After 40 years we've nearly ticked off every post box in Britain

I'm struck by the particular concern with which the authors details the marital status of their interviewees. We learn that Ms. Jones is "unmarried but with a partner," that Misters Young and Vaughan-Winter are married, and that the former has two children; we may infer that Ms Jones and Mr. Vaughan-Winter are childless, that Thomas' mum Margaret is divorced, and that Thomas has passed his piano recital... is attention to such detail a happenstance, is it particular to the Telegraph, or is it just of relevance to the British press in a way that North American text news simply does not reflect?

I first read "ticked off" as in the American vernacular sense (= annoyed/angered); potential readers should note that "ticked off" means "tallied/recorded" in this case. I was curious what would anger a mailbox, perhaps besides a urinating dog.

Interesting read.

That's dedication. I wonder why they're going around aggravating mailboxes, though.