Katya Adler

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Many and bitter have been the criticisms levelled at the British prime minister and members of her cabinet when it comes to their handling of Brexit, so what about the other side: Michel Barnier, the EU's chief Brexit negotiator and his colleagues - what's the dirt on them?

When Mr Barnier was initially named for the role there was a sharp intake of breath in London. His time as EU commissioner for the single market (from 2010 to 2014) included a clash with the City of London over bankers' bonuses - earning him the remarkable British label: "the most dangerous man in Europe".

Reacting to Michel Barnier's Brexit appointment, the Financial Times quoted a senior banker saying: "It's incredibly provocative. This is Juncker's revenge on Britain."

But interestingly, since taking the job, there have been few direct attacks either in the UK or amongst EU countries which are usually critical of Brussels on Michel Barnier's Brexit manoeuvres.

Last month, after the first round of face-to-face EU-UK talks, the vociferously pro-Brexit Daily Mail described him as sleek, dandyish and the model of diplomacy except, it said, when he adopted the tones of an "upset divorce lawyer".

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Whichever part of Europe I travel to at the moment, I find myself faced with political and business leaders desperate for intel on the UK, so that come the end of the interview I'm conducting, the tables are turned on me - to the tune of "Finished? OK, good. Now can you tell me anything about Brexit and the path the UK is going to take?"

Europeans are bemused, confused and hungry for information.

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It feels a bit like Alice in Wonderland.

Politics in the UK turned inside out and upside down after last week's general election. Things that certainly were not going to happen (like Labour's Jeremy Corbyn doing well) did, while what was definitely expected to happen (a Tory majority for Theresa May) did not.

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So what does the UK political upheaval mean for Brexit negotiations, slated to start in 10 days' time?

And does the hung parliament indicate that a hard Brexit, a softer Brexit or a cliff-edge Brexit (where there's no deal and the UK simply "falls out" of the EU) becomes more likely?

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It's now almost a year since the UK blind-sided the EU by voting to leave the club.

Almost 12 whole calendar months.

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Angela Merkel is "taking back control" - to borrow the wildly successful, emotive phrase coined by those in the UK campaigning to leave the EU last year.

The German chancellor caused a storm this Sunday, particularly in the English-language press and Twittersphere, when she declared: "The era in which we could fully rely on others is over to some extent."

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"If Potus leaves here with the idea that the EU is in some way useful, that's it. Job done."

The words of a trusted European source when I asked about EU expectations for Donald Trump's first trip to Brussels as US president.

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As far as newspaper headlines go describing Emmanuel Macron's success, Metro's "Le Big Mac" is possibly the most eye-catching.

This is a big win - a huge win - for the 39-year-old former banker and virtual political newbie who will now become France's youngest leader since Napoleon Bonaparte.

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Welcome to the EU/UK dominated Brexit Galaxy of Spin and Counter-Spin. A crazy old place. The galactic atmosphere is such these days that the dimensions of truth are elastic; at times, distorted.

Take the arguments this weekend over whether the Downing Street dinner last Wednesday at which Theresa May hosted European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker was a complete disaster or not.