AS A MATTER OF FACT… AS A MATTER OF FACT…
Space is only 62 miles away. That’s 100 kilometres.
Essex is the UK’s book club capital, with more reading groups than any other county and spin-off events such as a walk-and-talk-about-books club.
On average, poets live for 62 years, playwrights 63 years, novelists 66 years and non-fiction writers for 68 years, according to California State University’s James Kaufman.
One gigabyte of information – about a quarter of the memory of an iPod mini – is the equivalent of a pick-up truckload of paper.
In the past 15 years, four people in the UK have died in cemetery accidents, crushed by falling tombstones.
The first person to die in a motor traffic accident was Bridget Driscoll, knocked down by a car travelling at 12 miles per hour in London on 17 August 1896. The coroner recorded a verdict of accidental death, and warned: ‘This must never happen again.’
A quarter of Australians were born outside Australia.
By some estimates, there are about 100 million unexploded landmines in the world.
Lord Baden-Powell wanted to include a section on the dangers of ‘self-abuse’ in his Scouting for Boys. His original manuscript read: ‘A very large number of the lunatics in our asylums have made themselves ill by indulging in this vice although at one time they were sensible cheery boys like you.’
Dom Perignon, the Benedictine monk, was originally employed by his abbey to get the bubbles out of the champagne.
Bill Clinton sent just two e-mails while he was president.
BEST MAN VIOLENCE
A GOOD BEST man has to be the ‘best man’ for the job – he must keep the ring safe, stay sober enough to make a speech and keep his hands off the bridesmaids until the disco starts. Easy enough for most mortals, but the trials of the original best men were far greater. In fourth-century northern Europe, legend has it that a groom would take his strongest, most trusted friend with him to aid him in the abduction of the chosen bride. Further duties included being on hand to beat back angry relatives attempting to halt the ceremony. Aggrieved in-laws-to-be were also the reason the groom and best man stood to the right of the bride – the position was optimal for the drawing of swords with the right hand.