DAVID ADAMS provides a round-up of some stories on the odder side of life…
PICTURE: Rattankun Thongbun/iStockphoto.
• Ever wanted to see what it’s like behind bars? A prison in Switzerland wants to test its new digs with members of the public. Hundreds of people have volunteered to test-drive a new facility in Zurich which has been built to house people being held under provisional arrest and in pre-trial detention. The test-run will be held later this month. The volunteers will reportedly be trying out the food and exercise yard and be put through intake procedures (but strip-searches are optional). And, unlike real prisoners, they will also be given a safe word they can give staff if they wish to leave. Prison officials say the trial – participants in which must be over 18 and live locally – is aimed at testing the new prison’s capacity and operations. Marc Eiermann, head of prison management at Zurich West Prison, told Associated Press in an email: “There are so many penny dreadfuls about life in prison and about the demanding work the prison staff does every day that we wanted to use this opportunity to show how we really work – and how much professionalism and experience is needed to work with inmates.”
• Slap fighting? A body building contest in the US state of Ohio has held its first Slap Fighting Championship featuring participants taking turns hitting each other on the face with open hands over the top of a table. Arnold Schwarzenegger, founder of the Arnold Classic (and actor and former Californian Governor), partnered with YouTube star Logan Paul to host the event which featured males and females in different weight classes. Adrianna Sledz won the women’s category and Dawid “Zales” Zalewski won the men’s super heavyweight contest via a technical knock-out. Earlier, Paul described the event as “absolutely insane”. “Who knows what’s going to happen? Tomorrow, people are getting knocked out via slaps to the face.”
• A house made famous in the Tim Burton movie Edward Scissorhands has gone on the market in the US state of Florida. The home in Lutz has been listed for $US699,900 and will be sold complete with memorabilia including a life-sized mannequin of the film’s star (who was played by Johnny Depp). Owners Joey and Sharon Licalzi reportedly bought the home in September, 2020, and have since turned it into a museum for fans of the 1990 film. Their efforts have also included landscaping the yard so it looks as it did in the movie.
