Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
PINA COLADAS AND PLASTIC PUBS
What’s the most bonkers thing you’ve bought during lockdown?
Brits have spent an eye-popping £40.6billion on dispensable items (aka stuff we don’t need) during lockdown in an effort to have more fun and lift our spirits.
I rushed out and bought jigsaws and craft kits before Waterstones shut up shop. They look lovely, sitting untouched in the corner.
Wish I’d gone for the inflatable pub.
Yes, an inflatable pub – genius! – tops the 20 most bizarre items we’ve snapped up, according to research from Barclaycard Payments.
Takeaways, summer clothes, plants, alcohol, leisurewear, paint, and subscriptions to Netflix, Amazon Prime and Disney+ have been our most common little luxuries.
Kirsty Morris, from Barclaycard Payments, says: “The nation has sought out things to bring them happiness and entertainment. It’s encouraging people to take up new hobbies and make an unusual period a little more enjoyable.”
Danielle Williams, from Newcastle-under-lyme, took delivery of the Inn-flatable Pub...
“I got the pub for my birthday weekend as an extra twist to a very different 21st birthday.
“We found it on Facebook. There was plenty of space to use as the dance floor, and everyone loved getting behind the bar, especially my mum.”
Louise Crudgington, from Claygate, Surrey, bought a puppy. “At the start of lockdown, we got Fudge, our working Cocker Spaniel. We’d been planning it for a while but the timing was perfect. Fudge has brought us all so much happiness, especially Freya, nine, and Joel, 12.”