1. Amateur film-makers are getting rich by posting their films on the video-sharing website YouTube. Research released by the analysis firm TubeMogul revealed that at least 10 YouTube performers earned more than $100,000 (£65,000) last year. Topping the rich list is the Californian Shane Dawson, 22, who has developed a cult following for his satirical comedy sketches. Dawson has made an estimated $315,000 in the past 12 months and his videos have garnered more than 430m hits.
These bedroom “vloggers” (video bloggers) make their money in advertising revenue. YouTube splits the money it makes from placing adverts around the videos in a 50/50 deal with their creators.
2. The UK’s favourite quiz show catchphrase is “Can I have a ‘P’ please, Bob?” from the cult 1980s quiz show Blockbusters. A survey by meccabingo.com revealed on Wednesday that the tongue-in-cheek request was favourite, with 23% of votes polled. In the show, hosted by Bob Holness, teenagers competed for prizes by tackling questions whose answers began with a specific letter of the alphabet.
Among other popular phrases that made the list were “Look at what you could have won” from Jim Bowen’s Bullseye, Roy Walker’s “Say what you see” from Catchphrase, and Anne Robinson’s “You are the weakest link, goodbye.”
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3. One in 10 high-street salads is saltier than a Big Mac burger.
Of the 270 salad and pasta bowls examined by the Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash), only six contained less salt than a packet of crisps. The worst offender was a spicy crayfish noodles salad from Eat, with 3.51g of salt — a Big Mac has 2.1g. Among supermarkets, Marks & Spencer sells seven of the 10 saltiest salads: its Taste of Asia salad (2.83g) contains almost as much salt as six packets of crisps, Cash said.
The Food Standards Agency recommends adults eat no more than 6g of salt a day — about a teaspoonful — to minimise the risk of high blood pressure, stroke and heart disease.
4. “Cheers” is more popular today than the traditional “thank you”. The finding comes from a poll by the online gift store Me to You: 40% of the 3,000 people surveyed said they believed saying “thank you” sounded too formal, and they would rather express gratitude with colloquial terms such as “ta”, “that’s great”, “cool”, “lovely” or “wicked”. Any of the words used to say thanks were irrelevant, according to 77% of those questioned. They believed that a pleasant gesture worked just as well.
Caroline Weaver from Me to You said: “While the great British public might feel uncomfortable saying thank you these days, they do like to show their gratitude in other ways.”
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5. Obesity operations such as stomach stapling and gastric banding have increased 10-fold in England in seven years. “These figures show how bad things have got,” said Tam Fry of the National Obesity Forum.
