Books

Writings of Note

When a city is as littered with intriguing curiosities as this one, you need a framework to make sense of it all. What better framework than the Underground system? We'll take a stroll along a stretch of Tube line, learning about the secrets and oddities we pass along the way.Walks

Strolls through time

Sick of doing quizzes that ask ‘what’s the capital of Albania?’ You either know it or you don’t, and either way there’s no fun. A really good question should be one you can work out, a challenge you enjoy even if you don’t get the answer in the end. For example:Quizzes

For the curious

Blog

Musings & trifles

Magic

Team-building through tricks

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Books

Writings of Note

When a city is as littered with intriguing curiosities as this one, you need a framework to make sense of it all. What better framework than the Underground system? We'll take a stroll along a stretch of Tube line, learning about the secrets and oddities we pass along the way.Walks

Strolls through time

Sick of doing quizzes that ask ‘what’s the capital of Albania?’ You either know it or you don’t, and either way there’s no fun. A really good question should be one you can work out, a challenge you enjoy even if you don’t get the answer in the end. For example:Quizzes

For the curious

Blog

Musings & trifles

Magic

Team-building through tricks

Utterly Lost in Translation

Even more misadventures in English abroad

The third in the Lost in Translation series. When do I get the Nobel prize for services to linguistics?

Utterly Lost in Translation
Buy Utterly Lost in Translation at Amazon

And still they come ... Favourites this time? The electrical wire cutters from China: ‘Before use, please read this instruction for god's sake'. The menu item in Italy: ‘Overcooked to the Chianti'. The pool sign in Greece: ‘Each swimmer before coming to the space of swimming pool owes to go to the bathroom for urination and then to have a bath of cleaness.' Important lessons for life, I trust you'll agree.

 

‘The world's worst English language blunders revealed ... some of the very best language howlers.' The Mirror

Content

London Bus

A London double decker bus can lean further from the vertical without falling over than a human can. What a great way of learning about centres of gravity. The reason a Routemaster can lean so far is that there's a great long strip of pig-iron welded to its base, keeping you top-deckers safe as you go round corners. If you want reassuring photographic evidence, click here