A funfair has cancelled a visit to London after being told that its bumper cars would have to pay the congestion charge. Carters Steam fair had planned to set up in Covent Garden, which is inside the charging zone, but cancelled on learning that each dodgem would be liable for the £8 daily charge, reports The Times. Transport for London last week said the letter was a mistake and that dodgems, pictured right, were exempt.
Error of the week
The good news for Phil Newbon was that his luggage didn’t go missing at the airport. In fact, the landscape gardener still had it with him when he returned home after a holiday in Cyprus. He dumped his bags down on the pavement to chat to a friend, and the next thing he knew they’d been collected by the dustman. “They told me people often leave suitcases out for collection,” said Phil, 37, of Spalding, Lincolnshire. “But I doubt they have luggage tags still attached and duty-free goods sitting next to them. If you put grass cuttings in your bin they spot it a mile off.”
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Linguist of the week
A sign ordering cyclists to dismount has been translated into Welsh to read “bladder inflammation overturn”. All signs in Wales must be bilingual but officials admitted there had been “an error in translation” on the notice on a roundabout between Penarth and Cardiff.
Homecoming of the week
Prison guards moved quickly to foil a break-out when they spotted a young man on the roof — only to find he was trying to break in. The 23-year-old thief was missing life in his cell after being released from Josefstadt prison in Vienna, Austria. “Life is so much easier on the inside,” he said. “They feed you, do your washing and let you watch television, which I can tell you is a lot more than my mum does.”
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Schoolboy snigger of the week
From The Times People column on Thursday: “England’s women’s cricket team played India at Lord’s on Monday. An old member of the MCC infiltrated one of the boxes.” Yes, but was a player wearing it at the time?
Oddballs of the week
Ten runners will line up today for a long-distance run with a difference — racing backwards up a mountain for 11 kilometres. The event in Stans, Switzerland, is part of the world “retro-running championships”. “I was on this mountain once and I tried a couple of kilometres backwards, because it’s good for your muscles,” said the organiser Rinaldo Inaebnit. “I thought it was great, so I tried the whole mountain, then thought of a world championship.”