Spotify launches playlists for dogs left home alone
Spotify has made playlists and a podcast for dogs to listen to in their owners’ absence, after finding that nearly 74% of UK pet-owners play...
Offbeat
Done in a Datsun: Man cooks roast pork in car during Australian heatwave
A man has successfully cooked a pork roast in a car on a scorching hot day in Australia. Stu Pengelly placed the slab of pork in a baking tin on the car seat of his red Datsun Sunny...
Man who ate $120,000 banana at art show says ‘I’m not sorry’
A performance artist who ate a banana taped to a wall that was an artwork valued at $120,000 said his actions were not vandalism and he does...
French court rules in favour of quacking
The ducks on a small French smallholding may carry on quacking, a French court ruled earlier this week, rejecting a neighbour’s complaint that the birds’...
Not all Ben & Jerry’s cows are ‘happy cows’ claims advocate
Ben & Jerry’s has been sued by an environmental advocate who said it deceived consumers by touting that the milk and cream it uses to make ice cream came exclusively...
Dying for a better life: South Koreans fake their funerals for life lessons
A South Korean service is offering free funerals – but only to the living. More than 25,000 people have participated in mass “living funeral” services...
Pope gives his ‘support’ to New Orleans Saints in twitter gaffe
The Vatican employees who manage Pope Francis’ official Twitter account in English confused the two on Sunday when Tweeting about five new saints he canonised...
Flushed with rage: why toilets have become a feminist issue
“The ladies are about to storm the men’s loos”, said British actor Joanna Lumley in an appeal to increase the number of toilets for women...
If marathons weren’t hard enough already: strap a tree to your back
This Sunday in South Africa, an accountant, an entrepreneur and a boxing executive are among 20 friends running the Cape Town marathon – with saplings strapped to...
Pope stuck in elevator for 25 minutes, freed by fire brigade
Pope Francis arrived late for his weekly address in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, explaining that he had been stuck in an elevator in the...
The longest toilet break? Belgian sits for five days in bid for record
A Belgian man sat on a toilet for nearly five days this week in a bid to set a world record. Jimmy De Frenne, a...
Australia’s central bank takes ‘responsibilty’ for embarrasing note typo
SYDNEY, May 9 (Reuters) – Millions of A$50 ($35) banknotes in Australia have an embarrassing typographical error that was overlooked by the country’s central bank...
Italian museum looks to unlock da Vinci hair mystery
An Italian museum says it plans to carry out DNA tests on a lock of hair it believes might have belonged to the Renaissance artist...
At $40,000 a bottle, Tokaj aims to revive royal wine
A Hungarian winemaker in the Tokaj region known for its golden dessert wine is selling a vintage for $40,000 a bottle, hoping to revive the...
Pet deer kills man in Australia in rare attack
A pet deer killed a man and badly injured his wife in Australia, police said on Wednesday, the first known attack in years though it...
AI predicts who survives ‘Games of Thrones’
If you are a “Games of Thrones” fan and appreciate the element of surprise, stop reading now. Students at the Technical University of Munich have...
Burger King pulls chopsticks ad after outcry in China
Burger King pulled a promotional video in New Zealand showing customers trying to eat burgers with chopsticks after it sparked an outcry in China and...
Florence study proves artist Leonardo da Vinci was ambidextrous
An in-depth study of Leonardo da Vinci’s earliest-known drawing has proved that the great Renaissance artist was ambidextrous, Italy’s Uffizi Gallery said on Monday. The...
At Athens pinball museum, arcade gamers go back in time
On a side street near the Acropolis, a new museum is exhibiting items a little different from the elegant white marble statues of ancient Greek...
Hungarians let off steam in ‘silly walk’ parade (V)
BUDAPEST, April 1 (Reuters) – Hundreds of Hungarians marched through central Budapest in a “silly walk” parade on Monday, copying flamboyant moves from British comedy...
