What a Weird Week gets you caught up on the odd, interesting,
strange, fun, and weird news that happened this week. Ten stories in 15
minutes!
See https://www.shownotes.page or "What a Weird Week" where you get podcasts.
See https://www.shownotes.page or "What a Weird Week" where you get podcasts.
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Hi friends, I'm Scott and this is What a Weird Week, a look at the
odd, interesting, strange, fun and weird stories that made news this
week. See bottom of shownotes page for a transcript of the podcast
episode. To Subscribe/ get in touch/ other/ see www.shownotes.page.
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These are the shownotes for Season 7, Ep 5 first published Jan 30, 2026.
Thanks for rating and reviewing along with subscribing!
These are the shownotes for Season 7, Ep 5 first published Jan 30, 2026.
10 Are Rhode Island lawmakers gonna stop having Mr. Potato Head license plates. "When I read that, I had to give my eyes a shake," - Mr. Potato Head. (So long, Spuds: Rhode Island may ditch Mr. Potato Head license plates after Hasbro moves to Boston | News, Sports, Jobs - Altoona Mirror).
9 The three bikes on a log: no one knows who put them there or why. (Watch: Montana town perplexed by mystery of three bikes on a log - UPI.com).
8 A French couple's cat that went missing during a trip to SPAIN was found five months later near their home in FRANCE! The microchipped cat somehow traveled 250 km (more than 150 miles!) (The story of the cat that has amazed the world: Lost in Spain, travels 250 km to return to its owners' home in France after 5 months).
Pin (Does this seem like a super cat to you?) https://pin.it/4dmGWRRD0
7 Survey says: jazz fans are most likely to cheat. Metal fans are most faithful. (Metal Fans Unlikely To Cheat, Jazz Fans Are Boning Everyone According To A Study - Metal Injection).
6 Article from Popular Science showcases the Dronebrella* (not actual name) flying umbrella. (We may not have flying cars, but we have flying umbrellas | Popular Science).
https://www.popsci.com/diy/drone-umbrella/
pin https://www.popsci.com/diy/drone-umbrella/
5 It's official, the fast wieners are back this May. The Wienie 500.
https://apnews.com/article/indianapolis-500-wienermobile-race-aaf5de7fdd08d8fc4e4d9be09f350de5
4 BBC Article about how enthusiasts of a certain mushroom tend to get the same hallucination involving little people on their plate. The mushroom commonly eaten in China's Yunnan province, Lanmaoa asiatica, can cause vivid "lilliputian hallucinations" of tiny, elf-like people if it is not cooked thoroughly. Researchers are now trying to identify the unknown, non-psilocybin compound responsible for these uniquely consistent visions. ('They saw them on their dishes when eating': The mushroom making people hallucinate dozens of tiny humans).
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20260121-the-mysterious-mushroom-that-makes-you-see-tiny-people
3 Sweethearts candy is adding some new phrases for modern day love to their conversation hearts. From their "Love in This Economy" collection you can now choose from "SPLIT RENT", "CAR POOL", and "SHARE LOGN". Love on, sweet lovers.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DUBDCUqjYgj/?hl=en
2 Crying horse toys are taking off/ going viral in China. This plush horse started showing up for sale in honor of the Year of the Horse. The horse mouth was put on upside down, so the horse looks sad. People like it though.
1 A toddler in England, Jude Owens, has set two Guinness World Records, becoming the youngest person to make a snooker double pot and a pool bank shot before his third birthday. His father, who spotted his talent early, called the achievements a "pinnacle moment" for the young prodigy (Watch: British 2-year-old breaks two world records playing pool and snooker - UPI.com).
https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2026/01/28/Guinness-World-Records-toddler-pool-snooker/1551769621785/
Transcript below.
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Transcript
00:00
Plucky cat and crying horse. What a Weird Week. uh Hi friends, I'm Scott. This show is called What a Weird Week, where we look at the weird news and the fun news of the week. Never the serious news. There's a lot of serious news, but we do a top 10 countdown of the weird stories of the week.
00:27
And you can get everything we talk about in more detail. if you want to learn more about our podcast, you can go to show notes dot page. We put all the show notes at show notes dot page. This episode first publishing on Friday, January 30th, twenty twenty six. Number 10 is the Rhode Island, Mr. Potato Head impasse. So I didn't realize that Rhode Island, United States of America, when you get a license for your vehicle, you can pay extra.
00:57
and get a license with Mr. Potato Head on there. And the money goes to charity. It goes to help feed hungry people. So that's something that's been going on. I think that's fantastic. Recently in the headlines, Hasbro, the makers of Mr. Potato Head have announced plans to move their headquarters from Rhode Island to Boston. So folks in Rhode Island, not that jazzed.
01:22
about Mr. Potato Head leaving and now lawmakers are thinking about removing Mr. Potato Head from the license plate. But then you have the charity caught in the middle. The charity counting on that money now wouldn't have that source of income for the food banks to help feed hungry people. That's all we know so far. To be continued, at time of recording, there's no movement on this. What we need to have happen is just...
01:47
you know, somebody to swoop in and replace Mr. Potato Head. Then Rhode Island officials get sort of their vengeance, you know, whatever, but the charity doesn't lose out. Maybe a French fry company. Do you have a cool mascot? Frenchy the French fry? Let's get that. Let's get Frenchy the French fry on those license plates. Or maybe a baked potato. Is there a restaurant that has a uh fine baked potato mascot? Bakey? Bakey the tater?
02:17
I don't, I'm just brainstorming, but there's gotta be something we can do to be continued. Number nine. I would buy a license plate with Bakey the tater on it. Number nine is the mystery of the three bikes stuck on a log. We have some great coverage from Great Falls, Montana, where spoiler, there are three bikes stuck on a log. What does it mean? In July of 2025, I moved to Great Falls and ever since I've been here, I've had one question. It's like an enigma. I know nothing.
02:45
good answer for them. The aliens, man, I don't know. My search started with the police. They didn't know. Then I started where all good journalism starts from Facebook. They didn't know either. Well, there you have it folks. Never before seen drone footage of the log and bikes. If you have any leads or story ideas, you can send them to me at Quinton.Shores at KRTV.com. So a link to that coverage from Quinton in the show notes or you can click show notes dot page. Maybe you can share the link. Let's get word out. Let's get this thing solved. I love a good mystery.
03:14
But I always say I love a good solution even more. Since you're clicking on things, maybe a five star review for our show too. What a weird week wherever you get podcasts. eight is the cat that has made headlines this week. The French couple's cat that went missing during a trip to Spain has been found five months later near their home in France. These stories, I'm always skeptical and I'm sorry if this is wrong, but I always think it's a different cat. I would say no, mistaken identity. You have a new cat.
03:44
But this cat was microchipped. They can document how it traveled, somehow traveled 250 kilometers, more than 150 miles and found its way home. So far the cat hasn't issued any statements, so we don't know for sure what happened. I have questions. I would like to know. I want that cat to come out with a press release. Something because I have questions. What? How many mice did you eat? I guess I maybe I should be more prepared for when the cat does finally give an interview.
04:12
The mice question again. Come on. Number seven is that survey about music and cheating and jazz fans. are saucy, saucy, saucy numbers. So they surveyed more than 6,500 people who admitted to having affairs and essentially asked what kind of music do you like? And the most cheaty fans were jazz fans. That was number one on the list. Jazz fans followed by salsa, pop music, country music.
04:42
and rap music. That was your top five of the Cheaty McCheatersons. The most faithful reggae, rock and roll, electronica music, indie music fans, and then heavy metal fans are the most faithful, according to this study. The writeup that we link to is on the website, metalinjection.net. They do a deep dive and they make a good point that more research is needed. Even if you're a metal fan, you're probably not going to put on metal if it's going to be romance time.
05:12
happy happy grown up fun times. You're probably not going to put on metal for that occasion. You might put on jazz instead. Even if you're not that big of a jazz fan, jazz might be one of those genres that you choose for grown up happy fun times. Anyway, we'll link to the article. There's some swears in it. Just heads up, maybe not safe for work. We'll link to that in the show notes. Number six is the article from Popular Science, which showcases the drone brella. I don't think that's the actual name of the thing, but it's a drone and an umbrella.
05:42
so that you don't have to carry around an umbrella like a chump anymore. The drone will follow you around and keep you dry. You don't have to pay some umbrella butler big dollars. No, solving all of those problems is this drone-brella. An inventor has created a flying umbrella to keep you dry. Perhaps you want to click the link and have a look. Maybe you've got a quadcopter kicking around in an old umbrella or a tarp. Maybe you want to...
06:11
Fabricate your own drone. I encourage you to try I'm not sure what the legalities of that are where you're located as far as violating airspace So just be careful number five number five is all about the fast wieners the fast and furious wieners It's official the fast wieners are back this May the weenie 500 which is the oscar meyer wiener mobiles racing for pride National pride and perhaps world domination world wiener domination
06:40
I wish I were an Oscar Mayer winner
06:47
few moments in life where one can truly say I was there.
07:03
Smoked guns! It's gonna be close! Queenie! Star Trek!
07:14
Sometimes these events get hyped up too much. would say not this time though. That's a 10 out of 10 with no notes from me. Number four is this coverage from the BBC about a mushroom, which is popular in a certain province in China. And it gives, if you don't prepare it right and you eat it, everybody reports the same hallucination. Little people running around your plate or around the table. Little teeny tiny people appear.
07:44
when you eat this mushroom, if it's not prepared correctly. Vivid Lilliputian hallucinations. This is not a magic mushroom situation. This is a completely different chemical going on and researchers are looking into how and why and how and why. Just seems so oddly specific that everyone gets the same hallucination when they eat this mushroom, if it's not prepared right. Very interesting. We'll link to the whole thing. You can click the show notes.
08:13
go to show notes dot page number three. Number three is the update from sweethearts candy. I'm not sure. Do you have sweethearts candy everywhere? Our program goes out over the W W W here on the east coast of Canada. We have sweethearts. We have love hearts. Conversation hearts maybe is how they're referred to a lot of places too. It's a candy that has a saying on it and maybe it's a way to flirt or break the ice with someone. You give them a candy and it says nice eyes. I don't know stuff like that.
08:43
I'm terrible at small talk. Maybe you've picked up on that. Well, Sweethearts Candy has added some new phrases for modern day love to their conversation hearts. And this is part of their love in this economy collection. So now you can choose from split rent, carpool, and share login. I say, well done, Sweethearts Candy. Romance is still alive. Love on, sweet lovers. Even.
09:09
Even in this economy. Number two is the crying horse, which has been making headlines. We're heading into the year of the horse, lunar new year. And so you see some plush horses selling, right? But the most popular, the one that has gone viral is one that happened by mistake. There was a mix up in the manufacturing process and the horse's mouth got put on upside down. So instead of smiling, it looks like it's frowning and people love that.
09:38
People love this horse. This sad horse. By the way, they say you're not supposed to look a gift horse in the mouth. So if somebody gives you one of these sad horses, don't let on. Try not to look at it in the mouth, even though it's famous for, you know, the frown. Try not to look at it in the mouth. A stuffed toy stuff up that's gone viral. As Lunar New Year approaches, a Chinese company wanted to welcome the year of the horse with a plush decoration that would put smiles on faces.
10:07
Well, it did, just not in the way they anticipated. oh A worker sewed its mouth upside down by mistake. I didn't think much about it, so when a customer wanted to return it, I said, send it back to me. But later they said, actually, there's no need. The owner later started seeing photos of the mournful mare circulating online. Suddenly, an amusing mistake appeared to tap into the mood of many young white-collar workers across China.
10:33
Customers joked that the so-called crying horse reflected how they felt during long hours at their jobs while the smiling one showed how they felt afterwards That's so smart come out with a smiling one and a sad one and people will buy twice as many I mean, I think it was a happy accident or a sad accident But still we'll link to that coverage. That was ABC News Australia You can click the show notes for more or show notes dot page number one number one is the
11:02
toddler in England, his name's Jude, and he has two Guinness world records now for different pool shots or billiards. Now around here, we would pronounce it snooker. East coast Canada, we would say snooker, I think most people, but a lot of places you would pronounce it snooker. So I'm going to try to get it right. Jude has become the youngest person to ever make a snooker or snooker double pot and a pool bank shot. He's a pool prodigy, two years old making trick shots.
11:31
and now has a couple Guinness World Records. The youngest snooker record holder the sport has ever seen. This is Jude Owens from the UK, a young snooker fan who's already showing an incredible natural ability. Jude first hit a snooker ball when he was two and a half, but recently I did find a video of him hitting a pool ball just before his second birthday.
11:58
At just two years and 261 days old, Jude became the youngest person ever to make a snooker double pot in Manchester, United Kingdom on the 1st of September, 2025. The little gaffer needs like a step stool to make these trick shots. Congratulations, Jude. I don't know if you're going to go turn pro at some point or whatever, but well done.
12:24
Hey Jude, right here would be a perfect time for a parody song featuring Hey Jude by the Beatles for Jude the Pool Prodigy. The lawyers have advised me against it. So we'll wrap up there and I thank you for listening to What a Weird Week. You can get everything we talk about in more detail and you can get all our show notes and stuff about our podcast if you go to shownotes.page. Hope you can come back next Friday for 10 more weird and fun stories from the news on What a Weird
Plucky cat and crying horse. What a Weird Week. uh Hi friends, I'm Scott. This show is called What a Weird Week, where we look at the weird news and the fun news of the week. Never the serious news. There's a lot of serious news, but we do a top 10 countdown of the weird stories of the week.
00:27
And you can get everything we talk about in more detail. if you want to learn more about our podcast, you can go to show notes dot page. We put all the show notes at show notes dot page. This episode first publishing on Friday, January 30th, twenty twenty six. Number 10 is the Rhode Island, Mr. Potato Head impasse. So I didn't realize that Rhode Island, United States of America, when you get a license for your vehicle, you can pay extra.
00:57
and get a license with Mr. Potato Head on there. And the money goes to charity. It goes to help feed hungry people. So that's something that's been going on. I think that's fantastic. Recently in the headlines, Hasbro, the makers of Mr. Potato Head have announced plans to move their headquarters from Rhode Island to Boston. So folks in Rhode Island, not that jazzed.
01:22
about Mr. Potato Head leaving and now lawmakers are thinking about removing Mr. Potato Head from the license plate. But then you have the charity caught in the middle. The charity counting on that money now wouldn't have that source of income for the food banks to help feed hungry people. That's all we know so far. To be continued, at time of recording, there's no movement on this. What we need to have happen is just...
01:47
you know, somebody to swoop in and replace Mr. Potato Head. Then Rhode Island officials get sort of their vengeance, you know, whatever, but the charity doesn't lose out. Maybe a French fry company. Do you have a cool mascot? Frenchy the French fry? Let's get that. Let's get Frenchy the French fry on those license plates. Or maybe a baked potato. Is there a restaurant that has a uh fine baked potato mascot? Bakey? Bakey the tater?
02:17
I don't, I'm just brainstorming, but there's gotta be something we can do to be continued. Number nine. I would buy a license plate with Bakey the tater on it. Number nine is the mystery of the three bikes stuck on a log. We have some great coverage from Great Falls, Montana, where spoiler, there are three bikes stuck on a log. What does it mean? In July of 2025, I moved to Great Falls and ever since I've been here, I've had one question. It's like an enigma. I know nothing.
02:45
good answer for them. The aliens, man, I don't know. My search started with the police. They didn't know. Then I started where all good journalism starts from Facebook. They didn't know either. Well, there you have it folks. Never before seen drone footage of the log and bikes. If you have any leads or story ideas, you can send them to me at Quinton.Shores at KRTV.com. So a link to that coverage from Quinton in the show notes or you can click show notes dot page. Maybe you can share the link. Let's get word out. Let's get this thing solved. I love a good mystery.
03:14
But I always say I love a good solution even more. Since you're clicking on things, maybe a five star review for our show too. What a weird week wherever you get podcasts. eight is the cat that has made headlines this week. The French couple's cat that went missing during a trip to Spain has been found five months later near their home in France. These stories, I'm always skeptical and I'm sorry if this is wrong, but I always think it's a different cat. I would say no, mistaken identity. You have a new cat.
03:44
But this cat was microchipped. They can document how it traveled, somehow traveled 250 kilometers, more than 150 miles and found its way home. So far the cat hasn't issued any statements, so we don't know for sure what happened. I have questions. I would like to know. I want that cat to come out with a press release. Something because I have questions. What? How many mice did you eat? I guess I maybe I should be more prepared for when the cat does finally give an interview.
04:12
The mice question again. Come on. Number seven is that survey about music and cheating and jazz fans. are saucy, saucy, saucy numbers. So they surveyed more than 6,500 people who admitted to having affairs and essentially asked what kind of music do you like? And the most cheaty fans were jazz fans. That was number one on the list. Jazz fans followed by salsa, pop music, country music.
04:42
and rap music. That was your top five of the Cheaty McCheatersons. The most faithful reggae, rock and roll, electronica music, indie music fans, and then heavy metal fans are the most faithful, according to this study. The writeup that we link to is on the website, metalinjection.net. They do a deep dive and they make a good point that more research is needed. Even if you're a metal fan, you're probably not going to put on metal if it's going to be romance time.
05:12
happy happy grown up fun times. You're probably not going to put on metal for that occasion. You might put on jazz instead. Even if you're not that big of a jazz fan, jazz might be one of those genres that you choose for grown up happy fun times. Anyway, we'll link to the article. There's some swears in it. Just heads up, maybe not safe for work. We'll link to that in the show notes. Number six is the article from Popular Science, which showcases the drone brella. I don't think that's the actual name of the thing, but it's a drone and an umbrella.
05:42
so that you don't have to carry around an umbrella like a chump anymore. The drone will follow you around and keep you dry. You don't have to pay some umbrella butler big dollars. No, solving all of those problems is this drone-brella. An inventor has created a flying umbrella to keep you dry. Perhaps you want to click the link and have a look. Maybe you've got a quadcopter kicking around in an old umbrella or a tarp. Maybe you want to...
06:11
Fabricate your own drone. I encourage you to try I'm not sure what the legalities of that are where you're located as far as violating airspace So just be careful number five number five is all about the fast wieners the fast and furious wieners It's official the fast wieners are back this May the weenie 500 which is the oscar meyer wiener mobiles racing for pride National pride and perhaps world domination world wiener domination
06:40
I wish I were an Oscar Mayer winner
06:47
few moments in life where one can truly say I was there.
07:03
Smoked guns! It's gonna be close! Queenie! Star Trek!
07:14
Sometimes these events get hyped up too much. would say not this time though. That's a 10 out of 10 with no notes from me. Number four is this coverage from the BBC about a mushroom, which is popular in a certain province in China. And it gives, if you don't prepare it right and you eat it, everybody reports the same hallucination. Little people running around your plate or around the table. Little teeny tiny people appear.
07:44
when you eat this mushroom, if it's not prepared correctly. Vivid Lilliputian hallucinations. This is not a magic mushroom situation. This is a completely different chemical going on and researchers are looking into how and why and how and why. Just seems so oddly specific that everyone gets the same hallucination when they eat this mushroom, if it's not prepared right. Very interesting. We'll link to the whole thing. You can click the show notes.
08:13
go to show notes dot page number three. Number three is the update from sweethearts candy. I'm not sure. Do you have sweethearts candy everywhere? Our program goes out over the W W W here on the east coast of Canada. We have sweethearts. We have love hearts. Conversation hearts maybe is how they're referred to a lot of places too. It's a candy that has a saying on it and maybe it's a way to flirt or break the ice with someone. You give them a candy and it says nice eyes. I don't know stuff like that.
08:43
I'm terrible at small talk. Maybe you've picked up on that. Well, Sweethearts Candy has added some new phrases for modern day love to their conversation hearts. And this is part of their love in this economy collection. So now you can choose from split rent, carpool, and share login. I say, well done, Sweethearts Candy. Romance is still alive. Love on, sweet lovers. Even.
09:09
Even in this economy. Number two is the crying horse, which has been making headlines. We're heading into the year of the horse, lunar new year. And so you see some plush horses selling, right? But the most popular, the one that has gone viral is one that happened by mistake. There was a mix up in the manufacturing process and the horse's mouth got put on upside down. So instead of smiling, it looks like it's frowning and people love that.
09:38
People love this horse. This sad horse. By the way, they say you're not supposed to look a gift horse in the mouth. So if somebody gives you one of these sad horses, don't let on. Try not to look at it in the mouth, even though it's famous for, you know, the frown. Try not to look at it in the mouth. A stuffed toy stuff up that's gone viral. As Lunar New Year approaches, a Chinese company wanted to welcome the year of the horse with a plush decoration that would put smiles on faces.
10:07
Well, it did, just not in the way they anticipated. oh A worker sewed its mouth upside down by mistake. I didn't think much about it, so when a customer wanted to return it, I said, send it back to me. But later they said, actually, there's no need. The owner later started seeing photos of the mournful mare circulating online. Suddenly, an amusing mistake appeared to tap into the mood of many young white-collar workers across China.
10:33
Customers joked that the so-called crying horse reflected how they felt during long hours at their jobs while the smiling one showed how they felt afterwards That's so smart come out with a smiling one and a sad one and people will buy twice as many I mean, I think it was a happy accident or a sad accident But still we'll link to that coverage. That was ABC News Australia You can click the show notes for more or show notes dot page number one number one is the
11:02
toddler in England, his name's Jude, and he has two Guinness world records now for different pool shots or billiards. Now around here, we would pronounce it snooker. East coast Canada, we would say snooker, I think most people, but a lot of places you would pronounce it snooker. So I'm going to try to get it right. Jude has become the youngest person to ever make a snooker or snooker double pot and a pool bank shot. He's a pool prodigy, two years old making trick shots.
11:31
and now has a couple Guinness World Records. The youngest snooker record holder the sport has ever seen. This is Jude Owens from the UK, a young snooker fan who's already showing an incredible natural ability. Jude first hit a snooker ball when he was two and a half, but recently I did find a video of him hitting a pool ball just before his second birthday.
11:58
At just two years and 261 days old, Jude became the youngest person ever to make a snooker double pot in Manchester, United Kingdom on the 1st of September, 2025. The little gaffer needs like a step stool to make these trick shots. Congratulations, Jude. I don't know if you're going to go turn pro at some point or whatever, but well done.
12:24
Hey Jude, right here would be a perfect time for a parody song featuring Hey Jude by the Beatles for Jude the Pool Prodigy. The lawyers have advised me against it. So we'll wrap up there and I thank you for listening to What a Weird Week. You can get everything we talk about in more detail and you can get all our show notes and stuff about our podcast if you go to shownotes.page. Hope you can come back next Friday for 10 more weird and fun stories from the news on What a Weird
Scotty and Tony Radio Show Contact Links at NEWCOUNTRY969.CA/SCOTTYANDTONY.