One day an ancient Egyptian statue in a Manchester museum started slowly turning round in its glass case, but nobody knew why. This puzzled visitors and staff for months. A few people suggested it was magic, but most were sure there was a logical explanation. Finally, an engineer discovered that the statue was moving because of tiny vibrations caused by museum visitors walking next to it. The statue is 3,800 years old and was donated to the museum by a collector 80 years ago. It had previously stood in a remote part of the museum, and only started turning after being moved to a busy section.

Hi Mum, it’s John. I’ve arrived safely in London, and I’ve just got to Highbury, where my friend lives. You remember Highbury Stadium, don’t you? You know, the one which was the home of the famous Arsenal Football Club for over 90 years. Well, it turns out that the block of flats where my friend lives was built on the site of the stadium. That’s incredible! It’s crazy to think that he lives in the same place where famous footballers like Henry, Bergkamp, and Vieira scored so many goals. Some parts of the stadium are still here and that’s why it’s so attractive to fans of the game. For example, they’ve kept the pitch and made a beautiful garden out of it. It’s called Highbury Square now. They’ve also kept the players’ tunnel – you know, the tunnel which players walk through to get to the pitch. I’m actually standing in it right now, feeling the atmosphere. It leads from my friend’s block of flats to the garden. When I get back to the flat, I’ll send you some photos. Bye!

Man: What should you do when you don’t know what to do? Well, the obvious answer is you should do something new, something that you’ve never done before! And that is exactly what Jess Mell did last year. She challenged herself to do a new thing every day for a hundred days. Welcome to the studio, Jess. What inspired you to take on such a challenge?

Woman: Well, I changed jobs two years ago. Now I only work from home. It was fun at the beginning, but with no colleagues to talk to in person, I started to get really unhappy and bored. So I thought, what if I started doing something new every day? Maybe it would make my life more exciting and give me a chance to spend more time with other people? 

Man: What kinds of things did you try?

Woman: Oh, many different things! I had my hair dyed pink by one of my friends. I played chess for the first time. I also visited some museums I’d never been to. The most interesting one was the National Maritime Museum in London, where I saw exhibits relating to the sea and navigation. During my challenge, I also flew on a plane for the first time ever! I documented all of my activities on social media. 

Man: What happened after you finished your 100-day challenge? 

Woman: Well, I was really sad when it ended because there were still some things to do on my list, things like sailing, windsurfing or kitesurfing. 

Man: So, finally, what are you going to do now?

Woman: Well, I guess I’m going to keep trying new things. It’s now just a part of who I am. I think I might try and climb 12 mountains in 12 months. They wouldn’t have to be very high mountains, though. Or maybe I’ll have a completely different idea? Time will tell! 

Man: Thank you for talking to us, Jess.