Monday, May 12, 2025
Home Blog Page 347

Suffolk Gazette goes fishing, catches Norwich fans

0

By Courtney Pike, Angling Correspondent

When it comes to winding up Norwich fans, the Suffolk Gazette takes its work very seriously. So, when we recently put some juicy bait on the line using a cheeky Twitter trick, the poor soles in Norfolk bit and were left wriggling on the hook. In fact, we reeled in a whole load of them.

The plan was simple. Using a clever piece of software, we made sure that every time a Norwich fan Tweeted using the hashtag #NCFC they were automatically added to various Suffolk Gazette lists including I’m Really an ITFC Fan. They then got an automated message informing them of this joyous news. And they were very cross.

Many clearly had no idea how Twitter lists work and seemed to think we needed their permission to add them to anything. Others thought we had somehow hacked into their account. One even wanted to call in the lawyers.

They couldn’t fathom what was happening to them.

In fact, they were feeling violated.

Some were very cross.

But when they complained by Tweeting us directly using @SuffolkGazette, things got even worse for them…

… because Tweeting us automatically added them to another list called Suffolk Stars!

Of course, all of this was being played out in front of thousands on Twitter, and Ipswich fans were enjoying the fishing expedition.

Eventually, some of the Norwich fans got the joke. At first, they were like…

… then they were like


And once the penny dropped, inevitably the joke was turned on the Suffolk Gazette itself, and we found ourselves being added to some lists as well.

There was even a list created called “Tossers”, and the Suffolk Gazette remains the only member. And for that, we are very proud.

Don’t worry if your onions poke out

in my lady garden
Are your onions protruding? Don’t be alarmed. So are my husband’s. They are supposed to at this time of the year. At first I didn’t know whether they were getting too big for their space, or whether they needed to be covered up. Indeed, I thought the Old Bill might turn up.

You don’t need to earth them up, as you do your potatoes. Just leave your onions to enjoy feeling the sun or the pitter-patter of gentle rain as they swell.

As you can see from my photo of Bonkers Boris, the village idiot, you will find that many things In the lady garden are there for the taking at the moment. Notice his firm carrot and plump potatoes. They can all be harvested now or in the next few weeks, along with the broad beans, peas and salad veg. You can still plant an extra row of peas and enjoy another summer crop. Your beetroot may also be ready for pulling out to enjoy with a tin of Spam and a dollop of Heinz salad cream.

Embed from Getty Images

Bonkers Boris in a vegetative state

Bonkers Boris can usually be found sitting on the wall near the old asylum with his mussed-up hair, grunting as the girls go by and yelling “wiff waff, wiff waff” at our foreign fruit pickers. And look what the soppy old thing did when I asked him once to help clear out the stream at the bottom of my Lady Garden. He waded right into the middle, and you can see here what happened next…

Sometimes Bonkers Boris can been seen on his rusty old bike on the way to the allotments where he works as a scarecrow. But for all his stupidity, he knows quite a bit about My Lady Garden and likes to lend a hand.

He quotes many old bits of wisdom from his uncle, Mr Trump, who brought him up in a cupboard under the stairs, like: “Red sky at night? Putin’s in sight.”

Or: “Don’t cast a clout till Mrs May is out.”

And: “A bird in the hand can be shagged in the bush.”

Sometimes, he shouts in what he thinks is Latin: “Bleugh! Plop! Inky Pinky Ponky Ner Ner Ner. Foreign Secs for Everyone, HAHAHA!”

They are almost as wise as my favourite old sayings: “A hard man is good to find.” Or:”A bad workman always blames his tool.” And: “All that glitters is not Gary.”

Another famous phrase, of course, is: “The other man’s grass is always greener.”

This applied to me and my next door neighbour. The last time I threw a gin bottle over the hedge I had a peep at his lawn. It was perfectly cropped and perfectly green, like the famous cricket pitch at Wembley.

wembley pitchHowzat! The famous Wembley cricket ground with lovely turf
Then I realised it was AstroTurf! I looked up the price and it was more expensive than my shagpile!

Many dog owners lay fake lawn to stop widdle stains. My husband is thinking of getting the same for me… and we don’t even have a pet.

Laying the artificial grass is a right palaver but you can always get a man in. The advice is to remove the sod. But I think you should make him a cup of tea and a sausage sandwich.

Once my neighbour had gone to all that expense and was expecting to spend the summer on his lilo with a barrel of Adnams, his father-in-law went round while he was out and mowed the AstroTurf. Oh, how I laughed!

Of course, if you do get fake grass you can take your lawn mower to the car boot and swap in for a Tesco bag of eighties Videos, or a kettle with no lid, a plastic baby potty with matching changing mat, or a bin bag of mismatched shoes and wellies.

One man wrote to me last week and was worried that his cucumber was wilting. It just needs more and regular water. But we will soon be out of Europe so there is no pressure on you to have a rigid straight specimen. Let it bend a little in the middle. We are free Britishers not law-bound to grow straight bananas or cucumbers. Why not send us all a photo. We won’t laugh, will we readers?

Jobs to do this week

* Prune the side shoots from your wandering Wisteria but leave the main branches to train up the wall or over your pergola.

* Use your hoe or a shovel to gather up soil (earthing up) over your spuds as if they turn green they will be poisonous. Do the same if they are in pots. They need to be kept in the dark, much like your old man with your credit card bills.

* Buy a kids’ paddling pool to stick your feet in while you knock back some Aspall’s Cyder with a bucket of KFC.

Now for the answers to your problems

* Theresa M from Thornham Magna: Well what a lot of jobs you have to do under pressure. Did you take my advice and put all the names of the people you don’t like in a hat, shake it about and pull the names out just give them any old job? If you employ so many on your estate, they’ll just have to learn on the job. What’s the worst that can happen?

* Mrs S Cameron: No, you cannot steal all the shrubs and garden furniture from the house they kicked you out of, nor can you roll up the lawn and crane out the mature trees. Ask your billionaire family to get you some brand new things from B & Q and Argos. They do a very pleasant nylon marquee.

* Mr Gove: Well I really don’t know why you’re asking ME what gardening job prospects there are for a short labourer. You could try picking fruit from low-lying bushes like gooseberries. Remember you don’t like EXPERTS and I am the expert supreme. So please don’t bother me again.

Have a good week!

anita-bush-signature

Pokemon Go banned in Norwich after locals attacked

0

EXCLUSIVE
By Hugh Dunnett, Crime Correspondent

Smartphone sensation Pokemon Go has been banned from Norwich after gamers started throwing balls at locals who look like weird freaks.

The game, which has taken the world by storm, allows players to track down and catch monsters and strange-looking creatures in the “real world” using their smartphone camera.

But police in Norfolk have received many complaints of locals being attacked because they look just like Pokemon characters with extra limbs, strange shapes and fantastical habits.

Now Nintendo, the company whose shares have rocketed 50% since the game launched and instantly topped the download charts, has had to block participation in Norwich using in-built “geo-block” technology.

A spokesman said: “Following advice from Norfolk Police, we have withdrawn the game from Norwich because local people look so much like Pokemon characters including Charizard and Squirtly. The little duck has also caused issues in Norfolk because of its webbed feet.”

pokemon go banned in NorwichBubba Spuckler repeatedly ‘caught’ by Pokemon Go players (Photo: Getty Images Europe)

Norwich man Bubba Spuckler complained to police that he had been assaulted 15 times in Norwich city centre in the last week alone. He told the Suffolk Gazette: “People on their phones are playing this Pokemon Go game and spotting me on the street. Assuming I am some sort of weird, deformed creature, they throw balls at me and try to catch me. It’s very upsetting.”

And another Norwich person, who asked not to be named, has also been captured 14 times while going out shopping to the local supermarket.

Pokemon Go banned in Norwich Pokemon Go banned: woman targeted by gamers

The woman said: “First they would point their phone at me, then say something like, ‘There’s Magmar’, and they throw stuff at me. It’s scary.”

A spokesman for Norfolk Police said: “We can confirm Nintendo has banned Pokemon Go in Norwich after several unfortunate incidents involving innocent locals.”

Snail farm closes because business was slow

0

snail farm

By Suffolk Gazette Staff

A Suffolk snail farm has been forced to close with the loss of four jobs, the Suffolk Gazette can reveal.

Bosses at Halesworth-based Let’s Escargot blamed the collapse on business being so slow.

[AdSense-A]

Managing Director Frank O’Phyle, 48, said: “The snail business is much slower than we thought. I’d suggest if you want fast profits, shell out for fast food.”

He added that his remaining 400 snails, which he had been breeding for four years, were spared from the dinner plate and released into the wild last week. They had nearly reached the door already.

[AdSense-C]

Norfolk woman to run for Labour leadership

0

By Suffolk Gazette Political Staff

Norfolk mother-of-ten Edna Spratt has announced her intention to stand for the leadership of the Labour Party.

Speaking from her Dereham hovel, Ms Spratt, 44, claimed she was best placed to fight new Tory Prime Minister Theresa May – and to one day grab the keys to Downing Street.

[AdSense-A]

Ms Spratt, who lives with her brother and their ten children, said her humble upbringing as a Norfolk peasant makes her an ideal candidate on the world stage alongside other superwomen like Hillary Clinton, Angela Merkel and Mary Berry.

And she insists her conviction for stealing a chutney recipe should not stand against her, but rather illustrates she is “just a normal person trying to get by”.

She told the Suffolk Gazette: “I have been a member of the Labour Party all my working life. At least I would have been had I ever worked or indeed paid my subscription.

“But it is time for a strong woman to take control. If scruffy old Jeremy Corbyn can do it, then I certainly can.”

norfolk hovel edna sprattPower politics: Edna Spratt relaxing in her luxury Norfolk kitchen

Ms Spratt, who has never been to London before, intends to borrow a horse and cart to take her to the Big City so she can launch her Leadership election campaign.

Top of her policy list is a big increase in the aid budget for the Third World so that Norfolk can be connected to the national electricity grid.

Please support my running costs by clicking here and buying me a beer!
[olimometer id=1]

Visit our Suffolk Gazette store, or get our book on Kindle now! You Couldn’t Make It Up, 50 Hilarious Stories From The Suffolk Gazette is a BARGAIN! Please remember to leave a great review!

New Apple computer launch attended by local students

0

A group of Suffolk schoolchildren won a prize to see the launch of the much-anticipated new Apple computer in London yesterday.

They were amazed to see the new device had no wires, could be dropped without shattering, and will NEVER need charging.

“It wouldn’t matter if there was a power cut. I can’t understand it! Trust Apple to invent something so clever,” said Lorraine Fisher, 34, a teacher at Stowmarket Middle School.

“We kept looking to see where the wires went but there aren’t any! And it actually prints as you type without having a separate printer to keep going wrong.”

The computer is called The Remington and is expected to take the market by storm with its £20 price tag.

apple computer the remingtonKeys to success: Apple’s new computer will revolutionise the way we work
Student, Holly Brain, said: “We were flabbergasted when we touched a key and it appeared on the paper straight away. I broke my nail because the keys were harder to press than the ones on my iPad, and there was no search facility.

“But the fact that I would never have to fight my brother to use the charger is a big bonus. You can type out your homework and give it straight to the teacher without worrying whether the printer is working.”

The revolutionary Remington will make ink cartridges obsolete. Instead the ink is magically held into a little ribbon which is inserted into the computer for instant printing. It is completely mechanical, taking away the need for wires or batteries.

An Apple spokesman said: “We were delighted at the response of the children to the launch of The Remington. Once again we have shown how innovative our designers are with this climate-friendly device.”

He admitted The Remington might be a little noisier than other computers on the market, but stressed this simply “added to its charm”.

Suffolk Gazette saves Angela Eagle press conference

0

By Polly Ticks, Whitehall Correspondent

The Suffolk Gazette rode to the rescue of Labour leadership challenger Angela Eagle – by being the only mainstream newspaper to remain at her campaign launch press conference and ask questions.

She summoned the media at the worst possible time, just as Andrea Leadsom was announcing she was abandoning her bid for the Tory leadership, meaning Theresa May will be our Prime Minister.

[AdSense-A]

But while other newspapers rushed off to cover the Conservative bombshell, we remained with the Eagle camp purely because a cup of tea and a sandwich was on offer.

So when Eagle invited questions from the hacks, we were there to fill in for the BBC, ITV and everyone else, and prevent an embarrassing silence.

Representing the interests of our readers, we fired in three key questions:

– What would you put on your allotment rhubarb to prevent pests?
– What do you think of Ipswich Town’s chances of making the play-offs this coming season?
– What is your favourite colour?

We were about to ask a fourth crucial question about Adnams beer when we were told to “bugger off after all and join the other journalists”.

Please support my running costs by clicking here and buying me a beer!
[olimometer id=1]

Visit our Suffolk Gazette store, or get our book on Kindle now! You Couldn’t Make It Up, 50 Hilarious Stories From The Suffolk Gazette is a BARGAIN! Please remember to leave a great review!

Mr Chilcot blasts my lupins of mass destruction

in my lady garden

Old Mr Chilcot next door has been kicking up a fuss. He said my plants had crossed his driveway obliterating his trailing lobelia. He called mine Lupins of Mass Destruction!

He wrote a madly-long letter to the parish council, labelling me a member of the Royal War-decultural Society. Anyone would think I had parked my tank on his lawn! He also took his trimmer to my hedge (Georgius Bushium).

[AdSense-A]

Meanwhile I took myself off to the allotment to get away from all the fuss.

lupinsLupins of mass distraction (Photo: Simon Young)

Do you have a dirty old hoe in your shed? Many of my male readers would find one very handy.

A hoe is just the thing to get to all those little nooks and crannies and both my father and grandfather used them.

It is a small, sharpish rake thing and is one of the reasons we grow vegetables in neat rows. Hoe between the lines to gouge out weed seedlings before they get a grip on your crops.

A hand-hoe is one with a short handle.

dirty hoeWhat a filthy hoe

I don’t like bending down while hoeing so I prefer a nice long handle (Dutch hoe £6.75 from B & Q) and use it like a 1960s housewife with a Ewbank carpet sweeper to keep the dandelions at bay.

This is the time to harvest your herbs for drying. Use a rubber band to tie your lavender branches and hang upside down from a beam (the herbs that is, not you, unless you are a High Court judge in suspenders).

Rosemary, thyme and oregano can all be dried in bunches – and they only take up a thousand times more space than a little Lidl jar.

Some gardeners dry their herbs on kitchen roll in the microwave but I wouldn’t recommend it as it might burn your house down.

Many of my men friends have flies covering their carrots. The dreaded carrot fly can also infest parsnips, celery and celeriac and they are attracted by the smell.

rotten-carrotCarrot fly: beware of infection

Try Nemasys Fruit and Vegetable Protection (about £8 a pop from garden centres or Durex Ribbed and Dotted from Superdrug).

Alternatively, buy a bag of BOGOF carrots from Tesco, get your deckchair out, crack open a bottle and forget all about garden pests. Personally I have never seen a carrot fly any more than a pig but I have seen a pea shoot.

Jobs to do this week

* Pick off any Rosemary beetles and tread on them.
* Buy some mosquito repellent for balmy late night sessions.
* Pop some spring onions in and they’ll be ready to nibble with a pork pie and bottle of Adnams Prosecco between eight to 12 weeks, if you can wait that long for a drink.

Your questions answered

* Mr Gove of Glemsford: Oh, poor little you! It sounds as though all your turnips have bolted. There’s nothing you can do about it now, I’m afraid.

* Mrs J G from Finborough. Yes those little insects can bite. I’m sure Savlon will help where you got ants in your pants.

* Mandy from Stowmarket: If you are not sure the pods are ready for eating, try taking a pea in the vegetable plot before you pick the lot.

That’s it for this week!

anita-bush-signature

Please support my running costs by clicking here and buying me a beer!
[olimometer id=1]

Visit our Suffolk Gazette store, or get our book on Kindle now! You Couldn’t Make It Up, 50 Hilarious Stories From The Suffolk Gazette is a BARGAIN! Please remember to leave a great review!