It sounds unbelievable, but sometimes it's the strangest things that turn out to be true. Such is the case with this story of the mysterious hippos that once roamed the streets of Leeds.
Suggest to the average Loiner that hippos once walked the same streets we do and your sanity is likely to be called into question, but there are cold hard facts to back this far-fetched-sounding story up - trust us.
Although no written record survives from the time they were actually walking around Leeds, we can prove their existence thanks to the discovery of several huge bones by workmen digging clay in a brick field in 1851.
Unearthed in Wortley, Leeds over 150 years ago, the bones were so massive the workmen knew they couldn't possibly be human bones but were still at a loss as to what they were.
It wasn't until the workers visited Henry Denny, the curator of the Leeds Philosophical and Literary Society Museum, that the real truth was uncovered.
Impressively, Henry identified them as the bones of the Great Northern Hippopotamus, much to the excitement of the workers - who saw Henry a lot over the coming months, due to the fact he visited their field regularly to collect more bone specimens.
These ranged from more huge thigh bones to tiny teeth, and as Henry continued his discovery he realised it wasn't only hippopotamuses in this field. There were elephants and an extinct species of wild ox, too.
For a long time, it was thought following their discovery that the hippos were from relatively recent times - however that turned out to be an error created by a preservative coating on the bones, which misled scientists as to their true age.
It turns out, they were actually hundreds of thousands of years old: with the closest estimate coming between 113,000 and 130,000.
It's believed by scientists that they once roamed in the area close to Armley Gyratory, now one of the busiest road intersections on the city's outskirts today.
Leeds would have been very different at that time, according to Phil Murphy, from the University of Leeds' School of Earth and Environment.
"Leeds would have been just like Africa in those days – and the climate would have been exactly the same as hippos enjoy in that continent today, in the so-called Ipswichian interglacial.
"Hyenas were also around at the time and hyena dens have been found in Victoria Cave near Settle in Yorkshire and Kirkdale Cave on the North Yorkshire Moors.
"But it is important to remember that during the last glacial period, the glaciers did not reach Leeds.
"The earth has experienced some 24 periods of cooling and warming over the last 2.5m years."
Asked if Hippos could return, Murphy answered unequivocally 'yes' - stating "If it is warm enough in Leeds in the future, the Hippos will return."
Entire hippo skeletons are very rare, making the Leeds hippo extra special. It can be viewed on display at the Leeds City Museum.
The Government is investigating a number of companies for 'misleading' pricing practices.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched three new consumer protection investigations into Trainline, Virgin Atlantic, and RED Driving School over concerns that customers were not shown the total price upfront when buying things like train and coach tickets, holidays, or even driving lessons.
The investigations are part of a wider CMA clampdown on misleading pricing practices - in this instance, where mandatory charges are separated from the headline price, or added later in the buying process, which is known as drip pricing.
These practices leave consumers facing 'unexpected' costs or having to calculate the so-called true cost themselves.
Such practices can also impact competition between businesses, as a firm using drip pricing may falsely appear to be cheaper than a competitor pricing correctly, and therefore attract more customers.
Trainline is being investigated over whether all mandatory fees have been included in the upfront prices displayed to consumers buying tickets in advance on its app and website, while Virgin Atlantic's investigation will focus on whether mandatory resort fees and local taxes have been included in the upfront prices shown to customers buying package holidays.
Trainline and Virgin Atlantic are among the companies being investigated for 'misleading' pricing / Credit: Northern | Aric Cheng (via Unsplash)
RED Driving School is being investigated over how a mandatory booking fee and 'digital' fee have been displayed to people booking driving lessons - specifically whether these fees have been included in the total upfront price.
"At a time when many households are watching every pound they spend, it is important that people are not surprised by extra fees," commented Emma Cochrane, who is the Executive Director for Consumer Protection at the CMA.
"Clear pricing helps people compare offers confidently and choose the option that works best for them.
"Unexpected mandatory charges make this much harder, which is why the CMA initially put these firms on notice over concerns about their pricing practices and is now opening formal investigations."
The CMA says it's at the beginning of its investigations and has reached no conclusions about whether these firms have broken the law.
If it finds there has been an infringement of the law, the CMA can order businesses to pay compensation to affected customers or be charged up to 10% of global turnover.
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News
Major new phone rule introduced at Wetherspoons after customers are ‘driven nuts’
Emily Sergeant
A major new phone rule has been introduced in all JD Wetherspoon pubs across the UK after customers complain of being 'driven nuts'.
The pub chain - which has nearly 800 branches across the UK - announced earlier this week that it has made the decision to ban people from playing music or videos out of their phones, and from taking calls on loudspeaker.
The ban, which has been introduced effective immediately, follows a rising number of complaints from customers about the noise - with owners saying sounds from smartphones and tablet computers had become an 'increasing problem' in recent years.
Wetherspoon founder and chairman, Tim Martin, says he wants Wetherspoon pubs to be 'an oasis of tranquillity and contemplation'.
A formal statement from the company announcing the ban reads: "Following complaints from customers, who are being driven nuts by other people’s videos and amplified phone conversations, Wetherspoon has asked customers to switch their phones to silent or to use earphones."
Wetherspoons has introduced a new phone rule at all its UK pubs after customers are 'driven nuts' / Credit: Allan Rohmer (via Unsplash)
Tim Martin added: "In order to avoid customers being driven chicken jalfrezi by a cacophony of sound, we are kindly asking phone users to pipe down."
Wetherspoon's ban follows a YouGov poll conducted last year questioning public opinion on a proposition made by the Liberal Democrats of introducing fines of up to £1,000 for 'headphone dodgers' who play music out loud on buses and trains.
62% of people, on average, said they would back this move if it was introduced.
The poll, which surveyed 6,815 British adults, found that almost three-quarters of those over 65 would support the fines, while those aged between 18 and 24 were split 47% to 43% in favour of it.
Early public reactions to Wetherspoon's ban appears to be overwhelmingly positive.
Georgina Pellant -
7th August 2021 
