[first lines]
Roald Dahl: A gossip columnist is an odd sort of a bird. He inhabits the land of expensive restaurants and nightclubs. And there, he feeds upon tidbits that are dropped to him by a host of amateur leg men and leg women. He pays them small sums for juicy morsels. The juiciest morsels of all are those that concern either the international set, the very rich dukes and duchesses, or best of all, royalty. All this is perfectly harmless so long as the gossip remains benign and good-humoured. But when it becomes malicious, as it so often does, then it can literally ruin somebody's life. Let the story you are going to see now serve as a warning to all malicious gossip columnists.