*Not* The News Of The Week: Feb 17th 2026

Hello everyone. Something a bit different for you today…I have unfortunately been laid low with a chest infection, and being in no fit state to record a round-up of the week’s news (or spend hours at my desk writing one), I am instead bringing you the latest episode of The Watch Enquiry, the podcast I co-host with Tim Barber. So at least you have something to listen to!The Watch Enquiry is on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, but I’ve included it here too - partly as a bit of an experiment. Episode 7 is titled “What Would We Do If We Were CEO For A Day?” and sees us take the hypothetical reins at four beloved brands. This was a bit of an unusual episode. We almost didn’t release it at all - as some of you may know, we record TWE when it suits us and aim to tell stories that don’t go out of date. This episode was recorded in the summer of 2025, and due to some unforeseen delays to our production schedule (read: life getting in the way, as it does), we left it on the shelf a bit too long. Then the world shifted, and our conversation suddenly became relevant again. You see, the point of this episode was to put some weight behind the common retort of ‘do you think you could do any better?’. As journalists we love to criticise, so this was our attempt at considering life from the other side of the desk. Although I will say, our thoughts are entirely speculative, knowingly ignorant of practicalities and pragmatic considerations and in at least some cases, totally far-fetched. Or at least, so we thought. We live in interesting times, and although it hasn’t been confirmed - and maybe won’t be - the reported story that Richemont is even considering allowing Jaeger-LeCoultre to exit via a management buyout was too remarkable to ignore. That’s one brand we took it upon ourselves to run - for a day, anyway - so how about the others? Grand Seiko, Blancpain and Montblanc. Three companies with big reputations but that aren’t necessarily making the most of everything they have at their disposal. Like I said, we recorded this before Blancpain released the Grande Double Sonnerie; that watch would definitely have changed our impressions, but perhaps not as much as its coverage elsewhere would imply. Phenomenal creation: now we need to see interesting ideas further down the range. But I’ve said too much - and my eyes are giving up - so without further ado, enjoy the episode. Hopefully I’ll be back to normal next week. Thanks,Chris Get full access to The Fourth Wheel at www.thefourthwheel.co.uk/subscribe