Entertainment
How a factory error in China created a viral “crying horse” Lunar New Year trend
Do not turn that frown upside down. A horse plush toy has gone viral in China thanks to a serendipitous mistake by a factory worker.
The mouths on a batch of the toys were mistakenly sewn on the wrong way around, creating a small army of sad-faced “crying” toys that have captured hearts as a mascot for the Lunar New Year.
The horses were designed as happy-faced toys to mark the upcoming holiday on February 17, the start of the Year of the Horse in the Chinese zodiac.
A customer who received the defective product decided to keep it, posted about it online, and from there, the “crying horse” found fame.
Dong Yixin/China News Service/VCG via Getty
The “crying horse” hashtag had been used on Douyin, China’s domestic version of TikTok, more than 200 million times by Wednesday, and garnered more than 100 million views as a trending topic on the Chinese social media platform Weibo.
The horse’s forlorn expression appears to have resonated with Chinese social media users, who’ve been bringing the plush toy to work and school to express discontent with a relentless work culture.
The toy is red, an auspicious color in Chinese culture, and its body is decorated with a golden embroidery wishing owners to “get rich quickly.” One of the toys costs 25 Chinese yuan, or about $4, according to Chinese media reports.
The toy is available in both the frowning, and the original smiling version, and many people have taken to buying them as a pair.
Jade GAO/AFP/Getty
“People joked that the crying horse is how you look at work, while the smiling one is how you look after work,” Zhang Huoqing, the store owner who first sold the toy, told the Reuters news agency. Zhang’s store is located in Yiwu, home to China’s largest wholesale market for small commodities.
Since it took off online, customers from South Africa, Spain, Russia and South America have visited the store to buy the popular, if accidental hit toy, Zhang has told Chinese media. Both domestic and overseas demand has required her to add over 10 production lines and create around 20,000 units a day, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
“The crying horse’s expression shows feelings of injustice, defiance and stubbornness that reflect the true feelings of most working ‘niu ma’ today,” commented a Sichuan-based Weibo user, using a term meaning “ox and horse” that references people who are overworked in their jobs. “And it looks quite cute, which is why it has created such an explosive reaction.”
Entertainment
Ferne McCann reveals simple secrets behind her body transformation
Ferne McCann cut a sensational figure as she posed in a tiny blue bikini after shedding two stone.
The former TOWIE star, who is a mum to daughters Sunday, eight, and Finty, two, recently shared a photo of herself, showing off her physique in before and after images, revealing the secrets behind her weight loss.
The clip began with her displaying her post-baby body in a string two-piece shortly after giving birth to her youngest daughter Finty, two.
Revealing the secret behind her weight loss, she insisted that it ‘wasn’t anything drastic’, but was the result of changing up her dietary habits.
The reality star said she made sure to stay in a calorie deficit and got enough protein, while also drinking up to 3 litres of water daily, emphasising that ‘consistency’ was the key.
Ferne penned: ‘The things that actually changed my body shape and helped me lose weight… It wasn’t anything drastic.
‘It was: Following a simple nutrition plan. Sticking to my breakfast meal replacement shake (high nutrition, low calories). Drinking 2–3L of water a day.
‘Staying in a calorie deficit. Hitting my protein target. Daily movement. Accountability (this is a big one!!! being surrounded by women doing the same as you).’
‘Nothing extreme. Nothing restrictive. Just consistency with the basics… and that’s where the results come from’, she concluded.
Ferne has been candid about her weight loss journey and revealed last year she had shed 2.5 stone after overhauling her lifestyle with a focus on nutrition and high-intensity interval training.
Entertainment
Royal family ‘hides’ senior member cancer struggles: Shocking details out
Royal family maintained silence over the cancer struggles of a senior member as new, surprising details emerged.
An author, Hugo Vickers, talked about the royal figure’s health scare that was not disclosed by the firm at the time of his death.
The royal commentator wrote that Queen Elizabeth II had been informed that Prince Philip had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer eight years before his death.
At the age of 91, the Duke of Edinburgh’s medical team shared with the royals about his inoperable form of the disease in June 2013.
Following the diagnosis, “there was a view that [Philip] might not be seen in public again”, but “the duke outwitted the pessimists,” Hugo shared, as per The Times.
The royal expert opened up about Prince Philip’s last days of life, stating there were “moments of tranquillity.”
“On the last night of his life, he gave his nurses the slip, shuffled along the corridor on his Zimmer frame, helped himself to a beer and drank it in the Oak Room,” he penned.
Hugo added, “The following morning, he got up, had a bath, said he did not feel well and quietly slipped away. By this point, he had lived with pancreatic cancer for nearly eight years — far longer than the usual survival time from diagnosis.”
It is important to mention that the Queen was not with her husband when he passed away.
For the unversed, Prince Philip passed away in Windsor Castle in 2021 just before his 100th birthday.
As per the death certificate, his cause of death was mentioned as “old age,” hinting that the Palace wanted to keep it a secret.
The cancer shock returned in the royal family after King Charles and Princess Kate were diagnosed with the disease in 2024.
Catherine is in remission from cancer after completing her preventive chemotherapy. Whereas the monarch is still undergoing cancer treatment.
Entertainment
Will Prince George secure his place on the throne?
There’s no doubt that the monarchy has been facing unexpexted crisis since the passing of the late Queen in 2022, and King Charles is doing his best to steer the Firm out of the storm.
Amid the turbulence, there is speculation that Prince George’s father Prince William may be the last ruling British monarch.
A British writer and historian previously claimed that Prince George will never be the king.
According to Hilary Mantel, The British monarchy may be abolished before Princess Kate and William’s eldest son George has the chance to reign the Firm.
King Charles, was formally announced as the new monarch following the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022, and he was official croned with his wife Queen Camilla in May 2023.
The develovement made a major shift in royal roles also means William, who was given the Prince of Wales title, is now first in line to the throne, and his eldest son George, is second.
In an old interview to The Times, Hilary said: “I think it’s a fair prediction, but let’s say I wouldn’t put money on it. It’s very hard to understand the thinking behind the monarchy in the modern world when people are just seen as celebrities.”
There are also predictions that the monarch, 77, who’s still underging cancer treatment, would abdicate the throne for his son William due to his advanced age.
While, few fortune tellers previously claimed that William won’t take his his place due to some mysterious reason.
Meanwhile, Jemima Packington, who predicted the Queen’s death, says Charles will eventually hand over the reign to William.
In his first speech as monarch, Charles appeared quashing the rumours about the monarchy’s future, saying he would serve the nation for life.
On the other hand, the reign on William will look different from that of King Charles, who has faced many challenges since becoming king.
He has faced a turbulent period marked by his own cancer diagnosis, the Princess of Wales’s battle with cancer, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s never-ending drama and now Andrew’s controversy surrounding his past ties with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
William is said to be determined to introduce meaningful but careful changes within the monarchy.
The Prince of Wales wants to modernise how the institution runs. There is a clear acknowledgment that the issues surrounding Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor have had an effect on public trust and there is united willingness to change that.
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