180-year-old phrasebook helped English tourists converse with Welsh
And other stories from the stranger side of life
A 180-year-old phrasebook has been discovered which sets out to teach English tourists how to speak to Welsh “peasants”. First printed in London in 1838, The Welsh Interpreter says it is: “Adapted for Tourists, who may wish to make themselves understood by the peasantry during their rambles through Wales.” It adds that is it “convenient” to ask “useful and necessary questions” while travelling in “obscure and remote districts”.
Angry man leaves mess on restaurant floor
Police have made an arrest after an Ontario man allegedly defecated on the floor of a restaurant. The man had arrived in the Georgian Bluffs restaurant shortly after 6am, before it opened for business. When asked by to leave he dropped his trousers and defecated on the restaurant floor while issuing threats against an employee.
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Canadian drivers told to not let moose lick cars
Authorities in a Canadian town are posting signs that advise local drivers: “Do not let moose lick your car.” The signs, posted in Jasper, Alberta, are intended to ensure the animals don't develop a taste for the road salt that coats the sides of cars that drive through the alpine town. Officials want to prevent the animals from losing their fear of cars.
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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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