The Unbelievable Truth

David Mitchell is joined by Lucy Porter, Holly Walsh, Tony Hawks and Alan Davies as they talk with deliberate inaccuracy on subjects as varied as advertising, Essex, candles, and water.

The Truths

Holly Walsh - Essex

- Patrick Chaplin of Maldon is the person ever to get a PhD in darts, writing about the history of the game in 2006. Found by Lucy.

- Saffron Walden was originally just called Walden, but gained its modern name in 1514 due to it trading and growing saffron. Found by Alan.

- The Only Way Is Essex has contributed more than £1.4billion to the UK economy, thanks it promoting things like fake tan, teeth whiting and vajazzles. Found by Lucy.

- Essex used to house the world's largest collection of human brains: 8,000 specimens in a bomb shelter beneath a psychiatric hospital in Wickford. Successfully smuggled.

- There is a village in Essex called Fingringhoe, located near Colchester. Other places in Essex include Steeple Bumpstead, Dancing Dicks Lane, and Ugley. Successfully smuggled.

Tony Hawks - Candles

- Let Them Eat Candles is a company that makes edible candles for birthday cakes. Found by Lucy.

- Harvesting rhubarb is best done in candlelight to keep it sweet. Found by Holly.

- Victorian brothels had candles that burned for seven minutes. Once the candle burned out, the session was over. Some women trimmed their candles to shorten the sessions. Successfully smuggled.

- The Emperor Nero used Christians as human candles. Successfully smuggled.

- 96% of all the candles in the USA are bought by women. Successfully smuggled.

Lucy Porter - Advertising

- Early ads for Grape Nuts falsely claimed to prevent appendicitis and cure malaria. They also claimed to tighten loose teeth, cure rickets, rheumatism, heart disease and "brain problems". Found by Alan.

- The first product advertised on Channel 5 was Chanel No. 5. Successfully smuggled.

- Bob Dylan said that if he ever sold out and did a commercial it would be for ladies undergarments, and he later did a Victoria's Secret commercial in 2004. Successfully smuggled.

- The longest ever advert on British television was a seven-minute long advert for British Rail. Shown on Christmas Day 1977, the BFI list it as a film on their website. Successfully smuggled.

- In Mexico, the advertising slogan: "It takes a tough man to tender chicken" was mistranslated as: "It takes a hard man to make a chicken aroused". The ad for US chicken company Perdue Farms featured Frank Perdue next to this incorrect slogan. Successfully smuggled.

Alan Davies - Water

- Frogs do not drink water; they absorb it via the skin. Found by Tony.

- Giraffes can go without water longer than camels can. Giraffes can survive for 21 days, camels only 15 days. Found by Tony.

- Bottled water costs 10,000 times more to produce than tap water. Successfully smuggled.

- Kim Basinger washes her hair in Evian water. Successfully smuggled.

- In Bolivia, llama droppings are used to purify water. Successfully smuggled.

Scores

- Alan Davies: 3 points
- Lucy Porter: 2 points
- Tony Hawks: -1 point
- Holly Walsh: -2 points