Man runs for office dressed as Joker
And other stories from the stranger side of life
A man is running for governor of Japan’s Chiba Prefecture with a campaign focused on him dressing up as the Batman’s arch nemesis Joker. Yuusuke Kawai wore face paint, a red suit and a yellow pocket square when he appeared on television to launch his bid for office. His mad manifesto includes banning the word “trash” and replacing it with “star fragments”, and renaming Makuhari Station as “Makuhari Messe Isn’t Here Station”.
Caller dials 911 after mum changes Xbox password
A caller rang emergency services in Canada because their mother had changed their Xbox password. Halton Regional Police revealed the call on Twitter, writing: “Never thought we’d have to say this, but here we are. Mom changing your Xbox password is NOT a reason to call 911. Yes, this happened.” The tweet was accompanied by a picture of Jim and Darryl, from the US version of The Office, playing on their Xbox.
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Cocaine bear to hit big screen
A movie is being made about the true story of a bear that consumed a duffel bag full of cocaine in 1985. The 175-pound black bear was found next to a bag that had once been filled with more than 70 pounds of cocaine before it was hurled from a drug smuggler’s plane. “Its stomach was literally packed to the brim with cocaine. There isn’t a mammal on the planet that could survive that,” said a medical examiner.
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Chas Newkey-Burden has been part of The Week Digital team for more than a decade and a journalist for 25 years, starting out on the irreverent football weekly 90 Minutes, before moving to lifestyle magazines Loaded and Attitude. He was a columnist for The Big Issue and landed a world exclusive with David Beckham that became the weekly magazine’s bestselling issue. He now writes regularly for The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Independent, Metro, FourFourTwo and the i new site. He is also the author of a number of non-fiction books.
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Why Dutch people put pancakes on their heads today
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
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Fly found in man's colon
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
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Judi Dench accidentally video called co-star from bath
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
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Puffed rice and yoga: inside the collapsed tunnel where Indian workers await rescue
Speed Read Workers trapped in collapsed tunnel are suffering from dysentery and anxiety over their rescue
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Kevin Bacon the runaway pig finally caught after 18 days
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
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Gaza hospital blast: What the video evidence shows about who's to blame
Speed Read Nobody wants to take responsibility for the deadly explosion in the courtyard of Gaza's al-Ahli Hospital. Roll the tape.
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
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Female frogs 'fake death' to avoid advances
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
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Giraffe poo seized after woman wanted to use it to make a necklace
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published