« April 2009 | Main

Weird and Wonderful Weekly

May 16, 2009 5:32 PM

Bizarre Incidents, Quotes and People From Around the World

By GABRIEL O'RORKE, ABC News London

Quotes of the Week

"Super-balanced make-up. All over again, like painting a wall" -- instructions left in a cab on how to achieve the perfect natural look for … British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's make-up.

“Lusting after someone does wonders and is good for the skin” – advises actress/socialite Liz Hurley.

"Death to potatoes" -- a slogan adopted by campaigners against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the lead up to the Iranian election.

WWW News

No More Spinsters: This week in Tokyo, bra manufacturer Triumph unveiled the "marriage hunting" bra. The contraption comes complete with a countdown clock showing the marriage deadline, which must be set by the wearer. When the alarm goes off, the lucky man must insert an engagement ring in a carefully placed slot at which point the “The Wedding March" will play.

The Bling Police: The Gloucestershire Constabulary in England is asking members of the public to report anyone who looks especially glitz and glam. The police force hopes that in these tough economic times, criminals will stick out from the crowd if they flaunt their ill-gotten gains.

Caveman Erotic Art: A 35,000-year-old sculpture carved from a mammoth's tusk has been unveiled by archaeologists in Germany. The two-and-a-half-inch high ivory figurine depicts a woman with a swollen belly, wide-set thighs and large, protruding breasts. It was found in six fragments in Germany's Hohle Fels cave and is believed to be the world's oldest sculpture of the human form.

More in the Head, Better in Bed: Women who are more "emotionally intelligent" have more pleasure in the bedroom, say researchers at King's College London. The researchers believe there is a connection between pleasure and the ability to fantasize. Over 2,000 female twins were interviewed for the survey.

Facts and Figures

$9.4 million. The price fetched by a flawless vivid blue diamond weighing 7.03 carats at Sotheby's auction house.

180,000. The approximate number of Christians in Israel. 50,000 – the approximate number of Christians living in the occupied territories.

13 percent. The amount of anti-terrorism arrests that end in a conviction.

Read more blogs by Gabriel O'Rorke

Read more blogs by ABC News staff

May 16, 2009 in Gabriel O'Rorke | Permalink | User Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

Weird and Wonderful Weekly

May 08, 2009 9:39 AM

Bizarre Incidents, Quotes and People From Around the World

By GABRIEL O'RORKE, ABC News London

Quotes of the Week

"They wanted to call me grandpa but daddy is better, don't you think?" – Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, explaining the reason behind his nickname from an 18-year-old model who calls him Papi.

“Sometimes I wish I had a gold sovereign for every time that phrase is used … so I could put them in a sock to smack over the head the next person who says it.” – Stephen Fry got straight to the point when he told the Royal Geographical Society how he feels about being described as a “quintessential Englishman.”

“Isn’t it clear you’re just not up to the job? The public know it. Your party know it and now the cabinet knows it!” --  said David Cameron, leader of the Conservative Party, to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

WWW News

Stuck in the … Bath: Rosemarie Batey, a 49-year-old from County Durham, has sworn to lose weight after spending the night wedged in her bath tub. Batey was taking a shower when the bath cracked, and she slipped and got stuck. Her son found her the next morning and called firefighters who used an electronic saw to cut away the bath to free the naked victim.

Lone Porker: The only known pig in Afghanistan has been quarantined due to the recent outbreak of swine flu. Pigs are a curiosity in Muslim Afghanistan, because pork is illegal and considered sacrilegious. This little piggy from Kabul zoo normally spends his days munching on grass alongside deer and goats.

Official Misbehavior:
- The Ukrainian Interior Minister Yuri Lutsenko was prevented from boarding his flight at Frankfurt, Germany, airport and detained by police on the grounds of drunken and disorderly behavior. Meanwhile, in London a speed camera boss has been banned for speeding. Tom Riall, a senior executive, admitted to driving at 103 mph in a 70 mph limit zone.

Facts and Figures

$120 million. The cost of a typing error. Kenya's Finance Minister, Uhuru Kenyatta, told reporters that a typo was behind the six-digit inflation on funds for the 2008/09 fiscal year.

34 years old. The age of the man with the "best job in the world." Ben Southall, a British charity fundraiser, beat 34,700 entrants from 200 countries to become the caretaker of an Australian tropical island.

85 feet. The distance Philip German-Robin threw a biscuit. German-Robin, from Dorset, England, was named biscuit-throwing world champion.

Read more blogs by Gabriel O'Rorke

Read more blogs by ABC News staff

May 8, 2009 in Gabriel O'Rorke | Permalink | User Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)