A purpose-built pontoon has been made for a walrus visiting the Isles of Scilly in a bid to reduce damage and encourage him to leave. The animal, nicknamed Wally, has sunk or damaged a number of vessels since arriving in June. Experts said the platform in St Mary’s harbour must become a “safe space” to stop him boarding boats. Before going back to the Arctic “he needs to feed up and rest peacefully”.
BBC Cornwall (Christopher Rossi)
Heading off suitors
“OMG I’m engaged,” were the words of Anne Boleyn announcing her betrothal last week. At the end of Saturday night’s performance of the musical Six, about the wives of Henry VIII, actor Andy Maguire came onstage to propose to his partner Natalie Pilkington, who was playing the beheaded one.
Big Issue North (Michael Meadowcroft)
Groovy spoons
A madcap dad is living in the past after spending thousands of pounds transforming his home into a shrine to the 1970s. Martin Aylett, 51, spends hours at vintage fairs searching for treasures for his modest two-bedroom semi.
He’s lain garish brown and orange kitchen tiles to go with his 1974 Russell Hobbs toaster and orange kitchen units. The divorced dad-of-two even bought 1970s Fairy liquid bottles and Woolworths dishcloths to clean his yellow crockery. He said: “I like taking things back to that time which was my childhood, when life was a lot simpler.”
Leicester Mercury (Daragh Brady)
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This article appears in the 21 Jul 2021 issue of the New Statesman, The Chinese century