James O'Brien's Mystery Hour

00:02 This is a Global Player original podcast. 00:08 This is LBC from Global. Leading Britain's conversation. Mystery Hour with James O'Brien. 00:17 Five minutes after 12 is the time and this is it. Your weekly opportunity to achieve the sort of satisfaction not ordinarily available anywhere else on your radio. 00:26 If you're not familiar with this feature... 00:28 It's not going to sound that exciting when I describe it to you, I cannot lie. 00:34 Someone rings in with a question, right? 00:37 And then someone else rings in with an answer. 00:40 That's kind of it. That's the feature. 00:44 If I tell you that it has spawned games, a board game and a travel game, two games, two games, then perhaps you get an idea that there is rather more to it than originally meets the eye. And if I tell you that it routinely features as the favourite part of the programme among my growing army of listeners, then perhaps I would have given you enough cause to give it a go, to give it a whirl. Remember, you can also ring in and either show off your own knowledge or... 01:09 share your curiosity about something that you're certain must have an answer. 01:14 And as if that were not inducement enough, You can win a game by being my favourite contributor of the week. Find out more about the game at mysteryhour.co.uk and find out more about the terms and conditions regarding the competition at lbc.co.uk. You're not allowed to look stuff up. 01:34 And that's it, really, I think. No repetition, no motoring questions. Motoring questions, that's become a bit... 01:44 perforated around the edges. A bit blurred around the edges, the motor in questions. Ban may get further blurred today, but in the meantime, it is time to get things underway. And David is in Normandy in France. That's quite vague. David, question or answer? 01:59 Good morning, James. We're between Dieppe and Rouen. 02:02 That's more like it. 02:04 In a nice little cottage in the countryside, which is lovely. Is it a jeet? 02:08 No, it's not. It's a cottage, which we're lucky enough to have. What's a jeet then? 02:13 I think that's when you pay money to someone else, like an Airbnb thing, isn't it? 02:18 So a gite is on someone else's farm, as it were? 02:22 Yeah. Is it? 02:22 I don't know. I'm asking you. You're the expert. 02:24 Yes, it is. A gite is on someone else's farm or their individual cottage. Right. 02:28 So you've got a self-contained individual cottage. 02:32 That would be one way of putting it, yeah. 02:34 And is it your own or are you on your vacances? 02:36 We've been here 20 years, but we live normally in Kent. We're just here with the grandchildren, which is the basis of my crisis. Right, let's get on with it then. Not the children. I'm here on holiday. With my eight-year-old, Amelie, granddaughter. Yes. Grandson, Isaac, 85. Hello, Isaac. Hello, Amelie. 02:55 Bonjour, bonjour. 02:56 Hello, Amelie. Bonjour, merci. And we have a problem, a breakfast-related problem. We've smuggled in some proper porridge oats for breakfast, but we are using three different types of milk. 03:09 One of us, I know, from the last hour. 03:11 Yeah, well played. Yeah. 03:13 well smoothed in we have um we have something none of your west london oak soaking going on here proper porridge in the morning yeah someone's having oak milk the children have whole milk and i have skimmed milk why do the different kinds of milk take a different amount of time in three different saucepans it's not the saucepans i think it's something to do with the milk but i don't know what um so you have three pans of milk on the go Well, yes, yes we do. 03:41 And then, so three different, so the children both have cow's milk. Yes. You have Sammy skimmed cow's milk and Mrs. David has... Chris. Chris has oat milk. 03:55 Oat milk, oat milk, yeah. 03:57 And, I mean, let me take some, let me have a couple of guesses, all right? 04:02 Yeah, go on. 04:03 The oat milk absorbs it quickest and the full fat milk absorbs it slowest. 04:09 I've skimmed first. Skimmed is fastest? So Grandpa seems to get his porridge quicker. 04:16 Same amount of porridge, and then followed by the oat milk, followed by the full fat. There you go. So semi-skimmed oat milk full fat. 04:25 It's going to have something to do. I'd have thought it had something to do with fat, but there's no fat at all in the oat milk, I don't think. All right, you're on. I love it. There's a Goldilocks joke here, but I'm damned if I can think of it. David... 04:37 I'm sorry? I'll have to ask the three people in the garden. 04:40 Three different bowls of porridge. One is hot, one is not so hot, and one is just right. Anyway, why? Why does the type of milk you use affect the speed with which the oats absorb the milk, even? Thank you. Ten minutes after that. I love that, David. Enjoy the rest of your holidays. Love to Emily and Isaac. I'll try and get them an answer, but I hope I don't put them off radio for life if we don't. 05:03 succeed. Austin is in Beckenham. Austin, question or answer? 05:08 Question, please, James. 05:09 Carry on, Austin. 05:11 The Met Police HQ is called Scotland Yard. 05:14 It is, yeah. 05:15 Why? 05:16 I know this. 05:18 Oh, OK. 05:18 I think I know this. 05:20 I read it in a book. Yeah. 05:23 I think the original Scotland Yard dates back to when Scotland and England were two separate kingdoms, countries. And you know that technically the soil that an embassy on is the soil of the country whose embassy it is rather than the country. So I think that Scotland Yard was where That wouldn't be an embassy back, but it's like if the King of Scotland came to visit London, the place that they stayed in was Scotland Yard, and it became part of Scotland. 06:07 Oh, is that because of maybe James I? 06:11 Prior to that... 06:12 Because he wouldn't have needed, because he was king of both, wasn't he? Yes. But I think Scotland Yard is to do with Scottish royalty or embassy. Royalty and embassy would be the same thing, actually. 06:27 So New Scotland Yard's got nothing to do with that. Old Scotland Yard... 06:33 presumably stopped being that and became the headquarters of the police and and then it moved and they just kept the name and they called it new scotland i think that i mean qualifications i think i read it in a would it be an andrew taylor book or or or anyway that i think is the answer but we're going to have to wait for someone who sounds a bit more convincing than me right 06:55 Well, thank you. Reform policy may be... Hang on. 06:59 What? Steady. I mean, you're not going to get me in trouble with any politics. 07:04 Well, I hope not. No, I was just going to crack a little... try and crack a little gag there, but never mind. 07:08 No, you can if you want. That's fine. I've sported now by drawing too much attention. 07:11 I just think it may be for the next election, maybe reform party policy could be to change it to England. LAUGHTER 07:20 Difficult. Don't give them ideas. 12 minutes after 12 is the time. I tell you what, mate, you pay enough money. I'm sure that they do that on your behalf. 12 minutes after 12 is the time. 03456060973 is the number. 07:36 Oh, hang on. Hurry up. There's some phone lines free. So what happens is at 12 o'clock we get quite a lot of calls. They're not all... Some might be... Questions that we've dealt with quite recently. Some might not quite pass the sniff test, as it were. So there are now more phone lines free, three phone lines free that were not free three minutes ago. Eve's in Barnett. Eve, question or answer? 07:56 Question, please, James. 07:57 Carry on. 07:58 Hi. I'm noticed on public transport in Europe and possibly everywhere else. They have plastic seats. Plastic. Plastic, yes. You know, plastic seats, moulded seats. Yes. But our tubes and buses have got seats covered in fabric, and I can only imagine the secretions that go through the clothing. 08:15 Oh, you can't use that word on the show. 08:17 It's absolutely true. Oh, no. You're sitting on it and wondering who else has sat in it and what they've sat in and everything else. 08:22 It used to be a thing. If you hit it really hard, the amount of dust that would come up off a London... Exactly. 08:29 Yeah, so everywhere else has plastic seats and you can disinfect them easily and you can, you know, you clean them down. Why have we got fabric seats that can't be cleaned easily? 08:38 I'd rather have a plastic seat as long as I can stop thinking about secretions. Wouldn't you? They're just much comfier. 08:47 Well, no, I mean, you can have... Well, no, I don't think so. 08:50 Have you been... How many countries in Europe have you been to? 08:54 Quite a few. And they've all got plastic seats. They've all got plastic seats, yeah. 08:58 Every bus, every tram, every train. 09:01 Yeah, yeah. Well, as far as I know, put it that way, as far as I know. And you're on the seat for 10 minutes and you get off, but then you're not thinking about whoever else has sat there before you. 09:13 Yeah. 09:14 Okay, yeah, and it's a British thing. 09:17 Yeah, it is. 09:18 I've never really clocked this before, actually. 09:21 Yeah, yeah. 09:23 Okay, you're on. Yeah, I like that question. Thank you very much. I'll see what I can do. If you ring me again, don't say secretions. 09:29 Okay, I'll try not to. 09:31 Deposits. 09:31 Have a great day. 09:32 Is deposits better? Deposits not better, is it? Deposits worse. Reminders. Souvenirs. Leftovers. Sheddings. I'll stop now. This is disgusting. People are trying to have their lunch. Alan's in Wigan. Alan, question or answer? Speaking of lunch. 09:49 Oh dear. It's a question, James. 09:51 Carry on. 09:52 I've been doing a lot of driving for a living and driving up and down to Scotland over the years. I've noticed a lot of birds eating various bits of roadkill. And then I got thinking, the birds have taste buds. 10:04 This has got worse, not better, hasn't it, for people trying to eat their lunch? 10:08 You think of what they're pecking away at the road, worms, fish. Now, I know people eat raw fish, but the birds have taste buds. 10:16 What road has gone? Where have you seen roadkill fish? 10:19 No, they eat fish as well, I'm saying. 10:21 Oh, sorry, I thought we were just talking about roadkill. 10:24 No, no. 10:24 I was going to say, where have you been driving? 10:27 Driving a hovercraft. 10:28 That would be astonishing, wouldn't it, if you got fell off the back of a lorry, I suppose. 10:33 Pretty much everything you eat, apart from seagulls, who eat ice cream, fish and chips, but do birds have taste buds. 10:40 Not just birds. I mean, you know that our dog, for example, and it might not be flavour... 10:46 I don't know your dog. 10:47 You don't know her, but, you know, you will soon. I'm about to introduce you. She turns her little nose up at dry food, you know. Yeah, yeah. And she'll come away and she'll, like, look at us, thinking, well, if I just play this right, then we'll swap it for some wet food in a minute. And we don't, because we're very... strict i think mrs o'brien does when i'm not around but so she can have wet food in the morning and dry food in the evening otherwise it's going to bankrupt me before we even start talking about vet spills but there's a definite preference there so why would birds i know that birds aren't mammals but why would birds be any different Would it be a taste bud? 11:22 I mean, so is the question about the literal anatomical existence of something akin to a mammalian taste bud? Or is it just a question about whether they actively prefer some foods to others? 11:33 I prefer the mammalian. 11:35 Yeah, OK. Do birds have anything like taste buds? I like it. It's a good question. 03456060973. It's 12.16. 11:45 It is 18 minutes after 12, and you are listening to James O'Brien on LBC, in case you've forgotten. Miss Jow's underway. Questions in need of answers. Why does the type of milk you use to make your porridge... A few porridge purists getting in touch to say if you're using milk at all, then you're not eating proper porridge. It should just be water. Just war for your porridge. 12:12 But that's the question. Three different types of milk, three different rates of completion. Why? 12:18 And staying in Scotland, or with matters Scottish, why is Scotland Yard called Scotland Yard? I've pretty much nailed that, but there's a round of easy pickings. Low-hanging fruit for you there, if you just want to sound more informed than I am, or more qualified. 12:32 Why is the United Kingdom, apparently, the only country in the civilised world that has fabric seats on public transport instead of wiped clean seats? Like you get in a hospital. You know, you can just wipe down everything in a hospital. You'd think public transport would be a lot safer if it had wiped clean upholstery. But it doesn't. And every other country does, according to Eve. It's been to all of them. It's been to all the countries. All the countries. 13:01 And do birds have taste buds? 03456060973. Daniel's in Plymouth. Daniel, question or answer? Question, please, James. Carry on, Daniel. 13:11 So I do a lot of travelling with my employment and I've noticed over... few years now that a lot of place names seem to double up yes for example you've got south end in essex and then there's a south end in scotland yes or there's a witch church in devon the witch church just outside cardiff yes i was just wondering who decides on the name is the set limit you can have in the uk yeah no one absolutely no one at all 13:39 I don't know what it is now, but the reason why this phenomenon exists, you've kind of provided the answer yourself without realising it. 13:48 Place names were derived usually from geographical features. So, for example, Lynn, as in King's Lynn. Lynn is the Celtic word, Celtic word for a lake. 14:02 A lot of Viking language as well would be describing features. And Southend... 14:08 is obviously the south end of something, whether it's a piece of land or a piece of water, the south end. And if you're in, you know, going back a couple of thousand years and you're knocking around Essex and you call something south end, how the hell are you going to know that there's someone up in Scotland? who's just used the same name to describe something as well. So they're descriptive. They're descriptors, which means they're bound to be duplicated because the geographical features that the place names are derived from, which church is a church... 14:41 I don't know what wit is, but Kidder Minster is a church on a hill. Kidder is an old word. There's only one Kidder Minster. There's only one Kidder Minster. But there could have been loads because it means a church on a hill. So... 14:53 It would be mad if it hadn't happened, if they hadn't been duplicated. If you were to start a new town now, which is kind of the subtext of your question, would anybody check to make sure there wasn't a town already called that? 15:07 Yes. 15:09 Yes. 15:13 I mean, why do you think they call it Milton Keynes, Daniel? 15:17 Oh, God knows all I know is it means land of roundabouts. 15:20 It does, actually, in the original Latin. The land of the roundabouts. Milton Keynes. 15:26 I think that the... I don't know, actually, but I've given you half the first answer, right? So that's the... 15:34 The geographical features provide the place name, so of course they're duplicated. So that's why are they duplicated. Whether or not in early 21st century, is there any... 15:49 I think Wit means new, so Wit Church would be new church. Alid's been in touch to say that the Welsh equivalent, the Welsh translation indeed of Wit Church in Cardiff would be Eglis Newid, and Newid there would be new. So if it's a literal translation, then Wit means new. But whether or not you can check now, I mean, when's the last time we named a town, Daniel? Not you and me, I mean like everyone. 16:15 Uh... I know they've had a recent town just outside the province called Sherford. Called what? Sherford. 16:23 Sherford? Yeah. Well, Ford. Ford. F-O-R-D? Yeah. So that's probably linked to a geographical feature anyway. But what we don't know is whether anyone checks whether there's another Sherford anywhere. 16:35 So that's the question. 16:37 If Daniel and me started a new town tomorrow, do we have to clear the name with anyone? 16:44 Yeah? Yeah, I can live with that. All right, that's it then. We're off. 23 minutes after 12 is the time. I actually really like that question. 03456060973. And we didn't even mention other countries. 16:56 You just, you know, you go off to another country and just name it after your hometown, like York. Of course, call it New York, lads. Shall we? Originally, of course, called New Amsterdam, Keith. Did you know that? Of course you did. 17:07 Isn't there a They Might Be Giants song that addresses New York, New Amsterdam, Istanbul, Constantinople? I digress. Wendy's in Poynton, which is in Stockport or the Port of Stock. Wendy, question or answer? 17:20 Question, please. Carry on, Wendy. Is it in Stockport or near Stockport, Pointon, technically speaking? 17:25 It's near Stockport. Well, I apologise. 17:27 I apologise. I wonder, what do you think, Pointon, where does the name Pointon come from? Pointon. 17:32 I have no idea. 17:33 Point Town, Point Town, no, nor do I now, but anyway, what's your question? 17:37 Right, so I've got a dog, Petter, who's half collie, and whenever I play the mouth organ, which is not very often, but when I do, she starts howling. 17:47 Right. 17:47 And we don't know why, and I've always wondered, and I've wanted to ring you for about three years, but never got round to it. 17:54 Well, you've been very busy, Wendy. You've had a lot on. Petter, how often do you play the mouth organ? 18:01 Not very often. Can you get a tune out of it? 18:05 Can you get a tune out of it? Well, no. 18:07 Not really. We just play it, and then she just howls, and she's funnier than us playing it. 18:12 Do you want to hear her? Yes. Have you got your mouth organ? 18:15 Yeah. Thank you. Well, my daughter's here with a mouth organ, so I can put the phone next to her. She better do it. 18:21 Yeah, come on. And Petta's there as well. Petta's there. Ooh. 18:33 She's got stage fright. 18:39 There, we got that. We got the howl. 18:41 Have you got it? 18:43 Yeah, yeah, yeah. We got the howl. 18:46 She normally howls a lot louder, but I think she's a bit... She's got stage fright. 18:49 It's not every day she's on national radio. 18:54 Our dog does it with fire engines. 18:58 Oh, yeah. So a fire engine goes past and our dog absolutely howls like a wolf. It's the only time she ever does it. She doesn't even do it when she's chasing foxes around the garden. So it must be the same thing, right? 19:14 Yeah, my friend's dog does it with a phone. She's the one who made me try out Pepper. 19:20 Oh, Pepper with a P, not Petter. 19:23 Yeah, Pepper with a P. Named after the famous cartoon character, I venture. 19:28 No, actually, she had a peppery nose when she was born. She had, like, speckled nose. No, she hasn't. That's nice. 19:34 Just to be clear, Wayne has accused your daughter of faking that howl. I just, I believe that that was a joke. 19:39 No, I know. 19:40 That's just outrageous. I've got a recording. Outrageous. Fake howls. I've got a recording of her doing it, yeah. Yeah, I know you have. 19:46 So it's probably, it's the same. Do they think it's another dog? Is it like, is that what's happening with the mouth organ? No offence to your mouth organ playing, but, you know. It's pretty bad on it. 19:56 Does she think it's another dog? 19:59 No, I think it's more something to do with resonance or something. It's a pitch that she just has to howl. She does it with the recorder, but I can't find the recorder. 20:11 As in the recorder, as in London's Burning, London's Burning. 20:16 Yeah, when you learn to play that. You haven't got a didgeridoo, have you? 20:20 I haven't. 20:22 Because I bet a didgeridoo would set her off as well. Yeah. 20:27 well do we've set off quite a few other dogs actually gary's been in touch caroline's been in touch there's quite a few dogs we've set their dogs off with your mouth organ yeah i mean we may not get an answer we may not get an answer to this question wendy but we've certainly amused ourselves 20:51 Well, I'm really glad. Like I said, I wanted her in so long. 20:55 I'm glad you did. Shall I ask you your daughter's name or is she too cool? 21:00 No, she's not too cool. Maria. 21:01 Maria, lovely. Wendy and Maria there and Pepper combining to create some radio gold. But hopefully we'll actually get an answer to the question. Why do certain sounds make dogs howl? 0345 6060 973 is the number that you need. Tom's in New Malden. Tom, question or answer? 21:19 Question, please, James. Carry on. 21:22 So a good hen can lay one egg a day. So I'm just wondering if the egg is created fresh every day or if there's sort of a descending line of eggs inside the hen. 21:35 I think I read once that when a baby girl is born, can that be right? That every egg she'll ever create is already inside her. 21:48 Oh, okay. I get that. So does one come along and then grow into a full-sized egg over a period of time? 21:56 Well, obviously the full-sized eggs aren't all inside the chicken when it's born because they lay about an egg a day. So the tiny, tiny, tiny thing, they're all in the chicken. Well, I mean, there's no reason to conclude that chickens are the same as humans or that birds are the same as mammals. That's two questions that hinge upon. 22:14 No, no, no, no, no. But what I mean is the full-size egg comes out the hen every day. Correct. And then is a new one made from that point? Or is there sort of a half-ready one? 22:24 You mean like Russian dolls? 22:26 That's it, exactly, yeah. 22:28 It's unlikely. They're not very big, these chickens, are they? No. Okay, so, all right, what is the production line inside the chicken? 22:34 Yeah, exactly. 22:35 Okay, that's a good question. 22:37 We don't need pictures. We just need someone to describe it to us, not at least because we're on the radio. And that's the second question today that sort of looks at the hinterland between the bird world and the mammal world, isn't it? It's a little bit like the question about taste buds. 22:53 we're taking a mammalian that well i took a mammalian principle and applied it to the bird world i may have done so incorrectly it may be completely different biology but i doubt it because of course we'd all have a common ancestor you me and the chickens and pepper the dog at some point crawled out of the primordial sludge and began the great evolutionary journey that brought us all tom to this moment it's coming up to half past 12 matt hewitt is here with your headlines 12 32 is the time um keith can you get the news here it's it's raining in stourbridge sally's just been in touch it's raining in stourbridge it's also not very hot in parts of scotland at the moment as well so i i apologize for dedicating the first hour of the program to heat wave related conversations but i you know what what can i do i can't keep all the people happy all the time literally i can't keep all of the people happy all of the time and also i think the heat wave to be fair is news even in areas that aren't very hot at the 23:50 moment, given that parts of the country are on fire. 23:54 It's all going on, as you know. I've told you a couple of times already today that the situation in Suffolk that you heard in Matt's news bulletin has been declared as a major incident. So thank goodness for the temporary light relief of Mystery Hour, which continues. Gabriel's in bow. Gabriel, question or answer? 24:11 Good afternoon, James. It's a question, please. Carry on, Gabriel. I'd like to know, why at the Savoy do taxis and other cars arrive on the right-hand side and leave on the right-hand side? 24:24 Oh, I knew this once. 24:27 We've done this a few times over the years. This is why we got rid of the repetition rule, because my memory's shot to pieces. 24:33 Wow. 24:36 I want to say, I've never actually stayed there. I've only ever photographed there, so it's not like I'm a regular. 24:41 Is it... 24:43 No, because this would apply to all hotels, wouldn't it? The side of the car that you're more likely to get out of so that the doorman can open the door for you. It's not that. 24:52 I thought that too, but every other hotel, like you say, every other forecourt is left hand in and out. 24:58 So the Savoy, when it was built, the doily cart, it was the doily cart, wasn't it, who built it, I think. 25:06 Just showing off random knowledge here that's not helping at all, aren't I? 25:10 It was one of them. It was Doily or Cart, both of them. The theatre, the hotel was attached to the theatre. I've got it in my head that the hotel was attached to the theatre and the impresarios. 25:21 No, it's not going to happen. I've got nothing, Gabriel. I'll put it. So what sort of photography do you do? Do you follow, just for fun or is it your job? 25:29 James, I photographed you last month at Lush. 25:32 Oh, you! Oh, gosh, sorry, Gabriel. That was a lovely picture. Actually, it was a lovely evening as well, wasn't it? 25:38 It was. It was cracky, wasn't it? 25:39 It was a really nice evening. Yes, thank you. You're brilliant. Gabriel is a brilliant photographer. Does book covers, hangs around. What were you doing outside the Savoy then? 25:47 I've sometimes photographed in there, but it's not too often. But I've always thought whenever I arrive, why am I coming up this side of the road and then coming down the other? 25:54 The only place in the United Kingdom where we drive on the same ride that you do in France. Could it be a French thing? I hope you might get better as well, James, as well. Thank you. Nice one, Gabriel. Well played. 12.35 is the time. Why do we do it? Why do we do it? 26:09 Chris is in Chiswick. Chris, question or answer? 26:11 Answer, James. Carry on, Chris. 26:14 So you were right about Scotland Yard. So Scotland Yard was where Scottish royalty ambassadors used to stay during the Middle Ages when they were visiting the English court. When the Metropolitan Police was established in 1829, the first headquarters was built on that area. 26:33 So it was actually built in for Whitehall Place. but the entrance to the public was at Great Scotland Yard, and the public then referred to it, if they were visiting the Metropolitan Police, as they were going to Scotland Yard. And it's kept its name as it's moved ever since. 26:49 Yeah. Qualifications? 26:51 I used to be the head of communications at Scotland Yard. That'll do nicely. And that is a perfect example of what I promised Austin we would do, as in get someone who sounds like they know what they're talking about to confirm that my original answer was pretty much correct. 27:06 Round of applause. Thank you. Round of applause for Chris. 27:11 It's a big job, that. Do you miss it? 27:14 I do, actually, yeah. 27:15 Can you imagine? 27:16 It was a big and stressful job, and I led some big operations, including the 77 London Bombings response over the years. Good grief. Well, thank you for that. 27:26 That's a huge thing to have undertaken. That round of applause feels a little bit inadequate now, Chris, but thank you. 12.36 is the time. We can cross that one off. It's not quite Ray Liotta territory, is it? Because it's a sort of 600-year-old story, that. 27:40 And I'm pretty sure he wasn't there at the time. Claire's in rugby. Claire, question or answer? 27:44 Oh, it's a question, please. 27:45 Oh, is it? 27:47 Well, it's to do with vision. And you know they talk about 2020 vision is perfect vision. 27:53 No, I've never heard that. 27:54 Oh, I... 27:55 I'm joking, I'm joking, Claire. I'm teasing you. I don't. 27:59 I suddenly felt a real idiot then. 28:01 No, don't be silly. I'm the idiot, always. 28:04 I mean, how do they define perfect vision? I mean, what scale is this? Is there sort of 20... I don't know, 2019 vision or 2050 vision? 28:18 It's... What does it mean? I think... 28:23 think is is it not the distance you stand for like a rigid change now because they've got all the technology and they can you know use magnifying glasses and stuff like that but you you it's to do with how far how near to the eye chart you need to be to read it so if so the way the eye chart is designed if your vision is perfect you should be able to read everything on it from 20 feet away. 28:57 But what makes that perfect? 29:00 Well, it's just... I mean, they just decided that when they started doing eye tests. I mean, someone might have vision technically that's better than 20-20 vision, which would be described as 20-19 vision or something like that. 29:14 Oh. 29:16 I think... 29:16 I just can't... 29:18 It's how they decide... 29:22 What makes it one thing or the other? I don't know. 29:25 Let's say normal. Normal. Normal vision. 29:30 Not perfect vision. So you're 20 feet away... 29:33 And the standard then is 20. So that's what you and some people would need to be 10 feet away or 30 feet away. They might be long sighted or short sighted in order. This isn't helping, is it? Well, don't be polite. Be honest. It's not helping at all. 29:51 I just don't understand. 29:52 No, no. And my explanation is possibly making things worse, not better. 29:58 Oh, I'm not quite sure, to be quite honest. 30:01 Well, there's my answer, really. You're not even sure whether it's making things clearer or not. That's how unclear we are now. Who knows what we're even talking about? 2020 hindsight? 2020? 30:12 I mean, maybe other countries do it differently. I don't know. 30:15 Don't make it more complicated. Let's just focus on this country, will we, for once? Honestly, we want... I test sovereignty, and we want it now. OK, Claire, you're on. OK, 2020 vision. Why? What are we doing? What's that all about? My pen's run out of ink, but that's not your problem. 2020 vision. What does it mean? 03456060973. So I know that one of them means you're standing 20 feet away. I don't know what the other one means. So that will be the answer. Tim's in King's Lynn. Do you know where the name King's Lynn comes from, Tim? 30:48 I'm guessing it's something to do with the fact that it's very near to the King's estate. 30:52 No, that's the King's bit, but the Lynn bit... I said it about ten minutes ago, Ray. What's the point of me dropping all this hard-earned knowledge into conversation if it's not landing with you? 31:03 I don't know. I must have missed it. 31:05 Lynn. Lynn is the Celtic-Celtic word for a big old lake. 31:09 Ah, OK. 31:10 You don't sound very impressed or interested. 31:12 No, I am very impressed. That's fine. 31:15 I'm reading some lovely books at the moment set in your neck of the woods by a writer. I only discovered her on holiday, this. It's called Ellie Griffiths. Have you come across her? 31:22 No, I haven't, no. 31:23 It's beautiful stuff. Really, really evocative of that North Norfolk coastline and the salt marshes and the areas where the land meets the sea. They're crimes. They're whodunits, but they've got a lovely archaeological subtext and loads and loads of geographical detail. Anyway, I digress. Question or answer? Answer, James. Carry on. 31:42 Well, I've phoned out. I've got one answer, but I could possibly do two answers if you... No, that's not allowed, mate. 31:48 I don't make the rules. Sorry. I wish you could. I don't know. 31:51 They're so strict about it. Do birds have taste buds is the answer to that. And the answer is yes, they do. 31:59 However, for most birds, their taste buds are located either at the back of their tongue or the back of their throat. So, essentially, they have to have... 32:09 a godful of what they're eating before they know what it tastes like. 32:14 Oh, okay. So that means they will have things they prefer to other things. So if you put five bowls of food in front of your average bird, they would go to one bowl time after time after time. 32:24 Yeah. 32:25 They do have... So their taste is not as developed as ours. So they can distinguish between things like hot and like temperature hot and cold and like sweet and sour, kind of basic sweet and sour. But they don't have, they can't distinguish, like if they eat a hot pepper, they can eat, that doesn't burn them at all. They can eat that with no drama whatsoever. 32:48 You know yourself. Qualifications? 32:51 I am founder and trustee of Sally's Duck Rescue, which is one of the biggest waterfowl rescues in the UK. And we are surrounded by about 500 birds on a daily basis. 33:02 Where are you based? 33:04 We're in Marshall and St James, which is literally just outside Kingsley. 33:07 I've spent a lot of time in your neck of the woods. I've never come across your... Do people visit? 33:13 We're not generally open to the public. Oh, well, that's why. That's why I've never visited then as a member of the public. We can arrange visits if you feel like you want to come along and meet some ducks and chickens and various other friends. 33:30 It's got you a round of applause. I love that. Nice work. 33:33 No worries. 33:34 Good man. 33:35 And good luck. Seriously, it's important work that you're doing. 12.43 is the time. Sal's in Paddington. Sal, question or answer? I've got an answer for you, James. Carry on, Sal. It's about place names. 33:45 Good man. There is no authority that names all places in England. 33:52 Or Scotland or Wales. 33:54 I didn't think there would be, just through sort of observation. But what are your qualifications? 33:59 I'm a historian and a linguistic philosopher, but we've tried it several times and it's never actually quite worked. 34:05 Well, we've tried to introduce some sort of register or... 34:07 Yes, and even that doesn't quite cover it. So the Doomsday Book, basically, the reason that we still have lots of different place names is because they didn't Latinise everything, so they wasted that opportunity. 34:20 Was that one of the secondary reasons for doing the Doomsday Book? Yes. To get rid of duplication of place names? 34:27 To make sure that when they were actually allocating the taxes paid, you couldn't have one place claiming to have paid. Of course, yes. 34:35 Hang on, we're in... So you'd have the lads in Essex. 34:39 Oh, here you go. Here's your money, King William the Conqueror. And then all the ones in Scotland are going, oh, no, we've already paid. 34:45 We've already paid. And on its way to Winchester, if it happens to go missing, well, there you go. 34:50 It's not our fault. You have some quality accent work there as well. Carry on, sir. 34:55 So we then tried it again when we started changing all of the names over and trying to anglicise more things That didn't work either because basically the different areas kept saying, well, my heraldry's on this, so we've stuck this flag here. So we do have the College of Arms in Westminster that decides place names attached to heraldry, but not on actual land itself. 35:27 So if me and Daniel and now you were setting up a town, we could call it whatever we wanted. We could even call it Kidderminster. 35:33 Yes. 35:34 There's only one kid and minster. Round of applause. Great work. Now, go on, carry on. Another nugget incoming. 35:41 Local government tends to decide on street names, etc., etc. Active parliament can do things that involve cities, but only after the crown has given a cent for cities, etc. 35:53 And the closest we've got is topographical decision-making, but that's not even definitive. That's only what is considered the most agreed-upon name, and often they use local consultation to get that on maps. 36:07 Good Lord, what a comprehensive answer. Have a round of applause. 36:11 Great stuff, Sal. 36:12 Thank you. 12.45 is the time. 36:16 12 48 is the time you're listening to james o'brien on lbc um quite a lot to get through i've i've experimented with the format today i don't know if you've noticed i've been not mentioning all the things that are still waiting for answers i think i did it at quarter past 12 i haven't done it since so i'm just experimenting with the format it's not that i completely forgot at all perish the thought uh mitch is in south end what did you think of my south end accent a minute ago mitch 36:43 I thought you were a native, actually. 36:44 Yeah, I basically sounded like I could be living next door to you. 36:48 Go on, question or what a horrible thought. 36:53 It's an answer. Carry on. 36:56 The Howling Harmonica Hounds. 36:57 Oh, yes. Oh, I like that. Name of my first band. Go on. 37:03 Basically, they're hearing a howl and they're responding to it. They want to join in. It's very primal for them because they're basically wolves. Yeah. And they hear a howl, and they want to join in. They hear, there's a lot more overtones than we can hear, and they can hear everything within it, and they're just, oh, oh, who's calling me? 37:23 And there's no rhyme or reason to it, really, because, you know, some dogs, you could have ten dogs all listening to exactly the same things, and they might howl at ten different triggers. 37:32 Mm-hmm. That's right, because like humans, they've got different ranges of hearing. Even some breeds have got better hearing than other dogs as well. 37:41 Qualifications? 37:42 30 years of being a harmonica player. 37:45 Hang on a minute, Mitch. 37:48 How does that qualify you to talk about dogs' hearing? 37:51 Because it's a really common question in the harmonica community. Is it? From beginners, yeah. I've had an awful lot of harmonica forums, and I run one on Facebook. Wow. 38:01 Why does my dog howl? Well, I'm a beginner harmonica player. Why does my dog howl whenever I'm playing? And it's not criticism. It's just they responded. 38:10 So you could be playing beautiful music, could you? 38:13 Yeah. 38:14 And off you would go. 38:14 If they don't like it, they will run and hide. 38:18 And you're a professional harmonica player. There can't be many of those around. 38:21 Oh, there's quite a few of us. I say I'm professional, but I was... 38:26 I was in a band for about 12 years. I'm in a new band at the moment. 38:31 When's your next gig? 38:33 We're on a summer hiatus. No, fair enough. 38:35 I was going to give you an advert. I'm not doing gotcha. No, fair enough. 38:38 We've got nothing in the book at the moment. Have you got it with you at the moment? Can we have a quick blast? 38:42 Okay, it might blast the metres, but I'll give you a quick blast, okay? Yeah, please. 38:48 He's good. 38:56 Really good. It got me there. It set me off then. That's weird, isn't it? 39:01 There's the howling. Lovely stuff. Thanks a lot. 39:05 Thank you. I tried, actually. I tried to play lots of things as a kid, but the one thing I really wanted to be able to play was the harmonica. Absolutely no choice. I bet he could teach. You know when you meet people and they always say, oh, no, anyone can sing if they have that. I could teach anybody to sing. No, not me. Same with Tai Chi. I've never told you that story. I don't know that I ever will. 39:26 I dropped it into a... I've accidentally told the story. I've dropped it into a full disclosure, Eleanor. 39:35 I've accidentally told the Tai Chi story in a full disclosure episode that hasn't come out yet. 39:40 Oh, no. I wonder if I can get it removed in time. Tiago's in Bristol. This means it will be a food-related answer. 39:47 Oh, hi, James. It is an answer. 39:48 Thanks for having me on. You're very welcome. 39:50 Yeah, so that's about the porridge and the different absorption rate of the milk. Well, there's the thing. 39:58 Overall, the difference in fat between semi-skim and skim milk, it is considerable for our mouth feel, but on the molecular level for the oats, it's quite irrelevant. It's not so much about the fat preventing the water to be absorbed, but more about how much water is available in For the oats to absorb them. Yes. 40:23 So to remind ourselves of the order in which it went, the semi-skimmed milk will have more water in it than the oat milk? 40:29 Yes, exactly. The semi-skimmed should have more water available for the oats. 40:34 And actually what I love about this answer is that Emily and Isaac will find it very easy to understand. So the milk that is absorbed most is the milk that's got the most water in it. 40:45 Exactly. So skimmed milk being the first semi-skimmed, then the second, and oat milk would have variable results because there's a lot of particulates. 40:53 Different types of oat milks. I mentioned that at the top of the year. And then, of course, if they wanted to do another experiment, you could do a pan with water in it, and that would be faster even than the semi-skimmed. 41:04 Absolutely. Water, as always, the universal kind of benchmark when it comes to those things. And it also depends on the type of the oat grain. If they just road ones, the more shredded type, because then capillary action plays a part on how fast the water gets pulled in. Qualifications? 41:21 Well, I grew up on a dairy farm and used to work in food advertising. 41:25 That'll do nicely. Thank you. No, thank you, Tiago. I love that answer. Judy's in Belsize Park. Judy, question or answer? 41:32 It's an answer about driving on the right-hand side in the area in front of the Savoy Hotel and the Savoy Theatre. 41:41 Marvellous. 41:43 I was told it was apparently traditional for grand ladies in coaches to always sit on the right-hand side in the coach, which meant that when the coach drew up at the theatre entrance, the driver of the coach could open the door and the lady could step directly out onto the pavement and the entrance into the theatre. Sounds good to me. 42:12 Sounds good to me. And then, I suppose we don't know why that wouldn't be true at all other theatres as well, because the roads don't work like that. The Savoy has that lovely little cul-de-sac, which gives you an opportunity to do this, which is not something that any other venue in London could do. 42:26 Well, the reason for that is that area in front of the Savoy, but it's a private area. So they can make the rules. 42:34 So they can make the rules themselves. 42:36 Yes, it's almost like... So the hotel is kind of set back from the main road, and they've made... 42:42 The equivalent of a kind of front garden terrace area in front. 42:46 Qualifications? 42:48 I worked at the Savoy Theatre many, many years ago before you were born. 42:53 How lovely. How did you know when I was born? 42:55 Well, you didn't... You were not born in 1960. 43:00 Very true. Well played. 43:05 And I always had wondered about it, and I asked people there, and that's what I was told. 43:11 That's lovely. What were you doing at the theatre? Were you performing or were you... Oh, God, no. 43:16 I was stage managing. 43:18 Well, that's not a million miles away from performing, is it? In fact, in that era, if I can call it an era without being rude, quite often your ASMs, at least, would be part of the cast, wouldn't they? 43:29 No, I blagged my way. I always got... When I first started as an ASM, I always said I'd do small parts, but I never, ever, ever set foot on a stage. Oh. 43:39 Well, it's not too late, Judy. 43:42 I think, I think. Anyway, that's what I was told. 43:45 Round of applause for Judy. Nice answer. Thank you, Judy. Sam's in Manchester. Sam, question or answer? It is an answer, James. Carry on. 43:56 OK, so it's about the 2020 vision. Yes. 2020 vision is actually in Americanism. So in England, we use an equivalent, which is 6'6". But everybody knows it. Is that metres versus feet, is it? 44:10 Yes, they use centimetres and metres. We use feet and inch. And that's the only difference. 44:14 But what does it mean? What do the numbers mean? 44:17 So it's how we measure somebody's vision on a standard Snellen chart. So obviously the big letter at the top, our equivalent is 660. 44:27 And as it goes smaller, your vision's obviously better and the number reduces on the right-hand side. 44:33 So you can have 20-10 or 20-30 vision? 44:37 Yes, of course you can, yes. Just because I'm a bit daft with numbers, Sam. What is 20-10? 44:43 2010 is better than 2020, so it'll be 20 metres over 20 centimetres. 44:49 So 2020 is like normal or average in a sense rather than perfect. 44:54 Exactly, yes. You can get better than 2020. Like I say, our equivalent is 6'6", but we can get 6'5", and better than that as well. 6'7". I've got to stop doing that. 45:04 No, stop it. No, stop it. No, stop it. Don't do the gestures either. Don't do the actions, honestly. Even the kids don't think that's cool anymore. Qualifications? 45:14 I'm a domicile redispensing optician. 45:16 Blimey. Bless you. Have a round of applause. 45:18 Thank you, sir. That was lovely. Perfect answer as well. Beautifully delivered. And what a lovely giggle you have. Victoria, we're not going to get a question about the satin seats. Satin? Vinyl seats. Fabric seats on buses. But we can squeeze in Victoria. Unless you get in now. 0-3-4-5-6-8-6-8-9-7-8. Victoria's in Dumfries. Victoria, question or answer? 45:34 Answer. Carry on. It is about chickens and eggs and so forth. 45:40 Phone line's going. Phone line's going. I'm going to hang in there. 45:43 Go on. The problem is a confusion between the word egg and egg cell. Okay? So you were absolutely right. 45:52 Oh, yeah, you're right. So all the egg cells are in the chicken when the chick is born, but not the eggs. 45:56 Absolutely. So they are born... 46:01 with all of the egg cells the same as the human females but it is it takes about 18 to 20 24 hours for the egg cell to be coated with the egg yolk so every egg starts from scratch after the last egg has been laid uh yes or you haven't got one that's like just sort of coming up to the So it is a continuous process. There are some chickens which lay two eggs a day, and so the process is continuous, and it starts, but from start to finish, it's about 18 to 20 hours. 46:37 And if two egg cells are released at the same time, that's your two egg cells. yolks in the same one. And if you want to see an egg cell on top of the egg yolk, look for the little sort of different dots. Why would I want to see that? What? You'll see a little dot on the top of the egg yolk and it always faces upwards. 47:00 Well, I never... Oh! Qualifications? 47:06 OK. What are your qualifications, Victoria? 47:08 Biology teacher in class. Two or three years ago, my husband declared that he wants to keep chickens, so I did my research about chickens. Another extra fact for you. Chickens, they start their life with two ovaries, but only one of them develops properly, and the majority of them are with left ovary only functioning and releasing egg cells. 47:27 Extraordinary. 47:29 So, here you are. This has been a Global Player original production.