The Spiegelhalter Gap
Concerning stubborn jewellers; a surprising dispensation; a severely over-loaded rowing boat, and a puzzle of pubs.
Spiegelhalted
In 1923, after the success of Selfridge's and Harrod's department stores in central London, a Mr Wickham decided to build his own on the Mile End Road, in the East End. Accordingly, he engaged an architect to design him something suitably imposing, with neo-classical columns and a clock-tower and so on, and bought up all the other shops in his row.
Except one. The Spiegelhalter brothers, who owned the watchmaker and jewellers at number 81, couldn't be persuaded to sell up. Mr Wickham couldn't force them to... but he’d also ignored the first rule of department store building, which as, as I’m sure you know, ‘Don’t order your colonnaded facade before you’re bought up your last jeweller.’ And so, when Wickham's Department Store finally opened, it looked like this:
Isn’t it great? Among the things I love about it are the fact that the names of the shops are at the same level, as befits equals; and the single girder at the top of the gap, which is presumably the only thing stopping the two halves of Wickham’s snapping shut and crushing Spiegelhalter’s to atoms.
That isn’t what happened, though. In fact, Spiegelhalter’s outlasted Wickham’s as a business by over twenty years. And the building - or both buildings - or is it all three buildings? - are still standing today. But not without a fight: in 2015, in an odd case of history repeating itself (and a less odd case of developers not understanding the value of what they have) the new owners applied to knock down Spiegelhalter's, explaining:
The attractiveness and uniformity of the frontage of 69-89 Mile End Road is only marred by 81 Mile End Road, which is inferior to Wickham House in terms of appearance, detailing and architecture.
Imagine owning something as inherently human and lovable as this ridiculous building, and missing the point of it that badly. Fortunately, thanks to local protests and a petition to Save the Gap, the plans were changed, and the facade of the Spiegelhalter shop was instead made into the entrance way to the building. Which now looks like this.
Meanwhile, if you are in Penzance, Cornwall, and you suddenly find yourself fancying a watch, or some jewels, I encourage you to step along to 64 Causewayhead:
News and Ads
Just a reminder that the deadline for submissions of solutions to my maddening puzzle / box of postcards / murder mystery The Researcher’s First Murder is midnight February 28th. So, if you just have a few final elements to work out, work them out now. And if you haven’t started yet… well, by all means buy it now and get started, but you may have to clear your schedule for the next few days if you want a chance at the prize.
Commentary Box, on
Re: The list of games Buddha refused to play, Frank Simons (not the one I was at university with, I don’t suppose? If so, hello Frank! If not… well, still hello Frank.) says:
A much earlier list of games is preserved on a Middle Babylonian (c.1500 BC) clay tablet (HS.1893) now held in the Hilprecht Collection in Jena. I'd be up for a game of 'O weak and stupid, bring me your haircombings'
I encourage you to go and read the rest of this excellent list (in the comments to the link above.) As well as good old Haircombings, I am also prepared to take on all comers in ‘The Rogue One, the Proud One and the Acrobat’ and ‘I am (Also) Competent to Do the Play of Girls!’
Meanwhile Jeanette Hall supplies the answer to the implicit question:
I see that John has left us to discover possibly the only game that Buddha did play: Kabaddi, as it turns out. In fact the article on kabbadi states that "There are accounts of Gautama Buddha and Lord Krishna having played an ancient form of the sport". Although presumably not together, or buddhism might have been quite different.
And now, as Thrifty Squadron hurry off to wherever it is they all go at this point, I will tell Spendy Squadron about a remarkable request from a prisoner during his trial; invite them to solve a new puzzle involving pubs, and show them a picture of an elephant and travelling companion which took me considerably longer than last edition’s red elephant.
Love,
The Airport