SIDELINES...

BROCK VANDALS

Graves in Yardley Cemetery near Birmingham are in imminent danger of collapse due to badgers digging extensive underground tunnels since last summer. Birmingham City Council confirmed that “badger activity has recently caused significant damage to part of the site.” One distressed mourner, whose family plot has been dug out by the stripy-headed nocturnal mammals, fears it is only a matter of time before human remains are brought above ground. “I know they are a protected species, but who is protecting our graves?” she asked. birminghammail.co.uk, 15 Jan 2021.

CANAL BADGER RESCUE

Two badgers have been rescued from a canal in South Wales. One managed to scale a ladder and reach dry land, but the other became stuck in the ladder and was freed by RSPCA officers, assisted by members of the fire service. The badgers are being nursed back to full health before being released back into the wild. BBC News, 9 Feb 2021.

SKELECASTER

A black metal musician has repurposed a skeleton and made an electric guitar. The musician, Prince Midnight, a Florida resident, had his uncle Filip’s skeleton removed from a cemetery in Greece and sent over to the USA, where he built the custom instrument he calls the Filip Skelecaster. “You have to strum inside the rib cage, so there are no sweeping chords like Pete Townshend of The Who,” he said, in response to a query as to whether it played OK. “You can only strum as wide as the ribs will allow.” guitarworld.com, 10 Feb 2021.

NO JOKE

Damian Hammond, a Nottingham criminal known for walking around the city dressed as the Joker, was jailed for 16 years after he dropped a bowling ball on a council worker’s head, leaving them with permanent brain damage. His victim was collecting a discarded TV set from the street when Hammond, high on Mamba (a synthetic cannabinoid akin to Spice) called out that he wanted the TV before dropping the ball 14ft onto his victim from his first-floor window. independent. co.uk, 6 Feb 2021.