19th Jan 2018 - 10:07
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'A trip down memory lane' seems to be this week's Fun Friday Food Facts theme - enjoy!
- The world record for eating peas is held by Janet Harris of Sussex who, in 1984, ate 7175 peas one by one in 60 minutes using chopsticks!
- In 1920s America when fashion started to require women to have a slimmer, boyish figure the cigarette diet became popular, summed by the Lucky Strike advert slogan ‘reach for a Lucky instead of a sweet’
- Champagne was once used as shoe polish… In the early 20th century, men of society eschewed traditional polish, using champagne to shine their shoes instead. In fact, Olga Berluti, a high-end shoe designer whose company is owned by the LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton) umbrella, still uses Dom Perignon to polish her famed shoes
- Did you know the word "pumpkin” actually showed up for the first time in the fairy tale Cinderella in the 17th century – before then, they were known as "gros melons” (translating to large melon)
- Opera singer Maria Callas weighed in at 27st, that’s 390lb, before being told she needed to lose weight or lose work. She reputedly ingested a tapeworm and shed 6.5st (90lb) in less than a year
- Before sugar was widely available in Europe, parsnips were used to sweeten jams and cakes
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