Charlie Croker

Charlie Croker

Charlie Croker was born on July 30th, 1966 and is currently 60 years old.

Charlie Croker is a journalist and author, and so he can be relied upon to use the right words, and sometimes even in the right order.

He’s written (with help from a spellchecker) for publications including The Spectator, The Times, and The Independent on Sunday.

Screwed Up English: Twisted Translations of the English Language from Around the World makes travelers beware, and is the perfect traveling companion which proves why you should not always believe the stuff that you read. English, as the most commonly spoken language in the entire world, has reached every single corner of the globe, however some of the messages can get scrambled along the way.

Explore some of the absolute best (and worst) instances of unintentional communication comedy that is found on menus, in advertising, and in street signs, all of which are often the result of some bad translation.

Art throughout Hotel sign in Athens, Greece: visitors are expected to complain at the office between hours of 9 and 11 AM daily. Pack of toy animals sold in Ranong, Thailand: be careful of getting by small children. Menu in Bali, Indonesia: toes with butter and jam.

In 8 out of 10 Brits: Intriguing and useless statistics about the world’s 79th largest nation, Charlie paints this quirkily numerical portrait of Britain. Full of surprising facts about who we are, fascinating info about what we do, and some revealing figures about how we’ve changed, here is an essential companion to British life.

88.2% of all stats are made up right on the spot. But these aren’t. 20% of men claim that they’re able to do DIY jobs better than any professional. The British will consume at least double the per capita quantity of baked beans eaten by any other nationality. By early 2005 there were more mobile phones in the UK than there were people. The divorce rate in 2007 was the lowest in 30 years.

A survey in 2008 found that while people were on the toilet: 39% of people read, 21% of people text, and 21% of people talk (to a family member or on the phone).

Lost in Translation: Misadventures in English Abroad demonstrates the absolute best (and worst) instances of genuine grammar gargling from all around the world, found by the book’s author and his intrepid team of researchers.

It features everything from hilarious hotel signs to some baffling advertisements, like the German beauty product that offers a ‘cream shower for pretentious skin’, the notice found at a French swimming pool proclaiming that ‘swimming is forbidden in the absence of a savior’, or the warning found at a Czech zoo that instructed visitors ‘No smoothen the lion’.

English is spoken by some 700 million jabbering individuals, and has traveled to all corners of the globe, but unfortunately, some of it’s gotten a bit muddled along the way.

Related Authors

Readers who follow Charlie Croker also follow these authors:

1. Stephen King, author of The Dark Tower Series.
2. David Baldacci, author of the Amos Decker Series.
3. Lee Child, author of the Jack Reacher Series.
4. James Patterson, author of the Alex Cross Series.
5. Robert B. Parker, author of the Spenser Series.

Charlie Croker: F.A.Q