Monopoly mystery

Our round-up of the funny, fascinating and unusual stories this fortnight

Today’s queues may be digital, but the fight to secure that must-have present and avoid small, disappointed faces is timeless. Tom Howells looks at the toys topping recent (and less recent) Christmas wish lists

Companies in the news ...and how they were assessed

JESSIE didn’t bother to knock before entering her parents’ house. “Hello, I come bearing gingerbread men! Call me the gingerbread woman.” The hallway was strung with fairy lights and colourful paper c

Chess sets and backgammon boards are a familiar sight on drawing-room tables, but one expert Highland woodworker is refashioning their forms in beautiful new ways, writes Mary Miers

Fans of the leading British artist David Hockney will know how much he doted on his pet dachshunds. Sold at Phillips last autumn, Little Stanley Sleeping was a poster made for the show ‘David Hockney: