StrangeSights

• A fascinating article in the New York Times recently spoke of the measures Japanese people are adopting to combat their fear are crime. While crime rates are apparently on the decline, the Japanese are apparently feeling increasingly anxious about crime and turning to a bizarre range of anti-crime fixes. They include: a “manhole bag” - a purse which when thrown on the ground apparently looks like a manhole thus hiding your valuables from thieves; “knife-proof” school uniforms; and, a skirt which transforms into a fabric “vending machine” inside of which the wearer can hide.

• Britain’s Radio Times has polled people on the best movie cliches. Almost 6,000 people took part in the poll which revealed their favorite cliche to be the part in every Bond film where the bad guy is about to kill 007 but pauses and instead explains in detail his plans for world domination. Others in the top 10 include the part when villains, mistakenly believed to be dead, suddenly come alive again for a final attempt to kill the movie’s lead (as seen in Fatal Attraction) and, those famous words, “Follow that car!”

• And lastly, Roger Hargreaves’ famous Mr Men series is apparently getting a makeover in preparation for their appearance on TV. The rather large Mr Lazy will now appear in a trimmed-down version and other Mr’s are undergoing a sex change to redress the gender inbalance in a new TV series set to air next year.