Clare's Collection of Unusual Tales and Pictures

[Dark One]

Nine hurt in fight over pigeon

Five people ended up in hospital in Australia after a fight over a pigeon.

Four others were treated for minor injuries and all nine were spoken to by police in Melbourne.

Police were called after a fight broke out between two neighbouring families disputing the ownership of the pigeon.

The fight ended with five men taken to hospital with scratches, cuts, bumps and bruises to their heads and bodies.

The men were of varying ages, the eldest in his 50s or 60s, an ambulance service spokeswoman said.

A police spokeswoman said investigations were continuing and nine people were being spoken to over the incident

[Dark One]

Barbie gets a poop-scoop

Toy manufacturers have created a new pet for Barbie - a dog which does toy poos.

The £11.99 dog, called Tanner, is fed brown plastic “biscuits” which it then discharges from its backside.

Mattel has armed Barbie with a magnetic pooper-scoop and dustbin to clean up the mess, says the Sun.

[Dark One]

Tram driver fined for speeding

A tram driver in Melbourne has been given an on-the-spot fine after he was caught speeding.

A traffic policeman with a laser radar gun clocked the tram at 57km/h in a 40km/h zone, reports the Australian.

"It's the first time that a member has detected a speeding tram. He said it was quite unusual," a traffic police spokeswoman said.

The officer said the tram driver was "co-operative", the spokeswoman added. "There was no animosity," she said.

The driver was fined the equivalent of £85 and will lose three points from his normal driver's licence.

Yarra Trams spokesman Colin Tyrus said the driver also would be counselled by the company and would be subject to an internal disciplinary process.

"There's no exception for tram drivers to the speed limit," Mr Tyrus said.

[Dark One]

Tourists to be taught rap-style slang

London visitors are going to be able to learn rap-style slang to help them understand local teens.

Mayor Ken Livingstone has lined up free crash courses for tourists in London's Trafalgar Square.

The move comes after researchers revealed teenagers have swapped traditional c0ckney rhyming slang for a new dialect dubbed "Jafaican".

It mixes English, Jamaican patois, Indian and West African dialects and is officially called Multicultural English.

The language use of words such as "creps" for trainers, "yard" for home and "sick" or "nang" for good.

Visit London plan to set up a Festival Season Language School to give three-minute lessons tomorrow.

Five languages or dialects will be taught - Bengali, Spanish, Sign Language, c0ckney and Teen Slang.

According to The Sun a spokesman for Visit London said: "It's a celebration of our diversity. More than 250 languages are spoken in the city and some have blended together."

[Dark One]

'Have a day off - you're 100'

Britain's oldest worker has been ordered to take a day off by his bosses - to celebrate his 100th birthday.

Mechanic Buster Martin hopes to carry on working until he is 125, reports the Daily Mirror.

He had planned to mark his 100th with a pint at his local but colleagues arranged a VIP tour of Chelsea's Stamford Bridge stadium, where he will be presented with a shirt with 'Buster 100' on the back.

He has already retired once - three years ago when he gave up working on market stalls.

But after three months he got bored and found a part-time job as mechanic and valeter, helping maintain 100 vans for a plumbing firm in Pimlico, London.

Buster said: "Boredom is a big killer. I went back to work as I like to keep active. If I didn't work I would become the most miserable sod you have ever come across so I don't want to stop working."

Boss Charlie Mullins said: "We have quite a few old workers as I see experience as an asset. I know I'll never see a dirty van with Buster on the case."

[Dark One]

Pilot locked out of c0ckpit after loo break

A pilot who needed the toilet mid-flight found himself locked out of the c0ckpit when he tried to return.

The crew of the Air Canada Jazz flight had to remove the door from its hinges, reports the Ottawa Citizen.

The pilot left the c0ckpit to use the washroom at the back of the plane with about 20 minutes remaining of the two hour and 30 minute flight.

He left the flight's first officer in control of the plane and a flight attendant also remained in the c0ckpit.

But when the pilot returned, the door was stuck - or locked - and the pilot was unable to return to the flight deck.

For about 10 minutes, passengers described seeing the pilot bang on the door and communicating with the c0ckpit through an internal telephone.

Eventually, the crew forced the door open by taking the door off its hinges completely, and the pilot safely landed the plane.

Air Canada Jazz said the incident was a first for them but stressed the first officer was also fully qualified to land the aircraft.

The airline is conducting an internal investigation into the incident on a flight carrying 50 passengers from Ottawa to Winnipeg.

[Dark One]

News presenter's loo chat broadcast

CNN viewers were able to listen to a news presenter's conversation when her microphone was not switched off as she went to the loo.

Kyra Phillips conversation was broadcast live over a speech by US president George Bush.

According to the Guardian Unlimited she was heard praising her "passionate" husband.

During her conversation with the colleague she said: "I'm very lucky. My husband is handsome and he is genuinely loving - really passionate."

She also criticised her brother's wife, saying: "I've got to be protective of him. He's married, three kids and his wife is just a control freak."

CNN apologised for "audio difficulties".

[Cookie Lover]

Oh, one preist who was doing a sermon on Scotland had the same mic difficulties, he took a toilet break and didn't turn the mic off. The churchgoers could hear, and I quote, his 'every splash and sigh', unquote.

[Dark One]

Colourblind coach left red-faced

A German football coach is a laughing stock after mistaking the referee for one of his players and urging him to score.

Ralf Rangnick, 48, who coached Bundesliga sides Stuttgart and Schalke before taking over regional team TSG Hoffenheim, stood up and began yelling to one of his players to "move yourself".

But he was embarrassed to discover that the 'player' was actually the referee.

Rangnick said the mistake came from his colour blindness which makes it difficult for him to distinguish between red and green.

"We normally play in blue but were wearing our new red away jerseys and the referee was in dark green. I simply got them mixed up," he said.

[Dark One]

Bright sun delays train

Delayed rush hour commuters were told their trains had been held up because the sun was too bright.

Rail operator c2c said a train driver was held up at Laindon in Essex because he could not see in a mirror to check if anyone was getting in or out of carriages.

As well as causing hold ups to passengers on the train, those behind it on the line between Southend and Fenchurch Street in London were delayed for up to 30 minutes.

One puzzled commuter said: "This is the first time I've heard delays blamed on the sun - although I suppose it does make more sense UK trains would be less prepared for good weather than bad."

The rail company blamed the delays on a 'freak occurence' caused by the bright sun and the position of the mirrors on the platform.

A spokesman for c2c said: "Depending on which way the sun is shining and how bright it is, very occasionally it can provide a glare on the mirror which some drivers can't see past.

"In this case he couldn't see in the mirrors on the station. There are safety procedures which are put in place and that puts extra time on the journey."

Previous infamous excuses used by rail companies to explain delays on Britain's railways have included 'leaves on the line' in autumn and 'the wrong kind of snow' in winter.

[Dark One]

Diner leaves $10,000 tip

A US bartender was shocked to be given a $10,000 tip after serving a customer with a $26 meal.

Cindy Kienow's tip - the equivalent of £5,250 - worked out at more than 38,000% of the cost of the meal, reports the Hutchinson News.

Miss Kienow, who works at Applebee's Bar and Grill in Hutchinson, Kansas, said the man, in his mid-40s, was a regular.

"He usually signs his ticket and flips it upside down. But this time, he had it right side up and said: "I want you to know this is not a joke"."

She said he always tipped well, two weeks ago he left a $100 tip, but she was shocked when he left his latest tip by credit card.

"I couldn't move," she said. "I didn't know what to say. He said: "This will buy you something kind of nice, huh?" and I said: "Yeah, it will".

"I've been waiting on him for about three years. We'd just talk across the bar - he's a really nice guy. I hope he comes back in so I can tell him thank you, because the other day I was kind of dumb-founded."

Rhodri McNee, of JS Enterprises, the owner of the Hutchinson Applebee's, said the company was in the final stages of verifying the tip.

"Nothing would make us happier than to present her with that check," McNee said. "She's been with us for eight years, and she's a great employee who does a great job," he said.

[Dark One]

Taxi driver's sat nav gaffe

A taxi driver drove two teenage girls 85 miles in the wrong direction after keying the wrong name into his sat nav.

The girls asked the cabbie to take them from Bournemouth to Lymington, Hampshire - but ended up in Limington, Somerset, reports the Dorset Echo.

The East European taxi driver asked them to write down the address of the caravan park, then entered what they had written, 'Limington', on his car's satellite navigation system.

"He put it into his satnav and away he went. He thought he was doing the right thing," said United Taxis' manager Barry Gill.

After a 90-minute taxi ride he dropped the girls at a caravan park in Yeovil - three miles from Limington - and drove off after charging them an £80 fare.

The girls, from Plymouth, Devon, only realised they were in the wrong place after asking bemused locals where they could find their New Forest campsite.

Mr Gill added: "It was then they made contact with us and said: "We think we've been dropped in the wrong place"."

He immediately sent another car to pick them up and take them to Lymington.

"We kept in touch with the girls to make sure they were totally safe, and I personally phoned the father every half hour," said Mr Gill.

He said the original driver, who has not been named, had been made to refund the girls' taxi fare and the cost of sending out the second car and driver.

[Dark One]

Russians have sex while driving

Russians are Europe's worst drivers with 25% admitting to having had sex behind the wheel, according to a new survey.

The poll, by KRC Research and Goodyear, also found Russians do not use seatbelts, break speed-limits, drive through red lights, drive drunk and have sex while driving more often than other Europeans.

Some 36% of Russian drivers admit to regularly exceeding speed limits - the highest rate in Europe, the Delovoi Peterburg newspaper reported.

Russians talk on their mobile phones while driving more often than drivers in the other 14 European countries polled. And about 30% of those polled in Russia had driven drunk before.

Russians also do not pay enough attention to their physical condition when they are going to take the wheel. Only 9% of those polled across Europe will drive if they don't feel well, compared to 23% of Russians.

[Dark One]

'Telephone telepathy' does exist

A scientist claims 'telephone telepathy' - the feeling you get when you know someone is about to call - really does exist.

Parapsychologist Dr Rupert Sheldrake insists the phenomenon is not just coincidence.

In tests, he claims 45% of volunteers correctly "guessed" which of four randomly picked callers was about to phone them.

Repeated hundreds of times, the odds against this happening were "1000 billion to one", said Dr Sheldrake, from Cambridge University.

But his research, together with that of two other paranormal investigators, sparked huge controversy at the BA Festival of Science in Norwich.

Some leading members of the research community did not think they should have been allowed a platform at the meeting, organised by the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA).

Dr Sheldrake has previously spoken of his theory of "morphic fields" which he believes psychically connects people who have close relationships.

He said the new findings supported the idea that extra sensory perception works best between individuals with an emotional bond.

[Dark One]

Star Trek star nervous about space

Star Trek star William Shatner has reportedly turned down an offer to boldly go into space for real.

Shatner, who played Captain Kirk, is too nervous to take up Sir Richard Branson's offer of joining Virgin Galactic's first passenger flight in 2008, reports The Sun.

Shatner, 75, said: "I'm interested in man's march into the unknown but to vomit in space is not my idea of a good time.

"Neither is a fiery crash with the vomit hovering over me."

Shatner has been offered his £114,000 ticket free. But he insists Virgin boss Branson also pays him.

He added: "I do want to go up but I need guarantees I'll definitely come back."

Celebs like Alien's Sigourney Weaver have booked the two-and-a-half hour flight on the VSS Enterprise - named in tribute to Star Trek.

[Dark One]

Men pay high price to watch strippers

Thieves in Russia made off with dozens of luxury cars after their owners abandoned their vehicles to watch three women strip naked on a beach.

The trio took off their clothes and started washing each other at the man-made Balashikh beach on the Moscow River in the capital.

But as passing businessmen stopped and left their cars to watch the free strip show a gang of thieves made off with their luxury cars.

Once the cars had been stolen the girls picked up their clothes and escaped in a waiting van.

Police, who are now searching for the gang, said the thieves had made off with a string of BMWs and Mercedes.

[Dark One]

Men pay high price to watch strippers

Thieves in Russia made off with dozens of luxury cars after their owners abandoned their vehicles to watch three women strip naked on a beach.

The trio took off their clothes and started washing each other at the man-made Balashikh beach on the Moscow River in the capital.

But as passing businessmen stopped and left their cars to watch the free strip show a gang of thieves made off with their luxury cars.

Once the cars had been stolen the girls picked up their clothes and escaped in a waiting van.

Police, who are now searching for the gang, said the thieves had made off with a string of BMWs and Mercedes.

[Dark One]

Muggers pick wrong victim

Three teenage thugs ended up in hospital after trying to steal a junior kick-boxing and karate champ's mobile phone.

The trio, all aged 17, cornered Pauli Borchardt, also 17, as he made his way home from a friend's house in Hamburg, Germany.

After refusing to hand over his mobile phone, which he was using at the time to call his brother, the trio tried to take it by force.

But the amateur kick-boxing and karate champ floored all three of them before making it to his home on the same street.

One of the thugs was kept in hospital after a passer-by spotted them on the ground and called an ambulance. The other two were released after being treated for cuts and bruises.

Police, who initially went to arrest Borchardt after the trio told them a gang of lads led by the 17-year-old had attacked them with baseball bats, were soon put straight and are now investigating the three on suspicion of attempted robbery.

[Dark One]

Mice don't really like cheese

The Tom and Jerry cartoon image that mice love cheese is a myth, an academic has claimed.

Dr David Holmes, from Manchester Metropolitan University, said mice prefer foods with a lot of sugar, chocolate for example.

He said: "Mice respond to the smell, texture and taste of food. Cheese is something that would not be available to them in their natural environment and so not something they would respond to."

A mouse's natural diet is primarily made up of grains and fruit, both high in sugar.

The findings were part of a wider study into what foods attract and repel animals.

Researchers found a mouse's diet is primarily made up of grains and fruit.

They say a real mouse would turn its nose up at something as strong in smell and rich in taste as cheese.

[Dark One]

Grandson's card trick

An electrical engineer received a postcard from his grandson addressed simply to 'The Washing Machine Man'.

James Tungate, six, sent the card as a test while on holiday in Bude, Cornwall, reports the Daily Mirror.

The only address he wrote on it was 'The Washing Machine Man, Ixworth' - but his message still reached Gordon Palastanga at his Suffolk home 340 miles away.

It read: "Dear Granddad, We caught 57 crabs, from James."

And the lad's father Richard, 37, wrote at the top: "I bet the Royal Mail can't deliver this."

Gordon, 62, said he was "chuffed" adding: "I suppose I'm well known in the area because I have been in the business so long."

A Royal Mail spokesman said: "We always try to go the extra mile to deliver the post."

[Dark One]

Police help car thief

A car thief who ran out of petrol in rush hour traffic was arrested after police helped him push the stolen vehicle to the side of the road.

Helpful officers in Moscow, Russia, were about to leave the scene and let Alexei Ashurin wait for breakdown services when they noticed the Volkswagen's lock was broken and a screwdriver was sticking out of the ignition.

After checking the number plate, they discovered the vehicle had been stolen and Ashurin was wanted for a string of other thefts.

He admitted to stealing the car and is now facing up to two years in prison if convicted.

[Dark One]

Woman, 79, tried to hold up bank

A 79-year-old woman was arrested in Chicago after she tried to hold up a bank at gunpoint.

She wore a white visor that read "princess" and black sunglasses when she tried to hold up the bank with a toy gun.

The Chicago Sun-Times says she could be the oldest woman ever charged with bank robbery in the city.

An FBI agent's affidavit says she walked into a Bank of America branch and told a female cashier she could not speak very loud because she had just come from the dentist.

When the cashier leaned forward, the woman pulled out what appeared to be a gun and said: "Give me $30,000. My friend is across the street. And no dye."

However, the cashier reached into her drawer and activated a silent alarm before walking away from the counter.

The robber waited a few minutes then walked out of the bank, ditching her trench coat as she left. A bank employee flagged down a police officer who arrested her outside.

[Dark One]

Gravedigger buried himself

A Dutch gravedigger had a lucky escape after he accidentally buried himself.

The 62-year-old man, from Nieuwleusen, was digging a grave in Zwolle cemetery when it happened, reports Gva.be.

A trailer containing the earth he had removed tipped over and fell into the grave, knocking over the man and covering him completely.

Luckily, a workmate was able to move the trailer and uncover the gravedigger's face to let him breathe.

He called the fire brigade who managed to free the man after an hour. He was unhurt apart from a bump on the head.

[Dark One]

Lost jogger spends four days in swamp

A jogger who took a wrong turn during a lunch-time run in Florida ended up stuck in a swamp for four days.

Volunteers searching for Eddie Meadows, 62, eventually found him 'stuck like glue' in a bog, reports The Times.

Mr Meadows calmly asked his rescuers: "Do you have a phone? I want to call my wife."

He also asked for water and chocolate, before insisting that he should finish his run, jogging a short distance before he was helped to a waiting ambulance.

Police in Orlando said Mr Meadows had survived by sipping water from the swamp and avoided sun exposure because he was under a shady tree canopy.

Mr Meadows is in training for the Baltimore Marathon and leaves his desk at the University of Central Florida's research park every lunchtime to jog around the campus.

His wife, Ardis, and two grown-up sons appeared on TV to plead for help in finding him and 50 volunteers scoured the area.

Finally, Ron Eaglin was combing woodland on a remote corner of the university campus when he heard noises.

"I heard some sloshing off in the woods, it didn't sound like a deer, so I yelled: "Hello?" and then I heard: "Help, help, help, help"," he said.

"I said: "Are you looking for Eddie Meadows?", and he said: "I AM Eddie Meadows"."

[Dark One]

Welsh sign baffles Scots

A bilingual sign on a Scottish building site baffled locals - as it was written in English and Welsh.

Building company David McLean put up the notice during work in the Bridge of Don, Aberdeenshire, reports the BBC.

The top half of the sign read: "Ymddirheurwn am unrhyw anghyfleustra a achosir yn ystod gwaith adnewyddu."

It also included the English translation: "We apologise for any inconvenience caused during refurbishment works".

Local MSP Brian Adam said that if bilingual, it should at least have been in the local dialect of Doric.

"I'm not against the Welsh language, and this is not an anti-Welsh sentiment," said Mr Adam.

"It doesn't matter how wonderful the Welsh language is, it's not appropriate for this part of Scotland."

The firm, which is based in North Wales, apologised and said a new sign would be put up.

A spokesman said: "We understand that local people would prefer Gaelic signs, and we will be putting up a new sign as soon as possible."