Top brass at Thus are celebrating their merger with Cable and Wireless by modestly telling staff through the medium of leaving large cardboard junk around offices that "a new era of telecoms" has begun.

So far, so tedious consolidation. But an eagle-eyed Reg spy noticed their equally modest choice of metaphor - that of billions of dollars of rocket science blasting off - might have been better chosen.

'Our business is going to explode... oh'

For the young and the ignorant, Challenger disintegrated on take-off in 1986, killing everyone on board. ®

Related stories

• Thus passes to C&W (1 September 2008)
• C&W closes in on Thus acquisition (30 June 2008)
• Thus Group gives amorous Cable and Wireless the brush off (28 May 2008)