Do they think we are all stupid?

[Rpm]

Yes, John/paul can't think of a better paper for the job. No lead nowadays in so many ways.
keep safe ALL I'm a London front line A&E worker and dealt with 2 confirmed CV19 last week, Scary times.
anyone for bat soup!

[Steve kay]

Seven comments quite restrained. Out there in the railway world it is claimed that older citizens of a wider girth are desparately looking for Dean broad gauge bog rolls, whilst the slimmer person is quite happy with the Ffestiniog bog roll at mere 1' 11" width.

[Tony Griffiths]

I bought the Guardian newspaper this morning, cut it into squares and hung it on back of the loo door. like wartime
.

Yes; I thought of using my telegraph - but realised a Guardian (as usual) would definitely soak up the Sh*t rather more efficiently.

---

Excellent suggestion RPM!!!! Was the Grauniad arround during the war? Anyway an ideal use for it!

Paul N-M

It was then called the Manchester Evening News and, indeed ideal use for it, even then. In 1959 my father (a man with wide connections in the newspaper industry) told me, "Never believe a thing you read in the Manchester Evening News, it's a hotbed of communists and shysters". As this was the first "political" thing he'd ever mentioned, I asked why he regarded it so. he replied: "Just believe me; I meet some of those idiots every week!" Anyway, with only a 134,000 circulation, it's won't stretch far as bog paper - so buy while you can!....but don't forget to remove the staples....

[Ivangardiner]

Here in NZ we have a tree called "rangiora", sometimes called the bushman's friend.  Large green leaves with soft white underside, very useful in times of need. We have it growing in the garden, though I confess I have not tried it (yet)

Ivan

[Charles P]

From a printing perspective the Mail group newspapers would work best because they use a printing method (flexographic) that differs from the rest. It's designed not to transfer ink from the paper to the person. Some may suggest that this was excellent foresight, given current circumstances.

The Guardian was never called the Manchester Evening News. It was the Manchester Guardian until 1959 when it dropped the provincial link. I doubt that The Guardian was ever stapled, that's usually very difficult with a broadsheet. 

Charles

[Steve kay]

An anorak feels compelled to write; whilst the two papers were published by the same organisation, the Manchester Evening News was put out... in the evening. The daily broadsheet now Grauniad used to be the Manchester Guardian. Indeed, what seems like centuries ago when I were a lad, going into a newspaper shop  in parts of Cheshire and asking for "the Guardian" would get the response "d'you mean the Northwich Gordian or the Manchester Guardian?"  If anyone can provide evidence of staples used on a daily or even weekly paper it would be interesting.  Right, must loose off the whippets, put t'clogs on and shuffle down the cobbled lanes for the paper and a packet of Woodbine, or should that be a Grauniad to read over the muesli accompanied by herbal tea?

[Howard Wright]

Northwich! My childhood home. Did you live there Steve!

Howard

[Chris KC]

While we are down here it is perhaps of interest to reflect that until around the 6th century nobody used toilet paper at all; it wasn't commercially available in the US until 1857, and even today perhaps 75% of the world's population manage OK without it. Quite why it is seen as a household necessity is thus open to some question.

There is much of interest in the historical section of the Wikipedia entry: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toilet_paper

[Rick F]

I remember the old playground rhyme....

In day of old, when knights were bold,
And paper weren't invented.
They'd wipe their a.... on a blade of grass,
And walk away contented!

[Tony Griffiths]

Quite right - the Manchester Guardian (I find it really annoys Guardian readers when you refer to it as that).