Would You Believe It?

Got a question? Get in touch through e-mail wouldyoubelieveit@dctmedia.co.uk or *write to

“The People’s Friend”, 2 Albert Square, Dundee DD1 9QJ.

I’D LIKE TO KNOW

QI know that Dundee is home to the famous RRS Discovery, but it is also home to the wonderful frigate Unicorn, as I visited it many years ago. Can you remind me how old this ship actually is?

Mrs P.W., Bristol.

AThe HMS Unicorn was launched on March 30, 1824, making the ship one hundred and ninety-four years old this month. This makes HMS Unicorn the oldest ship in Scotland and the fourth-oldest ship in the UK, after Mary Rose (launched 1511), HMS Victory (1765) and HMS Trincomalee (1817), a spokesperson told us.

You can climb aboard HMS Unicorn for a good look round, with the hours extending from April over the summer months, when it will be open Monday to Sunday, 10 a.m. until 5 p.m., through to the end of October, when it changes to shorter winter opening times.

QI’ve just started taking French lessons at night school and I’m curious to know how many languages are spoken around the world. Mr D.M., Edinburgh.

AAccording to the Ethnologue catalogue of world languages, there are thought to be in excess of 7,000 languages spoken throughout the world. It’s a difficult question to answer precisely as numbers are constantly in flux.

QI read with interest your feature on Muriel Spark and, believe it or not, I’d never seen the film adaptation of her book “The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie” until just a few weeks ago. Maggie Smith is outstanding in the lead role, but can you tell me if she was married to her co-star Robert Stephens?

Ms C.B., Derby. Yes. The couple wed in 1967 and had two sons together, before divorcing in 1974.