Prison calendar a surprise hit 英「監獄日曆」意外大暢銷

A calendar featuring England's prisons has become an unlikely best-selling stocking filler for Christmas.

Strangeways, Wormwood Scrubs, Dartmoor and Pentonville, are among 12 institutions featured in Her Majesty's Prisons of England 2009, reports the Daily Telegraph.

It follows the surprise success of the Boring Postcard books which became an overnight success with its prints of motorway service stations, roundabouts and shopping centres.

The idea was dreamt up by Kevin Beresford, 56, from Worcestershire, whose fascination with the less aesthetically pleasing features of Britain have spawned a series of books and calendars.

The year begins with Wormwood Scrubs while the Victorian form of HMP Leicester, the all-male Nottingham prison, Long Lartin in Evesham and HMP Gloucester also feature.

"The calendar shows prisons from all over England from Hull to Dartmoor," said Mr Beresford. "It seems to appeal to all sorts of people although I've not had any orders from prisons yet.

"Every year you see the same calendars on the shelves, such as Jordan and Cliff Richard, so I decided to come up with something totally unique

"I'm a courier and everywhere I turn there seems to be a prison so I went up and down the country taking pictures and turned them into a calendar.

"It started off as a bit of a joke but the orders have been pouring in. I gave one to Jacqui Smith, who is MP in my hometown of Redditch, and she thought it was hilarious." (Daily Telegraph)

Man's pet 'dog' was rare fox 男子的寵物狗竟是稀有狐狸

A Chinese man was shocked to discover the dog he had raised from a pup was actually a rare Arctic fox.

Zhang, of Tunkou, bought what he thought was an all-white Pomeranian dog for £60 a year ago on a business trip.

But he found the dog hard to tame, it would often bite him and had several unusual traits, he told the Wuhan Evening Post.

"It can't bark but instead makes little 'em em' noises, and its tail has been growing longer and longer," he said.

"The most annoying thing is that starting this summer, the dog became very smelly. Even when we gave it a daily shampoo bath, the smell was still strong."

Zhang took his 'dog' to a local zoo for answers, and it turned out the dog is actually an Arctic fox, a protected rare species.

He has now donated the animal to the zoo. (Wuhan Evening Post)

Saddam's spicy wings 海珊的辣雞翅

A restaurant in China is using the image of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein to promote its spicy chicken wings.

The Passion Barbecue Chicken Wings, in Shenyang, says its seasonings are a challenge for customers, just like Saddam was to the US and UK.

It features a picture of the despot, who has tried and executed for crimes against humanity, outside the building and more pictures inside.

A restaurant spokeswoman told the Liao Shen Evening Post: "Saddam loved challenges, and eating our spicy chicken wings also requires courage, so it's a good match."

Passer-by Qian Lianghui said he found the sign funny because he could not figure out the relationship between chicken wings and Saddam.

And local elementary teacher Fu Lei said: "It's novel but clever, better than just using beautiful models on the sign."

But a social science researcher said the restaurant should focus more on the quality of its food service than "gimmicks". (Liao Shen Evening Post)

8,000 year old piece of string 英考古學家發現8000年前石器時代的繩子

Archaeologists have found a piece of string that is 8,000 years old.

The four-and-a-half inch long string was made from tough stems of honeysuckle, nettles or wild clematis twisted together.

Marine archaeologists discovered it when they found a flooded Stone Age settlement just off the coast of the Isle of Wight.

The team, led by Gary Momber of the Hampshire and Wight Trust for Maritime Archaeology, cut small blocks of the sea floor out for analysis after seeing the wooded remains of the settlement by chance.

The string was buried in one of them. The find is remarkable because the fibres, made of organic matter, would usually decay quite quickly.

Now the results have been published in British Archaeology magazine whose editor Mike Pitts described it as a "fantastic find".

He said: "I don't think the average person realises what an important piece of technology string has been over the ages." (British Archaeology)

Villagers flock to see 'stone flower' 村民蜂擁去看「石頭花」

Villagers in China are flocking to see a giant stone flower which they believe appeared in the woods after heavy rainfall.

Forestry rangers in Meilan village, Jinfeng town, say an elderly villager found the stone flower a month ago when he was collecting firewood deep in the forest.

And villagers have now built a path through the woods to the site because so many people have come to see it for themselves - even though experts have assured them it's a fossil.

Village head Ran Zaizhong says the site used to be buried by soil and forest until a heavy rain caused a mountain slide and made the stone flower suddenly appear.

“It’s a gift from nature,” said Ran, revealing that township officials are to protect and develop the stone flower as a local scenic attraction.

However, geologist Dr Meng Youyan, who studied pictures of the 'stone flower', says the so-called petals are in fact 300 million-year-old chert nodules. (ananova.com)

Sperm donor fathers 46 children 荷男子捐精生了46個小孩

A Dutchman who has fathered 46 children without having sex is said to be Europe's most committed sperm donor.

Ed Houben, who was until recently single but has now started a long-distance relationship, has never taken any payment for his services, reports the Daily Telegraph.

He first volunteered his services through an IVF clinic but had to stop a few years ago because he had reached his quota of 25 donations.

Now people find him on the internet and through word-of-mouth. Families he has helped vouch for him by telling of their own good experiences.

Mr Houben has travelled to hotels across Europe to perform his duties as a sperm donor, which is done by self-insemination by the mothers.

"I receive expenses and still travel to meet couples sometimes when it suits them," he said. "But generally people come here to see me."

Because each child will grow up knowing Mr Houben is their biological father, there is no danger of any of his offspring ever meeting and having a relationship.

A group of families including 12 of his children recently attended a reunion at Mr Houben's home.

"The kids had the chance to play with their half-brothers and sisters, which was nice," said Mr Houben. "The families also got to know each other.

"Some of them introduced me to the kids and said this is your real dad. But to be honest it didn't mean much to the children. They just looked at me and smiled and then carried on playing." (Daily Telegraph)

Woman calls police after hubby, 82, takes Viagra 82歲丈夫服用威而剛 太太報警

An 82-year-old Italian man who took a Viagra pill scared his wife so much she called the police.

Giovanni di Stefano, from Palermo, was so excited his wife thought he would have a heart attack and dialled 999.

"The police didn't do anything but their presence had the desired effect. He lost interest in his love life pretty quickly," said a family friend.

Terrified wife Carla, 69, told police: "He is 82-years-old and so I thought so much love could have lethal consequences." (ananova.com)

Couple wait for wedding to kiss 美一對情侶等到結婚才接吻

A Chicago couple have kissed for the first time - at their wedding.

Claudaniel Fabien, 30, and Melody La Luz, 28, teach abstinence courses in schools and wanted to practice what they preach, reports the Chicago Sun-Times.

So they agreed not to even touch lips until the minister said: "You may now kiss the bride" at their wedding.

"It was surreal," said Mr Fabien of the big moment. "It was like, my other self came out and said, 'Look dude, you're kissing her!'"

His bride described the kiss as "magical". "It feels like such a gift," she said. "When you value a kiss, it becomes something of worth."

The couple met on their way to a mission trip in Uganda in 2006. Miss La Luz had taken a seven-year vow not to date until June 2007, and the two lived in different cities, she in Chicago and he in Tucson.

After the trip, they talked on the phone, visited, and became friends. A year ago, Mr Fabien got a job in Chicago, and the two began dating. He proposed last July, writing "WYMM" in sand on a Miami beach. (Chicago Sun-Times)

Woman celebrates wrong birthday - 106 times 英婦女過了106年錯誤的生日

One of Britain's oldest women has been celebrating her birthday on the wrong day - for more than a century.

Lena Thouless, 106, a great-grandmother, from Bowthorpe, Norwich, has spent all her life celebrating her birthday on 23 November.

But detective work by her daughter, Lena Brooks, discovered she should have been blowing out the candles the day before, reports the Daily Telegraph.

Mrs Brooks, 55, also of Bowthorpe, was stunned to discover purely by chance that the extraordinary centenarian was actually born on 22 November.

She found her mother's birthday certificate and is baffled why the family has always marked the occasion a day late.

Mrs Brooks said: "We were quite surprised when we found it out. I have asked but no one in the family has any idea how the mishap occurred. But we still celebrate with mum on the 23rd as that's the day she has come to know as her birthday."

Mrs Thouless, whose great-grand-daughter Riesha Dayns, 17, works at the care home where she lives, said she had enjoyed having all her family come to see her on her special day.

Her grandson Tony Brooks, said: "She is a very special lady and we are really pleased we have been able to come and see her and celebrate with her." (Daily Telegraph)

Mr Christmas hit by credit crunch 「耶誕節先生」也受到不景氣衝擊

A man who has celebrated Christmas every day for the last 14 years says he's scaling back because of the credit crunch, it was revealed Nov. 24.

Andy Park, known as Mr Christmas, has celebrated every day with a full roast dinner, champagne, cards and presents.

But this year the 44-year-old electrician, from Melksham, Wiltshire, has to make swingeing cuts to keep his unique devotion to Yuletide on the road.

Divorced Mr Park said: "I've been through 37 electric ovens and worn out 23 video recorders by watching the Queen's Speech every day. I've also sent myself 235,206 Christmas cards. But these days the postage is so dear I'm having to deliver them myself.

"I'm not being tight but a few of the little extras are having to go. I'm only having one Christmas tree this year, instead of two, and I'm cutting back on the Christmas lights because of energy bills.

"I used to get a 14lb turkey, now I'm going for a 9lb one. I refuse to compromise on champagne and always have Moet, but now I'm having to make it last two days."

Every morning since July 14 1994, the father of one has breakfasted on mince pies and sherry, before opening the presents he has bought for himself. Then he eats a full roast turkey lunch and watches the Queen's Speech on video.

Mr Park said: "I'll never forget the day it started. The sun was shining, but I was just feeling fed up and bored, so I went home and put the decorations up. Suddenly I was happy. I thought this is fun. So I did it again the next day, and the day after that.

"People do think I'm crackers, but I enjoy treating myself and I'm the only one in the world who does it. When people come to my house it turns a sad face into a smiling one, and the happiness stays with them."

Mr Park is hoping he will be able to afford the £70,000 an undertaker has quoted him for a Christmas funeral, with a sprout-filled coffin, mourners dressed as Father Christmas and Noddy Holder singing Merry Christmas Everybody. (metro.co.uk)

Karaoke cabbie 卡拉OK計程車

A Chinese taxi driver says business is booming since he installed a karaoke machine in his cab for customers.

Fan Xiaoming spent £600 on three flat screens, 16 speakers, amplifiers and disco lights, reports New Culture Daily.

And he says takings have shot up since he transformed his cab into what he calls "Changchun's only karaoke cab" last month.

"Many people ask for my number for their next trip," he said. "And sometimes they even ask me to take a longer route so they can spend more time singing."

Fan says the passengers' singing doesn't distract him from driving, since he already knows all the songs and it's just like listening to the radio.

"I only sing during my lunch break with some cab driver buddies," he added.

Fan, a cab driver for nine years, said he had always harboured ambitions to be a singer himself, but never had the time as he was always behind the wheel.

"Then one day I suddenly thought, since I spent most of my time in the taxi, why not install a karaoke machine in the cab?" (New Culture Daily)

Cambridge University's page three girl 劍橋大學的第三頁女郎

A Cambridge University student magazine has printed a picture of a topless female student on page three.

The unnamed student was photographed in a black lacy thong and stockings straddling one of the city's historic bridges.

She agreed to pose for the latest edition of Vivid Magazine, which is published by a group of students once a term, reports the Daily Telegraph.

The page three photo shoot was done on Clare College bridge, which goes over the River Cam and is visited by thousands of tourists each year.

It is the first time a student has appeared topless in a University publication and it has caused an outcry.

One student from King's College said: "I can't believe she agreed to pose for the magazine. Everyone has been talking about it. I'm sure she must really regret it now."

Another student, from Clare College, who did not want to be named, added: "Lots of students and professors have seen this. It's a very risky thing to do when you are studying at one of the top universities in the country."

The model, from Homerton College, who is pictured anonymously in the magazine, has declined to comment on reactions to the photo. Vivid's editors also refused to offer a statement.

The magazine is largely constituted of comment pieces of a political and satirical nature.

The magazine is distributed to all the university colleges. It has featured "page three" girls before but none have been as explicit. (Daily Telegraph)

Entrepreneur uses plastic prostitutes to advertise garden gnome business 創業青年用塑膠妓女來促銷「花園地侏」軟體

A Romanian entrepreneur has come under fire for putting plastic prostitutes on the street to advertise his garden gnome business.

Neighbours in Lilieci, Bacau county, complain the realistic figures distract motorists and are an unsuitable sight for local children.

Cristi Birgu, 27, who has just set up his business, defends his "aggressive advertising" and says the dummies will remain outside his house to drum up trade.

Apart from garden gnomes and prostitutes, he makes reproductions of Laurel and Hardy, Elvis, sports stars, cartoon characters and animals.

Mr Birgu said: "So far, my girls have attracted a lot of beeping from truck drivers but not too many customers. Sometimes I am afraid somebody might have an accident, arrested by the view, you know."

Resident Gheorghe N said: "I don't think it's moral to display such objects on the street.

"They are a bad influence especially for children not to mention there are a lot of people with respect for God here and who don't tolerate such things." (ananova.com)

Depressed parrot on prozac 主人過世後得憂鬱症的鸚鵡服用百憂解

A depressed parrot is taking prozac after the death of the man who raised him from a chick.

Fred got the blues after the death of George Dance nine months ago, reports The Sun.

The African Grey bit all his neck feathers off and bobbed his head up and down all day.

Animal experts believe he went into a deep depression because he could not understand why George had disappeared.

But a twice-daily liquid dose of a bird-friendly version of Prozac, called Clomical, has put him back on his perch.

George's widow Helen, of Somerset, said: "He has been in quite a state since my husband died. Fred was very close to George and became depressed."

Experts say tropical birds are very emotional and the number needing anti-depressants is rising.

Fred is featured on a Cutting Edge show called Special Needs Pets on Channel 4. (The Sun)

US space-funeral company plans to launch lunar cemetery 美國太空葬禮公司計畫在月球設立公墓

A US funeral business that specializes in launching cremated human remains into Earth's orbit has begun taking reservations for landing small capsules of ashes on the moon, announced the company's founder.

"Celestis' first general public lunar mission could occur as early as 2010 and reservations are now being taken," said Charles M. Chafer, Celestis founder and president, in an email to AFP.

"We can send up to 5000 individual capsules to the lunar surface," he said.

The company hopes to install a cemetery on the lunar surface to hold cremated remains of the dead, or a smaller symbolic portion of them, which one day could be visited by relatives of the deceased, said Chafer.

For transportation, Celestis has made deals with two other US private space companies, Odyssey Moon and Astrobotic Technology, which are currently working on making commercial flights to the moon.

For sending a tiny, one gram portion of cremated remains to the moon, the company charges 9,995 dollars, according to Celestis' website.

Other funeral services besides the full lunar trip include sending ash into Earth's orbit -- the cheapest option, starting at 700 dollars -- and all the way up to launching remains far, far away into deep space, for which the company charges more than 37,000 dollars.

The latter option is expected to be available from 2011, after the development of a special capsule to hold the remains, the company said.

Ten years ago NASA paid tribute to top US astronomer Eugene Shoemaker by carrying into space a portion of his cremated remains.

After a year in lunar orbit Shoemaker's remains were intentionally planted on the moon's south pole, the first time human remains have been landed on the lunar surface -- but maybe not the last time. (AFP)

Tractor bucket wedding 在牽引機鏟斗中舉行空中婚禮

A Chinese couple got married in mid-air in two tractor digger buckets.

The idea was to honour a tradition in Xi'an that the bride's feet shouldn't touch the ground during the journey from home to the ceremony, reports Huashang Daily.

Organiser Fan Yalin said the usual way of following the tradition was for the groom to carry the bride in his arms from the car.

But as the groom sells heavy machinery for a job, his colleagues came up with the idea of having them stand in two tractor buckets.

The bride and two bridesmaids were in one and the husband and two best men in the other.

The couple said they loved the novel ceremony, describing it as "dangerous but sweet".

While one guest, a Ms Yang, was quoted as saying: "It was really cool to have a tractor bucket marriage. Very interesting." (Huashang Daily – 陝西「華商日報」)

Nudists want their own polling booth 天體人士想要有自己的投票所

A nudist resort in Florida has had a request for a naked polling booth for the US election turned down.

Naturists at Caliente Resort, near Tampa, asked Pasco County elections officials to set up a clothing-optional polling place for their community.

Resort spokeswoman Angye Fox insisted it was a serious request, reports the St. Petersburg Times.

"It's about freedom," she insisted. "People take their civic duty seriously and in many cases nudism is a very serious part of their lifestyle."

But Brian Corley, Pasco's supervisor of elections, dismissed the request as a publicity stunt.

"I think they're just doing some marketing hype," said Corley, adding he heard there was a news release by Caliente touting its request.

Corley said the request came a few weeks ago, and there's not enough time to set up a new polling place for this election. Even for 2010 would be difficult, he said.

County Commissioner Pat Mulieri, whose central Pasco district includes the resort, doubted the need for a new precinct.

"They can do absentees," she said. "They can do early voting - I mean, they do leave the place." (St. Petersburg Times)

Man glued to toilet, taken to hospital 男子被強力膠黏在馬桶後送醫

A man had to be taken to hospital still attached to a toilet after super-glue was deliberately smeared on the seat.

Firefighters were unable to free the man and were forced to remove the stainless steel toilet with the man still attached.

The 35-year-old was in a public toilet cubicle in Brierley Hill in the West Midlands when he became stuck, reports the BBC.

He was taken to hospital where doctors had to get into the ambulance before using chemicals to free him.

An ambulance service spokesman said: "He appeared to be none the worse for his ordeal other than being understandably somewhat embarrassed."

It is thought the glue had been smeared on the toilet seat by a prankster.

An ambulance crew and a rapid response vehicle attended the scene but they were unable to free the man.

"With the help of a local authority and the fire and rescue service, the man was removed from the cubicle still attached to the stainless steel toilet," the spokesman said.

The toilet was later taken back to the public convenience and re-installed. (BBC)

Driver follows sat-nav into lake 駕駛人照著衛星導航指示駛入湖中

A Polish driver steered his mini bus straight into a lake - after his sat-nav told him to.

Stunned police got a frantic call from the bus driver as he called from the Mercedes van screaming that he and his two passengers were drowning.

"A man phoned in panic from his mobile phone. He managed to say that he had driven into a lake and he was sinking fast," said police spokesman Marcin Guzenda in Glubczyce, south west Poland.

"He said he had two passengers but he couldn't open the doors - and then he got cut off."

Police, fire and ambulance services rushed to the lake and found the driver and his passengers perched on the top of the mini-bus's roof.

The trio were taken to hospital after the accident but released after treatment for shock.

"There used to be a road there until last year until the local water company flooded the valley to build a new reservoir lake," said one police source.

"It seems that the GPS hadn't been updated and was still showing a usable road running through where the lake now is. It's a huge lake and it's hard to imagine how you could ignore or not see it, but he certainly managed it.

"The driver had such faith in his sat-nav that he didn't even notice all the traffic signs saying the road had been closed," they added. (Ananova.com)

Walking house 會走路的房子

They say it would make the ultimate home for beating floods or neighbours from hell, reports the Daily Telegraph.

The 10ft high home is solar and wind powered and can stroll at walking pace across all terrains. It has a living room, kitchen, toilet, bed, wood stove and mainframe computer which controls the legs.

The pod is set to take its maiden stroll around rural Cambridgeshire at the Wysing Arts Centre in Bourn. It was built by art collective N55 in Copenhagen, Denmark, in conjunction with engineers at MIT in Massachusetts, USA.

N55 artist Oivind Slaatto, who says he was inspired by meeting Romany travellers in Cambridgeshire, plans to live in the house when it returns to Copenhagen.

"This house is not just for travellers but also for anyone interested in a more general way of nomadic living," he said.

Designers say it provides a solution to the problem of rising water levels as the house can simply walk away from floods.

The prototype cost £30,000 to build, including materials and time, but the designers believe it could be constructed for a lot less. (Daily Telegraph)