For thousands of years, most people were convinced that birds hibernated in the winter — until a staggeringly resilient stork proved otherwise. Martin Fone explains.
The deadly slipperiness of the discarded banana skin — substantially more slippery than ice — is a staple of comic sketches across the world, but what is it that makes our favourite tropical fruit such a hazard? Martin Fone investigates.
We tend to think of bird song as endearing and delicate — but there are birds out there who would put the average foghorn to shame. Martin Fone finds out which is the loudest.
Our resident curious questioner Martin Fone poses (and answers) another head scratcher - or should we say, head banger?
Martin Fone, decidedly not an animal person, ponders whether animals should wear clothes and, indeed, what a stylish pet would wear in the case that they do.
Martin Fone ponders another Curious Question, and comes away thinking that perhaps it's time for us to start money laundering in a very literal sense.
A question about a question? Absolutely. Martin Fone gets to the bottom of where this curious phrase originates — and how it even found its way across the Atlantic.
Martin Fone finds himself intrigued by the totem pole, and wonders which is the biggest ever made.
Everywhere you look in Amsterdam there seems to be a way of traversing the waterways of the city. But are there really more bridges here than anywhere else in the world? Martin Fone investigates.
With England about to take on Australia in The Ashes, Martin Fone ponders the derivation of the Aussies nickname for us: Poms.
The idea of going on a cruise once conjured up images of old boys snoozing in armchairs while elderly guests play deck quoits around him — but times have changed. We sent Martin Fone, a cruise virgin, on a long weekend to Amsterdam to discover what all the fuss is about.
Martin Fone, author of 50 Curious Questions, explains how a duck egg led to the popularisation of a term in one of the world's great sports.
Inspired by the recent wacky weather, Martin Fone — author of 50 Curious Questions — turns his gaze to what is undoubtedly the strangest form of precipitation: hail.
In the heart of Norfolk the beautiful Georgian pile that is Bressingham Hall makes a wonderful spot for a break, says Martin Fone.
He's one of the most famous human beings ever to walk the planet, but the final resting place of the Genoese explorer Christopher Columbus remains shrouded in mystery. Martin Fone, author of 50 Curious Questions, investigates.
Jamón Iberico is undeniably delicious – and undeniably pricey. Martin Fone took a trip to Spain to find out how it gets that way.
Statesman, lawyer, fearless leader – and part-time inventor. Martin Fone looks at one of Abraham Lincoln's lesser-known talents.
