Seeking answers to riddles over the Czech Sphinx’s swoop on Royal Mail

I’ve had several audiences with the Czech Sphinx, including a two-hour interview last year. Daniel Kretinsky looks like the corporate lawyer he once was — neat hair, smart glasses, crisp suit and tie. He is commonly described as inscrutable, but in person he comes across as urbane and thoughtful.

There are only two obvious eccentricities. He keeps unusual hours — doing what he calls his “night shift”, when he reads until 2am or 3am. And he has an incredibly elaborate way of making green tea that involves using multiple pots and cups.

The question, in light of recent events, must be whether there is more to this affable scrutability than meets the eye.

In our on-record encounter, I asked Kretinsky an obvious thing: given that