Can we have an "OMG I can't believe I never realised that!" thread?

[TwigTheWonderKid]

Mine is Sandie Shaw. I can't believe it had never occurred to me until tonight that her name is a play on Sandy Shore.

@EthelMayFergus I'm so glad it's not just me!

Some of our visitors also seem surprised that the entrance to the Channel Tunnel is about a mile inland and doesn’t start on the beach. 😂

I'm 35 and didn't know a male bird was called a drake

It's only male ducks that are called drakes.

The whole certain places are further west or north shock occurs because of how maps are drawn. Makes you think the compass lines divide Britain up down the centre.

It's the same with world maps (that are Europe centric) doesn't allow people to realise how close USA snd Russia are.

It's quite hard to retrain your brain to see it!!

Twisyhair
That revelation has shocked me to the core, too!

The Channel Tunnel is definitely through rock. Here is a cross section:

Mine is astounded too at the Madagascar population.

dottiedodah I had a colleague who was originally from a fishing town. When he visited family, he always came back with stinky bloaters.

That's because the boys are thrown (alive) into a choppy-up machine almost as soon as they are hatched, when their sex is determined

Most are killed by gas however, you are right in saying some are macerated. It’s brutal.

These threads are always worth reading because there's usually something interesting you didn't already know - I don't think I'd ever realised about tortoise skeletons before.

That Jeremy Clarkson’s mum created Paddington bear

She went into business making the toys based on the Paddington Bear character that Michael Bond created in his books. The first book was published in 1958 and she first created the toys from 1972.

"That Jeremy Clarkson’s mum created Paddington bear."
@User68953378975

Micheal Bond was Jeremy Clarkson's mum!!! (Sorry couldn't resist.)

I always thought Skegness was in Scotland.

That Jeremy Clarkson’s mum created Paddington bear
The Paddington Bear character was created by the writer Michael Bond. Clarkson’s mother created the soft toy version

Plums stones contain hydrogen cyanide as do apple seeds and cherry pits - don;t ever chew the pits/seeds

@TwistyHair @SchadenfreudePersonified ‘tis true!

It only works if you pull the right shoelace though (as in the correct one, not L or R).

Try it! Tie a double knot as usual. Once it’s done, tug on one shoelace. If it tightens the knot you’ve got the wrong one and you can just pull the other one instead, and hey presto! Your double knot will melt away!

I honestly thought the lungs were like empty paper bags that were inflated by air

Me too. I thought a punctured lung meant there was a hole in a lung which made it deflate, like a balloon.

This has really made me laugh:
When DH was questioned as to why he'd never informed me of this he just shrugged and said "I thought you just wanted a break from the dual carriageway... although I did think it a bit odd"

When Ross on Friends was told that his dog hadn’t gone to live on a farm but had been put to sleep the penny dropped as to the fate of my childhood dog who had also gone to live on a “farm”.

If you put cheese on cream crackers then heat in the microwave when you take them out the crackers will still be room temperature and crunchy but with melted cheese so easier to eat.

Dandelions (that you blow and make wishes on) are exactly the same dandelions as the yellow flowery weeds. I thought they were different types but they just go grey as they get old!

actually they don't go grey as they get old. The flower petals are yellow and then die; at that stage you'll sometimes see the flower with the little pouch of dead petals, which you can sort of see in the picture. I used to love pulling these dead petals off the remaining head.

Once that's fallen away you're left with the seeds attached to their little floaty, pale grey umbrellas.

Until last week, I thought avocado's grew on bushes on the ground, apparently they grow on trees

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds was about LSD. I mean, it’s very trippy, and all that, but I completely missed the title.

*should have said double bow for clarity.

Scampi is made from langoustines, commonly known in Britain as Dublin Bay Prawns. They can come from anywhere though- not just from Dublin!. Scampi can't be made with any other type of fish so it's not true that if you order scampi you could be eating anything. There is different quality of scampi- some are made with whole tails, others might be smaller pieces mince up- but it always has to be langoustines!

My addition - people often don’t realise that peanuts grow underground - and are considered a legume!