Poleaxe

He in the forefront, tallest of the tall, / poleaxe in hand, unhinging at a stroke / the brazen portals, made the doorway fall, / and wide-mouthed as a window, through the oak, / a panelled plank hewn out, a yawning rent he broke.

Lisa Griffin, who runs Brew Rock and an Irish pub in nearby Benidorm, was as poleaxed by the announcement as her customers were.

After a lacklustre campaign that has failed to grapple with Germany’s looming problems, the world should expect post-election coalition talks to last for months, poleaxing European politics while they drag on.