First broadcast 5th October 2015.
Lee Mack
Simon Foster
Emily Grossman
Maggie Aderin-Pocock
John Sergeant
Ed Byrne
John Humphrys
Katherine Parkinson
Jenna Kiddie
Robert Barton
Lee Mack
Simon Foster
Emily Grossman
Maggie Aderin-Pocock
John Sergeant
Ed Byrne
John Humphrys
Katherine Parkinson
Jenna Kiddie
Robert Barton
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00This is a show where we reveal some of the most bizarre and brilliant facts you've ever heard.
00:26Each of tonight's guests have brought along their favourite facts,
00:28which we will be putting to the test to decide whose is best.
00:31So, who do we have with us tonight?
00:33Well, a fact about my first guest is that as the host of the Today programme,
00:37he interviews the most important, interesting and talented people in the country.
00:40No, I don't. I interview politicians.
00:43Do you know what? I had a punchline, but that one's better. It's John Humphreys!
00:51An interesting fact about my second guest is that in her GCSE biology exam,
00:55and this is genuinely true, she wrote that the Wumbles were real mammals.
01:00What an idiot. We all know they're classed as marsupials.
01:03Please welcome Katherine Parkinson!
01:10And a fact about my final guest is he was the voice for the Carphone Warehouse advert
01:14for eight years, but they had to upgrade him due
01:17to the fact that he was becoming outdated with less memory.
01:19Please welcome Edward!
01:21OK, let's get on with the show. All of tonight's guests have brought in a fact
01:25that they really love, but who's his best? It's time for Round 1, Fact Off!
01:31Edward, first, what's your fact?
01:34When you put a piece of paper in the middle of a room,
01:37a cat will automatically sit on it.
01:42OK.
01:42Always? I mean, are we talking, like, occasionally?
01:44I mean, it's most like... I actually have proof of this.
01:48I tried it with my cat, and it didn't do it,
01:51which is proof that cats normally do it,
01:54because my cat will do the opposite of whatever a cat normally does, so...
01:58Hang on, you're not getting confused, are you? Does your cat, like, bark?
02:01No, I think... I think I know what's up with this cat.
02:04My cat could tell, it knows when it's being tested.
02:05It just goes, oh, you expect me to sit on that, don't you?
02:07Like all the other cats. I'm not an idiot. Yeah.
02:09I really worry about that, do you? I mean, Ed Byrne's cat, my cat,
02:12knows when I'm testing him.
02:13He does?
02:14Does it have to be a test?
02:16He does.
02:16Does it have to be a big bit of paper, or a little bit?
02:19I mean, if it were a tiny, tiny little bit of paper, would it still do it?
02:22If it were a stamp, the cat might think that's too small.
02:25Right.
02:26And also, you don't, as a cat, want to stand on a stamp,
02:28because you'll end up in someone else's house.
02:30Right, in another country.
02:32Possible.
02:33It's entirely possible. I thought you said this was a serious...
02:36It's a very serious discussion.
02:37Because I am trying to be serious.
02:38You... Yeah, well, a lot of time...
02:39A lot of time when you do this with cats,
02:41like, if you give them a fresh piece of paper,
02:42if you're already sitting on one piece of paper,
02:44and then you give it, like, a fresh piece of paper,
02:46it'll discard the old one and go and sit on the new one.
02:48Right. Does it have to be a newspaper?
02:50No, it could be any piece of paper.
02:51A lot of people think that cats are just trying to annoy them.
02:54And sometimes it could be, if you're maybe looking at some paper,
02:56then the cat sits on it, it could be an attention-seeking thing.
02:59Have you got cats, Catherine?
03:00I used to have two cats, and then I had two children,
03:04and I got rid of the cats.
03:05Do they sit on newspapers as well?
03:06Well, interestingly, I think it's interesting what you say
03:09about the attention-seeking thing,
03:10because when I read a newspaper,
03:12my two-year-old tries to swat it out of the way,
03:15because it's attention that's not going to her,
03:18and my cat, Barbara, who now lives with my in-laws,
03:22I didn't kill them when I had children.
03:25You really didn't give them away, then?
03:26I did. I gave them... No, they moved to the country.
03:28Are you talking about the children you gave away or the cat?
03:29I tried to give the children away,
03:31but my in-laws would only take the cats.
03:32But, yeah, and it sort of...
03:34It used to try and get the newspaper away,
03:37but it didn't sit... I didn't do the sitting experiment.
03:40We don't really use newspapers so much in our house,
03:42because we read all the news online,
03:43but it's a lot harder to use your computer to toilet-train an animal
03:47than it is to use a newspaper.
03:48Very expensive. You go through those monitors pretty quick.
03:51Are you a cat man, John? No cats.
03:53Any pets? No cats.
03:54Used to have them, but don't any longer.
03:56Squirrels in the garden.
03:57That's not a pet, John. I didn't say it was.
03:59I said there are squirrels in the garden.
04:01OK, and it's... Just, you know, back off, OK?
04:04Are you... Is that enough for you?
04:06Do you think squirrels in the garden, I don't need any?
04:07No, I hate squirrels. Do you? I hate squirrels.
04:09Squirrels lived in my loft.
04:11They are absolutely impossible. They are bad people.
04:13I love a squirrel.
04:15Foxes, on the other hand, although they're bad as well,
04:17because they poo on the lawn and things like that,
04:19they are good because they kill squirrels.
04:21Agreed.
04:22So this is a moral dilemma.
04:24Do you not have any animals in the house?
04:26No. Well, apart from children.
04:30But you basically judge an animal on its ability to kill a squirrel?
04:33Pretty much.
04:35You don't want a pet, you want an air rifle.
04:39Do you know what? This is a true story.
04:41I was sitting in my garden this morning and a robin,
04:43baby robin, juvenile robin, came and perched on my foot.
04:50Eh? You didn't have your Batman mask on, did you?
04:55I didn't.
04:57Now, you've heard what this lot think,
04:58but there's only one way to find out for sure,
05:00so we put it to the test.
05:07Cats seem to like sitting anywhere,
05:10but do they really prefer sitting on paper?
05:13Let's ask a cat expert.
05:16No one really knows why cats are attracted to paper,
05:19but there are many theories.
05:20For example, cats are actually a prey species,
05:23meaning that they always like to feel secure
05:25and often hide from potential danger.
05:28They're therefore motivated to seek out safe places,
05:31such as high shelves, boxes or cupboards.
05:34And it might be that from their perspective,
05:36the defined shape of a piece of paper or newspaper
05:39resembles the normal safe areas that help cats feel secure.
05:43Well, that's the science, but let's try it out.
05:49For this test, we took three cats of different sorts
05:52and tried to make the studio look like a living room.
05:56We placed a piece of paper on the floor.
05:59If the theory is correct,
06:01the cats on finding the paper will sit on it.
06:07We waited.
06:09And we waited.
06:12But it was clear our test wasn't working,
06:14so we went back to our expert.
06:19It's not surprising that the test wasn't working
06:21as the cats have been placed in an unfamiliar environment.
06:25Being inquisitive creatures,
06:27it's little wonder that the cats wanted to spend time
06:29exploring this new area
06:31rather than sitting on a piece of paper.
06:33But cats really do gravitate towards a piece of paper in a room.
06:37So to demonstrate this,
06:38it's important to observe them in their own environment, their home.
06:42We took her advice and decided
06:45that the cats should be filmed in their own homes.
06:48We placed an online advert inviting cat owners
06:52to put a piece of paper in the middle of their rooms
06:54and film what happened.
06:5624 hours later, and we weren't disappointed.
07:00Our first clip comes from Greenwich
07:03and with three and a half year old Sasha.
07:06She walks in and makes sure the coast is clear
07:11before settling on the paper.
07:13Textbook.
07:18Then it's three year old Binky from Leicester.
07:21She checks out the paper and sits on it.
07:27Next up, a Persian, Banu,
07:30who heads for the paper and makes herself at home.
07:35Piers, a sprightly chap,
07:38within seconds, he's up and onto the paper.
07:42As happy as can be.
07:48Then Puma, who makes her move.
07:52Bingo.
07:54Finally, a tabby Izzy from Watford
07:57could make it a perfect set.
08:02And she does.
08:05So, next time you buy your cat a present,
08:10just give them the paper bag instead.
08:16There we go. Pretty good evidence.
08:19What do we think now we've seen the evidence?
08:20Makes you think, doesn't it?
08:21Can't argue against the facts.
08:22If that is true, that they are attracted to paper,
08:23it makes you think that all those missing cat posters
08:26on lampposts were better off
08:28if they just laid them flat on the pavement.
08:29That's true. And they'd come...
08:30And then they'd just come back,
08:31just pick them up again, wouldn't you?
08:32Except that it did make it very clear
08:34that it will only do it
08:35if it's in familiar surroundings.
08:37That's true. And if you've got my cats missing
08:39in your own house, you look a bit odd.
08:40You would. A bit.
08:42Although, as I say, I tried it today in my kitchen,
08:45which my cat's familiar with.
08:47It actually sat next to the paper
08:49just to really drive the point home
08:51that it wasn't going to do it.
08:52I'm going right off your cat.
08:53If every part of the programme tonight,
08:55we come up with a fact and you go,
08:57well, I tried this with my cat.
09:01Why do you not just...
09:04The cat.
09:06Well...
09:08What is it with you and killing animals?
09:10Oh, sorry.
09:10This is the John Umphreys
09:11we don't get in the morning, isn't it?
09:12I've just got a picture now
09:13of every time you do a political interview
09:15that you're there with a rabbit
09:16just going like,
09:17on the radio.
09:17We don't see that bit, do we?
09:19Just answer the question!
09:23Okay.
09:23Thankfully, every week we are joined
09:25by our resident experts
09:26who can tell us a little bit more about this fact.
09:28So please welcome specialist in cell biology
09:30and genetics, Dr. Emily Grossman,
09:31rocket scientist, Dr. Simon Foster,
09:33and expert in space and mechanical engineering,
09:35Dr. Maggie Aderin-Pocock.
09:37It's our Verifiers!
09:42So, Verifiers, are there any other quirks
09:45that cats do apart from sitting on paper?
09:47There's one phenomena
09:48which is of sweeping the internet as we speak,
09:50and it's called cat circles.
09:52But it's very similar to the experiment
09:54that was shown here.
09:55If you draw a circle out of tape
09:57or just sort of draw it on the ground
09:59and leave it in a room with a cat,
10:00the cat will go and sit inside the circle.
10:02Like on the carpet or something?
10:03Yeah, so you can tape it down.
10:05You tape the cat down?
10:07That's cheating, surely?
10:08No, he's in the circle you've taped him down.
10:10Because the circle can be made out of bananas,
10:12toys, but the cats will generally
10:13go and sit in the circle.
10:14Actually, bananas is a good example
10:16because it's easier to make a circle
10:17than, say, a cucumber.
10:19You've got your natural bend.
10:20How bendy your cucumber is, right?
10:21But if you don't do enough,
10:22you're just going to end up with a hexagon,
10:23but whatever.
10:23No, see, but it does work for hexagons
10:25and other shapes too.
10:26Oh, it does not have to be a circle?
10:27The theory behind it is that the cats
10:28are sort of craving protection,
10:30and so they go to the circle
10:31because it affords them
10:33some sort of protection.
10:34My personal theory is that cats
10:36just like to be the centre of attention.
10:38So they see a platform,
10:39they go and stand in the middle
10:40and say, look at me.
10:40I think I would do it.
10:41If there was a rhombus
10:43in the middle of the room...
10:44You'd just go in?
10:45I would.
10:46I'd like to think,
10:47because I want to feel protected,
10:48but I think it would be for attention.
10:50In fact, we could both do it.
10:50Stand on opposite corners and say,
10:51let's get ready to rhombus.
10:53And we'll just run at each other
10:54in the middle like that.
10:55So that was Ed's fact,
10:57but how good was it?
10:57Well, that's down to our studio audience.
10:59So using your keypads
11:00on a scale of one to ten,
11:01how impressed were you?
11:02Please vote now.
11:09Okay, so let's find out
11:10what the average rating was
11:11from our audience.
11:13There you go.
11:14A healthy six, Ed.
11:14Happy with that?
11:18Yeah.
11:19We don't want the two out,
11:20it's apathetic.
11:21Have you ever seen anyone get overjoyed
11:22buying six out of ten?
11:24Trust me, when I'm getting a score during sex,
11:26I'm very happy with six out of ten.
11:28You're probably wondering
11:30if anyone gave you a terrible score.
11:32Well, Christine Keaveney,
11:34where are you?
11:35So Christine,
11:35you only gave Ed a two for that.
11:37Why was that?
11:38I just don't like cats.
11:40I thought you were going to say,
11:40I just don't like Ed.
11:44That's a bit unfair
11:44to base it on you don't like cats.
11:46Yeah, I just don't find it very interesting
11:48because I don't like cats.
11:50Okay, let's do the whole round again
11:51and make it giraffes.
11:54What about Mo Dunning,
11:55where are you?
11:56Hello, Mo.
11:57You gave that a ten.
11:58Well, I know it's true
12:00because when I used to do dressmaking,
12:03my cat would insist
12:04on every piece of paper pattern
12:06I put on the piece of material.
12:09And as soon as I finished
12:10with one piece of paper pattern
12:12and start the next piece,
12:13he'd sit on that as well.
12:16Is he still with us?
12:18No.
12:18All right, keep it light, love.
12:19Now, so we've heard Ed's favourite fact,
12:24but join us after the break
12:25where John will be trying to win us over with his.
12:28Welcome back to Duck, Quack, Stone, Echo,
12:39the show that puts extraordinary facts to the test.
12:41Still with me are John Humphreys,
12:42Catherine Parkinson and Ed Byrne.
12:47Before the break,
12:48the audience gave Ed six points
12:50for his fact that when you put a piece of paper
12:51in the middle of the room,
12:52a cat will always sit on it.
12:54John, you're next.
12:55What fact have you gone for?
12:57My fact is there are sounds
12:59that only young people can hear.
13:03Can you say that again?
13:07Do you know what?
13:08I was going to do that for the next time.
13:10You were going.
13:11And there are jokes only parents will do.
13:16But no, that is true, that is true.
13:17That is a fact.
13:19That is a fact.
13:20What are these sounds?
13:21Very, very high pitched sounds
13:24that you can hear when you're little
13:26and as you get bigger,
13:28as you, as it were, rise in height,
13:30what happens is that...
13:31Can I just say, because I've always wanted to say this,
13:33just get to the point.
13:36I've always wanted to say that.
13:38I mean, you're not even answering the question.
13:41The power, I love it.
13:44As you get bigger,
13:45as you get bigger,
13:46your ability to hear high pitched sounds drops.
13:50So when you're at my age,
13:52all you can hear is that really.
13:53Oh, OK.
13:54So there's a direct graph of age.
13:56Pretty much.
13:56So when you're very little,
13:58you can hear absolutely everything.
14:00And then as you get older...
14:02And in fact, one little bit of proof of that
14:04is that when shopkeepers, a few years ago,
14:0620, 30 years ago,
14:07they got fed up with young louts,
14:09like me, because I was young once,
14:10standing around the shop,
14:11making a nuisance of themselves and all that.
14:14So they installed something called a mosquito alert,
14:17which produced a very, very high pitched sound,
14:21painfully high pitched.
14:23So that if you heard it, you want to...
14:25And it worked, because it hurt.
14:27I mean, it actually hurt.
14:28You know, you can see...
14:29You can get an app, can't you,
14:30on your iPhone to get rid of mosquitoes.
14:32You slap them with it like that.
14:33You don't slap them with the phone.
14:34That's a hell of an app, isn't it?
14:36You buy this app and it says,
14:37use the phone to hit the mosquito.
14:38That's why they don't call them apps,
14:39they call them slaps.
14:40It's like you have a white noise app
14:41for babies to go to sleep,
14:42which is amazing and unbelievably effective.
14:45Have you tried it?
14:46Because it's so high pitched,
14:46only the baby can hear it.
14:47No, everyone can hear it,
14:48but it's just, you know, womb noise.
14:50It's...
14:51It's womb noise.
14:52It's what I hear when men
14:53start talking about football or whatever.
14:54Womb noise.
14:56That's the name of my first band.
14:59If it is true, the music...
15:01If the music's higher pitched,
15:02I'm guessing as you get older...
15:03Like my nan, she's 85,
15:05and her music now,
15:06she's only into drum and bass.
15:08And now it makes sense,
15:10because she can hear the lower...
15:11Is that true?
15:12Absolutely a lie.
15:14OK, Jon, you obviously believe
15:16that this fact is true,
15:17so why don't you and I test it out?
15:19Before we do, let's see the science behind it.
15:21The common hearing range in humans
15:23is between 20 and 20,000 hertz.
15:27However, the majority of people
15:29can no longer hear 20,000 hertz
15:32by the time they're teenagers.
15:34In fact, by the age of 40,
15:36the average person will struggle
15:38to hear frequencies of 12,000 hertz.
15:41Hearing loss that develops
15:43as a result of getting older
15:45is known as presbycusis.
15:47Presbycusis occurs because
15:49the cells in our ears
15:50that detect sound waves
15:52deteriorate as we get older,
15:54and as a result,
15:55we become less sensitive
15:57to the high-frequency oscillations
16:00of high-pitched sounds.
16:02This means that there are sounds
16:03that young people can hear,
16:05and older people just can't.
16:09So, we are going to test the theory out.
16:12Now, Lucas and Joe are here to help us.
16:15Lucas is aged eight
16:16and is representing the youth,
16:18and Joe is 27,
16:19so he's representing the 20s.
16:21Do your thumbs. Come on, Joe.
16:22Well done.
16:23Now, as it's your fact, John,
16:25and you know it works,
16:26I'll represent the slightly older group,
16:29which is annoying because,
16:30as you can see, I'm not that old.
16:31Still like listening to the same music
16:32as the kids, like Westlife and Steps.
16:36Now, we're all going to stand
16:37blindfolded in the firing lines,
16:39and we must listen out for a warning beep
16:41and duck to avoid being hit by the balls.
16:44Now, to test your theory,
16:45the warning beep will be given
16:46using different frequencies,
16:48and as Lucas is the youngest,
16:49he should be able to hear it every time.
16:50Joe, sometimes, and me, less so.
16:53So, John, you can have the honour
16:55of playing the frequencies over there
16:57and firing the balls.
16:58Right, and three frequencies, right?
17:02And you are not going to know
17:04when I press the relevant key,
17:07which is the higher,
17:09which is the middle,
17:10and which is the lowest.
17:11So, I am going to start when you're ready.
17:13Okay, blindfolds on.
17:14Blindfolds on, helmet on, yeah, right.
17:17Bad enough losing my hearing
17:18without standing in front of a firing squad.
17:20Can we adopt this pose just in case?
17:24Right, are we all ready?
17:25Because if so, I am going to press
17:27the first key shortly.
17:33I cannot tell you how nerve-wracking this is.
17:38I can believe it.
17:39Well, you've got to do it again
17:40because I am going to repeat the key press,
17:43and once again, I'm not going to tell you
17:45exactly when I'm going to press it
17:46or which key it is.
17:52You did not press it, did you?
17:55Are they stood up?
17:56We'll find out in a moment.
17:57We've got one more to go.
17:59I don't want to do it again.
18:00It really hurts.
18:01We proved the point.
18:02I am going to press the final key very shortly.
18:06Ow, get off!
18:09Did you survive that one?
18:10Not the last one.
18:13Thank you, everyone.
18:14I think we just proved
18:15that there definitely are sounds
18:16that only young people can hear.
18:17Thank you to Lucas and to Joe.
18:28So, what about that?
18:31Well, that was fact-proved.
18:33Fact-proved.
18:34And you got to hurt me.
18:35And double-barred.
18:37Can I just say, I find it very difficult
18:39to listen to your voice without thinking
18:41my kids are late for school.
18:44So that's it?
18:44That is all you take?
18:45I feel stressed because I'm going,
18:47come on, let's move it, let's get...
18:49So you never hear a word that's broadcast?
18:50It's just, that's all?
18:52Oh, no, I don't...
18:52We're a sort of glorified alarm clock for you.
18:54No, no, so you misunderstand.
18:55I don't listen to your radio show.
18:56You just look like my wife.
18:59So, listen, we've just done that experiment.
19:01Does everyone in the audience want to try it?
19:04Okay, here we go.
19:05What I'm going to ask now is everybody,
19:06could you just stand up?
19:07Everyone, this is guests and verifiers.
19:10Everyone on your feet.
19:11All of us.
19:11All of us stand up.
19:12Yeah.
19:13So what I'm going to do is
19:14I'm going to play a tone.
19:16Do me a favour.
19:17If you hear the noise, I want you to sit down, okay?
19:21Sit down if you hear this.
19:27Now, look around you,
19:28how young the people are that are hearing that.
19:30They're lying!
19:31There was no sound.
19:32I better take my hand off this button
19:33because there's dogs outside going,
19:35turn it off!
19:37Now, if you look around now,
19:38that, that, what I just pressed there
19:39was the under 24 range.
19:41So if you're under 24,
19:43you probably heard that.
19:45It's terrifying, isn't it?
19:46That's my casting bracket.
19:50There go the parts.
19:51Okay, it gets more frightening.
19:53Okay, if you hear this, please sit down.
19:59I still, I'm struggling to hear that.
20:03So that was, that was the under 50 bracket.
20:06So is there anyone there that looks under 50
20:08that's got bad hearing?
20:09No, actually you don't.
20:10None of you look under 50.
20:11Is there anyone stood up that's under 50?
20:14How old are you?
20:1449.
20:18I'm 47.
20:18I've got the worst hearing in the room.
20:20That's terrifying.
20:21Okay, thank you very much.
20:26Okay, so we tested Jon's fact,
20:28but let's find out how impressive
20:29our audience think it is.
20:30Time for you all to give it a mark out of 10.
20:32Please vote now.
20:38I'm thinking it's gone quiet,
20:39but now I'm so worried maybe it hasn't.
20:42I'm genuinely concerned.
20:43I'll tell you what, we'll wave at you
20:45if we're going to say something.
20:46I feel a bit better though,
20:47because on my last tour,
20:48at least it proves I wasn't dying on my arse every night.
20:51That's right, isn't it?
20:51There's some hope.
20:52A lot of high-pitched laughter.
20:54So let's find out what the average rating was
20:56for your fact and whether that puts you on the leaderboard.
20:59Ooh, an impressive eight, Jon, an impressive eight.
21:06I think they just like seeing you hit with balls.
21:11Sal Higgins, where are you?
21:13Hello, Sal.
21:14Hello.
21:14You weren't impressed, were you?
21:15No.
21:16You gave it a one.
21:17Yeah.
21:17Why was that?
21:18I'm not that young and I heard it all.
21:20Could you sound any more northern and dour?
21:25That is your classic northern reaction, isn't it?
21:26Well, I've heard it, I've heard it, I'm old.
21:31You're not impressed because you could hear
21:32all the different tones, are you sure?
21:34Do you mind me asking how old you are?
21:35Sorry, that's very rude.
21:36How heavy are you?
21:40Sorry, no, how old are you?
21:4137.
21:4237?
21:42You look great for 37.
21:44You've obviously had a very easy life.
21:46Oh, you're looking at her, looking at her, Ruspert.
21:48I'm not.
21:52So you could hear the under 24.
21:54Are you sure?
21:55Hearing like a dog.
21:57That's an awful thing to say, can I?
21:59Call a drink, love.
22:00I bet you got hearing like a dog.
22:03OK, last but not least, it's Katherine.
22:05What's your fact?
22:06My fact is men find women dressed in red more attractive.
22:11Surely the fact is men find women wearing nothing more attractive.
22:20I think if we take them out of the equation,
22:23men find women dressed in red more attractive
22:25than, say, women dressed in a mix of colours.
22:28So it's the colour red we're saying?
22:29Yes.
22:29If that's the case, then why don't we find sunburned women more attractive?
22:36Speak for yourself, sunshine.
22:39I don't know, it's interesting.
22:40Is it just because red sort of is a colour that attracts the eye quite quickly?
22:46Or is it because it sort of suggests that you're...
22:46Well, there's other colours, isn't there?
22:47I mean, a bright luminous lime colour sort of would draw the eye.
22:50But it's specifically red you're saying that...
22:52Who told you this fact?
22:53Was it a Mr. C. de Bourgh?
22:56I read it in a magazine.
22:58And I mean, obviously, there are different shades of red.
23:01You're sort of in an aubergine red.
23:03I am.
23:03But it doesn't work with men.
23:05Thanks a lot.
23:05I think it's both...
23:07I even plumped myself up.
23:08Oh, thank...
23:09Oh, right.
23:09Men just come off as aggressive when they're in red, apparently.
23:12Oh, do they?
23:14Have you ever worn a bright red dress?
23:16Only on my wedding day.
23:17Really?
23:18And I've never got more attention from men.
23:20Did you really?
23:20It could be connected with the fact that it was your wedding day.
23:23Yeah, my wedding day.
23:24And all these male relatives...
23:26No, that's inappropriate.
23:30But yes, and bulls are attracted to red.
23:32And I was recently in a field and I did have a red T-shirt on.
23:34And I felt that there was a bull that was giving me more attention from the other field.
23:39And we moved quite...
23:40So I don't know if that was a sexual thing.
23:42Again, inappropriate.
23:44Okay.
23:45You've heard what we think.
23:46But join us after the break when we put this to the test.
24:00Welcome back to Duck, Wax, Don't Echo.
24:01The show that brings you brilliant and bizarre facts that you've probably never even heard of.
24:05Before the break, Catherine told us that men find women dressed in red more attractive.
24:09We need to know for sure, so we put it to the test.
24:15The colour of the clothes we wear says a lot about us.
24:19Miserable emos like to wear black.
24:21Happy Hare Krishnas are partial to the colour orange.
24:24But for women who want to make a great impression, should they really wear red?
24:29Let's hear from the expert.
24:32The link of red to attraction may be partly a product of cultural conditioning.
24:36But there's also evidence that it has an evolutionary heritage.
24:41Red signals are found in many species of birds and primates.
24:46Areas of reddened or pink skin develop in response to heightened levels of oestrogen in the females.
24:52These signals seem to be a sexual signal designed to attract males.
24:57In humans, a ruddy complexion is associated with good health.
25:01And it's very likely that we've evolved to be
25:03sensitive to this to ensure that we mate with individuals that are healthy.
25:08It's as if red is functioning as a subconscious aphrodisiac.
25:12So that's the theory.
25:14What about the practice?
25:16We asked three women of a similar look, same height,
25:19body shape and hair colour to wear the same dress, but in different colours.
25:24And then, for scientific purposes,
25:26we asked a group of men to rate their attractiveness on a scale of 1 to 10.
25:31We noted the men's results and took the average score.
25:35Just as the scientific research predicted, the woman in the red dress scored highest.
25:43To ensure that the men didn't just prefer woman A,
25:47we repeated the test, this time with woman B wearing the dress and a new set of men.
25:52And sure enough, as the science predicted,
25:55the woman in the red dress scored highest again.
25:58And we repeated the experiment, this time with woman C wearing red and yet another set of men.
26:05Remarkably, the science held up once again.
26:08The woman in the red dress came joint top.
26:12Conclusive proof that men prefer women wearing red.
26:17But could we take it one stage further?
26:21To prove beyond any doubt that men are attracted to the colour red,
26:25we performed one final test.
26:29This time, the experiment was not about the dress, but the colour of the background.
26:34With our three women now all dressed identically in black,
26:37we asked a new set of men to rate their attractiveness.
26:40And lo and behold, the volunteers standing against the red backdrop got a higher rating,
26:47which just goes to prove that men go ape over a woman in red.
26:52I find it very interesting that in a science experiment,
26:54if you refer to ladies as A, B and C, it's perfectly acceptable.
26:57But if you bump into a few of your exes and do that, it's all sorts of trouble.
27:02I think that experiment also proves what a simple breed you are.
27:07Well, I could have told you that.
27:08That's amazing, because I was watching along and it did make me go,
27:12oh, yeah, she's slightly more attractive.
27:14And then I changed it to the other side, and I was like,
27:16oh, I'm not sure I'm going to be attracted to her.
27:18Oh, yeah, she's slightly more attractive.
27:20And then I changed it to the second one.
27:21By the time I got to the third one,
27:23I remembered I was married and didn't play along.
27:26So that was Catherine's fact.
27:27Now our studio audience are going to score it.
27:29So using your keypads on a scale of one to ten,
27:31how amazing do you think that fact is?
27:32Please vote now.
27:39Now, Catherine, let's find out what the average rating was from our audience.
27:44Oh, a healthy seven.
27:47And in red.
27:49I found that seven more attractive than the eight above it.
27:52OK, John is in the lead, but there's still plenty of time
27:54for Catherine and Ed to catch up.
27:55In the next round, it's time for Fact Finder.
28:00Not only do we ask our guests to bring a fact to the show,
28:02we also ask our audience.
28:02And Ed, Catherine and John have each picked out the audience fact
28:05that they think is best.
28:06Ed, you're first.
28:07Whose fact have you picked?
28:08Yes, I've picked the fact brought here by Amanda Dent.
28:12Hello, Amanda Dent.
28:14Hi.
28:14And where do you come from, Amanda?
28:16Northampton.
28:17Northampton.
28:18Tell me, Amanda, what's your fact?
28:20My fact is that your ears secrete more earwax when you're stressed.
28:24Just me?
28:27How do you know this?
28:29Well, last year I got an ear infection
28:31and I had to go and have my ears syringed a lot and found out then.
28:36OK, so why would you produce more earwax, though?
28:39I don't understand that, because I don't see the connection
28:41between stress and wax.
28:43It's to do with the fact that the gland that produces the sweat
28:46also produces your earwax.
28:48Ah.
28:49Well, that's... have you heard this before?
28:50What if the reason you're stressed is because you think
28:52you're producing too much earwax?
28:55I'm genuinely getting worried after the experiment before
28:57that I'm the deafest person in the room, so...
28:59But that... you could just be stressed.
29:00I'm not deaf, I'm just stressed.
29:01Yeah.
29:02I was fine before you three came on.
29:04Now I'm going deaf.
29:05Have you seen what you're doing to me?
29:07I'd love to just see your ears syringed on air
29:09and see how much wax came out.
29:10Oh, no, we wouldn't.
29:10I don't think we would.
29:11No.
29:12So that's my chosen audience fact.
29:13Now we can't test it because we've only just heard it tonight.
29:15So it's over to our verifiers.
29:17What do we think about this?
29:18It's a bit contentious.
29:19Obviously, it stems from the fact that when you're stressed,
29:21you sweat more.
29:22And in some people, part of the earwax is actually made
29:26from secretions from the sweat gland.
29:28But people have actually studied this
29:30and there wasn't any kind of conclusive evidence.
29:33And there's also... it might work for some humans, but not all.
29:36People of European and African descent have wet earwax,
29:39so they have sweaty wet earwax.
29:41And people from East Asia have really dry earwax
29:45and they don't contain any sweat.
29:46This would be a good party game, wouldn't it?
29:48Put the blindfold on.
29:50I'll guess where you're from.
29:56Are you from European descent?
30:00OK, we'll score it at the end once we've heard everyone's fact.
30:02Your name's Catherine.
30:03Whose fact have you gone for?
30:05I've gone for Richard Caron's fact.
30:07Richard Caron, where are you?
30:09Right here.
30:10What is your fact?
30:11My fact is that penguins, male penguins,
30:13give female penguins a shiny pebble.
30:16When they propose to them, when they mate.
30:18Whoa, that cannot be true.
30:21It is true.
30:21What, like an engagement ring?
30:24Yeah, kind of.
30:25This is a sort of proposition to mate or a payment afterwards.
30:30It's funny, you've got to pick up the penguin first.
30:35OK, so they're giving them a shiny stone as a sort of mating ritual.
30:39Yes.
30:39Is that what we're saying?
30:40And you're thinking, I'm going to try that.
30:43Well, we get shiny stones when men propose.
30:47That's true, except they cost 15,000 quid.
30:50Not mine.
30:53So time for our verifiers to give us their verdict.
30:56Well, it is in fact true.
30:58Penguins do bond for life, so this is the equivalent of an engagement ring,
31:01because they will pair for life.
31:03And two questions, why pebbles and why shiny?
31:06Why pebbles is because I'm in Antarctica and there's bugger all else around.
31:10So they use these pebbles to actually make nests.
31:14So it is a very romantic tale, but it has a slightly dark side,
31:18because there is tales of female penguins offering favours to other male penguins
31:23that aren't their life partner, getting their pebbles and running away.
31:32So it is a beautiful tale, but there is a darker side to it, I'm afraid.
31:35If I'd have known this when I was 21, I had no money.
31:38Finally, John, whose fact have you picked out?
31:40Chap called, and I got difficulty with the surname, but James Lefley.
31:44Is that right?
31:45James Lefley.
31:45Yep.
31:46Yep.
31:46James Lefley.
31:47What do you do apart from part-time Popeye impersonator?
31:50I'm in the military.
31:51You're in the military?
31:52Right, I'll start making wisecracks.
31:54So I'm assuming a sailor.
31:57So, um...
32:00Sorry, let's just start again, right?
32:01Have your spinach and we'll get on with it.
32:03So what's your fact?
32:05It's pruney fingers are nature's way of improving our grip.
32:09What do you mean pruney fingers?
32:11When you're in the bath too long or in water too long.
32:12Oh, I thought you meant fingers that are in the shape of prunes.
32:14You get it, no.
32:15They go all wrinkly.
32:16Wrinkled.
32:17But it happens after you've been in the bath?
32:19Yeah, or water.
32:20I think it all stems from hunting days when vegetation and things used to be wet
32:25and you wouldn't be able to grip it and your fingers actually...
32:28It's like tread for tyres in the wet for your car.
32:31OK, have you ever been in the bath where you thought, I need more grip?
32:34Well, no.
32:39What situation do you think you'd be in
32:40where you would need more grip after your hands were really wet?
32:43Well, I've done a few training exercises through rivers and waters.
32:46Right.
32:47We always used to try and get out of the water by saying we've been in too long.
32:52And one of my sergeants said the fact.
32:54We didn't believe him.
32:55We thought he's winding us up.
32:56And then he got us to try and pick things up in the water.
32:59I've just got pictures of that bloke from 8 and a half on them.
33:02He'll stay in there until your wrinkly fingers are pruny.
33:07OK, we'll verify as John likes James fat.
33:09But is there anything in this?
33:10Well, it's absolutely true.
33:12Scientists at Newcastle University did a study where they asked people
33:15to transfer 45 marbles from one bowl of water to another
33:19using just their thumb and their forefinger.
33:21Now, normally it took between 90 and 150 seconds.
33:24But when they had dunked their hands in water beforehand
33:27for about half an hour until they went all pruny and wrinkly,
33:29it actually improved the transfer time by an average of 15 seconds.
33:33So the pruniness was actually improving the grip.
33:35But the question is, why don't we just have wrinkly fingers all the time?
33:38But actually, what it's thought is that that decreases the sensitivity of our fingertips.
33:43So it's more sensible to have a mechanism whereby when they go in water,
33:47there's a nervous response that actually makes the fingers go wrinkly.
33:50So then you get temporarily better grip.
33:53Well, I never did.
33:54There you go.
33:54I just thought it was just because they were getting wrinkly.
33:58Do you know what I mean?
33:58That's enough reason for me.
34:01So we've heard the facts.
34:02But how many points will our verifiers give them?
34:03Find out after the break.
34:16So before the break, each of our guests chose their favorite fact from the audience.
34:19And we found out whether each fact is true.
34:21But who will get the most points from our verifiers?
34:22Let's find out.
34:23Ed, please remind us of your chosen fact.
34:26Amanda Dent came here with the fact that your ears secrete more earwax when you're stressed.
34:30Verifiers, what score are you going to give that fact?
34:32Well, this was interesting.
34:34Unfortunately, there wasn't any truth in it.
34:35So we're only going to give this a three.
34:38That is the basic difference between scientists and the rest of us.
34:41We found it disgusting.
34:42They found it interesting.
34:43Yeah.
34:44Catherine, remind us of the fact you backed.
34:46Richard Caron said that male penguins give female penguins a shiny pebble to propose to them.
34:52Verifiers.
34:53Well, this was true.
34:54It was entertaining.
34:55And it has a dark side.
34:56So I'm going to give it an eight.
34:58Ooh, a healthy eight.
34:59For me.
35:02And finally, John, which fact did you go for?
35:05James Lefley wanted us to believe that pruney or wrinkly fingers are nature's way of improving our grip.
35:11Verifiers.
35:13Well, this was true.
35:14And not only did it help our ancestors, I reckon it's really helpful.
35:17If you stay in the bath for long enough, then it helps you to grab a hold of the soap.
35:21So I thought we'd give it a nine.
35:25Nine.
35:30Does this mean that somebody like my dad, for instance,
35:32could just say, oh, it's not that I look old.
35:34It's just my face has better grip.
35:39So let's put all that up onto the leaderboard and see how it's affected the schools.
35:43So after that round, Ed's on nine points.
35:45Catherine's on 15.
35:46But winning so far is John with 17.
35:52OK, there's still time for the rest of you to catch up.
35:54We've heard all the guest facts and the audience have brought theirs.
35:56So now it's my turn.
35:57It's time for Max Facts.
36:01I've got some facts for you.
36:02All you have to do is guess what they are from a series of clues
36:05and you'll get points for each one you get right.
36:07OK, here is the first one.
36:09It is this.
36:13It is this.
36:13Oh, I know what it is.
36:14No, there's one more thing.
36:15Otherwise, it's not...
36:17Don't always say what you see.
36:18OK.
36:19And this.
36:20I know any idea what this is.
36:22It's nothing to do with why I lost my job as a children's entertainer.
36:24LAUGHTER
36:26Is it...
36:27There's an image.
36:27LAUGHTER
36:29Is it that if you rub the washing-up liquid on the balloon,
36:33then you can then stick the thing and it'll just...
36:35The air will just come out.
36:36It won't actually bang.
36:38You're on the right line, so I'll sort of give it to you.
36:40Well, first of all, we all know what happens when a balloon pops.
36:43Of course, this happens.
36:44BALLOON POPS
36:44Oh!
36:45CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
36:47I don't know why I wasn't expecting that.
36:49You know, I'll be consulting my lawyer.
36:51Now, but my fact is, you can put a kebab stick through an inflated balloon
36:55without popping it if you simply dip it in washing-up liquid.
37:01Watch this.
37:06BALLOON POPS
37:06CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
37:13That's amazing, isn't it?
37:14I'm surprised I did that, because I have got a terrible fear of balloons popping.
37:18I'm surprised you're going to hear them.
37:20LAUGHTER
37:22I'll tell you what, why don't you all have a go,
37:24because I know you're dying to have a go.
37:25Have a balloon each.
37:27You can show around the washing-up liquid.
37:28And whilst you're all having a go, Verifiers, can you explain why this happens?
37:32When you blow up a balloon, the rubber stretches,
37:34but it doesn't stretch evenly across the balloon.
37:37So as you blow it up, it sort of stretches and stretches and stretches.
37:40Around the middle circumference, it's very stretched.
37:42Now, if you apply the kebab to the bottom of the balloon, where it's...
37:46The kebab stick?
37:48Never try and put a kebab into a balloon.
37:51There'll be people...
37:51Oh, no, kebabs go up.
37:53She said get a kebab, but I can't get it into the balloon.
37:55BALLOON POPS
37:59I knew it would be John Humphreys.
38:00I knew it would be John Humphreys.
38:02Sorry, Maggie.
38:03Handy tips.
38:04So lubricate your stick.
38:06The kebab stick will go in, but the balloon will reseal around it,
38:10therefore keeping the air in.
38:11If you pass it all the way through and then go out to the other end,
38:13the rubber is least stretched there as well.
38:15So again, you can pass through the rubber.
38:18The washing up liquid is trickling down here where I've skewered it.
38:21It looks like an alien that's bleeding.
38:23The balloon's bleeding.
38:24You've killed the balloon.
38:27OK, next one.
38:29It's this.
38:33And these.
38:34Oh, I know what it is again.
38:36And of course, this.
38:39That's an ear.
38:40An ear.
38:40Probably could do with this in my ear, couldn't I?
38:43So, any ideas what this is?
38:48Ears and chicken.
38:49I feel like I'm having a bargain bucket.
38:52So any ideas?
38:53First of all, should we go through the basics?
38:55Catherine, what's this?
38:56Chicken.
38:57Good start.
38:58But that's not a chicken's ear, is it?
39:00She's good.
39:00That is not a chicken's ear, correct.
39:04A chicken that's still in its egg can hear higher frequency sounds
39:08than a grown-up chicken.
39:09Right, I'll tell you exactly what it is.
39:10My fact is that the colour of a chicken's earlobes
39:13is related to the colour of its eggs.
39:16Look, there you go, look.
39:17So you've got the white earlobes on the right, white eggs.
39:19And the sexy red hairdo.
39:20And the sort of reddy-brown earlobe with the reddy-brown egg.
39:24Verifyers, can you tell us more?
39:26It's a general rule of thumb that chicken keepers use
39:28to work out what colour eggs their chickens are going to lay.
39:31So, obviously, people have got a preference of brown and white eggs.
39:34Instead of sorting them out, you know, you keep going.
39:36But why? Have they got a preference?
39:37Yeah.
39:37Have they got a preference?
39:38Yeah.
39:39Because aren't the eggs inside the same?
39:41People seem to think that, in different countries,
39:44it determines the health of the egg.
39:47So people over here believe that, for some reason,
39:49white eggs, where we've just got used to having brown eggs,
39:51white eggs will be unhealthy.
39:53And it's the same, the opposite is true in the States.
39:55They believe over there that brown eggs somehow are horrible.
39:58I'll be honest with you, until this point,
39:59I didn't even know chickens had ears.
40:01They didn't have earlobes.
40:03There goes my theory about why they never wear sunglasses.
40:08My last fact tonight is this.
40:14These.
40:17And this.
40:20Anybody got any ideas?
40:21I'll start with the basics.
40:23That's a stethoscope.
40:24Yeah.
40:25Which literally means icy chest.
40:29I studied ancient Greek at university,
40:31but I also read the researcher's notes.
40:34And I can tell you that stethoscope is from icy, scop,
40:39and steth, chest.
40:41But the other thing is that it measures your heart beating
40:44and all that.
40:45Heart rate, yes.
40:46Heart rate and all that kind of thing.
40:47And the ball...
40:49Yes.
40:49...is a way of appearing to stop your heart beating.
40:54That is exactly right, John Tomfries.
40:56My fact is, quite simply,
41:00using these items, you can stop your own pulse and survive.
41:04Guess what?
41:05You three are going to help me demonstrate this.
41:07But first, here's the science behind it.
41:09If you place a small ball in your armpit,
41:11it will press on a major artery running down your arm,
41:14kind of like standing on a hose pipe.
41:16That will restrict the flow of blood down your arm
41:19and into your hand.
41:20So the pulse in your hand will gradually slow down
41:23and it will eventually come to a stop.
41:25This is perfectly safe because it doesn't affect
41:27any of the blood flow around the rest of the body,
41:29but it's advisable not to do it for more than about 30 seconds.
41:34OK, so our medics, Mike and Adrian,
41:35have attached a pulse reader to our fingers.
41:37And by looking at the numbers on the monitor,
41:39we can see that our pulse and heart rate are beating normally.
41:43Now, if we all pick up our balls
41:45and put them under your right armpit
41:47and press it against your body...
41:53Is that me flatlining?
41:54APPLAUSE
41:57If I'm honest, it's not the first TV show I've done
41:59where a little part of me has died.
42:01I'm dying.
42:02Are you dying?
42:03Yeah.
42:04APPLAUSE
42:05So there you have it.
42:06We are all.
42:06We're all dead.
42:07We're all technically dead.
42:08But before we collapse, let's see the final scores.
42:12Congratulations, John is the winner.
42:15That's it for tonight's show.
42:16A big thanks to our verifiers
42:17and to our special guests, John Humphreys,
42:19Catherine Parkinson and Ed Byrne.
42:21I'll see you next time.
42:22Goodnight.
42:30A big star cast on an even bigger comet
42:32that's about to destroy the planet.
42:34If you haven't already done so,
42:35better start writing that bucket list.
42:37Our brand new comedy-drama,
42:39You, Me and the Apocalypse,
42:40continues Wednesday at nine here on Sky One.
42:43And if you missed episode one,
42:44it's available on demand with Catch Up TV.