtedly one of the most superb humans in the world today.

I know we made fun of Rishi Sunak's trousers, but I think we have a new contender. Wes Streeting's suit.