Will paple be a staple of the ad industry?

Staples are rubbish. Ever since school, when the class bully left the Diary attached to a blackboard by the lapels, tie and trousers, the things have been the subject of much hate and fear. Fortunately, Mr Ramsden – yes, the teacher – was sacked soon after that, and the Diary was expelled for chewing gum in assembly.

Finally, and thankfully, the staple’s nemesis has arrived. Staplers across the land will soon be able to retire to the Sussex coast, as “paples” take over the world.

In yet another setback for the Sixties dream of the paperless office, one Simon Woollard has invented the paple (paper staple, see?) – and, seconds later, a passing marketer realised you could advertise on it.

The possibilities are endless: letting agents could advertise on repossession orders, recruitment consultants on payslips, recycling companies on press releases…