Chris Stokel-Walker

Joined: Apr 24, 2013

Chris Stokel-Walker inherited a desire to pick up trivia from both his father and maternal grandfather. Where there’s a story, there’s a fact to be stored in memory for unveiling on a rainy day. He won all the prizes on offer at his first ever pub quiz, and decided to retire while on top of his game.

6 of the Most Expensive Pieces of Star Wars Memorabilia

15 Super-Manly Facts About Vladimir Putin

6 Sneaky Ways Countries Try to Win Hearts and Minds

The 10 Most Expensive Coins and Banknotes in the World

Why the Scots Gave One of their Roads Wiggly Lines

Stirling Council had a problem. The A811 road between Stirling and Loch Lomond, Scotland, was suffering from too many speeding drivers breaking the 30mph speed limit on the stretch of tarmac around Arnprior, a small village.

11 Odd Hybrid Fruits and Vegetables

A UK-based horticulturist company has developed the TomTato—a plant that can produce both tomatoes and potatoes on the same stem. But the plant is not a true hybrid. There are plenty of other combination fruit-vegetables that do exist, though, and are ava

The 6 Strangest Bootlegged Items

Wherever there's a profit to be made, there are sure to be people bootlegging and counterfeiting in an attempt to make a quick buck. Our food supply, our history, our safety, and even where we shop can be bootlegged by committed criminals.

A Brief History of the ATM

Although we use them without a second thought, precious few of us know how they came to sit on our high streets and in the walls of our banks.

5 Bizarre and Scary Historical Headache Cures

Since the late nineteenth century, analgesic drugs have been available to the masses to alleviate general pain, including that caused by headaches. While that might not always do the trick, it sounds a lot better than these alternative treatments from his

6 Non-QWERTY Keyboard Layouts

Not everyone uses QWERTY keyboards! Here are six alternative layouts.

The 7 Most Expensive Homes in the World

Some of these properties are available on the open market—if you have enough money. Some are not. But all of them join a unique club of some of the world’s costliest places to live.

4 Unusual Bible Translations

In addition to the Chinese, French, and Swahili versions, you can find unusual translations into other languages, from real-life tongues to fictional ones.

6 Alternative Dictionaries Every Bookshelf Needs

Just because some dictionaries have fallen by the wayside in the years since the world's first dictionary doesn't mean that they weren't any good.

What's the Difference Between Britain and England?

It’s a common misconception that has been going on for centuries, and it’s difficult to unravel.

The Bad Quartos: What Shakespeare Could’ve Been

Just as today pirates walk into cinemas around the world and record movies from the screen to sell as knock-off DVDs before a major release, so back in the 1600s unscrupulous businessmen would walk into the pit at plays and commit an equivalent act of pir

Why Our Calendars Skipped 11 Days in 1752

Six and a half million Britons went to bed on September 2, 1752, and woke up on September 14. The reason? The Calendar (New Style) Act of 1750, of course.