This cartoon by Adams from The Daily Telegraph relates to the news that an Essex teenager has been arrested on suspicion of launching cyber attacks against international organizations. Read more >>
The first panel of the cartoon shows someone sitting in an egg chair. We can't see the person, only the back of the chair and a pair of legs. In the second panel, the chair is slightly turned, and we can see that the unknown person is stroking a white cat. In the third panel, that person is revealed to be a geeky teenager with a laptop. His mother calls, 'Come down Gareth, your tea's ready'.
EXPLANATION
To fully understand this cartoon, you have to be familiar with the arch-villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld from the James Bond movies. Blofeld sat in a similar chair, stroking a white Persian cat (see pic), and has become the archetype of the 'evil mastermind' plotting to destroy the world. The character was parodied as Dr Evil in the Austin Powers movies. The reference to the teen hacker as an 'evil mastermind' is, of course, ironic.
VOCABULARY
The mastermind is the person who is responsible for planning or organizing a difficult or complicated activity. The term is often used of criminals who plan big robberies or other illegal activities. • Wall Street bad boy Ross Mandell was the mastermind behind a decade-long scheme to pump unwitting investors for money.
READ MORE
• LulzSec hacker attacks 'deeply worrying', says police chief (The Guardian)
• Hermit 'hacker' in suicide threat (MailOnline)
