The "And in other news..." thread

[edwin_m]

I cant see this going any further.

You mean they're just peeing up a wall?

 

[Trackman]

Jonathan, the giant tortoise, the world's oldest living land animal 'is alive' after getting caught up in alleged crypto scam​

what a headline!

http://news.sky.com/story/jonathan-the-giant-tortoise-the-worlds-oldest-living-land-animal-is-alive-after-getting-caught-up-in-alleged-crypto-scam-13527112

A giant Seychelles tortoise, believed to be the world’s oldest living land animal, is alive and well after claims he had died turned out to be part of an alleged crypto scam.

Posts emerged on Wednesday claiming Jonathan, who is thought to be 193 years old according to the official website devoted to him, was dead.

Reports of his demise were posted on X by the account @JoeHollinsVet, named after Joe Hollins, a vet who has taken care of Jonathan and previously spoken of his experiences.



The message read that he was "heartbroken" to announce that the "beloved" creature "has passed away today peacefully".

Describing himself as Jonathan's "vet for many years", he said: "Rest easy, old friend. You'll be missed more than words can say" and later thanked people "for the outpouring of love for Jonathan as we mourn his passing".


But the Friends of the British Overseas Territories, quoting the island's governor, Nigel Phillips, said "the real Joe Hollins does not have an X account, and that Jonathan the tortoise is alive. This account is soliciting crypto donations, has recently changed its username".

Mr Phillips "has confirmed Jonathan Tortoise is alive and well - he has just checked on him", he added.

 

[styles]

Jonathan, the giant tortoise, the world's oldest living land animal 'is alive' after getting caught up in alleged crypto scam​

what a headline!

http://news.sky.com/story/jonathan-the-giant-tortoise-the-worlds-oldest-living-land-animal-is-alive-after-getting-caught-up-in-alleged-crypto-scam-13527112

I wonder if such an animal has recollection of the difference between the environment they grew up in 200 years ago, and today. I mean it's a sheltered life living at a governor's house, but even then there must've been changes - something random like maybe 100 years ago they'd blow a bugle every morning and now they don't.

 

[edwin_m]

This must have been run by a shell company, before the whole thing turned turtle.

 

[Gloster]

I wonder if such an animal has recollection of the difference between the environment they grew up in 200 years ago, and today. I mean it's a sheltered life living at a governor's house, but even then there must've been changes - something random like maybe 100 years ago they'd blow a bugle every morning and now they don't.

I have never seen a tortoise play a bugle.

 

[D6130]

I have never seen a tortoise play a bugle.

Nor have I....but I've seen a couple of them having sex and making noises not unlike a certain wind instrument. Mind, Jonathan may be slightly long-in-the-tooth for that nowadays....especially if he doesn't have a female companion!

 

[weepingwillowb]

Guy Pratt (Pink Floyd, Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets) has a new musical interest - bell ringing.

"He's a rock star who has toured the world and worked with some of the biggest stars in music, but now former Pink Floyd bassist Guy Pratt wants to "properly embrace village life" with his new hobby - bell ringing.
Pratt moved near Alfriston, East Sussex, three years ago and discovered bell ringing sessions at St Andrews Church.
The 64-year-old said: "Bell ringing really struck a chord, I thought that's a really wonderful thing to do being part of the community and it's musical. I'm a terrible worrier of things dying out, so I thought I'd come and try it out." "

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg544vzz2emo

 

[Ashley Hill]

Guy Pratt (Pink Floyd, Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets) has a new musical interest - bell ringing.

"He's a rock star who has toured the world and worked with some of the biggest stars in music, but now former Pink Floyd bassist Guy Pratt wants to "properly embrace village life" with his new hobby - bell ringing.
Pratt moved near Alfriston, East Sussex, three years ago and discovered bell ringing sessions at St Andrews Church.
The 64-year-old said: "Bell ringing really struck a chord, I thought that's a really wonderful thing to do being part of the community and it's musical. I'm a terrible worrier of things dying out, so I thought I'd come and try it out." "

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg544vzz2emo

Hopefully not the Division Bell.
I recommend he watches the Shillingbury Blowers.

 

[brad465]

If this guy was one of the multiple choice options to a question on The Chase, Bradley Walsh would be leaving the studio on a gurney hooked up to an oxygen mask:

Life as a Mycock: What it's like to have an unfortunate surname

For years, Andy Mycock didn't know others found his surname funny. Now, he's the one making the jokes.

www.bbc.co.uk

Surnames: they're a key part of our identities.
They're how we remember other people and how they remember us. But for those of us born with, well, unfortunate surnames, life can bring unique challenges.
My name is Andy Mycock. Go on: now's your time to laugh.
I'm an academic (yes, I'm Dr Mycock) and much of my adult life has been shaped by my surname - covering up name tags, mumbling my name and trying to beat people to the inevitable joke. But I've had enough, and it's time for a change. I'm beginning a journey 58 years in the making.
I'm going to learn to love Mycock.
For the first 18 years of my life, I had no idea my surname was funny. I grew up in Buxton, a market town in Derbyshire, where Mycock is a popular name. There are more than 2,000 in the UK, give or take.
We're all said to have descended from Solomon Mycock, a 19th Century farmer and publican in Buxton - there's even a temple in his name at the top of the hill in the town. So growing up as Andy Mycock, I definitely didn't stand out.

My life changed profoundly when I moved to Salford to go to university. On my first day, I quickly noticed that people laughed at my name when I was enrolling for my course, collecting my Students' Union card, and opening a student bank account.
For the first time in my life, I shrank with embarrassment. I realised my new life in the city would see me become the butt of many people's jokes.
On a daily basis, when phoning my bank or mobile phone provider, or going to a shop to pick up a parcel, I know someone is either going to laugh openly in my face or pull that wonderful face where they're trying not to laugh. You can never quite relax, because you're always just waiting for the raise of the eyebrow, the suppressed guffaw, the uninvited joke, whatever.
In the digital world, I have difficulties too: filling out online forms or setting up an email address can see my name rejected and the emails I send often go into spam folders. Searching for my surname is banned on some social media platforms.
My mother Patricia had a dreadful time when she took on the surname. Her joy of divorcing my father was twofold as she not only left a somewhat feckless husband, but also de-Mycock-ed herself.
Oddly, I grew up through my entire childhood with my father's surname - a man I did not meet until I was 19 years old.
My sisters changed their surnames as soon as they turned 16. I often thought about it too, particularly when I started to connect with the world outside Buxton and came to realise the cost of every social interaction.

 

[styles]

If this guy was one of the multiple choice options to a question on The Chase, Bradley Walsh would be leaving the studio on a gurney hooked up to an oxygen mask:

Life as a Mycock: What it's like to have an unfortunate surname

For years, Andy Mycock didn't know others found his surname funny. Now, he's the one making the jokes.

www.bbc.co.uk

Surprised that in this entire article, the BBC didn't detail the meaning of the name, which appears to be son of Michael.

I don't think I'm tied enough to my surname to refrain from just changing it given the circumstances.

 

[High Dyke]

BBC News - Otter caught by vets after Closeburn garden centre 'break-in' - BBC News

Otter caught by vets after Closeburn garden centre 'break-in'

A fishing net had to be used to capture the "challenging beast" in a south of Scotland store.

www.bbc.co.uk

Vets had to be called out to help capture an otter after it staged a daring daylight "break-in" at a garden centre in the south of Scotland.

Craig Williamson, from the garden centre, told BBC Scotland News that CCTV showed the otter coming in at about 12:30 on Monday.

"It was a challenging beast to contain as it outsmarted us when trying to contain it into a smaller space to capture it," said Craig.

"After a good 20 minutes it was caught by a fishing net.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

Crocodile ambles into Zimbabwe hotel in search of food​

The 4m-long reptile climbed out of the River Zambezi and headed for the kitchen after finding the buffet restaurant closed.

The Times - Crocodile

A video clip with the article shows a crocodile walking across the lobby then climbing onto (and seemingly over) the reception desk.
The video clip is streaming on The Times website outside of the paywall.

 

[PG]

This morning, we had a stag casually waiting for the train at Glenfinnan.

ScotRail - X
(Picture of a deer on the platform at Glenfinnan station)

Must have herd about the abolition of peak time fares

 

[MotCO]

ScotRail - X
(Picture of a deer on the platform at Glenfinnan station)

Must have herd about the abolition of peak time fares

You mean, they were too deer?

 

[edwin_m]

You mean, they were too deer?

No dear, only one deer, no i-deer why you think there was another one.

 

[brad465]

ScotRail - X
(Picture of a deer on the platform at Glenfinnan station)

Must have herd about the abolition of peak time fares

It's on its way to a stag do.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

ScotRail - X
(Picture of a deer on the platform at Glenfinnan station)

Must have herd about the abolition of peak time fares

Did it have an Antler bag with it?

 

[D1511]

Perhaps it was checking the rails for rutting......

 

[brad465]

Things are not looking "up" anytime soon:

World's biggest condom maker Karex set to raise prices due to Iran war

Malaysia-based Karex produces more than five billion condoms a year and supplies global brands like Durex and Trojan.

www.bbc.co.uk

The boss of the world's biggest condom maker, Karex, says the firm will raise its prices by up to 30% or possibly more if the Iran war continues to disrupt supplies of the raw materials used in its products.
Karex's chief executive Goh Miah Kiat told media outlets that production costs have risen sharply since the start of the conflict.
The Malaysia-based firm produces more than five billion condoms a year and supplies leading global brands like Durex and Trojan, as well as state health systems like the UK's NHS.
Goh made the comments in interviews with Reuters and Bloomberg. The BBC has contacted the company.
Global oil supplies have been severely disrupted since Iran responded to US and Israeli airstrikes with threats to target vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
That has effectively closed the waterway, causing huge disruptions to global supply chains.
Around a fifth of the world's crude oil and liquified natural gas (LNG) - as well as other petrochemicals - usually passes through the strait.
Karex relies on materials derived from oil, including ammonia - which is used to preserve latex - and silicone-based lubricants.
Demand for condoms has risen by about 30% this year, with higher freight costs and delays to shipping worsening shortages, Goh said.
"In bad times, the need to use condoms is even more because you're uncertain with your future, whether you'd still have a job next year," he told Bloomberg.
"If you have a baby right now, you'll have one more mouth to feed," he added.
The surge in condom prices underscores how the US-Israel war with Iran, which has already rocked the world's energy markets, is also pushing up prices of other goods for consumers.
The war has helped to trigger a surge in air fares, with the lowest-priced economy tickets costing 24% more on average than they did a year ago, according to new research.
Meanwhile, disruption to shipments through the Gulf has led to higher fertiliser prices and a shortage of helium, which is used to make computer chips.
The bottled water industry is also under pressure as manufacturers struggle to get hold of raw materials.
Earlier this month, the United Nations warned that sugar, dairy and fruit prices will climb due to the rising cost of transport.
The status of peace talks between the US and Iran remained unclear on Wednesday after President Donald Trump said he will extend a ceasefire between the two countries until negotiations have progressed.

 

[PG]

Things are not looking "up" anytime soon:

World's biggest condom maker Karex set to raise prices due to Iran war

Malaysia-based Karex produces more than five billion condoms a year and supplies global brands like Durex and Trojan.

www.bbc.co.uk

Trojan doesn't strike one as, er, the best name for a product providing a barrier to entry!

 

[AM9]

It's on its way to a stag do.

... or a hind weekend.

 

[edwin_m]

Things are not looking "up" anytime soon:

World's biggest condom maker Karex set to raise prices due to Iran war

Malaysia-based Karex produces more than five billion condoms a year and supplies global brands like Durex and Trojan.

www.bbc.co.uk

The BBC is a good site for the latex news.

 

[4COR]

Things are not looking "up" anytime soon:

World's biggest condom maker Karex set to raise prices due to Iran war

Malaysia-based Karex produces more than five billion condoms a year and supplies global brands like Durex and Trojan.

www.bbc.co.uk

Looks like there's little protection against rising prices...

 

[AM9]

Looks like there's little protection against rising prices...

Periods of inflation are testing times for that industry.

 

[Strat-tastic]

Periods of inflation are testing times for that industry.

They hope periods continue...

 

[brad465]

"Sorry can't park there mate!"

Trainee driver crashes bus into River Seine

The driver hit a parked car and veered off the road into the river - about 12 miles south of Paris - early on Thursday.

www.bbc.co.uk

A trainee drove a bus into the River Seine after hitting a parked car and veering off the road on Thursday morning, officials have said.
The local transport authority told the BBC the driver was nearing the end of her "practical learning" during the incident in Juvisy-sur-Orge, some 20km (12 miles) south of Paris.
Drug and alcohol tests have come back negative, a spokesperson said, and the cause of the incident is currently unknown.
L'Esson prefecture said all four passengers on board had been rescued from the water, where more than 90 firefighters, divers and police took part in a recovery operation.
A spokesperson for Île-de-France Mobilités said the driver was accompanied by a "lead driver" and two passengers.
Its president had ordered an internal investigation into the incident, it added.
Local politician Claire Lejeune wrote on X that the bus fell into the Seine "with four people on board, including a trainee driver" and thanked emergency services for their response.

 

[Ashley Hill]

That’s in seine!!

 

[MotCO]

Reminds me of when London Transport's Metro Scania single deckers started work on S2 to Clapton Pond, on the first day one ended up in the pond (MS 4, PGC 204L)!

 

[Howardh]

That’s in seine!!

You've just won the Internet today with that one!

 

[edwin_m]

They heard that London had introduced a bus service under the river, so Paris wanted one too.