Jonathan Franzen reads at Serpentine, glasses stolen off face, ransom note delivered, and helicopter scrambled

That Bond Street jewellery robbery had nothing on this. Jonathan Franzer was minding his own business at a Serpentine Gallery party for the launch the of his new novel Freedom last night when someone came up to him and—yoink—pulled off his glasses, dropped a ransom note for £100,000 and jumped into the water. A man has been arrested. Franzen is described by onlookers as “extremely disgruntled.”

Jonathan Franzen: thief steals author’s glasses and demands ransom at book launch party