Who’s king of the road?

QUESTION In real life, which is faster: a roadrunner or the coyote?

DURING the Forties, cartoonist Chuck Jones was parked on the side of a Texas highway when a roadrunner — a fastrunning ground cuckoo, with a long tail and crest, which is found in the desert — shot by at top speed.

This encounter inspired his cartoon double act. Road Runner and his adversary Wile E. Coyote would appear in numerous Looney Tunes episodes.

The plot was simple, but entertaining. The roadrunner, with his feet moving so fast they appeared like a blur, would always outwit his pursuer, the coyote.

A real-life roadrunner is hyperactive, insatiably curious and intelligent. Its long tail acts like a rudder, enabling the bird to swerve and sidestep obstacles.

These traits are shared by other long-tailed birds such as the pheasant and wild turkey, which can reach speeds of 21 mph. The roadrunner tops this, holding the title as the fastest running flighted bird, clocking in at 26 mph. The flightless ostrich runs at 44 mph.

The roadrunner’s body movements are incredibly quick, making it adept at catching other birds. It will even taunt a rattlesnake to strike until it tires, then seize its neck.

However, the coyote, being a bigger animal with four long legs, is much faster than the roadrunner. During pursuit, it can reach speeds of up to 43 mph, faster than a wolf, and can jump up to 13 ft.

It’s a graceful runner, effortlessly covering ground, but as the cartoon Double act: Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote roadrunner and coyote demonstrated time and again, speed is not the only factor when hunting or being pursued.

In an area with bushes or other cover, being low to the ground, a roadrunner could elude a coyote, but on a straight run it would be easily overtaken.

Bill Naylor, Wilsford, Lincs.

QUESTION Thomas More is said to have told his executioner a joke on the scaffold. Do we know what it was?

WHEN scholar and statesman Sir Thomas More was sentenced to death in 1535 for rejecting royal supremacy, the most famous words associated with him were: ‘I am the king’s good servant, but God’s first.’

However, this is a common misquotation. In fact, he said: ‘I am the king’s good servant, and God’s first.’

He was also heard joking with his executioner. Upon seeing More stand one last time after repeating psalms on his knees, the executioner is said to have begged his forgiveness. More responded by making light of how his short neck might impede the blade.

He kissed the executioner and is quoted as saying: ‘Pick up thy spirits, man, and be not afraid to do thine office; my neck is very short, take heed therefore thou strike not awry for having thine honesty.’

Then, just before his famous last words about being God’s servant, he said: ‘I pray you, I pray you, Mr Lieutenant, see me safe up and for my coming down, I can shift myself.’

As Henry VIII’s good friend and counsellor for many years, his execution shocked the country and the man with the axe was among those feeling emotional about it. Luckily for More, his anxious executioner was cheered up by his joke on the scaffold and was able to deliver one swift killer blow. Emilie Lamplough, Trowbridge, Wilts.

QUESTION Have any celebrities claimed to have been abducted by aliens?

FURTHER to the earlier answer, John Lennon claimed to have seen a flying saucer. He was living in the Dakota Building, New York, with May Pang — the former personal assistant of Yoko Ono — when on the evening of August 23, 1974, he went out on to the balcony and saw a flying saucer with lights all round the rim and a bright red light on top.

It moved slowly among the surrounding high-rise buildings, eventually following the East River and shooting up into the sky like a bullet.

Lennon said in interviews that it was so close at times he could have hit it with a brick. He also wished that the UFO had taken him with it.

Mike Prentis, Nottingham.

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