How do starlings form murmurations?
Murmurations of starlings — the vast clouds of thousands of birds, flocking and swooping through the sky — are one of nature's great displays. But how do the birds do it? Martin Fone investigates.
Curious Questions
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When were dogs domesticated?
Dogs have never been more popular — as soaring puppy prices (and the worrying number of scams) show. But our love affair with dogs is anything but new — it's older than even our most ancient civilisations, discovers Martin Fone.
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Country Life's top 10 blogs and columns of 2020, from wise owls to the invention of toilet paper
You'll scratch your chin, nod in recognition and quite probably chuckle out loud at the most-read columns from the Country Life website this year.
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Curious Questions: How did curry become Britain's national dish?
Martin Fone takes a look at the first Indian restaurant in Britain, discovering what was on its first menu, and finding out how lager became the traditional accompaniment to curry dishes.
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Curious Questions: Why have our oak trees produced so many acorns in 2020?
It's not your imagination: there really were far more acorns on the ground than usual this autumn. Martin Fone looks at the phenomenon of the 'mast year'.
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Curious Questions: Why do we have Advent calendars?
This week's Country Life Christmas special is an annual treat, with our special Advent calendar cover. But how did the Advent calendar phenomenon start? Martin Fone investigates.
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Curious Questions: How do weather forecasters figure out a percentage chance of rain?
Those 'chance of rain' percentages you see on the weather forecast hide a bewildering range of possibilities. So how are they calculated? The answer is far from simple, much less logical, as Martin Fone discovers.
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Curious Questions: How far can you see on a clear day?
A walk to a local hilltop prompts Martin Fone to wonder just how far you can see, assuming perfect atmospheric conditions.
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Curious Questions: Is a pumpkin a fruit or a vegetable?
The rows upon rows of ghoulish, glowing squash down your street can only mean one thing: it’s Halloween. But have you ever stopped to wonder whether a pumpkin is a fruit or a vegetable? Alexandra Fraser investigates.
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Curious Questions: Why does Scotland have 30,000 lochs, but only one lake?
A moment's reflection on a cancelled pub quiz gets Martin Fone wondering about Scotland's only lake.
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Curious Questions: How did the tea bag take over from loose leaf tea?
Fifty years ago, only three per cent of Brits used tea bags. Today, only three per cent of us don't. Martin Fone takes a look at how tea bags took over the world.
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Curious Questions: Why is gin flavoured with juniper?
The prickly juniper bush has been in decline for decades, a worrying development at a time when gin is soaring in popularity. Vicky Liddell takes a look at the history of this fascinating plant, and discovers that it's making a comeback on Surrey’s North Downs.
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Curious Questions: Who invented the cardboard box?
Six months of online shopping have left Martin Fone buried in cardboard boxes — and that's put him in the mood to answer a curious question. Where do they all come from? And when did we start making them?
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Curious Questions: Was there a real Granny Smith who first cultivated the apple that bears her name?
Martin Fone crunches into a tart, crisp apple and ponders a question: who was Granny Smith? And did she really discover the apple that's named after her?
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Curious Questions: Why do we all love tortoises?
With a taste for radio and raspberries and a habit of clambering over anything in their path, tortoises are never going to be the cuddliest of pets, but they are nonetheless treasured by successive generations. Madeleine Silver investigates.
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Curious Questions: How did 'God Save The Queen' become Britain's National Anthem?
As patriotic songs come under the spotlight, Martin Fone takes a look at national anthems across the world.
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Curious Questions: Why do Scots carry sgian-dubhs with their kilts when donning traditional dress?
Once essential elements of every brave Highlander’s armoury, deadly dirks and sgian-dubhs provided protection against foes, the elfin race and broken oaths. Joe Gibbs traces their history and explains how they came to be part of the traditional Scottish outfit, along with the kilt and sporran.
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Curious Questions: Why do the British drive on the left?
The rest of Europe drives on the right, so why do the British drive on the left? Martin Fone, author of 'Fifty Curious Questions', investigates.
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Curious Questions: Why did people used to wash clothes in urine?
An experience far from home prompts Martin Fone to delve into the history of laundry — including the rather unpleasants secrets of removing stains.
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Curious Questions: Were summer holidays better in the good old days?
Quieter roads, no stressing about dodgy wi-fi and the comforting pong of the cooler opening — were things really better in the 1970s? Ysenda Maxtone-Graham investigates.
