Dimitri Vrubel’s mural of Brezhnev and Honecker kissing. However, I preferred the section that survives at the Topography of Terror Museum, which remains as starkly grim and grey as the East Germany of both popular imagination and once stark reality. A lesser Cold War “classic” is Checkpoint Charlie, a white wooden hut with a chest-high wall of sandbags in front, now in an area so built up and surrounded by souvenir shops it is impossible to reconcile it with photographs of its grim heyday. There is an adjacent museum which is excellent in terms of content, but stuffily old school in its presentation. After each day of muggy sightseeing where we took in the Brandenburg Gate, the Victory Column, and the moving Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, amongst many others, we would spend the evening at Café am Neuen See in the Tiergarten, where the food was basic, the beer cold, and the sun-dappled lakeside setting lovely. n Tell us about your favourite holiday (send a photo too) and if we print it, we’ll pay £50. Email [email protected] OCTOBER 2022 • 99 SUBSCRIBER BENEFIT: Exclusive travel discounts with Tripbeat See page128 for details TRAVEL & ADVENTURE
100 Architecture in Gemmayzeh, Beirut, with the Mohammad AlAmin Mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque, in the distance (Right) Paul courtyard housing part of an eastern defensive city wall built around 140-110 BC POWERED BY
City Wall At Paul Beirut OCTOBER 2022 • 101 P aul, the bakery-cafe chain, is certainly no hidden gem. A gem perhaps—disciples of its pain nordique and fruit tarts would contend as much—but hardly hidden, given there are more than 750 worldwide branches in 47 countries. Yet the edition on Rue Gouraud in the Gemmayzeh neighbourhood of Beirut—one of five around Lebanon’s capital—contains something very special if you look carefully. Order a lemon tart or almond pastry and head for the rear courtyard. There, amid tables and stone-tiled floods, below parasols and palms, quietly sits one of Beirut’s oldest remains. It’s thought to be part of an eastern defensive city wall built around 140-110 BC, GEMS HIDDEN delineating the ancient port-city’s boundary. Back then, a slowly-growing Beirut, or Biruta, was under control of the Ancient Greek Seleucid Dynasty. They oversaw towers and walls erected to frame its existing tell (a mound caused by consecutive settlements on the same side). In 64 BC, the newly-coined “Berytus” was assimilated into the Roman Empire with large building projects undertaken—but this portion of masonry was maintained, soon lying close to a monumental entrance gate (later destroyed). It’s now a remarkable two millennia old, and hiding in plain sight. A coffee in Paul’s shady courtyard offers a chance to inspect it, as well as pause from exploring buzzy Gemmayzeh. Centred around Rue Gouraud and likened to Greenwich Village in New York City, this is one of East Beirut’s most thriving quarters, replete with coffee houses, trendy restaurants and bars. Things were slightly different back in 100 BC. n By Richard Mellor THEWANDERINGNATIVE.COM / ZHEKA BOYCHENKO VIA PEXELS TRAVEL & ADVENTURE SUBSCRIBER BENEFIT: Exclusive travel discounts with Tripbeat See page 128 for details
102 MONEY To Ditch Digital Subscriptions PRIME TIME Over the last few years, particularly during lockdown, you probably signed up for a new monthby-month subscription where goods are sent to your front door or services accessed via the internet
OCTOBER 2022 • 103 T hey’re usually incredibly easy to sign up for, often letting us try a month for free or at a reduced price. As a result, you could well have collected two or three, if not more, of these memberships. Subscriptions now cover pretty much everything. Streaming has undoubtedly been the biggest shift, with a huge number of film and music accounts available. Food is popular too—recipe boxes, bottles of gin or packs of cake can be delivered every month. You can pay to get free shipping and perks from fashion retailers, supermarkets and more. Or there are boxes of razors, flowers, books or socks. The list goes on. There are positives, particularly the offer of convenience and variety without a long-term commitment. Plus, sometimes, they can be cheaper than alternatives. But there are problems too. It’s easy to forget that you’ve signed up, particularly if the membership isn’t for something that physically arrives at the door. Payments for digital subscriptions can keep leaving your bank account without you really noticing. Much of the time, these services are luxuries rather than essentials. And with costs on the rise everywhere, they can be a drain on your bank account—meaning you might need to begrudgingly cancel some or all of your subscriptions. This doesn’t need to be a bad thing. In fact, I think it’s an opportunity to really think about whether you’re getting value for money from all these services. And if not, it’s time to ditch them to free up cash. The first step is to check your bank statements to see exactly what you’re paying for, in case there are any you’ve forgotten about. Make sure you go back a full year to look for annual payments. List out all the services and think about how much you use them and whether there are alternatives offering the same thing for less. Or perhaps there are duplicates! Here are a few to pay close attention to: Retailer memberships like Amazon Prime These can really vary in value. Often you think you’re getting lots for your money, with free delivery or discounts. But in reality I think they tempt you to spend more than you would without it and stop you shopping around. The big one here is Amazon Prime. In September, Amazon added 20 per cent to the price of this annual Andy Webb is a personal finance journalist and runs the award-winning money blog, Be Clever With Your Cash
not cancel outright, and just use them for an occassional treat—if your budget stretches to it. Streaming Unless you are committed to a single service, I’d avoid paying upfront for a year. It might seem like a saving, but that’s only if you are actually going to use it every month for 12 months. Instead, paying monthly gives you the opportunity to cancel when there’s nothing to watch or listen to, or when you want to try a different service for a change. Remember, catch-up viewing is free for Channel 4, ITV and Channel 5, and if you are paying the TV Licence you also have access to iPlayer. There’s enough on these to cover a good few months of content. Other memberships And let’s not forget passes for the cinema, days out and the gym. These memberships will be less flexible and are more likely to impose annual contracts. Make a note of when they all expire, and ensure you do the same review. Are you using them enough to justify the cost? Or could there be cheaper alternatives? membership, meaning you’ll now need to shell out £95 every year to access the benefits. I’d encourage you to go monthly and only pay for the months you really need it—perhaps even go without completely. You can get free delivery from Amazon on orders over £20 anyway, so just buy things together rather than making lots of small orders. For supermarket delivery passes, work out whether you’re adding more to your order to qualify for delivery. If so, you’re not really saving. Better still, look at other supermarkets just to check if they’re cheaper overall. Food boxes People love the variety that comes with food boxes, but you can simply use old recipe cards or look in books or online for inspiration and buy the ingredients at the supermarket. Yes, you’ll be buying larger packs of things like herbs, but these will last and can be used again in future recipes. Likewise, other food and drink products through the post can usually be replaced for less at the supermarket. I’d look to pause these subscriptions for the time being, if MONEY PAYMENTS FOR DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTIONS CAN KEEP LEAVING YOUR BANK ACCOUNT WITHOUT YOU REALLY NOTICING 104 • OCTOBER 2022
OCTOBER 2022 • 105 READER’S DIGEST more you spend, the more you’ll make back, but Quidco estimates members earn £280 a year. Don’t expect the cash immediately. It can take months for payments to be confirmed and reach your account. Both sites are free, though there are premium options that give slighly higher rates. A word of warning though: occassionally the cashback doesn’t track and you miss out, so make sure that you’re not buying something just because of the amount you think you’d make. It’s better to focus on the best price. Cashback sites are one of my favourite ways to make a little extra cash. They’re effectively middlemen sitting between you and the retailer. You need to visit the likes of TopCashback and Quidco first, and click through to your online shop of choice (everyone from ASOS to M&S and Virgin Media). Shop as normal and if you make a purchase, the retailer pays the cashback site a commission, which is then fully or partially passed on to you. Amounts can vary from a few per cent through to hundreds of pounds—it all depends on the product. Obviously the On The Money Andy Webb Q: I’ve never used any cashback sites. How do you use them and do you have any recommendations? Is it just for big things like insurance or can you use them on individual products in the shops? -Jacqueline
106 • OCTOBER 2022 S ometimes there can be a bit of a snob factor with gardening; how you pronounce things and whether or not you know your Latin. And to be really honest, I don’t give a toss. You know, if I was in hospital I’d be quite happy if the doctors and nurses kept forgetting my name as long as they could keep me alive. It’s the same with plants, which, obviously, would much prefer it if you looked after them rather than pronounce their name properly. I also think that we sometimes worry too much about what other people think about our gardens. The most important thing to remember when you’re creating your own garden is that it really needs to be about you. You shouldn’t concern yourself with what anyone else thinks. Of course, there are some Gardeners’ World presenter Adam Frost on navigating the often-tricky journey of developing your own gardening style How We Garden great sources of inspiration and it’s fine to be influenced by magazines, books and other people’s gardens but, ultimately, your garden should make you happy. That said, the best gardens are those that are planted to work well with their type of soil and local weather conditions. If you can make sure they reflect the surrounding environment—they are driven by local materials, architecture, colours and stuff like that—then you’re really on to something. Also, whether you like it or not, what surrounds your garden will also affect the overall look. For instance, you might want to create a tropical feel but if you’ve got next-door’s oak tree as the major backdrop then it could look slightly odd. The idea is to look not just within your space but outside of it as well. All of these considerations will really help you set the tone and the aesthetics. GARDENING DAVID TUCKER / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO
Extracted from How I Garden by Adam Frost (BBC Books, £22) Photography by Sarah Cuttle OCTOBER 2022 • 107 The direction your garden faces— the aspect—is also worth taking into account. For example, if you’ve got a very bright, south-westerly-facing garden and you put in light-coloured paving, it could cause too much glare and the place might feel uncomfortable. On the other hand, if your garden is north-facing and you use black or grey-coloured material such as slate, everything could become dark and gloomy. When it comes to planting, there are a lot of great influences out there. You might like the work of designers such as Piet Oudolf or Dan Pearson, or someone like Beth Chatto. But it’s good to remember that these influences are best used as a guide, rather than you attempting to copy exactly what they’ve done. A straight copy is never going to work, is it? In fact, I think the best designers create site-specific schemes that meet the needs and explore the unique aesthetic of the owners. If you want to use ideas from other garden designers, then look for one that you’re comfortable with but don’t try to copy it outright—just be inspired by them. When it comes to the use of different materials in your garden design, less is always definitely more. In my latest Chelsea garden, I used concrete, cedar and steel, and the one before that just timber and stone, with the stone used in different states. Even if you only use one material, say wood, you can give it different treatments, such as making it textured to make it look more interesting. Recently, I made some steps out of railway sleepers, to which I added texture using a chisel and then blackened them with a blowtorch. The moment that I planted wildflower turf around them and on the treads, the whole thing turned into something quite special. If you can tie in your material selection with the materials and architecture of your region, that’s even better, as visually everything will sit comfortably together. Importantly, I always think that if you’ve got fewer materials then the plants can sing better. For me, the plants are always at the heart of the garden and if you want them to stand out, keep your materials to as small a number as possible. It’s the same when we select plants. We often forget that we don’t need a garden full of stars; we also need plants that provide the support act. Grasses are a great example of this sort of secondary role and often bring a more subtle element to the design. n
T he week from Halloween to Bonfire Night can be one of the most terrifying for animals (and humans) in the calendar. Unfamiliar people dressed in costumes appearing at your door on October 31, followed by sudden loud bangs and flashes from fireworks on and around November 5, can cause distress and confusion for our pets. Such terrifying experiences can result in dogs and cats fleeing or hiding in an attempt to escape or seek out safety. A survey by Blue Cross found that 70 per cent of dog and cat owners were concerned for their pet’s welfare during firework season, with 40 per cent describing how their pets would visibly shake in reaction to fireworks being set off, while 36 per cent said their pets bark or cry when they hear fireworks. Some 29 per cent said they had had to seek an animal behaviourist’s advice to help their pet get through the season. Owners reported that the unexpected noises left their pet hiding away for hours (45 per cent), with 21 per cent of owners saying their pets were too scared to go outdoors for days after the fireworks. Sadly, some reported their pets had been physically harmed by fireworks (six per cent), with some owners being forced to move to a new house (nine per cent) or rehome their pets (seven per cent) due to the distress caused by the flashes and loud bangs. If your furry friend struggles during spooky season, follow these tips to make them feel more at ease… For more information, visit bluecross.org.uk Noisy Neighbours Bonfire Night is a tricky time for pet owners PET CORNER
Age: 10 Owner: Terry Meehan Fun Fact: “Smidders is a hunter and is quite fearless. When a huge Irish wolfhound dog moved in next door, Smidders out-stared him until he hung his head low and left. Smidders OCTOBER 2022 • 109 Want to be featured next? Email your pet’s picture to [email protected] n Walk your dog during daylight hours n On Halloween, consider using a stairgate to separate your pet from the entrance to your home as unfamiliar people at the door may worry them n Have some stuffed kongs ready for your dog to keep them occupied while you answer the door n If your pet is worried by people at your door, consider a sign saying: “Nervous dog. Please don’t knock on the door” n Make sure your pet has a safe space to go to if they are worried and don’t try to encourage them out of this space n Speak to your vet about products that contain pheromones, which may help to soothe your pet n Keep your pets indoors when fireworks are being set off n Close curtains and blinds and turn the TV or radio on to help muffle the noise n Let your pet pace, whine or hide in a space where they feel safe—or if they come to you for comfort, then it’s OK to support them n Stay calm, act normally and give lots of praise for calm behaviour—never get angry or shout at your pet n Keep any sweets and chocolates out of reach n If you are concerned about your pet’s behaviour around fireworks, please contact a qualified behaviour specialist for advice Top tips for keeping pets safe and calm: READER’S DIGEST’S PET OF THE MONTH
110 HOME A TASTE OF FOOD
OCTOBER 2022 • 111 Serves: 6–8 Prep: 15 minutes Cook: 25–30 minutes Ingredients: • 50ml milk (whole or semi-skimmed) • 3medium free range egg yolks • 85g caster sugar • 300ml single cream • 400g sliced brioche, cut into quarters • 150g blackberries • Handful chopped pistachios • Clotted cream, to serve • Generous ½ tsp good saffron threads • 6 cardamom pods, seeds ground Shahi Tukra Bread & Butter Pudding S hahi tukra is a rich Mughal dessert, where crisp butter-fried bread is soaked in a cardamom and saffron-infused milk. In the interests of speed (and greed) I decided to convert it into a brioche bread and butter pudding, so you get a crisp topping along with the wonderful flavours of saffron and cardamom within the dish—blackberries and pistachios are my leftfield addition. My mother serves the original with clotted cream on the side, and so as not to break with tradition, I give it as a serving suggestion here. Method: 1. Preheat the oven to 150°C fan/170°C/gas 3. 2. Heat the milk in a small saucepan and add the saffron. Turn off the heat and let it infuse. 3. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks with the caster sugar, single cream and ground cardamom seeds. Arrange the sliced brioche and blackberries in a buttered roasting tin or flan dish and pour over the eggy custard. 4. Use the back of a teaspoon to mash the saffron into the milk (this will release more colour), and then carefully drizzle this all over the pudding. Scatter with the pistachios and then transfer to the oven to bake for 25–30 minutes until golden brown and crisp on top. Serve immediately with clotted cream. India Express by Rukmini Iyer (Square Peg, 2022) Rukmini Iyer
VENEZUELA: Arepa World Kitchen 112
A delicious and satisfying pocket of joy, the arepa is a pre-Columbian breakfast dish stemming from the area that is now Colombia and Venezuela. Flat and round, the fluffy patty can be split in half and filled with anything you can dream of: chicken, beef, beans, pulled pork, halloumi, onions—the world is your oyster when it comes to this versatile little dish. Here, we opt for a relatively healthy option of chicken and avocado, but you’re highly encouraged to experiment with your favourite ingredients. Method: 1. Mix together the maize flour, water and salt until it forms an even dough. Divide into 6 equal-size pieces and roll into balls. 2. Splash a small amount of sunflower oil onto a hot pan. 3. Flatten the dough balls into patties about 2cmthick and place in the pan for 3 minutes on each side—or until golden brown. 4. Once cooked, gently split the patties in half to hold the filling. 5. Now, it’s time to make the filling. Generously season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, and cook in the chicken stock on a medium heat for 15 minutes. 6. Shred the chicken. 7. Heat up some more sunflower oil in a pan again, add the onion and garlic and cook until soft. Add the shredded chicken and stir for roughly 5 minutes. 8. Put the sliced avocado in a bowl, add the fried chicken and mayonnaise and mix well. Season to taste with salt and pepper and add a splash of tabasco or other hot sauce if you like a bit of heat. Fill the arepa and enjoy! Makes: 6 arepas Cooking time: 40 minutes Ingredients: • 1tsp salt • 300g maize flour or cornmeal • 600ml water • 1 tbsp sunflower oil • 400g chicken breast • 1.2l chicken stock • 1 ripe avocado, sliced • ½ white onion, chopped • 2 garlic cloves, minced • 5 tbsp mayonnaise FOOD OCTOBER 2022 • 113
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OCTOBER 2022 • 115 explain his enduring appeal, as his approach resonates with contemporary thought as much as it paved the way for early-20th-century painters. What is your favourite little-known fact about Cezanne? Reading Cezanne’s correspondence in French as well as in the new translation by Alex Danchev unveiled a different facet to the artist’s personality—that he was of one of the best educated and well-read artists of his time. He wrote poetry, translated and studied classical literature and had a deep interest in the natural sciences. What do you hope visitors to the show will take away from the exhibition? The EY Exhibition: Cezanne is the first in a generation to take a holistic look at Cezanne’s life and career, rather than focusing on a specific aspect. With this exhibition we are keen to explore new ideas and questions about the artist that are relevant for today’s audiences. For example, building on recent scholarship we are keen to show how Cezanne engaged with the sociopolitical context and turbulent times—much like our own—through which he was living. n The EY Exhibition: Cezanne is showing at the Tate Modern from October 5 to March 12, 2023. For tickets, visit tate.org.uk/whats-on/ tate-modern/ey-exhibition-cezanne State Of The Art: Why is Paul Cezanne considered an important artist? Born in Aix-enProvence in 1839, Cezanne is one of the most highly regarded and enigmatic artists of the late 19th century. Famously referred to as the “greatest of us all” by Claude Monet, Cezanne remains a pivotal figure in modern painting who gave license to generations of artists to break the rules. Created amid a rapidly accelerating world, his works focus on the local and the everyday, concentrating on his personal experiences to make sense of the chaos and uncertainty of modern life. What makes Cezanne’s work special? Cezanne developed a radical approach to colour, form and space. By approaching painting as an existential experience, as a process, as an investigation, he pushed traditional artistic habits to their breaking points and arguably beyond. He experimented with using touches of colour to describe his “sensations”—as he called them— of the external world, creating deeply personal compositions. This might Natalia Sidlina, curator of International Art and Michael Raymond, assistant curator of International Art, speak to Anna Walker about the Tate Modern’s upcoming Cezanne show Paul Cezanne ART
116 • OCTOBER 2022 R E A D E R S D I G E S T.C O.U K / C U LT U R E T he Lost King is based on the amazing true story that captured the nation’s imagination back in 2012, when an ordinary woman, Philippa Langley (Sally Hawkins), achieved the extraordinary, by locating the long-lost remains of Richard III. An amateur historian, she became obsessed with the controversial king, and defied the stodgy academic establishment in her mission to find his grave. In the hands of writers Steve Coogan (who also plays Langley’s ex-husband, John) and Jeff Pope, though, the film becomes a gently sexed-up story of an unusual ménage à trois between the Langleys and the deceased king (at one point, Coogan’s character resigns, “I feel like I’m being cuckolded by a ghost”). Indeed, there’s a tacit, palpable attraction between Hawkins’ Philippa and the ghost of Richard III, played by the magnetic Harry Lloyd, in stark contrast to the utter lack of chemistry between her and her estranged husband, John. Don’t get us wrong though; the film is so much more than just a Ghost and Mrs Muir-type scenario. At the heart of The Lost King is an inspiring redemption story for Richard III, and an even more inspiring tale of a woman whose perseverance and hard work led to a groundbreaking discovery against all odds. The cast is excellent (even if slightly ill-matched); the views of Edinburgh and Leicester— breathtaking; and the likelihood of catching the history bug after watching it—very high indeed. By Eva Mackevic THE LOST KING H H H H
OCTOBER 2022 • 117 FILM PEEPING TOM (1960) One of the most shocking films in cinema history, Peeping Tom effectively ended director Michael Powell’s career upon its theatrical release. Following a serial killer who films his female victims’ final torturous moments, the film became a blueprint for the modern slasher. BEST OF BRITISH HORROR Usher in the spooky season with one of these of these chilling British classics HELLRAISER (1987) Clive Barker’s utterly bizarre and darkly atmospheric 1980s classic gave us one of the most iconic horror villains, Pinhead, who became a mainstain of pop culture alongside Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees. It’ll definitely make you think twice about tinkering with any mysterious boxes. THE WICKER MAN (1973) This enduring staple of British folk horror tells the story of a police sergeant who arrives in a remote Scottish island in search of a missing girl, only to discover the terrors lurking within this seemingly quaint community. Christopher Lee considered this his best film ever. 28 DAYS LATER (2002) Danny Boyle’s take on the zombie movie, 28 Days Later became an classic of the genre. Cillian Murphy stars as survivor looking for sanctuary after an incurable virus spreads across the UK. During the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdown images of central London were compared to the iconic opening sequence of the film.
TELEVISION Better Call Saul’s muchdiscussed conclusion on Netflix raises the question of what we want from our endings. Breaking Bad, the show that spawned Bob Odenkirk’s crooked lawyer Saul Goodman, was a runaway train plummeting downhill: often astonishing viewing, but bound for bloody carnage. Saul, by contrast, was a slow burn, permitting closer study of the collateral damage such descents entail, and for us to spot the points at which disaster might have been averted. Rarely accelerating as its explosive predecessor did, what it measured, hour by gripping hour, was erosion: of an identity, a conscience, a hairline, even. Aptly, several seasons dealt with excavation, but the making of Breaking Bad’s meth lab was secondary to the construction of the circumstances, the moral compromises and ethical contortions, which allow such deadly secrets to be kept. Showrunners Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould undertook this project W/Bob & David (Netflix) Odenkirk in comic mode, reteaming with David Cross in a 2015 reboot of their longlost sketch series Mr. Show. 118 • OCTOBER 2022 with a discipline honed in network TV: dialogue chiselled to finely suggestive points, a threeact episode structure—the pauses allowing ad breaks on the show’s American home, cable channel AMC—that let us sense where we were, even as we wondered what the characters were playing at. But what players. The excellence of these performances—headed by Odenkirk and Rhea Seehorn as the agonised Kim, swept along in her legal sweetheart’s reckless wake— was only matched by the direction, forever attuned to that detail and nuance Breaking Bad galloped past. Late on, terrifyingly placid druglord Gus Fring (Giancarlo Esposito) cursed a rival as having “no vision, no patience, no thought”. Better Call Saul had all three in abundance, resulting in one of the streaming era’s greatest achievements: a show that didn’t outstay its welcome by a single minute, episode or season. by Mike McCahill Retro Pick:
MUSIC 121 Leonard Cohen gets a jazzy makeover on this star-studded cover album that includes Norah Jones, James Taylor, Gregory Porter and many others. Produced by Cohen’s long-time friend, Larry Klein—who’s worked with everyone from Joni Mitchell to Herbie Hancock—the record runs the gamut of the legendary songwriter’s career, including early gems from his debut album, all the way up to the brooding numbers off his final, released just days before his death in 2016. Like most compilation albums, it can be a bit of a mixed bag. Some numbers launch Cohen’s work into a whole new realm like saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins’ experimental interpretation of “Avalanche”; while others remain faithful to the source material, like James Taylor who drops to the lambent bottom of his vocal range to deliver a vulnerable rendition of “Coming Back To You”. Our favourites? Sarah McLachlan’s swinging vocals make for a wonderful pairing with the iconic “Hallelujah”, Iggy Pop’s hushed croakiness works wonders on the raunchy “You Want It Darker”, while David Gray sounds surprisingly at home on his rendition of the heartbreaking number “Seems So Long Ago, Nancy”. It’s always fascinating to witness great artists interpret other greats’ work, and make it their own. Yet what’s truly great about covers as a form is that they remind us of the little twists and touches that make the originals irreplaceable. By Eva Mackevic Album Of The Month: Here It Is: A Tribute to Leonard Cohen Happy 30th birthday to... Wish by The Cure To mark the occasion, the band is releasing a deluxe edition, containing 24 previously unreleased demos, tracks and versions. Featuring one of their biggest hits, “Friday I’m in Love”, the bestselling record retained their signature gothic style while simultaneously making a move towards a lighter, alt-rock sound. Listening back to the album in 2022, Smith has said, “There’s a side to the album which I had kind of forgotten, a very gentle, yearning thing which is quite beautiful. ‘Trust’ is one of the best things we’ve ever done I think, it’s played with great feeling, and ‘To Wish Impossible Things’ is another gorgeous, melancholic piece… in fact it could well be my favourite song on the record.” OCTOBER 2022 • 119
BOOKS Darling by India Knight (Fig Tree, £14.99) F or sheer reading pleasure, I’ve always found Nancy Mitford’s 1945 novel The Pursuit of Love hard to beat. The book, dramatised last year on BBC1, famously draws on Mitford’s own eccentric (or just plain mad) aristocratic upbringing to tell the story of the Radlett sisters as narrated by their cousin Fanny. Like the Mitfords, the Radlett girls grow up with a ferocious father whose habits include denouncing foreigners and hunting his children with hounds. In their world, the biggest sin is to be boring—which is why the novel is packed with unforgettable characters and great jokes. And yet, try as everybody does to ignore it, there’s an undertow of melancholy too, as real life fails to match up to romantic girlhood hopes, particularly for the main character Linda. Given that The Pursuit of Love is pretty much perfect, it may seem—at the very least—a little foolhardy of India Knight to attempt a 21st-century update that retains most of Mitford’s original plot, characters and names (although the narrator understandably prefers to call herself Fran). Fortunately, the answer to the question “what’s the point?” soon proves a straightforward one: so that we can be lavishly entertained from first page to last. Granted, the shift to the 21st century isn’t always seamless. Changing Linda’s October Fiction Journalist India Knight reimagines a literary classic in this month’s book selection James Walton is a book reviewer and broadcaster, and has written and presented 17 series of the BBC Radio 4 literary quiz The Write Stuff 120 • OCTOBER 2022
second husband Christian from a pofaced 1930s Communist to a po-faced modern leftie works beautifully, leading to some of the funniest sections in a very funny book. Less successful is transforming the Radletts’ patriarch from landowner to former rock star. And quite often the sense is less of genuinely present-day people than of Mitfords’ characters having done a spot of time-travel (“My cousins and I were ridiculously old-fashioned,” acknowledges Fran at one point). But in the end, none of this really matters. One thing Knight gets absolutely right—and that makes Darling so enjoyable—is how hilariously she applies the same bracing scepticism to the pomposities and social fads of our time as Mitford did to hers. She also manages the same neat trick of suggesting that while laughter might well be a defence mechanism against darker feelings, it is, as defence mechanisms go, one of the best. n Can you guess the fictional character from these clues (and, of course, the fewer you need the better)? 1. He’s introduced, in an 1838 novel, as “as roistering and swaggering a young gentleman as ever stood four feet six”. 2. His real name is Jack Dawkins. 3. He becomes a friend of Oliver Twist’s. Answer on p124 Name the character The Oxford Book of Theatrical Anecdotes edby Gyles Brandreth (OUP, £12.99). Brilliantly wide-ranging collection of showbiz tales with an anecdote-packed introduction from the man himself. No loo should be without one. The Hiding Placeby Amanda Mason (Zaffre, £8.99). A ghost story set in modern-day Whitby, complete with a spooky house. Properly creepy and unsettling. Animal Vegetable Criminal: When Nature Breaks the Lawby Mary Roach (Oneworld, £9.99). Roach is one of the best non-fiction writers around—a thorough researcher who’s also very funny—and this historical compendium of animals behaving illegally doesn’t disappoint. The Fell by Sarah Moss (Picador, £8.99). Page-turning thriller set against the still-strange background of COVID lockdown. A Village in the Third Reichby Julia Boyd and Angelika Patel (Elliott & Thompson, £10.99). A superb work of micro-history, exploring how the ordinary inhabitants of a picturesque Bavarian village reacted to the coming of Nazism. OCTOBER 2022 • 121 Paperbacks
I n 1968, Encyclopædia Britannica hosted a banquet in London’s Guildhall to celebrate its 200th birthday, with Prime Minister Harold Wilson among the 500 guests, and the Queen sending a telegram of congratulations. Not surprisingly, there was utter confidence that the 300th anniversary would be celebrated just as lavishly in 2068. But that was only because, as Simon Garfield says in this suitably encyclopaedic book—written with all his usual wit and sharp eye for memorable facts—“the meteorite in the sky was not yet visible”. In the event, within 45 years, the Britannica presses had rolled for the last time, as knowledge moved online. No longer would people want 30-volume books containing articles by the likes of Alfred Hitchcock (Motion Pictures), J B Priestley (English Literature) and J Edgar Hoover (FBI). These days, in fact, you almost literally can’t give them away, with full sets available for 1p, and many charity shops rejecting them as too bulky. Garfield sorrowfully points out that not so long ago these abandoned encyclopaedias “did more than any single thing to shape our understanding of the world”. Yet this is not a sentimental book. In tracing their history, he pays heartfelt tribute to the high-mindedness and commitment involved. But he’s aware of their shortcomings too—not least that any mistakes couldn’t be corrected for years, even decades—as well as having fun with their outdated attitudes (the first Britannica entry for “Woman” reads, in full, “The female of man. See Homo”). To the possible dismay of encyclopaedia purists, he’s also a big fan of Wikipedia (see sidebar)—which is, after all, rather Read All About It BOOKS This month’s recommended read delves into the history of a lost institution—the Encyclopædia Britannica RECOMMENDED READ: 122 • OCTOBER 2022
OCTOBER 2022 • 123 high-minded itself: resisting all pressure to accept advertising, sell on information or set up a paywall… The very first home page, composed at 19.27 GMT on 15 January 2001, stated: ‘This is the new WikiPedia!’ Its creator, Office.bomis.com, made the first edit 23 minutes later, adding a list of subjects WikiPedia should contain. The following day at 19.00, Office.bomis.com created a mission statement: ‘The idea here is to write a complete encyclopedia from scratch, without peer review process, etc. Some people think that this may be a hopeless endeavor, that the result will necessarily suck. We aren’t so sure. So, let’s get to work!’ By the end of its first year, Wikipedia had approximately 20,000 articles, including many that would not have been included in more traditional encyclopaedias. Some of the earliest took for their subject matter the American philosopher “ William Alston, the singer Fiona Apple, the civil rights activist Rosa Parks, a list of the amendments in the US Constitution, a full list of the characters and locations in the novel Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand, details about the number of people in the Algerian military, and a list of female tennis players. There were also articles on the meaning of the word Machiavellian, the postage stamp, a track listing of the album Horses by Patti Smith, a description of uric acid, and a brief biography of the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. The randomness reflected the joy of the blank page: ‘We’re tiny and new, so Just Write anything!’ Twenty years later it has become very difficult to find anything that doesn’t have an entry. And then Wikipedia got bigger. By the end of 2003, it had more than 100,000 articles in English, and in 2005 the figure exceeded 750,000. By October 2021 the figure was 6.39 million. The total number of words has increased from 4.8 million at the beginning of 2002 to 3.98 billion by 20 October 2021. The number of people who had used Wikipedia up to that date came to 42,410,237. Wikipedia has an obvious and magnificent advantage over the print stores it supplanted: incredible speed. Britannica in particular had the habit of being published in the same month as calamitous events. (A new printing of the 14th edition READER’S DIGEST All the Knowledge in the World: The Extraordinary History of the Encyclopaedia by Simon Garfield is published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson at £18.99
BOOKS ” arrived just three weeks before Germany invaded Poland; another in July 1945 narrowly managed to miss the dropping of the first atomic bomb.) These days, when someone notable dies, the cause of death is on Wikipedia before the funeral. Similarly, the prevalence of what may best be described as dubiousness in print might have a pernicious effect for decades, much to our amusement today. How best to treat tuberculosis, for example? ‘The most sovereign remedy,’ Britannica’s first edition assured, ‘is to get on horseback everyday.’ Childhood teething could be treated by the placing of leeches beneath the ears. The ninth edition, published between 1875 and 1889, advised its readers on how to become a vampire (get a cat to jump over your corpse), while 30 years later the 11th found werewolves ‘in leopard form’ among ‘the people of Banana (Congo)’. Answer to Name the Character: The Artful Dodger—the child pickpocket in Charles Dickens’s novel. In the original stage version of the musical Oliver! he was played by, among others, Tony Robinson, Davy Jones (later of the Monkees) and Phil Collins. 124 • OCTOBER 2022 Simon Garfield’s Favourite Encyclopaedias Encyclopædia Britannica 11th Edition. Widely regarded as the classic edition from 1911, with contributions from Ernest Rutherford and Bertrand Russell. Amazing to see how much we knew then, and alarming to read how offensive we could occasionally be. Encyclopaedia of Typefaces edited by WP Jaspert et al. If you’re a font fan (like me), this is your dream: more than 2,000 typefaces to make your words look exactly as you want them. Encyclopedia of New York. It will make you want to be there: engrossing entries on the Algonquin Round Table to zoning, via the bagel, fuhgeddaboudit and Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Britannica All New Children’s Encyclopedia. A single volume from 2020 with a big hey-wow factor even for adults. Wikipedia. It was a bit of a joke when it started 21 years ago, but now it’s utterly indispensable. I trust this huge resource like never before, and the more obscure entries are an obsessive’s joy.
OCTOBER 2022 • 125 Catch-22 by Joseph Heller It was Catch-22 that first taught me about finding comedy in tragedy. I differ slightly from my fellow historians because I take a funny approach to exploring the past, and often I’ll reach for a touch of absurdist gallows humour. But Heller’s satirical masterpiece soars high above my creative abilities. Catch-22 doesn’t just capture the tedium and terror of the Second World War, but renders war itself into a hellish farce of maddening pressure, crushing bureaucracy and the infamous logic trap that forever keeps these airmen five flights from safety. I first read it aged 14, and I am certain it reconfigured my entire personality! The Silk Roads: A New History Of The World by Peter Frankopan The Silk Roads isn’t just a dazzling work of thrilling history—it made me ashamed of my ignorance. How could I call myself a public historian if I was so often, and so myopically, ignoring the rich histories of East Asia and the Middle East? When The Silk Road then became a publishing phenomenon, selling in the millions, I realised I had no excuse; readers clearly craved knowledge about our shared world. I vowed to explore global history in every project thereafter, and I’m glad to say my funny children’s book You Are History does just that. FOR MORE, GO TO READERSDIGEST.CO.UK/CULTURE Asterix In Britain by René Goscinny & Albert Uderzo I’m a comedy-loving historian with a French mother, so it’s no surprise that the Asterix books were my childhood favourites. I devoured the pun-drenched English translations, but I’d also ask my mother to decode the original French jokes too. There’s so much to enjoy in Asterix, not least the rambunctious plotting, vivid illustrations and anachronistic jokes. Yet, despite the cartoonish energy, there’s also something oddly faithful about the depiction of the ancient world, which maybe explains why so many historians share my Asterix enthusiasm. Books THAT CHANGED MY LIFE Historian Greg Jenner is the host of the popular BBC podcast, You’re Dead To Me. His latest book for children, You Are History, illustrated by Jenny Taylor, is available from November 3 (£14.99, Walker Books)
126 • OCTOBER 2022 behind the likes of Facebook (near three billion), Instagram (two billion), and TikTok (one billion). So why does Musk want to spend a considerable slice of his own enormous fortune on a social network that not many people, in the grand scheme of things, actually use? The answer might be what makes Twitter so interesting: what it lacks in revenue, size or growth potential, it makes up for in a much harder to define way. It carries absolutely enormous cultural power, and has an unrivalled ability to shape the news we read, the content we consume and the culture we live in. Twitter is real life Twitter’s cultural power is easy to see. Click on any random news article, and there’s a good chance that somewhere in the text, it’s quoting what someone said on Twitter. And when big news stories happen, like, say, the defenestration of a prime minister, where does a lot of the action happen? Why, Twitter, of course. What makes the platform important is essentially its clientele. Twitter is the place where the most powerful and influential people like B ack in April, Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, made a dramatic attempt at a hostile takeover of Twitter, for a cool $44 billion. That’s a lot of money, even for a billionaire tycoon, and the takeover attempt quickly descended into public mud-slinging and court battles. But whoever wins (we’re not going to know for some time), I think the most interesting part of the story is the more fundamental question: why would Musk even want to buy Twitter in the first place? If you look at the size of Twitter, its appeal isn’t obvious. The company makes a relatively meagre profit each year, and in terms of the number of users, Twitter is a relative minnow among social media networks. It has around 436 million users every month, which isn’t nothing—but is also a long way James O'Malley on the cultural significance of the microblogging giant Why Is Twitter So Important? TECHNOLOGY
127 to hang out. It’s a trendy bar full of rich people, whereas Facebook is the virtual equivalent of the McDonald's across the street. Because Twitter is mostly based on short, text-based posts, it is perfectly optimised for conveying information, an argument, or a joke, at immense speed—which makes it extremely useful for the likes of politicians, journalists, executives and celebrities. Essentially, anyone who has a job where it is important to know what is going on in the world, and might need to respond to events quickly. What Twitter is really good at is acting as essentially a global watercooler—a persistent backchannel for gossip, jokes and informal connections. It’s a place where new ideas emerge, or arguments happen, and because the people doing the gossiping are important, influential types, what happens on Twitter can actually affect the rest of the world too. A particularly fun example of this happened in early July when culture secretary Nadine Dorries launched a vitriolic tweet attacking her party colleagues. It backfired spectacularly, and her tweets reportedly led to more cabinet resignations, ultimately hastening the end of Boris Johnson’s time in Downing Street. If she’d posted on Instagram instead, perhaps her parliamentary colleagues might not have noticed. Twitter is not real life However, the ability of the “Twitterati” to influence the real world does have strange consequences too. Because Twitter is very effective at setting the news and cultural agenda, what happens on Twitter becomes tomorrow’s newspaper front-pages and the topics being discussed on the radio. This can sometimes be good, as if you can get a relatively small number of people on Twitter talking about it, you can elevate otherwise unappreciated points of view. But the same mechanism can also elevate the esoteric controversies that only people on Twitter care about, that bear little relation to the "real" world. Recent politics also gives us a good example of this: during a recent [at the time of writing] debate between Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, the BBC spent ten minutes talking about mean tweets that had been sent about the candidates’ clothes, instead of, for example, anything that actually matters. But in any case, it’s a powerful example of, whether you love it or loathe it, Twitter's immense cultural power. And I think this explains why someone like Elon Musk might want to pay big money for it. Because even if it doesn’t make business sense, if you own Twitter, you suddenly have a voice in the world’s most important watercooler conversation. n OCTOBER 2022 • 127
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Win £30 for your true, funny stories! You Couldn’t Make It Up 130 • OCTOBER 2022 Go to readersdigest.co.uk/contact-us or facebook.com/readersdigestuk While recently on holiday in Devon, we watched people catching crabs from the quayside using various kinds of bait on the end of a line. We asked a girl what bait she preferred and she showed us a tray of several bacon rashers. Suddenly, without warning, a seagull swooped down and snatched all the rashers, but was unable to get airborne because of the weight. Another seagull saw the bacon and a tug-of-war took place on the quayside with neither bird winning. A small terrier passing by saw the bacon and ran at the birds, which took off empty beaked. He then made a hasty retreat with his prize. MICHAEL BASS, Somerset We’d just parked by the chemist and saw what appeared to be a long queue that suddenly cleared. “Must have been some old lady making a huge fuss by the door,” remarked Mum haughtily. FUN & GAMES AND THE £50 GOES TO… MARGARET HORTON, West Midlands £50 PRIZE QUESTION ANSWER TO SEPTEMBER'S PRIZE QUESTION FRIENDS? Each can have the su x -AGE to form a new word. THE FIRST CORRECT ANSWER WE PICK WINS £50!* Email [email protected] SYMBOL SUMS Can you work out these number sums using three of these four symbols? + − ÷ × 21 21 3 3 =13 (No fractions or minus numbers are involved in the sum as you progess from left to right)
“Can’t be,” replied Dad. “She’s here in the car with me”. GREG THEN, Hampshire One morning I was discussing the meaning of lent with my young children. My daughter, who was six, looked pensive before stating earnestly that she would be giving up sweets and chocolate for Lent. I was surprised, as she has an especially sugary tooth. Later that day we sat down for our supper, when my eldest daughter announced that her sister was no longer giving up the sweet treats. "Oh, aren't you?" I asked. "What are you giving up now then?". There had obviously been a lot of brainstorming with her classmates at school that day, because she very carefully finished her mouthful and replied in her quiet but assured voice, "I've decided I'm going to give up planting instead." She glanced at her sister who gave a nod of approval. "Planting?" I asked, bemused. "As in planting…?". "Plants," she answered, looking at me as if I was stupid, before both sisters carried on with their meal. And do you know what? She was very successful at abstaining that year! NICOLA RICHARDSON, East Sussex My granddaughter teaches at a junior school in a village deep in the countryside, so the majority of her OCTOBER 2022 • 131 pupils live on farms. As she is a city girl, it’s taking a little time adjusting to country life. After watching a video about pests, she asked the class to give their own experiences on local pests. Rabbits, rats, mice, badgers and foxes were all mentioned, but then Tom, a farmer's son, said townies are the biggest pests. "Townies? What are they?" my granddaughter asked. “People who come to the countryside at weekends for walks, park their cars all over the place, bring their dogs and leave them free to worry our animals, leave the gates open, leave loads of rubbish behind and, worst of all, use anywhere as a toilet," said Tom. "My dad says townies are the worst pests of all." JH ROBERTS, Conwy County cartoon by Guto Dias "HAPPY HALOWEEN!"
OCTOBER 2022 • 133 FUN AND GAMES Word Power IT PAYS TO INCREASE YOUR BY GEORGE MURRAY Canst thou hold a candle to the bards of yore? Define these words immortalised by Shakespeare and Milton, and you can call yourself a poetic champion 1. scrannel—A: grain-based drink. B: harsh and unmelodious. C: unscrupulous lord. 2. castigate—A: grisly form of torture. B: castle security feature. C: rebuke severely. 3. villatic—A: ugly. B: rural. C: evil. 4. escot—A: silk scarf. B: to flee combat. C: cover living expenses. 5. whirligig—A: object that moves in rapid circles. B: clown nose. C: mechanical clock. 6. goosery—A: book comprised of animal names. B: silliness. C: pinching someone’s bottom. 7. antre—A: cavern. B: piece of armour. C: ghostly house. 8. scrippage—A: the work of a scribe. B: contents of a wallet. C: game of chance. 9. lubber—A: castle moat. B: moonshine. C: big, clumsy fellow. 10. convolve—A: coil up. B: turn ship around. C: join for dinner. 11. clarion—A: jutting hill. B: clear and loud. C: blue water. 12. obsequious—A: sneaky. B: flatulent. C: servile. 13. effulgence—A: radiance. B: pollution. C: lies. 14. pandemonium— A: zoo for bears. B: utter confusion. C: quarantined area. 15. anthropophagous— A: cannibal. B: diplomatic. C: academic.
VOCABULARY RATINGS 7–10: fair 11–12: good 13–15: excellent WORD POWER Answers 134 • OCTOBER 2022 1. scrannel—[B] harsh and unmelodious; The witch’s scrannel voice rose as she began an incantation. 2. castigate—[C] rebuke severely; Jim knew his boss would castigate him for missing work. 3. villatic—[B] rural; The Tuscany region in Italy is known for its villatic beauty. 4. escot—[C] cover living expenses; Marijke had relied on her wealthy parents to escot her while she attended university. 5. whirligig—[A] object that moves in rapid circles; The car hit the black ice and spun on the highway like a whirligig. 6. goosery—[B] silliness; The children’s goosery was more than Théo could take, so he sent them outside. 7. antre—[A] cavern; The vast antres of Lascaux in France are part of a World Heritage Site. 8. scrippage—[B] contents of a wallet; He realised his scrippage was nothing but receipts and bills. 9. lubber—[C] big, clumsy fellow; Linda knew her husband was a lubber and therefore asked him to wait outside the china shop. 10. convolve—[A] coil up; It was only as I started to fall that I realised the garden hose had convolved around my ankles. 11. clarion—[B] clear and loud; The church bell’s clarion peal called the townspeople to a marriage service. 12. obsequious—[C] servile; Alban’s colleagues rolled their eyes at his obsequious habit of bringing coffee to the boss every morning. 13. effulgence—[A] radiance; The sun’s effulgence reflected off the lake, blinding Kondwani as he paddled the canoe. 14. pandemonium—[B] utter confusion; Min-ji called the kids in from the pandemonium of the squirt-gun battle. 15. anthropophagous— [A] cannibal; The flesh-eating scenes in the movie about the anthropophagous doctor were too much for me.
Turkey. 5. A clock. 4. The bat. 3. . The Silence of the Lambs 2. Artificial intelligence. Answers: 1. Papua New Guinea. 11. “Hymn to Liberty.” 10. Piracy. 9. Sailing. 8. Halloween. 7. Teacher. 6. The Pando Aspen clonal tree 14. Asian and Australasian fauna. 13. Vatican City and Monaco. 12. Harry Houdini. 15. colony in Utah, United States. 15. Which famous magician, who died in October 1926, was born Erik Weisz? 1. Music experts and computer scientists finally completed Beethoven’s Symphony No 10 with the help of what? 2. The Exorcist was the first horror film to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. But which was the first to win? 3. What is the only land mammal native to New Zealand? 4. Riddle: what kind of measuring device might make use of sand, shadows, candles, and hands? 5. In Mayan culture it was worshipped as a god; today, many people enjoy it roasted. What is it? 6. Sheryl Crow, Sting, and Gene Simmons all had what job before becoming famous? 7. In medieval England, once a year the poor would knock on doors, offering prayers in exchange for food. What modern tradition did this inspire? 8. Match, Team, and Twilight are races in what sport? 9. After leading roughly 80,000 men for nine years, a woman named Ching Shih retired from what occupation in 1810? 10. The Greek anthem is based on which 158-verse poem by Dionysios Solomos? 11. With English, Tok Pisin, and Hiri Motu as official languages, what Oceanic country is the most linguistically diverse in the world? 12. What two countries are smaller than New York’s Central Park, which has an area of 340 hectares? 13. What does the imaginary Wallace Line, in the Indonesian archipelago, separate? 14. Known as the Trembling Giant, what is the oldest and largest known organism on Earth, covering more than 40 hectares? OCTOBER 2022 • 135 TRIVIA By Beth Shillibeer
136 • OCTOBER 2022 FUN & GAMES BRAIN TEASERS emily goodman (Save the dateS). marcel daneSi (analogouS). Save the Dates MediuM Five of your friends (Leonie, Joanna, Madeline, Nicole, and Shannon) are all engaged. Each is getting married on a Saturday in June. The problem? There are only four Saturdays in June, so you’re double-booked for one of them. Based on the following clues, can you determine which Saturday that is, and which two brides-to-be set the same date? ✦ Joanna will get married before Nicole but after Shannon. ✦ Madeline is the only one getting married on the second Saturday. ✦ Shannon and Joanna are both bridesmaids in Leonie’s wedding. A B C Analogous easy is to as is to
OCTOBER 2022 • 137 darren rigby (circuit board). FraSer SimpSon (Sweet myStery). marcel daneSi (pyramid play) Sweet Mystery MediuM Jasmine created nine numbered bags, each containing a different quantity of individually wrapped sweets (none of the bags are empty). The average number of sweets in bags one through eight is ten, and the average number of sweets in all nine bags is 11. 1. How many sweets are in the ninth bag? 2. What is the maximum number of sweets that could be in the first bag? Pyramid Play MediuM In total, how many distinct triangles are in the figure below? Note: Some of the triangles are made up of two or more smaller ones. + + – – + – – 5 + + – 11 7 + – + 5 – Circuit Board Difficult The plus and minus signs in the diagram represent positive and negative terminals. Connect each positive terminal to a negative terminal by a wire so no terminal is used twice, the other squares all have wires in them, and the squares with numbers indicate the length of the wire passing through that square (not counting the terminals). Note: you may not connect adjacent terminals.
CROSSWISE Test your general knowledge. Answers on p142 ACROSS 9 Georgia’s capital (7) 10 An ancient one had a bird problem (7) 11 Banish (5) 12 Comparable (9) 13 Road journey refreshment break (3,4) 16 Wield (5) 17 Fish eggs (3) 18 Oddball (6) 19 Entirely (6) 22 Pre-DVD technology (1,1,1) 24 Dorian Gray’s vice (5) 26 Door knockers (7) 27 Seen behind the scenes (9) 29 Believer in karma (5) 31 Found between sea and shining sea (7) 32 Make clear (7) DOWN 1 Try (7) 2 Bluff King Hal’s regnal no. (4) 3 First-class (4-4) 4 View unfavourably (10) 5 Youth charity (1,1,1,1) 6 Monotonous routine (6) 7 Next? (6,4) 8 Adjusts beforehand (7) 14 If it’s too hot, get out of it (3,7) 15 New actress about spreading the word (10) 20 Last remaining chance of relief (4,4) 21 Tofu base (7) 23 Publishing (7) 25 Home of the Prado (6) 28 Oil-rich monarchy on the Arabian Peninsula (4) 30 Old boatman (4) 138 • OCTOBER 2022
OCTOBER 2022• 139 READER’S DIGEST SUDOKU BRAINTEASERS ANSWERS By Jeff Widderich SOLUTION To Solve This Puzzle Put a number from 1 to 9 in each empty square so that: ✦ every horizontal row and vertical column contains all nine numbers (1-9) without repeating any of them; ✦ each of the outlined 3 x 3 boxes has all nine numbers, none repeated. 8 1 9 5 7 5 8 4 9 9 2 7 6 8 4 6 1 3 9 6 3 9 2 3 7 1 6 8 2 4 1 9 7 6 5 3 9 6 7 5 3 8 4 2 1 3 1 5 2 6 4 8 9 7 1 8 3 9 2 5 7 6 4 7 5 9 4 8 6 1 3 2 2 4 6 7 1 3 5 8 9 4 9 1 6 5 2 3 7 8 6 7 8 3 4 9 2 1 5 5 3 2 8 7 1 9 4 6 Save the Dates Leonie and Nicole are both getting married on the last Saturday in June. Analogous A. The second figure consists of the first one overlaid with two copies of it. Circuit Board Sweet Mystery 1. 19 Sweets 2. 52 Sweets Pyramid Play 9 + + – – + – – 5 + + – 11 7 + – + 5 –
WIN £30 for every reader’s joke we publish! 140 • OCTOBER 2022 Apparently cucumbers hate becoming pickles. For them, it’s a jarring experience. @JesseDoctor, via Twitter A wife asks her husband, “Could you please go shopping for me and buy one carton of milk and if they have avocados, get six. A short time later the husband comes back with six cartons of milk. The wife asks: “Why did you buy six cartons of milk?”. He replies: “They had avocados.” Via Twitter A bear walks into a bar and says to the bartender, “One whiskey Laugh! and………one coke, please.” “Why the big pause?” asks the bartender. “I don’t know,” says the bear. “I was born with them.” Via Twitter She can’t have been from that small a town if they had a midnight train going anywhere. JASON ISBELL, Nashville, US I’ve written a script for a low-budget version of The Tempest. It’s just a draught at the moment. Comedian PAUL EGGLESTON It’s my partner’s birthday next week, and they’ve been leaving jewellery Go to readersdigest.co.uk/contact-us or facebook.com/readersdigestuk FUN & GAMES
OCTOBER 2022 • 141 catalogues all over the house. So I bought them a magazine rack. Submitted via email The author Stephen King has a son named Joseph. I’m not joking. But he is. @ThePunnyWorld, via Twitter Paul McCartney is a great advertisement for vegetarianism. Look at him, 80! John Lennon never embraced it and he didn’t live for half as long. Makes you think. Comedian ALEXANDRA HADDOW Everybody’s a tough guy until their foot touches seaweed at the beach. Comedian CARLOS GARCIA Have you ever noticed that once rich people get really rich, they start behaving like poor people? We had rice and beans because we couldn’t afford anything else. Rich people call it veganism. What does a chicken running a marathon wear on its feet? Ree-bokbokboks! Submitted via Twitter THESE FUNNY-BUTBIZARRE HAIRSTYLE CHOICES ARE SERIOUSLY CREATIVE! via boredpanda.com Hair-larious Styles
LAUGH CROSSWORD ANSWERS Across: 9 Tbilisi, 10 Mariner, 11 Exile, 12 Analogous, 13 Pit stop, 16 Exert, 17 Roe, 18 Weirdo, 19 Wholly, 22 V H S, 24 Opium, 26 Callers, 27 Backdrops, 29 Hindu, 31 America, 32 Explain. Down:1 Attempt, 2 VIII, 3 Five-star, 4 Disapprove, 5 Y M C A, 6 Groove, 7 Anyone else, 8 Presets, 14 The kitchen, 15 Newscaster, 20 Only hope, 21 Soybean, 23 Issuing, 25 Madrid, 28 Oman, 30 Noah We couldn’t afford furniture. For rich people that’s called minimalism. Rich people hang their pots and pans on the wall. We hung them there because it was the only place the roaches couldn’t reach! Comedian ANDRES SANDOVAL A jumper I bought was picking up static electricity, so I decided to return it to the store. They gave me another one, free of charge. Seen on Twitter I’ve started reading a horror book in Braille this week. Something bad is about to happen. I can feel it. ISOBEL MCLAREN, London Recently I took my eight-year-old daughter into the office for “Take Your Kid to Work Day”. When we walked into the office she started to cry. As concerned staff gathered around, I asked her what was wrong. She asked, between sobs, “Daddy, where are all the clowns you said you worked with?”. Seen on Facebook Can you believe that I was thrown out of my church for claiming that Jesus spoke with a lisp? It was a real slap in the faith. Via Twitter Reinventing Halloween Twitter users share their funny post-COVID Halloween traditions @ChangeTheBee: Putting your costume on and realising that it’s the first time you’ve used a zip all year. @KBlancF: A black cat crossing your path is now considered good luck because it means you went outside at least once this week. @KemiTorano: Dying hand sanitiser red to make the kids wash their hands in “ghoul blood” before each house. @AndWeJiggleLike: Instead of dressing like zombies, we dress like ourselves, because it’s pretty much the same thing. @AtariKari: Trick or treat, stay six feet, throw me my candy from across the street. 142 • OCTOBER 2022
READER’S DIGEST OCTOBER 2022 • 143 Think of a witty caption for this cartoon—the three best suggestions, along with the cartoonist’s original, will be posted on our website in mid-October. If your entry gets the most votes, you’ll win £50. Submit to [email protected] by October 7. We’ll announce the winner in our November issue. Our cartoonist’s caption, “I think I’ll stick with a staycation again this summer” failed to beat our reader Nicola Richardson this month, who won the vote with her caption, “Lip fillers are one thing, Stace. But you’ve over-done it with the Botox.” Congratulations, Nicola! AUGUST WINNER Beat the Cartoonist! cartoons by Royston Robertson One writer details his experience sailing across the Adriatic… completely naked The beloved Hollywood star on his remarkable career, latest movie projects, and being a DJ IN THE NOVEMBER ISSUE CRUISING IN THE NUDE Meet the bold 19thcentury woman who pioneered the modern guidebook + MARIANA STARKE Idris Elba
S pooky season is finally upon us! But it looks a little different to how it did 100 years ago… Halloween has been around for centuries, as a pagan holiday in ancient Ireland during which people celebrated and “communicated” with visiting spirits. As Christianity spread, Halloween was one of many pagan holidays that was absorbed and repackaged to appeal to newly converted Christians. Initially Halloween was all about mischief, which may sound harmless, but used to have far more negative connotations (in the US, “criminal mischief” is a crime punishable by jail time to this day!). Before the 1930s, “trickor-treating” was associated with groups of young men going door to door to play tricks such as throwing cabbages at houses or stealing garden gates. Nowadays, trick-or-treaters tend to be children on the hunt for sweets. Going door to door for treats used to be called “guising”, and in Ireland was accompanied by the phrase, “Help the Halloween party”. It was only in the 1980s that it became standard to hear choruses of “trick or treat”, thanks to the classic 1982 film ET. As with many American cultural imports, not everyone was pleased about this development—in fact in 2009, The Telegraph ran the headline, “Hallowe’en: Trick, Treat And A Total Travesty?”. In the 20th century, typical treats included candy apples, jelly beans and candy corn. These days, you are more likely to be met with Haribo Starmix and fun-sized Mars Bars (although if you are old enough to be reading Reader’s Digest, you can probably expect to be turned away at the door should you attempt to go trick-or-treating this year). The most popular Halloween costumes have also changed in the last hundred years, shifting from cowboys and witches to Marvel superheroes. This year, after a Halloween night spent braving horror films and fending off children desperate for free sweets, you can at least sleep easy at night knowing that things have changed since the 1920s —and you’ll probably wake up with your garden gate where you left it! n A Century Of Change 100 YEARS As we continue our centenary celebrations, we look at how Halloween has changed in the last 100 years… 144 • OCTOBER 2022
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