A Question Of Sanity

Ever wondered what would happen if Wigan was attacked by a dragon? What contingency plans does Worthing Council have if the town is hit by an asteroid? And how often have Birmingham’s museums had to call up the local Ghostbusters?
As well as being possible plot lines for Simon Pegg and Nick Frost’s next film, all of the above are among the weirdest requests made to government institutions under freedom of information laws.
The Local Government Association released a list of the 10 strangest questions asked of them, which included gems such as: Please list all the types of animals you have frozen since March 2012, including the type and quantity of each animal (to Cambridge City Council); and, how many people in the town have a licence to keep a tiger, lion, leopard, lynx or panther as a pet? (Scarborough Council).
Our personal favourite though is: How many holes in privacy walls between cubicles have been found in public toilets and within council buildings in the last 10 years? (Rossendale Council). Sounds like George Michael is thinking of moving house.
Another questioner has clearly been watching too many dystopian sci-fi films after asking Southend Council: “How many children in the care of the council have been micro-chipped?” Either that or he’s a slightly unhinged IT entrepreneur trying to research a potential new business.
Another disturbing inquiry was sent to Richmond Council: “How many bodies are there in mortuaries that have been unclaimed for 10 years? How long have these bodies been in the mortuary? How old were they when they died? Is it possible to have the names of these people?” Looks like it’s more of a question of sanity on behalf of those who asked!
If he wasn’t dead, we’d swear that last request was made by Jimmy Savile.