Of course, the real heroes are those anonymous boys and girls slogging away out of the spotlight ... until their schools decide they fancy their 15 minutes of fame.

A-level results supposedly came out across the nation last Thursday, but schools are now able to access them online the day before. Each had to signa form promising not to reveal them to anyone before 0600 hours on Thursday. How then to explain the faxes that began hitting Fleet Street newsdesks from 3pm on Wednesday, detailing results and inviting snappers to take pictures of pretty girls with 10 As and three-year-olds with places at Cambridge etc?

Clear evidence of psychic powers - not to mention an acute awareness of newspaper deadlines...