Monthly Archives: June 2024

Run, walk(s), gym, swim, plus (yet) more AI, clouds, football and crisps

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My wife wanted to run hill reps on Monday morning – which was probably good as there is no way I would have done anything if left to my own devices and the rest of the week was not looking good for exercise. Unfortunately, it was already 20℃ and the whole experience was pretty hard, on empty legs. I’m surprised I managed the usual 6 reps of the usual hill – 7.7km and 205m of ascent.

In the early afternoon I remembered that I was supposed to be heading to London to collect a desk from our sons’ flat (the new tenant has his own). A rather miserable journey both ways (road works on the A40) but I collected the desk and fitted in a bit of diy, fixing a loose door handle. Back too late for the swim doctor session.

On Tuesday afternoon we drove down to Bournemouth. Friends had been staying for a few days (a scene change and some recuperation as the husband continues to recover from a severe stroke last year). Other friends joined us later in the day.

On Wednesday we walked over Hengistbury Head, took the short ferry to Mudeford and on into Christchurch to have a look at the beautiful Priory, before returning via the even shorter Wick Ferry. About 12km in the sun on a lovely day. Then another 3.5km in the evening walking to and from a very good Italian restaurant in Southbourne Grove.

Compton Acres gardens on Thursday (we’ve been before but it changes according to the time of year) and then back to Oxfordshire after a really excellent short break.

Back to normal on Friday with the gym and bike shop. I took the car in to the garage (again) and they fitted the 4th and final sensor as I got the recurring Christmas tree of warning lights coming back from Bournemouth. Surely, that has to sort the problem.

To the lake with friends for a swim on Saturday. The Garmin was not playing nicely – it properly recorded only one lap of the 400m circuit (I did 5) but it did record the hour of swimming. It decided, in its wisdom, that I swam 2,875 metres but I didn’t. I guess more like something between 2,100 and 2,300m. Still hard, still slow but at least that has pushed the distance beyond what’s needed for the half ironman.

Up to London later and we met up with our sons on Sunday for a brunch – covering both our birthdays. It was great to see them both and we had a very good brunch near the flat, followed by a rather tortuous drive back, thanks to a stretch of the M4 being closed. Later, We have an evening at supper with friends (and an early start to watch the football – I’m looking forward to supper but (after a very poor performance in our exit from the cricket T20 World Cup) am apprehensive about the football.

[Almost post script – I was right that the evening would be very good but I am a little embarrassed that we won the football … rescued from a deserved ignominious exit by one moment of excellence in 95 minutes of drudgery]

Interesting stuff this week

1. African wise words: Hope does not disappoint

2. BBC News website: Terminator draws ever closer

Japanese scientists have found a way to attach living skin to robot faces, for more realistic smiles and other facial expressions.

The prototype appears more Haribo than human-like. but the researchers say it paves the way to making convincingly realistic, moving humanoids with self-healing skin that will not easily rip or tear.

3. BBC News website: We’ve looked at clouds from both sides now?

A sophisticated joint European-Japanese satellite has launched to measure how clouds influence the climate. It’s one of the great uncertainties in the computer models used to forecast how the climate will respond to increasing levels of greenhouse gases.

Some low-level clouds are known to cool the planet, others at high altitude will act as a blanket. The mission will use a laser and a radar to probe the atmosphere to see precisely where the balance lies.

4. BBC News website: What’s the issue – weren’t most people sent to sleep

An England fan pictured apparently asleep at the Three Lions’ last Euro 2024 game has said the photograph was taken well before kick off.

His picture appeared on the front page of several national newspapers following England’s drab goalless draw against Slovenia on Tuesday. He said he took the chance to have a nap after a few beers in the sun as he rarely gets the chance to snooze at home, where he cares for a toddler.

5. BBC News website: ‘Moment on the lips, lifetime on the hips’, 30 years in the ground

A litter-picking group has found a crisp packet dating back nearly 30 years. The Walkers crisp packet, had an expiry date in 1997, and was found near Peterborough.

The Recoup Litter Composition & Pathways Project, based in the city, said the packet remained well-preserved, with little degradation which was concerning as it showed how long litter remained in the environment.

Run (Ridgeway), swim (lake), ride (outside), turbo, plus AI, stateless cars, no lets and wombats

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Monday in Bournemouth mainly involved gardening and diy. Two more trips to the local dump with another 8 bags of weeds, two more loads of sand deposited in the garden by the wind off the beach and more bits of chopped down tree. I’d taken my kit but never got near to having a run, I left late afternoon and was not home in time for the swim doctor session.

On Tuesday my wife went to watch the tennis at Queens and I did domestic stuff including re-sealing the shower tray and starting to spring clean the garage. That’s three days of reasonably full-on manual labour and I had no enthusiasm for any more exercise – just what I need with only a few weeks until the Ironman 70.3.

My friend and training partner had run a 50km ultra on Saturday – I was wondering how he was recovering when I got a message that he and his wife were planning a run along the Ridgeway on Wednesday. He had a very good run on Saturday and a very good recovery too, by the sound of it.

With slowly improving ribs and a cough that is even slower to improve, I ran with my friends on Wednesday afternoon. We drove to Hackpen on the Ridgeway and had a glorious run to Avebury – the last 7km of the Race to the Stones – and back. It included what is probably the worst 1km of the whole route – either hard and rutted in the dry or very slippery in the wet. We got the hard and rutted version.

Over 14km with 180m of ascent in temperatures around 25℃. The three of us have a total age of 200 – we could have gone somewhere for a nice sit down, a cup of tea and a piece of cake – but I’m glad we went running instead.

My friend and I swam in the lake on Thursday afternoon. With no particular plan beyond at least matching the 1,267m swum on my previous visit, I managed to add another 400m lap – hard work but not ruinous. I left my Garmin watch in Bournemouth but, based on the last visit, I guess I swam nearly 1,700m. Unsure about the time and no idea about heart rate, stroke cadence or stroke length (so no over-thinking here).

Friday was my wife’s birthday so I gave the early morning gym a miss – but did fit in the bike shop while she was at pilates. After that we had a very good lunch just a few miles away at the pub in Kelmscott, by the Thames.

Kelmscott is most famous for the Manor where William Morris lived – apparently he was very interested in our village and would bring his guests to visit the Tithe Barn. We have been told that he also had an interest in our house which dates from about 1600 and has a name from which his surname might have derived (could be a rural myth – if that’s the name for the country equivalent of the urban version).

Rather than just dipping my toe in the water, I’ve decided to take the plunge for a new wetsuit. Mine’s a ‘Foor Classic’ which I bought, used, off Ebay for £30 some years ago. I don’t know its age but I do know that the model was around more than 12 years ago.

I like it but it’s a struggle to get into it (I cannot do the zip up by myself) and it’s hard to take off. Chances are that it’s not going to be the fastest thing in the water (no matter who is propelling it). Being both mean and realistic, I couldn’t justify anything very expensive but I have upgraded to a (new!) Speedo Proton suit. The sizing is better but it’s thinner – I hope it has the required buoyancy.

As soon as it arrived on Saturday I got out for just my second ride outside on the road bike this year. It was warm and breezy (always a headwind, of course) but I did 53.58km @27.2kph. Further and faster than the previous attempt.

I took another cycle training session at the bike park on Sunday. Later, I got on the turbo (goodness knows why – I guess it’s simply desperation with time running short for proper preparation) while listening to the start of England v USA in the cricket. A very hot 30 minutes @28.6kph.

Ironman angst

The first three sessions of the week accounted for 90% of the Ironman swim, 70% of the run and 60% of the bike ride. They felt tough enough, even spread over 4 days.

Interesting stuff this week

1. African wise words: When I think of the others’ misfortunes, I forget mine

2. BBC News website: This post was written by me (probably)

A central London cinema has cancelled a private screening of a film which was entirely written using artificial intelligence (AI) following a public backlash in which concerns were raised by people about “the use of AI in place of a writer”.

The film follows a celebrated screenwriter called Jack who finds his world shaken when he encounters a cutting-edge AI scriptwriting system. After initially being sceptical, Jack realises the AI matches his skills and surpasses his empathy and understanding of human emotions.

3. BBC News website: ‘Made in ….. somewhere’

The Italian government has fined DR Automobiles $6.4m (£5m) for allegedly branding vehicles that were made in China as being produced in Italy.

Southern Italy-based DR Automobiles assembles low-cost vehicles, using components produced by Chinese car makers Chery, BAIC and JAC. The firm said it would appeal against the fine as it had never claimed its vehicles were completely made in Italy.

4. BBC News website: A Spaniard’s home is his castle (or Airbnb)?

The mayor of Barcelona has pledged to eliminate short-term tourist lets in the city within five years by not renewing any of the 10,101 tourist licenses granted to landlords when they expire in November 2028.

He said the apartments, which are currently advertised on platforms such as Airbnb and Homeaway, would be available to locals instead. He claimed that the measure would be “equivalent to building 10,000 new homes”.

Justifying the plan, he said rents had risen by 70% over the past 10 years and had become unaffordable to locals.

5. BBC News website: Spurious legal actions No.3487

A New Zealand tribunal has dismissed a woman’s claim against her then-partner after he failed to take her to the airport, leading her to miss her flight ahead of a concert with friends. She accused her boyfriend at the time of allegedly breaching a “verbal contract” in which he agreed to take her to the airport, stay in her house and look after her dogs.

As a result, she said she missed her flight and had to foot the bill for additional costs, including travelling the next day and putting her dogs in a kennel. The couple had been in a relationship for six and a half years until the dispute.

The tribunal concluded that for an agreement to be enforceable, “there needs to be an intention to create a legally binding relationship”, which was not the case here.

What a waste of time. A first year law student could tell you that an intention to create a legally binding relationship is a requirement for an enforceable contract

6. BBC News website: Wombat walkers wanted

Tasmania has launched a tongue-in-cheek “odd jobs” initiative to boost tourism during its winter months. The Australian island state is offering people the opportunity to swap the “daily grind” of their job for an unusual temporary role during the off-season.

Paranormal investigator, wombat walker and stargazer are among the 10 jobs being advertised. While the positions are unpaid, successful applicants will have all their expenses – including travel, food and hotels – covered by the Tasmanian tourist board.

Only adult residents living in Australia are eligible for the roles. They must explain why they want to swap their day jobs for one of the “odd jobs” in under 50 words.

Run (x2), swim, gym, turbo, plus careers, mouse-jiggling, art and rollercoasters

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My wife and I ran on Monday morning – I did 8.5km with 213m of ascent from 6 reps of the usual hill. In the early evening I went to the swim doctor session – the Garmin recorded 1075m swum, which is strange as I did an even number of 25m lengths!

We drove to Bournemouth on Tuesday afternoon and I mowed and edged the front lawn. On Wednesday we ran to Boscombe pier and back (just over 11k for me) along the promenade which was great. Quite a lot of runners, cyclists and walkers (and even a few swimmers) out.

Later, I mowed the back lawn (twice) and did some weeding. In two trips to the local recycling centre I took 17 bags of cuttings, together with the branches I cut off the trees a while ago and some of the sand that had gathered by the front gate, blown up the road from the seafront a couple of hundred yards away.

Thursday was our 37th wedding anniversary – not celebrated in typical style as my car had to go in to the garage early on (yet more sensor problems so two more replaced) and I then drove up to London to help with our sons’ flat while my wife was heading for a concert (open-air and in the rain) at Blenheim Palace in the evening.

The village we live in is small and, generally, little happens here. However, in the early hours of Friday morning a house was broken into and the keys to the VW camper van on the driveway were taken in order to make off with the vehicle itself. Speaking to the victims, they have been told it was probably a ‘theft to order’ – their dogs woke but were bought off with dog treats.

With reports of car keys being ‘cloned’ from outside the house it has probably made sense to keep keys in a locked metal key-safe, hidden and not too near any of the doors – but that might be a bit of a pain in the neck on a day to day basis.

Perhaps it’s better if the keys are found quickly so the bad guys are in and out in just minutes, compared to being hidden or secure which could involve a more destructive search (and possibly a face to face confrontation). Perhaps a wheel clamp would be a good idea – or one of the old-style steering locks might make a comeback?

Both the gym and the bike shop went well on Friday morning although the ribs are still not right and I’m still coughing.

The weather has been rubbish recently – chilly and wet – and that’s how Saturday started. Although it improved a little, I abandoned my plan to ride outside and took to the turbo trainer.

I watched Hungary v Switzerland in the Euro championships (not the most eagerly anticipated tie – apologies to my Hungarian and Swiss readers) but the Swiss played very well in the first half and that helped me to get through an hour @ 29.1kph.

I drove up to Kingston-upon-Thames on Sunday to help our older son with some diy. Our younger son joined us so I had a very fine Father’s Day. After finishing in KIngston I drove down to Bournemouth for the night to do more gardening and diy (in particular, refitting the front to the integrated dishwasher which came off during our last visit).

Interesting stuff this week

1. African wise words: Ingratitude is sooner or later fatal to its author

2. Daily Mail: A new career on the cards?

A radio DJ invited listeners to contribute to the station’s ‘careers week’ by phoning in with stories of their obscure jobs. The request was not repeated once she discovered that the station was hosting ‘carers week’.

3. BBC News website: The rise of the mouse-jigglers

A US bank has sacked some employees following claims that staff were faking keyboard activity to fool the company into thinking they were working when they were not.

Some large companies have been using increasingly sophisticated tools to monitor employees since remote work expanded during the Covid pandemic. These can track keystrokes and eye movements, take screenshots and log which websites are visited.

Technology has also evolved to evade the surveillance, including “mouse jigglers” which aim at making computers appear to be in active use. They can be found on Amazon for less than $10 and thousands have been sold in the last month.

4. BBC News website: It’s art, but whose?

One of Switzerland’s leading art museums is removing five paintings from one of its exhibitions while it investigates whether they were looted by the Nazis. The decision follows the new guidelines aimed at dealing with the large number of cultural works that have still not been returned to the families they were stolen from.

There have long been suspicions about the provenance of works in the Emil Bührle Collection – named after a German-born arms dealer who made his fortune during World War Two by making and selling weapons to the Nazis.

The artworks that are under investigation are works by Monet, Courbet, Toulouse-Lautrec, Vincent van Gogh, and Gauguin.

Of course, the paintings should be returned to their rightful owners but I’m not sure why they can’t be on display (if not as part of the current collection).

5. BBC News website: I know Japanese TV is extreme, but ….

In 1998, a Japanese man was stripped naked and left alone in an almost-empty apartment as part of a challenge for a reality TV show.

He was left with only a pen, some blank postcards, a telephone and rack full of magazines – the concept of the show was to see if a human being could survive on competition prizes alone. In order to win the challenge, the value of the prizes he won had to reach a certain financial threshold – 1m yen, around £6,000 at the time.

With no contact with the outside world, he did not emerge for 15 months, following a gradual descent into depression and mania, driven by hunger and isolation.  Critics mostly hated the programme, but it attracted a huge audience of young viewers.

Nearly three decades later, his ordeal is being revisited as part of a new film that has just screened at the Sheffield Documentary Festival.

6. BBC News website: It might be the law, but is it good sense?

On 1 October 2017, a gunman perched high in a Las Vegas hotel opened fire on a music festival below, killing 60 people and wounded over 400 more. He was able to carry out the deadliest mass shooting in US history because of a mechanism he installed on his gun known as a bump stock.

In the aftermath, then-President Trump banned bump stocks, a modification that allows a rifle to fire like a machine gun. The ban was extraordinary because it was instituted by a Republican president and supported by the National Rifle Association, figures that would normally oppose gun control proposals.

The US Supreme Court has now struck down the ban deciding in a 6-3 opinion that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives had overstepped its authority to outlaw the device.

7. BBC News website: Life is a rollercoaster

The UK’s tallest rollercoaster has suffered another breakdown just two days after reopening. It had been closed for 2 weeks, following its first day of operation.

Thorpe Park in Surrey said people riding Hyperia were stuck on the ride for an hour on Saturday. The park said the ride will remain closed while safety checks are carried out.

Hyperia is 236ft (72m) tall and has a top speed of 81mph (130km/h).

Run (x3), swim (x2), turbo, gym, walk, plus optimism, tourism, dating and sport being sporting

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I ran with my wife on Monday morning – a bit over 7km. Still slow but a little faster than recent efforts. I gave my ribs a real whack on Saturday while wrestling with the mower – they were worse than on Sunday’s hill reps, which is odd.

I tried the swim doctor session in the evening but my ribs were more uncomfortable swimming than they had been running. I called it a day at 800m. I can find reasonably comfortable sleeping positions but moving between them needs to be done carefully.

Onto the turbo in the early evening, unsure what to expect from the ribs or the (seemingly) continually tired legs. The ribs were OK but, quelle surprise, my legs were very weary – 30 minutes @ 28.3kph.

On Wednesday the choice was to rest the ribs and legs or do hill reps with my wife. No contest – 9km for 7 reps and 224m of ascent. Ribs and legs improving slowly? Then, for some reason, the cough returned in the evening (which was not great for my ribs).

I drove down to Bournemouth on Thursday to mow (clearly missing my mowing fix with the ride-on out of action in Oxfordshire) and do domestic stuff. I’d forgotten that I had embraced ‘no mow May’ in Bournemouth – it was hard word tackling what was basically a meadow. It looked better after I’d done it but pushing the mower didn’t help the ribs. I’m wondering if the people who are saying I could have cracked one might be right.

Gym on Friday – I could do all the usual exercises and weights except for the lat pull-down (guess what that might have aggravated). Bike shop after that, followed by a 2.5 mile walk home as the car had not quite been fixed by the garage while I was in the shop – I’ve still been getting random warning lights thanks to a faulty sensor.

The red kites have been very active recently, constantly calling to each other. On Friday afternoon I was treated to a fine display of aerobatics as two circled the garden. It could have been courtship but I’m sure they will have been breeding in the spring. It could have been a territorial defence but didn’t seem that aggressive – although it was possible to hear the occasional clash of wings as they came together in mid-air. Lovely.

On Saturday I went to the local(ish) lake with my friend and training partner. Although I might have had a splash in the sea late last summer, this was my first proper open water swim for over a year, I guess. The aim was to recover some open water familiarity but I was (as ever) apprehensive and would have been happy not to go through with it – but thanks to having company, I did.

It felt chilly (even though the water was said to be 17.6℃) and it felt a bit alien because of the lack of exposure to the SOW (scary open water). I opted for the 400m course and did 3 loops – my Garmin made it 1267m at 2:48 per 100m and at an average heart rate of 109 bpm. Uncannily, to within a metre, it was 2/3 of the half ironman distance, and on schedule to make the cut-off time – but it was slow.

It needs to be faster to make it more comfortable for the cut-off. It would be good if I knew whether my 26 strokes per minute is acceptable or if my 1.35m per stroke is OK. Not too discouraging but more practice needed. Learning how to swim in a straight line would help. (I think my Garmin watch measures strokes per minute for the arm wearing the watch – so my rate is more like a reasonable 52 counting both arms … and I am fairly sure that I am using both arms. However, that must mean that my real stroke length is under 0.7m which is neither good, nor what I know to be the case from the pool).

England’s defence of the Cricket T20 World Cup has begun in familiar style – with the on-field action falling well short of the pre-match talk. Some terrible decisions and performances leaving us in a perilous position in terms of getting out of the group stage. Plus ça change …

I ran with my wife on Sunday – we pushed the distance further as all seems well with no recurrence of her injury. I ran 9km and then went to do what turned out to be a really successful bike training session.

Interesting stuff this week

1. African wise words: Children are the reward of life

2. BBC radio: You have to love the optimism

The T20 Cricket World Cup, jointly hosted by the West Indies and the USA has started. A YouGov poll in the USA showed 52% were thinking the USA will win the tournament.

The first match was a fine win by the USA over Canada but, sorry to say, I don’t think the 52% will prove to be right.

A second win over Pakistan – the American public might know a lot more than I do

3. BBC News website: Welcome to Venice (sort of)

New rules banning loudspeakers and limiting tour group sizes to 25 people have come into force in Venice as measures to limit the impact of over-tourism. Venice has a population of around 250,000 people and saw more than 13 million visitors in 2019. (I expect it depends how you define Venice but I’ve also seen claims that fewer than 50,000 people actually now live there, compared to over 150,000 in the 1970s)

This year the city introduced a €5 (£4) daily entry fee, after initially banning cruise ships from docking in 2021. Visitor numbers have fallen since the pandemic but are expected to reach previous levels in the coming years. The current mantra for tourism is “high value, low volume”.

4. BBC News website: Big Mac chicken rides free

Following a legal challenge from a rival chain in Ireland, other companies will now be free to use the name “Mac” to sell poultry products or in their chains’ names. The European Court of Justice found that McDonald’s could not show it had made genuine use of the trademark for a continuous period of five years.

McDonald’s noted in a statement that the court’s decision did not affect its right to use the “Big Mac” trademark and that the trademark remains in reference to the red-meat burgers it originally referred to.

5. BBC News website: On yer bike (or someone else’s)

The Lifeplus-Wahoo cycling team were able to continue in the Tour of Britain on Friday after the generosity of their rivals.

The UK-based women’s team woke on Friday morning to discover all 14 of their Ribble Endurance SLR bikes, worth “about £55,000” in total according to team manager Tom Varney, had been stolen from their mechanic’s van.

Their further participation in the event was in doubt after the theft, but after an appeal to rival team managers, other teams lent bikes (and their mechanics’ time to set them up) to enable them to start stage two of the race in Wrexham.

6. BBC News website: A different world, a different language

Technology has progressed leaps and bounds since the turn of the millennium, redefining how young people communicate with friends and, now, how they date.

Alongside old acronyms like GSOH (Good Sense Of Humour) and WLTM (Would Like To Meet), newly popular configurations of capital letters include ENM (Ethical Non-Monogamy), ONS (One Night Stand), DDLG (Daddy Dom Little Girl), NSA (No Strings Attached) and GGG (Good, Giving and Game).

According to Ofcom statistics published in January, more than one in 10 UK adults use online dating services; 2.49m adults use the top app, Tinder.

Run (x3), turbo (x4), gym, plus treasure, fortune telling, mini subs and names

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Still no adverse reaction from my wife’s knee so we had another short run on Monday morning, before the rain. Between showers I did lawn edging and weeding – it always feels that mowing and edging a lawn give two of the best pay-backs in gardening.

With no swimming class (because of the Bank Holiday) and only a short morning run, I got on the turbo later – 30 minutes @30.8kph, the first time I’ve hit 30kph for a while.

Tuesday was wet but I gardened between showers and got on the turbo in the early evening – I knocked it down a gear and spun for 45 minutes @ 27.2kph with tired legs.

The tired legs were still much in evidence on Wednesday’s run with my wife – 7.6km on a warm morning, badly overdressed. For some reason unknown to man, I got back on the turbo in the early evening. Not surprisingly, my legs were even more tired but I managed 30 minutes @28.9kph. I’m not sure if I was trying to prove anything – but I have proved that 5 sessions in 3 days is probably as much as I can manage.

I felt better than I deserved to on Thursday but just did domestic stuff until getting back on the turbo in the early evening. I thought my legs might recover after an 24 hour break – but as soon as I started I knew it was going to be a slow struggle. I think our cat could have beaten me (and we don’t even have a cat) – 30 minutes @26.3kph.

The gym went well on Friday morning (surprisingly, I was able to do the usual routine with the usual weights), followed by the bike shop volunteering. Later, I got on the turbo (actually, no I didn’t – even I am not quite that mad).

Up to London on Saturday morning to help with some documentation on our sons’ flat, followed by brunch with our younger son in West Kensington, near our flat. After getting back home I mowed quite a lot of grass before the mower appears to have finally given up the ghost as the two mounts that hold the cutting deck in place have rusted through. Ugh.

I did hill reps with my wife on a warm Sunday morning. I ran 6 reps of the usual hill – nearly 8km and 200m of ascent. It felt very hard but I was still only at an average heart rate of 113bpm with a maximum of just into the 130’s.

Ironman angst

The relative distances of the three sections of the half ironman are about: 80% bike (90km), 18.5% run (21.1km) and 1.5% swim (1.9km). The time splits (for me) might be more like: 50% bike, 36% run and 14% swim. If my total time starts with ‘7 hours’ I’ll be delighted and, judging by how badly I’m running at the moment, surprised.

Ultra thinking

The Race to the Stones 100km ultra marathon will be held on 12th July next year. I really enjoyed doing the 50km version in 2021 and the 100km (which was more type 2 fun in the extreme heat) in 2022. It will be just two days after my 70th birthday so I am toying with the idea of a ‘100 at 70’ challenge for 2025.

Interesting stuff this week

1. African wise words: Do not call the forest that shelters you a jungle

2. BBC News website: We should have captured it, not sunk it

The Colombian government has started exploring a sunk 18th Century Spanish galleon dubbed the “holy grail of shipwrecks”. It has also declared a protected archaeological area around the San José galleon – which was sunk by the British Royal Navy in 1708 in the Caribbean Sea.

The ship, whose ownership remains contested, was carrying one of the largest hauls of valuables ever lost at sea when it was attacked just off the Colombian city of Cartagena. It is estimated to be laden with as much as £16bn ($20bn) in treasure.

3. BBC News website: Surely, she should have seen this coming …

The town of Agde on the French Mediterranean coast is known for its beautiful sandy beaches and year-round sun and also has a reputation for wild sex parties. But now, the town is reeling from an entirely new scandal.

A local fortune teller and the town’s mayor are both now in jail under judicial investigation. The fortune teller faces charges of embezzling the mayor, while he is accused of corruption for spending lavish amounts of taxpayers’ money on her.

Over the past four years it is alleged that she manipulated the mayor in person and by phone with remarkable ventriloquist skills. He received thousands of calls from “voices” of the dead including angels, some of them urging him to help the fortune teller.

4. BBC News website: Submarine to see the Titanic? What could go wrong?

A US real estate billionaire and a deep-sea explorer are planning to travel in a submersible to explore the Titanic. They want to take a sub to a depth of around 3,800m (12,467ft) to see the shipwreck in the North Atlantic.

The private submersible industry was rocked after five people were killed when a vessel built by OceanGate imploded en route to the Titanic last year but a spokesman for the submarine company said that the proposed voyage would only take place once a vessel was fully certified by a marine organisation.

The pair plan to use a sub called the Triton 4000/2 Abyssal Explorer – the “4000” refers to the depth in metres to which the craft can safely be deployed.

I’m hoping that the name of the craft doesn’t have a second ‘s’ where an ‘m’ should be

5. BBC News website: One man’s protection is another’s repression

Georgia’s MPs have voted to overturn a presidential veto on a contentious “transparency on foreign influence” bill which has sparked several weeks of protests in the capital Tbilisi.

Under the legislation, media and non-governmental organisations that receive over 20% of their funding from abroad will have to register as “organisations acting in the interest of a foreign power”, submit themselves to stringent audits, or face punitive fines.

The government argues it will ensure transparency of money flowing to support NGOs and protect Georgia from foreign interference. Opponents have dubbed it “Russian law” because of its similarities with an existing law in Russia and believe the real reason for the legislation is to stifle dissent ahead of October’s parliamentary elections.

6. BBC News website: What’s in a name, a rose by any other name …

A locksmith company in East Sussex called ‘Surelock Homes’ has been handed the title of Britain’s best small business name.

It beat the likes of Manchester’s ‘Tikka Chance On Me’ and Fife’s ‘Prints Charming’.

Other businesses that made the top 10 include Newport dog groomers ‘Furry Godmother’, waste cleaners ‘Lord of the Bins’ in Brighton, Chester embroidery shop ‘Thready or Knott’, and equestrian shop ‘Top of the Clops’ in Somerset.