It has been two months since Mark Zuckerberg launched his so-called ‘Twitter-killer’ app Threads — which saw more than 100million users join in less than five days before plummeting in popularity.

But it now appears another rival app, Bluesky, could be the one to watch for X owner Elon Musk, after the platform amassed a record-breaking wave of signups in the wake of the billionaire’s threat to start charging users of his own social media site.

The figures, gathered by BlueskyStats, suggest that more than 53,500 users flocked to its app during the past 24 hours — roughly 40,000 above average.

However, the site’s total users – estimated to be around 1.1 million – still pale in comparison to X, formerly known as Twitter.

Musk revealed that his social media giant currently has around 550 million monthly users despite undergoing a series of drastic changes since his takeover last year, including the monetization of its blue tick verification system. 

There was further controversy and uproar yesterday, when the tech billionaire revealed he was considering charging all users to access the platform in a bid to ward off bots, or automated accounts. 

Jake Moore, a cybersecurity expert at ESET, told MailOnline that the increased popularity of Bluesky was both ‘inevitable’ and ‘predictable’.

‘Since it has arisen that users could be charged to use [X], the inevitable and rather predictable has happened with record sign ups to the Twitter/X alternative,’ he said.

‘The battle of the next Twitter has already commenced with a few in the ring such as Threads and Mastadon, too. 

‘However, the real test of time will be to see which platform wins the majority sway of users to take on the next generation of social networkers.’

Bluesky, which launched on both Android and iOS earlier this year, is backed by Twitter’s co-founder and former CEO Jake Dorsey.

It is a rare example of an invite-only social media app, with pre-existing users able to hand out invite codes to anyone interested in joining.

A waiting list is also available to those who don’t know anyone on Bluesky, with generated codes sent by email. 

Moore added: ‘Bluesky offers a sign up process to anyone with an invite code generated by those already on the platform.

‘This little feature cleverly keeps bots at bay as they struggle to automate mass signups which can cause security and misinformation issues.’

The invite-only component also sets Bluesky apart from X, as fake information and bots have been a major concern for Musk over the last few months.

It was revealed yesterday in a conversation with the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, as the tech entrepreneur announced his plans for future charges.

‘I’d say the single most important reason we’re moving towards having a small monthly payment for use of the X system is that it’s the only way I can think of to combat vast armies of bots,’ Musk said.

‘A bot costs a fraction of a penny, but if somebody has to pay a few dollars or something… you have to get a new payment method every time you have a new bot.

‘Prioritizing posts that are written by X premium subscribers, we’re actually going to come up with a lower tier pricing. We want it to be a small amount of money.

‘It’s a longer discussion, but in my view this is the only defense against vast armies of bots. As the AI gets really good it’s getting better at passing the captcha tests than humans.’

While Bluesky users can share images and follow accounts, they cannot send direct messages or post videos like X users. 

Meanwhile, Zuckerberg is looking to introduce direct messaging to Threads in the not-so-distant future.

Threads’ popularity also rocketed following its launch on July 6, amassing more than 100million users by day five.

But data from last month suggests this initial popularity has since waned somewhat, with analysts at Global Wireless Solutions (GWS) claiming that daily users fell to just 430,000 in the UK.

However, following Musk’s latest comments on charging X users, Mr Moore believes that Threads could make a big comeback.  

‘Bots have been an issue on the platform since the beginning but when Musk laid off mass numbers of employees including security staff, the issue rose to rather uncontrollable lengths,’ he added. 

‘Requesting payment from all users could potentially mitigate this problem but he could have a bigger problem in his hands with a mass exodus of users.

‘With many similar alternatives already set up such as Threads and Mastadon, this could be the final push for some users to crossover to the competition.’

MailOnline has approached X for comment. 

Donald Trump was in South Dakota on Friday night for a party fundraiser that doubled as an opportunity for the state’s governor, Kristi Noem, to showcase herself as a potential vice presidential pick.

Trump joined the South Dakota Republican Party for a ‘Monumental Leaders Rally’ in Rapid City. 

Noem appeared alongside the former president and endorsed him, creating an image of the pair that Noem’s allies hope make her look like vice presidential material. 

Sources have told the New York Times that she has her eye on a vice presidential spot. 

Noem, 51, has been touted as a future presidential candidate – with a spell in the White House certain to bring her to national prominence and help turbocharge any future presidential ambitions. 

Trump’s decision to headline the event underscores his dominance in the Republican race even as he faces four separate indictments and 91 felony counts.

South Dakota holds a late primary and isn’t competitive in a general election. 

With a huge lead in the polls, Trump is skipping much of the traditional primary campaign.

Instead of large-scale rallies, he is relying on state party events that offer large, friendly audiences at no cost to his campaign, while his political organization pays millions of dollars in legal expenses.

Friday’s visit by Trump was something of an audition for Noem. 

She planned the event as a way to both offer her endorsement and maximize face time with Trump as he considers potential 2024 running mates and cabinet members, according to one of the Republicans who spoke anonymously. A spokesman for the governor has declined to comment.

Noem will be term-limited in 2026 and, after declining to run for president this year, is eyeing her next move to maintain prominence in the GOP.

‘I think Donald Trump has a 50-50 shot of getting elected at this point, so why not hitch your wagon to him if you can?’ said Michael Card, a longtime observer of South Dakota politics who suggested Noem might also make a future National Rifle Association president or conservative commentator.

Voting won’t begin for several months and Trump’s indictments and upcoming criminal trials create an unprecedented situation that many strategists argue could influence the race in unexpected ways. 

That hasn’t stopped those who are keen to be considered as Trump’s running mate from openly jockeying for the position and trying to curry favor with him and his aides.

Aides caution it is far too early for serious discussions, but Trump has indicated in conversations that he is interested in selecting a woman this time around, having fallen out with his former Vice President Mike Pence.

Aides say Trump has little interest in choosing a VP and views the role as a largely ceremonial one that’s vastly inferior to that of the president, according to the outlet.

But prospective candidates like Noem realize that it could still be used as a stepping stone to the top job. 

Joe Biden and George HW Bush are among nine former vice presidents who later became presidents.

Among the other names that have been floated: New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, failed Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake and Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn. Florida Rep. Byron Donalds and Sen. Tim Scott have also been mentioned.

Trump will be in Iowa, the first state on the GOP nomination calendar, on Saturday to attend the college football game between Iowa and Iowa State.

‘What we’re focused on is just locking up this primary and pivoting towards the general election,’ said campaign spokesman Steven Cheung.

Noem was long considered a potential White House contender in her own right and had told The New York Times in November that she didn’t believe Trump offered ‘the best chance’ for the party in 2024. 

She has since said she saw no point in joining the crowded field running for the nomination given Trump’s dominant position.

‘I would in a heartbeat,’ she told Newsmax when asked this week about whether she would consider joining a potential Trump ticket if asked. 

‘President Trump needs a strong partner if he’s going to take back the White House, and he’s going to need somebody who knows what it’s like to run a business, to be an employee, earn a paycheck, but also having a wife, mom and a grandma isn’t bad either.’

It will be Trump’s first visit to South Dakota since the summer of 2020, when he headlined a Fourth of July fireworks celebration at Mount Rushmore on the eve of Independence Day. 

The then-president had been looking for a venue to turn the page after a summer of pandemic lockdowns and racial justice protests. 

Noem’s event at Mount Rushmore was notably devoid of pandemic restrictions.

She also gifted him a miniature replica of Mount Rushmore with his likeness carved alongside George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt.

‘I don’t know exactly,’ Trump said Thursday when asked if Noem will endorse him. ‘But I am going. I like her a lot. I think she’s great. Kristi’s done a great job.’ 

He has often praised her handling of the pandemic, saying again on Thursday she had done ‘a fantastic job.’

A former member of Congress, Noem in 2018 squeezed out a surprisingly close win over a Democratic challenger to become South Dakota’s first female governor. 

She rose to national prominence with a mostly hands-off approach to the pandemic and tacked closely to the urgings of Trump to return to life as normal.

She handily won reelection last year, even as she performed worse than other Republicans on the ballot.

Despite not running for president, Noem has continued to position herself nationally.

She has been an outspoken champion for the National Rifle Association, even bragging at a spring convention for the gun-rights group that her one-year-old granddaughter ‘already has’ firearms. 

She has also defended South Dakota’s abortion ban and will appear at a Michigan fundraiser later this month to support Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers.

During the first GOP presidential debate, she appeared in an ad to encourage businesses and families to move to what she calls ‘the freest state in America.’

Friday’s event is expected to draw protesters targeting both Trump and Noem, said Annie Bachand, CEO of the South Dakota-based group Liberty & Justice for All.

‘The reason that we show up is to demonstrate to other people that we’re not alone,’ Bachand said. 

‘Kristi Noem has spent more time out campaigning for I don’t know what than she has in South Dakota. She has more interest in her own self-interest than she does in taking care of the people of South Dakota.’

South Dakota GOP chair John Wiik said he expects about 7,000 people to attend the sold-out fundraiser. 

The event was first planned as a Lincoln Day-style fundraising dinner commonly held by local Republican groups, Wiik said, but it later ballooned into a rally with proceeds going to the state party.

‘I did get a lot of questions at first,’ Wiik said about Trump’s decision to travel to his state just as the primary season kicks into its traditional post-Labor Day overdrive.

‘But the more you look at it, Trump is a media event wherever he lands,’ Wiik said. 

‘He could do a rally on the moon and he’d spread his word and get just as many people, so I’m just glad he chose South Dakota.’

The biggest hunt to finally track down the Lock Ness Monster is set to begin this weekend, with Nessie enthusiasts from around the world expected to have their eyes on the infamous loch. 

The Loch Ness Centre and the Loch Ness Exploration, an independent research team, will scour the waters for the beast using drones with infra-red cameras and underwater detectors in the biggest search since the Loch Ness Investigation Bureau studies the loch back in 1972. 

Over the weekend, members of the public will be asked to keep a close eye on the loch for breaks in the water, movement, or even a sighting of its most famous inhabitant. Cameras have been set up along the shores, meaning people from across the globe can take part. 

Meanwhile, drones using infrared cameras will capture thermal images under the water, and a hydrophone will be used to detect acoustic signals beneath the surface. 

Paul Nixon, general manager of the Loch Ness Centre, said: ‘The interest in our weekend of activities has been fantastic, and to see how people from all around the world are still fascinated by the story of the Loch and Nessie.

‘We want anyone in the world to be able to help, which is why we are looking for budding monster hunters from anywhere to log in to the live stream of the Loch over the weekend and see if they spot anything mysterious.

‘We can’t wait to see what we find.’

So far this year, there have been four sightings, with one little girl’s photo of the elusive beast being branded the best picture in years. 

Charlotte Robinson had been staying at the Loch Ness Highland Lodges at Invermoriston nack in 2018 when something popped up in the water 50 feet from the bank. 

Grabbing her camera, Charlotte was able to snap a picture of a blob in the water which apparently surfaced for a minute before disappearing again, reports the Mirror. 

Charlotte had been on holiday with her parents Kat and Dave when the incident occurred at about 7pm one evening. 

Describing the moment she came face to face with ‘Nessie’, Charlotte explained she knew there had been ‘something’ there. 

She said: ‘There was something in the water about 50 feet from the shore. I took a photo. It had a neck and head was in the shape of a hook.

‘I just took what I saw. It was black – I just don’t know how far it was out of the water. I’m not good at judging distances. 

‘But after about a minute it disappeared and then came back up again in a different place. It was up for less than a minute the second time. 

‘I kind of believed in Nessie, but I wanted to see the proof. I always imagined her as having a long neck and flippers. I have seen something but I’m not sure what.’

The photograph was rapturously received by the Nessie spotting community including long-time loch hermit Steve Feltham – who has spent the last 27 years watching the water. 

Mr Feltham, 55, who holds the Guinness world record for the longest continuous monster hunting vigil of Loch Ness, said: ‘I am totally excited by this photograph – it is the best of ‘Nessie’ in years.

‘There is clearly a solid object in it and it is relatively clear. It warrants further study. There may be a mundane explanation such as a seal, but I have not heard of a seal in the loch this year. 

‘For my money it is larger than a seal or an otter. It is a fantastic picture by Charlotte.’

Charlotte’s picture has drawn parallels with the the ‘Surgeon’s Photograph’ an infamous shot of Nessie that was eventually proven as a hoax. 

In 1934, The Daily Mail published a picture by Lieutenant Colonel Robert Kenneth Wilson of what appeared to be a sighting of the Loch Ness Monster.

For 60 years this celebrated photograph of a long necked creature  helped keep afloat the legend of the Loch Ness Monster.

It became known as the ‘Surgeon’s Photograph’ as Lieutenant Wilson was a Harley Street gynaecologist. 

However, this photograph was actually of a modified toy submarine.

Now it’s alleged he was part of a plot to perpetuate the myth of the monster which began as a joke.

The last sighting was recorded by Steve Valentine, who was visiting from Urmston in the Manchester area, when he saw something from the Deepscan boat as they were returning from a loch tour at around 1pm on August 17.

‘I just saw a black shape in the water’, he said. It was when we were returning to the dock near to Urquhart Castle. I lost sight of it when the boat turned, but managed to get a quick photo from a distance.’

Another sighting on June 15 was photographed by a French tourist Etienne Camel, who said he and his wife Eliane witnessed a dark shape which was 15-20 metres (49 feet to 65 ft) long on the surface of the loch.

‘It was quite strange, I am a man of science so I never believed that the Loch Ness Monster is a prehistoric animal’, he said. ‘But when I was taking a picture I saw this long, long shadow. I called my wife over and we saw the shadow move. 

‘It was 15-20 metres long and was about 150 metres away. It was quite strange and then it disappeared.’

In April, father-of-three John Payne, 55, was admiring the scenery from a window at guest house Foyers Roost, Inverness, next to the Loch Ness when he noticed some strange movement on the loch. 

He took a picture of the scene, describing what he saw as ‘huge’. 

‘It must have been something very large because we were about a mile away from the loch and I could see it clearly’, he said. 

‘You wouldn’t have been able to see a bird or anything from that far away – it had to be something large. It was like a huge neck.

‘At first I thought it was a giant fin, but I know there are no dolphin or porpoises in the loch so I was thinking what the hell is this thing.

‘It wasn’t like it was tied to anything, like a buoy, because it kept moving further away.’

Rumours of a strange creature living in the waters of Loch Ness have abounded over the decades, yet scant evidence has been found to back up these claims.

The first reported sighting of the monster is said to have been made in AD565 by the Irish missionary St Columba when he came across a giant beast in the River Ness.

An online register lists more than 1,000 total Nessie sightings, created by Mr Campbell, the man behind the Official Loch Ness Monster Fan Club and is available at www.lochnesssightings.com. 

Many Nessie witnesses have mentioned large, crocodile-like scutes sitting atop the spine of the creature, leading some to believe an escaped amphibian may be to blame.

Native fish sturgeons can also weigh several hundred pounds and have ridged backs, which make them look almost reptilian.

Some believe Nessie is a long-necked plesiosaur – like an elasmosaur – that survived somehow when all the other dinosaurs were wiped out.

Others say the sightings are down to Scottish pines dying and flopping into the loch, before quickly becoming water-logged and sinking.

• Jason Missey was moving wood in his garden when he felt something like a sting
• Doctors identified Jason’s injury as a spider bite – likely from a noble false widow 

By Michael Havis For Mailonline

Updated: 06:38 EDT, 22 August 2023

Police task force begins hunt for sniper suspect tied to 22 car shootings in two weeks

•       Police are pursuing a male sniper suspect for nearly two dozen cars

shootings in Michigan that began October 16

•       More than 100 local officers, sheriff’s deputies, state troopers and

federal agents are involved in the investigation

•       Investigators and state police are pulling over local drivers and

questioning them for details

By Daily Mail Reporter

Published: 17:39 EDT, 31 October 2012 | Updated: 00:27 EDT, 9 May 2013

[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false EN-GB X-NONE X-NONE

Police are hunting a sniper in Michigan tied to 22 car shootings in two weeks, which have caused one injury so far.

A task force of investigators has started questioning drivers in four Michigan counties in hopes of catching a man suspected of shooting at other highway motorists head-on. Police investigators are searching for anything out of the norm during their traffic stops in Oakland, Livingston, Ingham and Shiawassee counties.

More than 100 local officers, sheriff’s deputies, state troopers and federal agents are now involved in the investigation, which began with reported shootings in Wixom, about 25 miles northwest of Detroit on October 16.

A local male was shot in the behind Saturday while heading east along Interstate 96 in Livingston County, causing a nearby school to go into lockdown, according to United Press International.

That victim has been the only person injured so far, but the suspect is believed to be shooting at people and not just their vehicles, said Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard on Tuesday.

‘It’s been more of the grace of God than the guy intentionally missing people,’ said Bouchard. ‘We’ve had people who have been missed (by) inches. One bullet was lodged in a driver’s seat.’

‘The suspect is believed to be shooting at vehicles approaching from the opposite direction,’ said Michigan State Police lieutenant Michael Shaw.

‘Some motorists had not realized that their vehicles had been hit until they had driven a quarter-mile or more,’ he said.

The investigative task force has received more than 800 tips so far and has increased the reward money for any information that leads to an arrest to $102,000 from $12,000.

Witnesses have described the suspect’s vehicle as resembling a dark

1998 Oldsmobile Alero or a 1998 Toyota Camry. Those initial descriptions may not be correct, said Shaw.

On Monday police stopped the driver of a dark-colored Chevy Cavalier after a woman reported that something hit her car on U.S. 23 near Brighton, Michigan at 9.05am.

No arrests have been made.

Local officials say it’s a must that they catch the suspect not only to protect lives, but also to stop the spread of fear among citizens in the area.

‘For Halloween, we are going to do special patrols in each of our subdivisions so kids can have a normal Halloween,’ said Clarence Goodlein, Wixom’s public safety director.

‘We’re not going to be in the business of letting a thug and hoodlum bully us and change the course of our lives.’

 

 

 

Donald Trump was placed under arrest by U.S. Marshals after entering federal court with his loyal aide Walt Nauta ahead of his historic appearance in front of a judge over the scheme to keep classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. 

The former president’s motorcade left Trump National Doral Miami and took off on the journey downtown where hundreds of MAGA supporters and protesters were there to greet him. 

A short time later the motorcade went underneath the court, where Trump was processed and fingerprinted. The booking procedure wrapped up shortly before 2:30 p.m. 

Shortly before 3 p.m. the hearing started in front of magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman, where the 37 federal charges will then be read to him. 

Special Counsel Jack Smith was seated in the front row of the courtroom, while the former president was seated with his lawyers.  

During the drive Trump shared his fury with a Truth Social post saying: ‘ON MY WAY TO COURTHOUSE. WITCH HUNT!!! MAGA.’ 

He gave a brief wave to a group of supporters lined up outside his golf course before the stream of black SUVs and cop cars began their procession along empty highways.

Nauta, the loyal aide who prosecutors say helped Trump move documents around Mar-a-Lago, was in the motorcade with him awaiting his own appearance in front of the judge. 

The 76-year-old is facing 37 federal charges related to his handling of classified documents that included U.S. nuclear secrets and intelligence on foreign countries.

The allegations were revealed in the bombshell federal indictment unsealed on Friday – and included photos of boxes of sensitive files scattered around Mar-a-Lago. 

His supporters and protesters started swarming the courthouse on Tuesday morning, waiting for his showdown with a judge.

Trump brought a number of loyal aides to Miami with him including Jason Miller, Boris Epshteyn and Margo Martin. 

Outside the courthouse, Trump lawyer Alina Habba blasted the prosecution – as well as Trump probes underway in other jurisdictions. ‘Destruction of the longstanding American principles that have set this country part for so long.

In recent years, we have seen the rise of politically motivated prosecutors who don’t care for impartiality don’t care for due process for equal protection of laws,’ she said.

‘They have been quietly, but aggressively cultivating a two-tiered system of justice. From the Russia hoax to the attorney generals to the corrupt Das in Georgia and New York. And now this. The people in charge of this country do not love America. They hate Donald Trump.’

Republican presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy called on all presidential candidates to vow they would pardon Trump during a press conference outside.

He said that he would quash any conviction against the former president for mishandling classified documents, obstructing justice and making false statements 

Trump, meanwhile, took to his Truth Social platform to rail against Special Counsel Jack Smith, who is leading the Department of Justice’s case.

‘This is the Thug, over turned consistently and unanimously in big cases, that Biden and his CORRUPT Injustice Department stuck on me. He’s a Radical Right Lunatic and Trump Hater, as are all his friends and family, who probably “planted” information in the “boxes” given to them. They taint everything that they touch, including our Country, which is rapidly going to HELL!,’ he complained.

There were only a handful of people on hand early in the morning but officials expected that number to increase as the time of Trump’s arrival got closer. 

One of the early arrivals was a group wearing ‘Blacks for Trump’ t-shirts. 

Another man, wearing the American flag, carried a stick with a pig’s head through it.

Many of Trump’s supporters were coordinating their movements on Twitter.

Kari Lake, the failed Arizona gubernatorial candidate who is a huge supporter of the former president, tweeted that she will be joining protesters Tuesday.

Reporters lined up to get one of the 300 seats in the overflow room inside the courthouse. Only 20 journalists and members of the public will be let inside the actual courtroom where Trump will be arraigned.

Meanwhile, Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday found that 81 percent of Republicans thought the charges against Trump were politically motivated.

The poll also found that Trump still leads his rivals for the GOP presidential nomination by a wide margin. 

About 43 percent of Republicans said Trump was their preferred candidate, compared to 22 per cent who picked Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Trump’s closest rival.

It is a debate sure to ruffle feathers, but anything beyond the Watford Gap really should be classed as the north of England, a study suggests.

This is the critical line at which high street bakery Greggs, the beacon of northernness, becomes more popular than the southerners’ sandwich shop of choice, Pret A Manger, an academic study has worked out using artificial intelligence.

If the national consumption of steak bakes versus houmous-filled wraps and smashed avocado on toast were not convincing enough, the researchers also looked at the distribution of Morrisons and Waitrose supermarkets across England.

This too put the north-south divide within two miles of the Watford Gap.

Both calculations agree that Birmingham, Coventry and Leicester are technically in the north of England. But bizarrely, the Pret and Greggs dividing line shows that Cornwall is northern.

This is the case because there are no Prets in the county, and because Cornwall is grudgingly home to a couple of Greggs, despite the ‘pasty wars’ which saw some locals describe the bakery as ‘Satan’s franchise’ because its pastry goods are not made to a traditional recipe.

The analysis by researchers at Sheffield Hallam University, carried out using machine-learning and not yet peer-reviewed by other academics, but published online in April, was brought to the attention of a wider audience at Cheltenham Science Festival.

Sophie MacLean referenced it in her talk on how maths is relevant to everyday questions.

The mathematician told the audience: ‘Really there is only one way to judge what’s north and what’s south and that is by looking at the distribution of Pret and Greggs.

‘You could imagine the single Pret in Newcastle surrounded by a swarm of Greggs.

‘In London, they say you’re never more than six metres from a rat – or a Pret.’

Dr Robin Smith, the physicist who led the study from Sheffield Hallam, adapting the machine-learning normally used to look at nuclear reactions, said: ‘The food we eat is a very good indicator of whether someone is northern or southern.

‘Greggs is very popular in the north, where people do seem to prefer a steak bake.

‘We are fascinated by the north-south divide, so it is good to have a way of working out where it starts.

‘The north really may start at the Watford Gap, just as people say it does, even though, as someone from Birmingham, I wouldn’t think of myself as being from the north of England.

‘Since Greggs produced the vegan sausage roll, however, it has become more popular in the south, so this might not be a marker of northernness for that much longer.’

The north-south divide is believed to date back to 1069, when William the Conqueror charged north to try to control an unruly population.

Greggs has become a symbol of the north because its first bakery was opened in Newcastle in 1951, while Pret first opened in Hampstead in 1984.

The ‘tongue-in-cheek’ England-only research, which was carried out during the researchers’ evenings and weekends over the course of a month, was done by searching for Greggs and Pret stores, Morrisons and Waitrose supermarkets across the country and converting their locations into latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates.

Researchers used a machine-learning statistical method to try to work out the line in the country dividing the most Greggs from Prets.

Then they used an artificial neural network, to assign a value to each area of the country based on its number of these outlets.

This showed the dividing line in the country where the probability of finding a Greggs overtakes the probability of finding a Pret – oddly enough it divides Norfolk, with King’s Lynn classed as northern, while Norwich is still in the south.

The researchers looked at the supermarkets also, because Pret is so concentrated in London that a ‘London effect’ may skew the figures, and the use of Pret and Greggs produced the ‘Cornwall anomaly’.

Both measures put the diagonal north-south divide as roughly cutting across Peterborough.

Oxford, Cambridge and Milton Keynes all end up in the south.

The north-south line calculated by looking at Pret and Greggs closely matches the north-south divide based on average gross household income, which was also analysed by the researchers, because incomes in the north are generally lower than in the south.

The line from looking at Morrisons and Waitrose closely matches the north-south divide called the ‘Dorling line’ which is based on factors including house prices, employment level and life expectancy.