Aliens could speak to us tomorrow

Aliens could get in touch with Earth at any moment and so we must know what to say to them, according to scientists. Humanity “cannot afford to be ill prepared – scientifically, socially, and politically rudderless – for an event that could turn into reality as early as tomorrow and which we cannot afford to mismanage”, said Dr John Elliott, from the School of Computer Science at St Andrews, at the launch of a new research hub to prepare humanity for first contact.

Bounty bars axed from Celebrations

Bounty bars will be axed from Celebrations boxes, according to the Daily Mail. After more than a third of Brits admitted they don’t want the coconut treats in their red festive tubs, Mars Wrigley announced that special festive tubs will be available at select Tesco stores around the UK in the run-up to Christmas. “Christmas is the time for giving – but it seems this year, the British public are keen for us to take away… Bounty,” said Emily Owen, Mars Wrigley’s Head of Celebrations Festive Cheer.

Skin fade record set at last

A barber in South Africa became a Guinness World Record holder when he completed five skin fade haircuts in 18 minutes and 57 seconds. Enrico Springfield, 23, from Johannesburg set the record on the TV series Stumbo Record Breakers. However, his bid came close to failure, the adjudicator told UPI. “I was very concerned during the fourth haircut that maybe Enrico took too much off on top and I really wasn’t sure how he was going to blend it through,” said Sofia Greenacre. “I wasn’t sure if he’d left enough hair to actually create the fade required.”

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

For more odd news stories, sign up to the weekly Tall Tales newsletter.