Technology, films and laws | Amazing stories from the world of chocolate

Thanks to a number of amusing books, we are all well aware of some of the bizarre laws and regulations that can be found across the pond in America. And the same is true far closer to home: we are regularly told about all kinds of strange laws in Great Britain too. For years, there have been reports that women are forbidden from enjoying chocolate when travelling on British public transport. What a scandal! The obvious initial reaction of chocolate lovers and dedicated feminists. There is some debate about whether the law actually exists, however. While many British women have never heard of such a thing, some female German tourists have apparently been asked to pay a fine. The assumption is that it refers to an ancient law, one that dates back centuries – and who knows why it was originally drafted. Apparently, the law has never been revised and, as such, is still in force, in theory at least. Or maybe it is just another unbelievable tale from the wealth of chocolatey urban legends…

3D printers are a fascinating recent invention. Data can now be printed out as a finished product, and production processes have been hugely accelerated as a result. 3D printing is now standard practice in certain technical industries, such as the automotive industry. But food from a printer? It sounds like something from the distant future, but a true machine of paradise has been around for a few years now: the chocolate printer! Instead of ink, the device is fed chocolate cartridges. A nozzle creates 3D versions of the computer-generated shapes layer by layer. The manufacturer, a company called “Choc Edge”, sells its chocolate printer for around 3,000 euros – it is no longer an impossible dream for chocolate lovers and passionate bakers.

The famous scene featuring the “dirtiest toilet in Scotland” from the cult film “Trainspotting” is likely to have disgusted anyone with even a basic sense of hygiene. The cubicle and toilet that actor Ewan McGregor had to battle his way through, in the truest sense of the word, was smeared with excrement. It has, however, been public knowledge for some time that McGregor was, in actual fact, experiencing true chocolate heaven. The set was actually sullied with liquid chocolate. Fans of the dapper Scottish actor and singer can breathe a sigh of relief.