Even spy chiefs take time out to play Wordle

With the threat of a Russian invasion into Ukraine looming, you might be curious as to how important people like the head of MI6 unwind from the stresses of their work. How do these individuals decompress from the endless flow of bleak reports from Europe's eastern flank? 

Well, thanks to a series of tweets posted earlier today, now we know.

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Like millions of people worldwide, Britain's top spy, Richard Moore, relaxes by playing Wordle.

However, while revealing his pleasure in the app, sold to the New York Times for a figure in the low millions earlier this week, the spymaster disclosed his frustrations at those who spoil the game by posting answers online.

Taking to Twitter, the spy chief said he was "thinking of unfollowing those who post their #Wordle results…" referencing the irritations many feel when others spoil the puzzle on social media.

Wordle works so that all players must work out the answer to the same puzzle daily. This means it is easy to inadvertently stumble upon the solution while browsing social media if somebody else has posted the correct answer.

The spy master's tweets attracted amusing responses from other users, including from the official Twitter account of the UK's intelligence agency GCHQ, which posted a mocked-up image of the Worldle interface displaying the word 'sorry.'

Another user joked that presumably, as a top spy, he could find out the answers if he wanted to anyway. Others quipped that it was a problem he could resolve quickly by simply muting tweets with any references to the popular game. 

The head of MI6's comments came a day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson flew to Ukraine to hold emergency meetings with political leaders there. On Wednesday, RAF Typhoons were scrambled to intercept an "unidentified aircraft' heading towards Britain's airspace. 

Cover image: Alamy.