Dogs have never been more popular — as soaring puppy prices (and the worrying number of scams) show. But our love affair with dogs is anything but new — it's older than even our most ancient civilisations, discovers Martin Fone.
Martin Fone takes a look at the first Indian restaurant in Britain, discovering what was on its first menu, and finding out how lager became the traditional accompaniment to curry dishes.
It's not your imagination: there really were far more acorns on the ground than usual this autumn. Martin Fone looks at the phenomenon of the 'mast year'.
The mysteries of mapping have intrigued Martin Fone since he was a boy — and one of the great curiosities is the existence of the 'trap street'.
Martin Fone examines the (sadly rare) phenomenon of the parishes who erect memorials not to the fallen, but to those who survived war.
Those 'chance of rain' percentages you see on the weather forecast hide a bewildering range of possibilities. So how are they calculated? The answer is far from simple, much less logical, as Martin Fone discovers.
A walk to a local hilltop prompts Martin Fone to wonder just how far you can see, assuming perfect atmospheric conditions.
A moment's reflection on a cancelled pub quiz gets Martin Fone wondering about Scotland's only lake.
Fifty years ago, only three per cent of Brits used tea bags. Today, only three per cent of us don't. Martin Fone takes a look at how tea bags took over the world.
Six months of online shopping have left Martin Fone buried in cardboard boxes — and that's put him in the mood to answer a curious question. Where do they all come from? And when did we start making them?
Speed cameras have been a fixture of British roads for three decades, but they've been around far longer than that. Martin Fone finds out more about how they came about — and, ironically, how it was a speed-loving racing driver who is responsible for their creation.
Martin Fone crunches into a tart, crisp apple and ponders a question: who was Granny Smith? And did she really discover the apple that's named after her?
As patriotic songs come under the spotlight, Martin Fone takes a look at national anthems across the world.
The rest of Europe drives on the right, so why do the British drive on the left? Martin Fone, author of 'Fifty Curious Questions', investigates.
An experience far from home prompts Martin Fone to delve into the history of laundry — including the rather unpleasants secrets of removing stains.
Martin Fone delves into the curious history of the garibaldi biscuit — and how it's linked to the tale of Italian freedom fighter-turned folk hero Giuseppe Garibaldi.
Martin Fone tells the fascinating — and ultimately heartbreaking — tale of Robert Fitzroy, the visionary sailor-turned-scientist whose pioneering work saved countless thousands of lives.
Martin Fone delves into the curious history of one of the world's most popular tropical fruits.
The man who invented the very first motor car didn't think it would be able to survive a long-distance car journey. Luckily, his wife had more faith, as Martin Fone discovered when he investigated the tale of Bertha Benz.
Sunshine on St Swithin's Day is supposed to mean that we're set for 40 days of sun; if it rains, however, we're supposed to expect 40 days of precipitation. Martin Fone investigates how this curious prediction came about — and whether there is anything in it. The answer may surprise you...
