Peter Rhodes on kilts, kidneys and a building society buying a bank

Optimists hope such mergers will bring the best of both organisations. But cross-pollination is not always successful. As I read the Cov/Co-Op proposals, I was reminded of the great writer George Bernard Shaw, propositioned by a society beauty who said if they had a child together it would inherit her perfect body and Shaw's magnificent brains. “But what,” asked the great man, “if it inherited my body and your brains?”