Painting Secrets Red

Royal Blindspot: How a Soviet Spy Lurked in the Queen’s Inner Circle?

Author

Fatih Taskiran
January 15, 2025 • Reading Time: 8 minutes

Hey there, curious minds!

Today's roundup is all about significant shifts and bold moves—from rumors of Musk eyeing TikTok to unexpected revelations in the MI5 papers. Ready? Let's roll!

Your daily lens on the world starts here:

Think The Crown meets Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. The declassified MI5 files prove that Anthony Blunt—an art historian under the queen's nose—was a Soviet spy. Here's the kicker: The monarch wasn't fully briefed until nine years after his confession. Talk about "bad news travels slow."

A detail from one of the Kim Philby files. Photograph: James Manning/PA

But wait—there's more cloak-and-dagger intrigue: the notorious Cambridge Five, Kim Philby's "I'd do it again" line, Guy Burgess's haphazard defection, and more. This story reads like a top-shelf spy novel. Intrigued? So are we. It looks like Buckingham Palace had more secrets than art in its galleries.

Bonus: 'The Cambridge Five': Who were they?

Buy Something or Buzz Off

Starbucks has shut the door on its once-famous "open-door" policy, so no more free Wi-Fi or using the restroom without buying a latte. The coffee chain unveiled a code of conduct prioritizing paying customers while reining disruptive behavior. The days when Starbucks was America's unofficial living room are over.

Why the shift? In short, safety concerns, bathroom misuse, and a general desire to recreate the cafe vibe that paying customers crave. If you'll laze around without buying that caramel macchiato, be warned: the rules just got stricter.

Timing’s Everything

Once again, Elon Musk is under the SEC's microscope for allegedly waiting 11 extra days to disclose his Twitter stake. The missing days allowed him to buy lower-priced shares, cheating other investors out of $150 million or more. Musk's lawyers call the lawsuit a "sham" and a "ticky-tack."

Still, the timing's awkward. Next week, Musk's influence will grow under Trump, and the SEC's move could cause trouble. Who knew missing a filing deadline could make such a splash—and a pricey one? Strap in because this saga's far from over.

In partnership with Brad’s Deals:

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Download Frenzy

Creators and casual scrollers have found a backup plan in Xiaohongshu—known stateside as RedNote. The app rose to No.1 on Apple's download charts as "TikTok refugees" scrambled for an alternative, sparking an unexpected cultural exchange.

There's also talk that Elon Musk might buy TikTok (or at least part of it) if he gets the chance. This is just rumor mill stuff, but the idea has sparked social media buzz. It's clear that this social media shake-up redefines how and where we connect online. Get ready; it's about to get interesting.

💡 Core Wisdom

❝

Into each life some rain must fall.

📸 Lens to Life

Vintage watches at the Miami Beach Antique Show.

🧮 Core Count: 6,588,000,000,000,000,000

Earth's weight in tons.

🗓️ Flashback:

588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon sieges Jerusalem under Zedekiah's reign. The siege lasts until July 23, 586 BC.

1535 - King Henry VIII declares himself head of the Church in England.

1759 - British Museum opens in Montague House, London

1902 - Abdulaziz Ibn Saud leads 40 men over the walls of Riyadh and takes the city, marking the beginning of the Third Saudi State.

2001 - Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger launch Wikipedia, a free content encyclopedia.

2009 - After taking off from LaGuardia Airport in NYC, Chesley Sullenberger lands US Airways Flight 1549 on the Hudson River. In the "Miracle on the Hudson," all passengers and crew members survive.

I'm glad we could get together here. Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow!

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