Just like with stars in the sky, these days, there are more versions of Monopoly out there than grains of sand on Earth’s beaches.
The top results on Amazon include Mega Monopoly, Junior Monopoly, Derby Monopoly (seemingly far outstripping all other regional variations) and, as much as we love Grogu, the frankly baffling Star Wars The Child Monopoly, while other editions have made this very page in the past.
But what if regular, original, classic, family argument-starting Monopoly was brought bang up-to-date with modern house prices? What would that mean? Well, it would have to come with a heck of a lot more bank notes, that’s for sure. And, thanks to “gaming expert” SolitaireBliss, we now know the famous board would need a bit of a reshuffle.
Mayfair still comes out in prime position, with an average sale price of £6,830,154. But joining it in the exclusive navy-blue band, is The Strand (£5,438,715). Park Lane, meanwhile, tumbles down two categories into the yellow zone.
Whitehall is the biggest gainer, switching from one side of the board to the other (pink to green). But Oxford Street plummets 13 spots in the opposite direction – must be all those American Candy shops. Diary always used to buy the cheapest brown properties, so we’re delighted to see that Old Kent Road has been upwardly mobile since sites were first allocated in 1935, taking a light blue slot and thus relegating The Angel, Islington.
Whitechapel Road (£423,509) now occupies the first space after Go. It isn’t mentioned, but such is the state of things in 2022 that the utilities must now be the most expensive squares on the board.
Core blimey!
Honesty is the best policy. Even when it means navigating a nail-biting moment in one of the biggest pitches of your career. Architect Jack Pringle is no stranger to just such a scenario.
At last week’s Worktech conference, the former Perkins + Will director revealed he was forced to be very upfront with Sir Stuart Lipton and his team when he was being interviewed to come on board with a design for 22 Bishopsgate several years ago.
When asked if he had any further thoughts after what had – thus far – been a promising meeting, he said: “Yes, actually. Your core is in the wrong place. You need to move it.” “You want us to move the core?” said Lipton, aghast. “The core?” Worried that perhaps his final comments had scuppered his chances, Pringle was delighted to receive a call the following day from Lipton himself instructing him on the project.
But what about the core? “We’ve moved the core,” said Lipton. “And we will never speak of it ever again.” And they never did.
Pet peeve
It has been a wee while since we grasped the opportunity to use a gratuitous cute animal photo, so why not check on the latest pet-friendly rankings in the UK?
End of Tenancy London has done the hard work for us, and reached the conclusion that Belfast is the place to be if you want furry friends, with approximately 12.1% of landlords accepting tenants with pets. Wait, that’s less than one in eight – and that’s the best?
What is wrong with our nation’s animal-hating landlords? The next time we do this, we want number one to be at least 50%. Anyway, the second most pet-fri… no, let’s call it as it is, the second least pet-unfriendly city is Glasgow (11.5%), with Manchester, Edinburgh and Leeds completing the top five.
No surprises to learn that London trails in 10th with a frankly appalling 7.3%. Come on people, enough is enough. Having pets is practically a human right.
MIPIM brings back memories
MIPIM is a place for reunions, especially after a two-year hiatus. But what about a 30-year hiatus? When Liverpool City Council chief executive Tony Reeves was introduced to Locale chief executive and founder Guy Windsor-Lewis at this year’s event, he realised the pair had met before.
“I know you from our Bristol poly days,” Reeves said. “We were on the same rugby team and you were the captain.” The pair, who hadn’t seen each other since those bygone days, managed to catch up on three decades before Windsor-Lewis, on hearing Reeves’ job title, concluded: “Well, you are now obviously very grown up and went on to do amazing things. I’m just in tech!”
Amazing things all round Windsor-Lewis, amazing things all round.
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