ICYMI: Smell like a chipper or brewery for the planet, Liz Truss says lettuce joke was ‘puerile’ and Joanna Lumley not a fan of sex scenes
Kirsty Blake Knox on five news stories you might have missed this week
Sweat it out: The ‘no wash movement’ encourages people to put clothes in the laundry less often. Photo by Getty
It seems the ‘no wash movement’ is gathering pace. This is where people decide not to chuck their smalls and clothes in a laundry basket after one use, instead wearing them repeatedly for the benefit of the planet.
1. Save the planet by smelling like a chipper or a distillery
A list of handy workarounds were available on the BBC website. These include spraying tops with vinegar or vodka to mask the smell of stale sweat. I don’t know about you, but I think a slightly sweaty fragrance would be preferable to smelling like a fish and chip shop or a distillery.
2. Truss says lettuce joke was rotten
It’s official: Liz Truss was not amused by the Daily Star’s decision to livestream the decay of an iceberg lettuce in a blonde wig and see if it had more longevity than the then prime minister. The newspaper ran with an idea after the Economist stated Truss had the shelf life of a lettuce. “I don’t think it’s funny, I just think it’s puerile,” she told RTÉ’s David McCullagh. I know a lot of people who would disagree.
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3. Sensitive men beat Christian Grey
Tall, dark and brooding leading men in literature have been replaced with ‘Cinnamon Roll’ men, or ‘Golden retriever boyfriends’. That’s according to Publisher’s Weekly, which claims readers are turning away from the likes of Fifty Shades alpha male Christian Grey and towards less mercurial men. The Sun ran a quiz for readers to assess which camp they fell into. One of the questions asked what a gentleman should do to romantically surprise their partner: a) send her a text with an aubergine emoji or b) book her into a spa. If that’s the litmus test, it’s understandable why readers are turning towards more sensitive souls.
4. TikToker fakes death for the clicks
TikTokers going to extreme lengths to draw attention to themselves is nothing new. However, one Belgian man took things a little far when he faked his death to find out who would turn up to his funeral. According to The Times, David Baerten (45) undertook the stunt because he felt “underappreciated” by his extended family and wanted to teach them a lesson. He got his children and wife to share posts claiming he was dead, and organised a funeral. Then in the middle of the service he arrived via helicopter, jumped out (I presume shouting: “Gotcha!”) and uploaded it all online. Totally normal behaviour.
Joanna Lumley. Photo: Joe Maher/Getty Images
5. Cut the sex scenes, says Joanna Lumley
Intimacy co-ordinators are a mainstay in film production these days, but actress and travel presenter Joanna Lumley thinks we should just bypass explicit scenes altogether. “I find them intolerable!” she told the Guardian. “I think they’re revolting. I don’t know why people write them and I don’t know why we watch them. We wouldn’t have films of people sitting on the loo. There are some things which are private.”
