In case you somehow hadn’t heard, Liz Truss stepped down from her role as Prime Minister yesterday in what was a history-making move.
We say ‘history-making’, as Truss did, quite literally, make history during her time as leader of the Conservative Party for officially being the shortest-serving Prime Minister in the history of the United Kingdom after only being in office for just 44 days.
Truss took over from outgoing PM Boris Johnson on 5 September 2022.
During her 44 days as leader, Truss was elected to office during an ongoing cost of living crisis and an energy supply crisis, in which her government – and the former Chancellor she sacked six days before her resignation, Kwasi Kwarteng – implemented an Energy Price Guarantee that limited energy prices for households, businesses, and public sector organisations.
Truss’s government will likely also be remembered for having announced large-scale borrowing and various tax cuts in a mini-budget unveiled on 23 September – which was poorly received, the subject of major backlash from both within the Tory party, as well as from opposition parties and the wider general public.
After the mini-budget announcement went on to cause economic chaos and see the value of the pound plummet, Truss’s new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt was then forced to largely reverse a lot of the measures that were set out.
Truss’s time in office also saw the death and state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, which means 10 whole days of her leadership were spent in a period of national mourning.
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Understandably, given the fact that 44 days as Prime Minister is, in a lot of respects, a very short amount of time, the internet has been having an absolute field day working out things that have lasted longer than Liz Truss.
And so, because we could all do with a bit of light relief from what has undeniably been a week (well year, well lifetime, to be honest) of absolute political chaos, we thought we’d round up a list of some of our favourites that we’ve seen knocking around online over the last 24 hours – and we’ve even come up with a few of our own too.
We decided to pick 44 things, one for each day Truss spent in office – of course.
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The Daily Star’s 60p lettuce (still going strong)
Kim Kardashian’s marriage to Kris Humphries (72 days)
The time you’ve got to return something to B&Q (90 days)
Tyson Fury’s retirement (53 days)
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s defamation trial (51 days)
Phinneas and Ferb’s summer vacation (104 days)
The DFS sale (probably forever?)
The average lifespan of a red blood cell (115 days)
Jedward’s time on X Factor
Wagner’s time on X Factor
Chico’s time on X Factor (he actually got to the quarter-final, can you believe?)
How long the Chilean miners were trapped underground for (69 days)
The first COVID lockdown (91 days)
A typical season of Love Island (56 days)
Chris Evans’ time as a host of Top Gear (47 days)
The time ‘Believe’ by Cher spent at the top of the UK charts (49 days)
The time ‘Umbrella’ by Rihanna spent at the top of the UK charts (70 days)
Big Sam Allardyce’s infamous time as England manager (67 days)
The ‘partygate’ scandal (sorry to drag this up again – 164 days)
The average probation period at a new job (up to 90 days)
The longest recorded game of Monopoly (70 days)
My IKEA coffee table (surprisingly still standing)
The lifecycle of a female mosquito (56 days)
How long a jar of mayonnaise lasts in the fridge (60 days, apparently)
Also, this avocado in John Bishop’s fridge (unknown, we’ll have to take his word for it)
Anne Widdecombe on Strictly Come Dancing (70 days)
John Sergeant on Strictly Come Dancing (61 days)
Ed Balls on Strictly Come Dancing (91 days)
Pumpkin Spice Latte season at Starbucks (68 days, give or take)
Vine (1454 days)
The lifespan of a banana from green to bad (45 days)
David Blaine’s famous glass box stunt (44 days – snap)
The London 2012 Olympic torch relay (60 days)
The runtime of every episode of Coronation Street when played back-to-back with no breaks (6 months, apparently)
Christopher Eccleston’s time as the Ninth Doctor on Doctor Who (84 days)
How long the Gallagher brothers have been fighting for (who knows, probably their whole lives? Oasis famously split up in 2009)
Kayne West’s 2020 campaign to be US President (123 days)
The ‘Hundred Days’ war (110 days, the name lies)
Molly-Mae and Tommy Fury keeping their pregnancy a secret (3 months, ish)
The length of time The Queen’s Gambit spent as ‘number 1’ on Netflix (46 days)
How long it takes for your new passport to arrive (10 weeks, if you’re lucky)
Luis Suarez’s 10-game Premier League ban for one of the times he bit another player (151 days)
Larry the Downing Street cat (who knows, longer than any PM – what a legend)
And last but not least – and probably the most shocking.
44. The length of the 2022 Conservative Party leadership race that actually elected Liz Truss as Prime Minister (61 days)
Yes, that’s right, that means Truss was campaigning to become UK Prime Minister for 17 whole days more than she actually spent as UK Prime Minister, which is, honestly, one of the most absurd facts of this whole ordeal.
So there you have it.
Featured Image – 10 Downing Street (via Twitter)
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Manchester United to wear special one-off shirt for important awareness campaign
Danny Jones
Just to pre-empt any Manchester United fans fearing they’re still in total delirium the next time they see that iconic red shirt, we can confirm it isn’t just your rose-tinted glasses deceiving you – the club will be wearing a special one-off shirt with a notable difference very soon.
All eyes may now be on Wednesday, 21 May but this limited edition kit has already caught the eye of many supporters for one very obvious reason.
In case you haven’t seen it for yourselves already, Man United have confirmed that both the men’s and women’s squads will be will be wearing a slight variation on their home shirt for their next two matches as part of a special campaign for an important charitable cause.
Joining forces with their usual primary shirt sponsors Snapdragon and global health campaigners Product RED, this one-off alternative strip will be unveiled on the pitch this week.
Product Red, or simply (RED) as it will read on the jersey itself, is a worldwide charity that’s been working to fight global health crises since 2006.
(RED)’s key aim is to end the AIDS epidemic and related injustices by raising money for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.
The organisation officially partnered with the club and Snapdragon back in January in an effort to help drive awareness and generate further backing for their work – it just so happens that teaming up with one the planet’s biggest brands and one synomyous with that colour made for the perfect collaboration.
With that in mind, putting together a one-off Man United kit with (RED) slap bang in the middle as is close to a commercial/charitable tap-in as you’re probably ever going to get.
Set to be debuted by Manchester United Women in their WSL fixutre against Arsenal this Saturday, 10 May and then again by Ruben Amorim’s side in the Premier League the following day (Sun, 11 May); plus, a select few limited edition replicas shirts will be made available for fans to purchase.
Be first in the know, Reds 👀
Get notified when our limited-edition @RED collection drops ⤵️#MUFC || @Snapdragon
It goes without saying that given the nature of the front-of-shirt sponsor swap, these will no doubt become somewhat of a special item among kit collectors from the off.
More importantly, however, the funds raised through selling these one-off Man United shirts will provide much-needed income for the non-profit and their crucial efforts.
The unveiling of the comes not long after the bedlam that ensued inside Old Trafford during the second leg against Athletic Club, in which United booked their return trip back to Bilbao for the Europa League final, leaving plenty of fans of seeing nothing but the colour red ever since.
MUWFC also sealed their spot in the Women’s Champions League next season to with an important point in the Manchester Derby this past weekend, confirming a finish above Man City this year.
Safe to say it’s been a good few days to be a (RED).
Salford City FC have been bought out by a new consortium
Danny Jones
Another era beckons for Salford City as a buyout of the Greater Manchester football club by a new consortiumhas been announced.
Well, sort of.
Salford City FC were famously the subject of a joint takeover by Singaporean businessman Peter Lim and members of Manchester United’s Class of ’92 over a decade ago, and now 11 years on from that last milestone moment in their history, the local side has a new administration once again.
It is a fresh chapter for the club, but supporters will be glad to hear that there will also be some continuity and key throughline of consistency among some of those at the top.
Salford City announces that the Club has been acquired by a new ownership group led by David Beckham and Gary Neville, and includes US-based businessman Declan Kelly and Lord Mervyn Davies who will both serve as new Co-Chairs of the Club’s board.
Led by Man United legends Gary Neville and David Beckham, who have been involved with Salford since 2014, the new nine-member consortium consists of the Dream Sports Group – a leading sports technology company based in India – along with a number of other key figures.
One of those is Lord Mervyn Davies, a former Labour MP and Minister of State for Trade, Investment and Small Business, who still serves as a trade envoy between the UK and Sri Lanka.
Another is Irish-American entrepreneur Declan Kelly, who is Chairman and CEO of The Consello Group, a global advisory and investing firm.
While the previous co-owners and fellow Class of ’92 United graduates are no longer shareholders at Moor Lane, it is said they will still play important roles at the club.
As the official statement reads, “The acquisition includes a commitment by the new shareholders to invest significantly in the Club, the team and its facilities”, meaning there will funds will likely be sweet aside not only for some healthy transfer business but more updates to the Peninsula Stadium.
Commenting on the announcement, Neville said: “I’m passionate about Salford City. This is a unique partnership with a diverse range of minds and expertise, held together by a love of football.
“Football will come first, however, it’s critical that we drive the Club towards sustainability in the next 4-5 years. I can’t wait for the next part of this journey.”
Meanwhile, Beckham went on to add in the excitable Instagram post seen above: “Salford played such an important role in my life growing up… It’s where I trained with United alongside my best mates every day, it’s where I bought my first house and where me and Victoria lived.
“I’m so proud to be part of a new ownership group alongside my mate [Neville] as we begin the next chapter of Salford’s journey. Football is at the heart of this community and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for the Ammies.
Emily Sergeant -
21st October 2022 
