Clare's Collection of Unusual Tales and Pictures

[Dark One]

Bond plane haunted

Crew on the James Bond film Casino Royale have refused to get on a stunt jumbo jet - because it's haunted.

The workers fear the 747 is protected by the spirit of a passenger who died from a heart attack on board.

Crew say the lights and warning systems have come on during filming - even though the jet has no power.

Crew also claim to have seen the woman's ghost gliding up and down the aisles of the 30-year-old plane.

According to The Sun one worker said: "We were asked to stay on it overnight for one scene, but several of the crew refused.

"Some won't get on board at all because of the ghost. It's been a real problem."

The de-commissioned £2million former South African Airways jumbo is due to appear in several scenes.

The plane is kept at Dunsfold Aerodrome at Cranleigh, Surrey.

Spokesman David McAllister said: "I cannot discuss the film but I am aware of the plane being haunted. Everyone knows the story."

[Clare]

www.smh.com.au/news/world/raw-gulls-keep-trio-alive/2006/08/17/1155407925193.html

Raw gulls keep trio alive for nine months
SMH Online 17.8.06

Three Mexican shark fishermen survived nine months at sea in a small boat by eating raw birds and fish and drinking rain water as they drifted thousands of kilometres across the Pacific Ocean.

The fishermen said they left their home town of San Blas on Mexico's Pacific coast last November and were blown 8,000km off course after their 8-metre fibreglass boat ran out of gas and they were left to the mercy of the winds and the tides.

Their families had given them up for dead but they found a way to survive.

"We ate raw fish, ducks, sea gulls. We took down any bird that landed on our boat and we ate it like that, raw," said Jesus Vidana, one of the three survivors, in an interview with a Mexican radio station from the ship that rescued them.

The odyssey finally ended when Vidana and the other two men, identified as Salvador Ordonez and Lucio Rendon, were rescued last week by a Taiwanese tuna fishing trawler in waters between the Marshall Islands and Kiribati.

"They were very skinny and very hungry," Eugene Muller, the manager of the fishing company that found them, said today.

The three men were sunburned but were otherwise in good shape. Vidana said he and his crew mates always believed they would be found.

"We never lost hope because we were always seeing boats.

They passed us by, but we kept on seeing them. Every week or so, sometimes we'd go a month without seeing one, but we always saw them so we never lost hope."

It was not clear why none of the boats stopped for the Mexicans earlier on, and they were lucky to be picked up in the end because they were fast asleep and only noticed the rescue boat was coming for them when they heard its engine.

Details of the extraordinary journey were sketchy, in part because of language difficulties between the Mexican fishermen and the Taiwanese trawler crew.

The first reports were that they had been lost for three months, and Muller said he thought they were drifting for 11 months.

Vidana and relatives in San Blas said they set out on their dramatic fishing trip last November.

Muller said he understood that there were five men aboard the boat when it set out from San Blas, and that two of them jumped overboard a few days into their ordeal. But Vidana made no mention of any missing fishermen.

In San Blas, relatives and friends of the fishermen had given up hope and were astonished to hear of their survival.

"I lived so sad ... Now that I know my grandson is alive, I just want him to come home," Francisca Perez, the grandmother of Lucio Rendon, told the Televisa news station."

"There are no words to express it. The emotion here is very strong because we thought they were dead," said Efrain Partida, a fellow fisherman from the small village.

Mexico's government is sending an official to meet the survivors in the Marshall Islands when the trawler that picked them up returns to port in a couple of weeks. The government will then help them return home.

Reuters

[Dark One]

I couldn't imagine having to eat a raw seagull...!

Binmen get rid of luggage

A man who had just returned home from holiday had his luggage thrown away by dustmen.

Phil Newbon from Spalding, Lincs, left his luggage on the pavement as he returned home when he glanced back he realised it was being crushed by grinders inside the back of their dustcart.

His clothes, mobile phone, sat-nav, digital camera and gifts for family and friends were destroyed. Even his duty free was being crunched up.

Phil, who says the total value was £1,600, said: "I couldn't believe my eyes. I only left my bags there while I chatted to a pal after getting a lift back from the airport.

"Then they were gone and everything was being smashed to pieces. I thought I was being set up for a TV stunt. The council told me people often leave suitcases out for collection and I'm sure that's true.

"But I doubt they have 25kg of luggage inside, tags still attached and a bag of hand luggage and duty-free next to them."

Phil is now trying to get compensation from South Holland council, Lincs, but says he has been told he will not get a penny.

According to The Sun a council spokesman said: "The matter is under investigation."

[Dark One]

Hunt for ugly sheep

Australian farmers are being asked to report any ugly sheep found in the flock.

Scientists want to study the sheep so they can improve the wool quality of the prized merino variety.

The "Xtreme sheep" campaign was launched after only 10 ugly lambs were spotted in this year's lambing season.

Scientists at the South Australian Research and Development Institute say the "random genetic mistakes" in ugly lambs can speed up the search for the genes critical in good wool making.

Sardi project leader Simon Bawden said lambs with "extreme and even undesirable features" can help unlock the merino's genetic library and "identify superior wool qualities".

The ugly markers include falling clumps of wool, wrinkled skin, odd fibres or no wool at all reports news.com.au.

Bawden said that by using DNA technology, scientists could help give wool more advantages in the competition with synthetic fibres by making it less scratchy and more shiny and stretchy.

[Dark One]

Dutch architect creates floating bed

A Dutch architect has created a floating bed.

The floating bed has been designed by architect Janjaap Ruijssenaar and costs 1,2 million euro.

To help keep the bed off the floor, there are magnets built into the floor and the bottom of the bed. Thin steel cables keep the bed in place.

Ruijssenaars has been working for 6 years on the project.

Ruijssenaars took inspiration for the bed from the mysterious monolith in Stanley Kubrick's film "2001: A Space Odyssey."

Ruijssenaar admits there are a few teething problems. He said: "It's lacking a bit of comfort."

He also advised that people with piercings should not get between the bed and the floor because their piercings could be affected by the magnets.

[Dark One]

Lion Mutilates 42 Midgets in Cambodian Ring-Fight


Spectators cheered as entire Cambodian Midget Fighting League squared off against African Lion

Tickets had been sold-out three weeks before the much anticipated fight, which took place in the city of Kâmpóng Chhnãng.

The fight was slated when an angry fan contested Yang Sihamoni, President of the CMFL, claiming that one lion could defeat his entire league of 42 fighters.

Sihamoni takes great pride in the league he helped create, as was conveyed in his recent advertising campaign for the CMFL that stated his midgets will "... take on anything; man, beast, or machine."

This campaign is believed to be what sparked the undisclosed fan to challenge the entire league to fight a lion; a challenge that Sihamoni readily accepted.

An African Lion (Panthera Leo) was shipped to centrally located Kâmpóng Chhnãng especially for the event, which took place last Saturday, April 30, 2005 in the city’s coliseum.

The Cambodian Government allowed the fight to take place, under the condition that they receive a 50% commission on each ticket sold, and that no cameras would be allowed in the arena.

The fight was called in only 12 minutes, after which 28 fighters were declared dead, while the other 14 suffered severe injuries including broken bones and lost limbs, rendering them unable to fight back.

Sihamoni was quoted before the fight stating that he felt since his fighters out-numbered the lion 42 to 1, that they “… could out-wit and out-muscle [it].”

Unfortunately, he was wrong.

BBC News

[Dragon]

Wow, game men to take on a lion!
(no pun intended)

[Dark One]

Toddler told not to be sick

A woman was let off her parking ticket after her toddler was sick on the way to the car.

A parking ticket boss let Laurie Ward off the £30 fine but told her: "Please make sure your daughter only vomits within pay and display time."

Laurie, from Brighton, was not amused. She said: "It was an attempt at humour. This is not the way I expect to be treated by a public body."

She got the ticket after 21-month-old Rose threw up on the way to her car.

She appealed to Brighton council who sent her the reply.

According to the Mirror a spokesman said: "We apologise if any offence was taken."

[Dark One]

Ex-con tries to break back into jail

A young Austrian convict missed prison so much after his release that he tried to break back in.

Detlef Federsohn, 23, was released from the Josefstadt prison in the Austrian capital Vienna after serving two years for theft.

But he was arrested last week when police were called out to a suspected prison break after he was spotted on the roof of the jail.

Federsohn said: "Life is so much easier on the inside. They feed you, do your washing and let you watch TV, which I can tell you is a lot more than my mum does. So I thought if I could sneak back in I would blend in with the others and the screws wouldn't notice."

[Dark One]

Crashed car gets parking ticket

A parking warden has been criticised for writing out a ticket for a car - after it had been involved in a crash.

The VW Golf was slapped with a £100 fixed penalty fine within hours of the accident.

Amazingly, the stranded car was given another ticket the next day by the same warden.

Passerby James Pennant said: "I was flabbergasted. The VW was clearly undriveable and the car it hit was on the other side of the road.

"It was obviously the scene of an accident. Someone could have been killed or badly injured - but that didn't stop him writing out a ticket. I told the warden what he was doing was atrocious but he just told me to go away."

It is believed no one was hurt in the accident in Barkingside, Essex.

A spokesman for parking firm APCO A apologised and said the tickets would be cancelled.

According to the Mirror he added: "When the attendant arrives for his next shift he will be asked why on earth he did what he did."

[Dark One]

Land trip to Oz to cut pollution

A woman is travelling 9,770 miles to be a bridesmaid at a wedding in Australia because she does not want to boost pollution by flying.

Barbara Haddrill's six-week journey will cost her £2,000, reports the Mirror.

She says it will produce only 1.4 tonnes of carbon dioxide instead of 5.2 tonnes if she flew.

She said: "I could never fly, it wouldn't be right. It's a challenge going overland. But it's worth it knowing I'm not harming the planet. I just hope I get to the church on time."

Barbara, 28, plans to travel 1,560 miles by bus to Moscow. From there, she rides the Trans-Siberian railway 3,600 miles to Beijing where she gets on a train for Singapore 2,770 miles away. Once there she boards a boat for final destination Brisbane 3,840 miles away.

Barbara, who lives in a caravan in a forest, works on alternative technology in Machynlleth, Powys.

She has not yet planned her journey back.

She vowed: "Definitely no planes. I'll find a different route."

[Dark One]

Tom and Jerry not allowed to smoke

Classic cartoons are to have smoking scenes cut out.

Politically correct TV chiefs made the decision as kids' channel Boomerang after Ofcom investigated a complaint.

The complaint about Tom and Jerry said scenes in which Tom smoked a roll up in one episode and a rival cat smoked a cigar in another were inappropriate for young viewers.

According to The Sun Ofcom said: "We recognise that these are historic cartoons, mostly produced in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, at a time when smoking was more generally accepted.

"The smoking usually appears in a stylised manner and it is frequently not condoned, but the level for editorial justification required for the inclusion of smoking in such cartoons is necessarily high."

[Dark One]

JCB breaks speed record

A car made by JCB has broken its own diesel land speed record by reaching over 350mph.

The JCB Dieselmax reached the speed during two runs on the Bonneville salt flats in Utah, USA.

The Staffordshire-built vehicle was driven by Wing Commander Andy Green from RAF Wittering in Cambs.

The previous diesel land speed record is 236mph (380km/h), set in August 1973 reports the Guardian.

The Dieselmax car is powered by two turbo-charged JCB engines built at the company's plant at Rocester.

Wing Cdr Green completed a first run with an average speed of 365.779mph and returned at 335.695mph to set the latest record.

He said: "Fantastic. A second record in 24 hours, which I don't believe has been done since the 1960s.

"The car has still got loads to give. I throttled back on the second run and we haven't even used sixth gear yet, so the car can still go faster."

[Dark One]

No stripping allowed at funerals

Authorities in China are stopping strippers from performing at funerals.

It comes after five striptease troupe bosses were arrested in east China's Jiangsu Province after "obscene performances" at a funeral, according to the Xinhua agency.

The arrests, in Donghai county, followed striptease acts at a farmer's funeral, the agency said.

Two hundred people were said to have attended the event.

A source said: "Striptease used to be a common practice at funerals in Donghai's rural areas to allure viewers.

"Local villagers believe that the more people who attend the funeral, the more the dead person is honoured."

Residents are encouraged to report "funeral misdeeds" on a hotline, earning a reward for information.

[Dark One]

Tongue made from buttocks
A Polish man who had his tongue removed has had a new one made using tissue taken from his buttocks.

Jarislav Ernst, 23, from Gliwice, now has a functioning tongue made from his backside after surgery at the Oncology Clinic in Gliwice's General Hospital.

Head doctor Stanislaw Poltorek said: "The new tongue is alive and well-supplied with blood, and the patient is doing well."

Mr Ernst's tongue was removed after it was diagnosed with cancer.

Dr Poltorek added: "We removed the tumour-filled tongue, checking that there were no remaining cancerous cells around the patient's mouth, then collected skin, fat and nerve tissue from the man's buttocks and modelled that into a new tongue, which we sewed into his mouth."

[Dark One]

Girl, 13, wins eating contest

A 13-year-old girl has beaten three men to become Britain's corn on the cob eating champion.

Emily Cotterill ate 26 cobs in 20-minutes after she replaced her dad in the contest at the last minute, reports the Mirror.

As her middle-aged, male opponents began dropping out, the schoolgirl just carried on eating.

Mum Ann, 44, said: "The men were all big guys. We thought our little girl would have no chance, but she just kept going."

Emily, from Rainhill, Merseyside, admitted she had a rather un-ladylike recovery method during the contest in Stretton, Cheshire.

She said: "After 15, I felt a little ill but after belching that passed. I won't be looking at a cob for a while and I'm not sure I'll defend my title."

Dad Peter, 46, confessed: "I was going to enter but after seeing the size of the other guys I thought our Emily would do better. I was flabbergasted when she raised the cup."

[Dark One]

Moo-ar!

Phonetics experts have backed up dairy farmers' claims that cows moo with regional accents.

Dairy farmers in Somerset noticed a local twang to the sounds made by their animals, reports the Guardian.

John Wells, Professor of Phonetics at the University of London, said: "This phenomena is well attested in birds. You find distinct chirping accents in the same species around the country.

"This could also be true of cows. In small populations such as herds you would encounter identifiable dialectical variations which are most affected by the immediate peer group."

The phenomenon was noticed by members of the West Country Farmhouse Cheesemakers group, who put it down to the close bond between farmer and cow.

The group has also noted similar accent shifts in Midlands, Essex, Norfolk and Lancashire moos.

Farmer Lloyd Green of Glastonbury said: "I spend a lot of time with my ones and they definitely moo with a Somerset drawl."

[Dark One]

Mattel to sue over lesbian Barbie show

Toy manufacturer Mattel is reportedly threatening to sue a Brazilian artist for portraying Barbie as a lesbian.

Karin Schwarz's exhibition features pictures of Barbie in compromising situations, reports the Jornal de Sao Paulo newspaper.

Mattel has given the artist 24 hours to close down the exhibiton or they say they will take legal action.

But Ms Schwarz says she will not back down: "Barbie is exploited by Mattel. She wears a bikini, she shows off her belly, has big breasts, and even has a boyfriend," she said.

The exhibition, entitled Amazing Girls, is on show at a bar in the city of Curitiba.

A Mattel spokesperson said: "Barbie is a very proper lady and she is not happy about being portraited as something that she isn't.

"We are going to sue and we hope that this teaches people a lesson. Also, Barbie is 46 years old, she should be respected!"

[Dark One]

Homing pigeon's 5,000-mile wrong turn

A homing pigeon got lost and ended up 5,000 miles away from her British home - on a Caribbean island.

Judy changed course while flying in a 600-mile race from Bourges, northern France to Northumberland, reports the Sun.

Instead she landed in St Eustatius in the Dutch West Indies.

Owner John Stewart, 69, from Hadston, feared she had been lost forever until he heard she had been found.

He said: "I'm glad she's safe and in good hands - and probably having a lovely time.

"But I didn't half get a shock when I found out where she was. I'm quite jealous really.

"I wish I was in the Caribbean rather than in Northumberland.She's probably sunning herself on the beach."

Mr Stewart, a member of East Chevington Homing Society, reckons Judy must have hitched most of the way on a ship.

[Dark One]

Welsh 'whale vomit' rush

North Wales is facing a gold rush after 'whale vomit' was found washed up on its beaches.

Valuable ambergris - known as floating gold - has recently been found at Rhos on Sea and Shell Island, reports the Daily Post.

Finds can be worth around £2,000 - and they could lead to a gold rush among would-be beachcombers.

Ambergris is used to produce perfume and can fetch more than £10 a gram.

It is produced when the whale has been eating squid and their parrot-like beaks have irritated the walls of its innards.

Rarely recovered on British shores, ambergris is usually found on the coasts of the United States and Australia.

[Dark One]

Passenger tried to pass off thingy pump as bomb

A Chicago man told airport security he had a bomb in his luggage - because he didn't want his mum to know it was a thingy pump.

Mardin Azad Amin, 29, was questioned after security at the city's O'Hare Airport discovered a suspicious-looking object in his bag.

Amin, who was set to fly to Turkey, told security the object was a bomb, reports the Chicago Sun-Times.

In fact, he was trying to disguise the fact that the black object was a component for a thingy pump.

Amin eventually told investigators he'd lied because his mother was standing nearby and he didn't want her to know about it.

Amin faces up to three years in prison if convicted, said Andrew Conklin, a spokesman with the Cook County state's attorney's office.

[Dark One]

Woman lets dog drive car

A Chinese woman has been involved in a car crash - because she let her dog drive.

The accident happened in the city of Hohhot, capital of north China's Inner Mongolia region, Xinhua news agency reported.

The woman, named only as Li, decided to let her dog drive when she noticed how he was of crouching on the wheel.

She let the dog steer while she operated the accelerator and the brake.

The experiment resulted almost immediately in a collision with another car.

[Dark One]

Car takes over 6 years to be fixed

An Argentine pensioner is suing a garage who claim they have been fixing his car for the past six years.

Jose Orono, claims he took his Fiat 600, model 1970 to the repair shop in 2000.

But a week after the car was in the shop, the owner, told Mr Orono that he would need another 2 weeks to fix the car.

Mr Orono told Terras Noticias Populares: "It needed painting and some minor mechanical work.

"He kept making up excuses, one time he said his aunt had died and the other that his shop had been broken into."

"I wanted to be patient because I know his wife and kids, but enough is enough!"

[Dark One]

York's peace offer to Scots

Citizens of York are being asked to sign a treaty promising never to shoot Scots with a bow and arrow.

Under an ancient by-law, which has never been repealed, York people can "legally" shoot Scotsmen with a bow and arrow within the city walls.

But a couple from the city are walking 240 miles to Edinburgh to present the Lord Provost with a "peace treaty".

Ewan and Gill Main have asked York residents to sign their treaty in a bid to improve Anglo-Scottish relations, and raise money for Survive, a charity which helps child victims of sexual abuse, .

Each signatory must promise to never shoot a Scotsman with a bow and arrow, and to make Scots feel welcome in York.

Mr and Mrs Main will set off on September 8, and hope to arrive in Edinburgh two weeks later, reports the Scotsman.

[Dark One]

Pot plants found outside cop shop

A US news reporter uncovered a marijuana plantation - outside the front door of a police station.

Janna Goerdt, of the Duluth News Tribune, found 12 plants growing outside West Duluth police substation in Minnesota.

She heard a rival news team talking about "something interesting" in front of the police station and decided to check it out.

Goerdt took a walk around the building and found the marijuana plants. She plucked one of the leaves and brought it back to the newspaper.

"I needed some evidence," she said. "I didn't know if anyone would believe me. I didn't think it was a big deal. I just thought it was rather amusing."

Duluth City gardner Tom Kasper was given the leaf for inspection and confirmed that it came from a marijuana plant.

West Duluth police Lt John Beyer pointed out that he, his police officers and the public use the backdoor entrance to the police station. The front door was usually locked and not used.

"The only thing I can say is somebody has a sense of humour," Beyer said. "Now they'll read about it in the paper and say: "Yeah, that was me"."