Tag Archives: trafigura

No flash in the pan

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In 2010, about 8 years after filing for Chapter 11 protection, Polaroid entered into a contract with Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta.

Polaroid used to be the film company of the future, famous for its instant film cameras.

Its eventual bankruptcy in 2008 was widely attributed to the failure by management to anticipate the effect of the advent of digital photography on its film business.

And Stefani? What is her role in all this? Those of you who are well versed in such things will have immediately recognised that Stefani is better known as Lady Gaga and it is she who is now Creative Director of the company and said to be the “new face” of Polaroid.

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Fantasy island

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The 1970s was the decade we all like to forget. Amongst many dubious inventions, I have had reason to recall recently the TV series called Fantasy Island. The owner charged wealthy individuals $50,000 each to come to the island and live out their fantasies.

Pretty well all the fantasies were unlikely. I suppose that is what a fantasy is all about, but I thought the 70s were long since behind me until I learned the other day that a law firm had put in a bill for a piece of litigation amounting to £105 million!

Last year, I wrote a piece [King Charles I and the Twitterati, 27th October 2009] about the company involved in this case, Trafigura, although at the time I was more interested in the concept of the super injunction obtained by the company than costs.

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King Charles I and the Twitterati

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I hope you have not been put off by the title above and that you will read a little further! There is only a little bit of history to come but last week we may have seen a significant event to rival the attempt by King Charles I to arrest 5 sitting MPs by storming into the Commons Chamber with armed soldiers.

Frustrated by Parliament’s refusal to grant him money and irritated in particular by the speeches of the members, the King tried to arrest John Pym, Sir Arthur Hazelrigg, William Strode, John Hampden and Denzil Holles in the Commons Chamber, an event which helped to trigger the start of the Civil War in 1642. News of the King’s intentions had filtered through to the five who had long since fled the Chamber by the time the King arrived.

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