Hong Kong’s forbidden fruit and the national security law: the rise and fall of Apple Daily and founder Jimmy Lai

The story of Hong Kong’s Apple Daily must start with its founder, maverick businessman-turned-activist and Beijing’s nemesis Jimmy Lai Chee-ying.

A proverbial rags-to-riches protagonist the city was once famous for, Lai fled to Hong Kong from Guangdong province at the age of 12, sprinting up the ranks from factory worker to boss of clothing chain Giordano by the time he reached his mid-thirties.