I'm from the southern rather than the eastern side of the pond and I suspect us antipodeans are a little less uptight about it all. I have to say, though, that the American use of the word 'fanny' can be really funny. Here (and in the UK) 'fanny' doesn't refer to the back bottom but the front one. 'Sit your fanny down here' becomes a bit surreal when you're not expecting it.

It works both ways though. My mother was in the Midwest years ago and went to a football game where the Greenbay Packers were playing. Apparently, she got right into the spirit of it and started shouting out 'Go Packers!' She couldn't figure out why people were laughing at her until someone explained to her that her Kiwi accent turned it into 'Go Peckers!' Kinda cute.

That said though, there is one Americanism that does really piss me off: the phrase 'write you.' If I'm going to send you a letter I'll 'write to you.' I've got no idea why the US version grates so badly, it's probably just plain bigotry and bloody-mindedness :=]

Oh, I don't 'deplane,' anymore than I 'decar,' 'debus,' 'debed' or 'dehouse.' Right, I think I've critecizated enough, already.

Hey Biggles,

Thanks for answering my question- I'm now not entirely convinced that it's shopped :=]

It's a cool vidjo, but I seriously doubt if it's real. I'm not exactly a physics nut, but I wonder if the speed of the deformation makes any difference? If it doesn't, then you should be able to put a golf ball in a very powerful vice, squash it down to about 5mm thickness, release the vice and watch the golf ball bounce back to it's original shape. That seems rather unlikely to happen. You'd just end up with a small white hockey puck with dimples :=]