The Reporter

The Reporter

Gekko's backStockmarkets continued their rollercoaster ride, with many of Britain's banks again taking a caning. Where's it all going to end? As a little light relief, here's a bit of trivia, relayed to the Reporter by a banking contact: "Interesting ironic fact. The last big crash in 1987 happened while the movie Wall Street was in production. The sequel Money Never Sleeps is now in production." Michael Douglas is set to reprise his role as corporate raider Gordon "greed is good" Gekko, and the film, expected next year, will reportedly be set partly in London. Presumably, the script is being rewritten on a daily basis to take account of all that's going on. Perhaps they'll have Gekko banged up for illegal short selling, or down on his luck, flogging the Big Issue ...

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Harsh lessonThey're glass-half-full types at financial education charity the ifs School of Finance. It reckons youngsters could "benefit" from the financial meltdown because it is "a real learning opportunity". It adds: "Business and finance is making the front pages of most newspapers as well as leading the broadcast media. This, in itself, makes learning about saving and investing more relevant to many young people." That's one way of looking at it. If these youngsters do own stockmarket-linked investments, they'll have learned one thing - they are worth less than they were at the start of this year.

Coining it Check the change in your pocket. The number of fake £1 coins in circulation has doubled in the past five years, according to a BBC News report, with one in 50 now counterfeit. Indistinct lettering on the coin's edge will often be the giveaway. The Royal Mint says anyone who finds a fake pound coin in their wallet or purse should hand it to the police. Yeah, right. I'm sure they'll appreciate being asked to put their normal crime-fighting duties on hold while they investigate the provenance of Mrs Miggins's small change. Some of us would probably opt to pass the buck by sandwiching the offending item between two genuine coins, handing it over as payment in a shop, and walking away in a hurry. But that would be breaking the law - the Mint says it is "a criminal offence" to use a counterfeit coin.

Bringing home the bacon Talking of crime, if you're burgled, best to check the fridge as well as your jewellery boxes. A report in the freebie Metro newspaper revealed that police reckon junkies are stealing bacon for resale to finance their drug habits. Apparently, one store in Burnley has taken all the bacon out of its fridges after its entire stock was stolen two days running.

Equitable protest Last week it emerged that Gordon Brown had a policy with a company linked to scandal-hit Equitable Life (we don't know if he's still got it). This week, as the prime minister prepared to deliver his keynote speech at the Labour party conference in Manchester, angry Equitable policyholders staged a demo outside to highlight their demands for government compensation.

The group, which carried a wooden coffin and wore black T-shirts saying "30,000 dead waiting for justice", want ministers to act on the parliamentary ombudsman's recommendation that they be paid redress. They said the coffin, which bore the words: "It wasn't an Equitable Life after all, Henry", represented the 15 Equitable Life pensioners who are dying every day. The government has said it will respond to the ombudsman in the autumn.

More dough for Stelios When the going gets tough, the tough ... start cooking pizzas? As we all know, these are tough times for the travel sector, but cut-price restaurants and takeaways are booming as Brits search out cheaper pleasures. Perhaps that's why Stelios Haji-Ioannou, the man who founded easyJet (and still owns a big slice) is expanding his easyPizza.com venture. Distinctive orange flyers stating easyPizza is "now in your area" have been dropping on to doormats in London and further afield. But these pizzas aren't for wimps; they only come in one size (large) and you can forget your goat's cheese and fresh rocket - Stelios is clearly a big fan of chili and pepperoni.

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