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The Court Jester Whose Wit Saved His Life

How a court jester slapped the king's butt, then brilliantly convinced him not to kill him Triboulet served as court jester under King Francis I, who ruled France from 1515 to 1547 . Triboulet's quick humor rescued him from Francis I's deadly wrath, not once, but twice. Court jesters hold a unique place in history. Playing the fool for kings and queens meant they were always in close proximity to royalty, but so very far from their rank and station. Comedians often like to push boundaries, but that can be a dangerous business when your job is to entertain the peope who have executioners at their beck and call. Especially when you forget your place—or purposely ignore it, as the case may be—and playfully smack the reigning monarch square on the behind. That little whoopsie was the claim to fame of Triboulet, a court jester who served King Francis I in 16th-century France. But it was how he got away with slapping the king on the butt and living to tell about it that earne...
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The Tree Man

The Tree Man


34-YEAR-OLD Mohammad Abul Bazadar, from Bangladesh, is known as the ‘tree man’, due to suffering an incredibly rare condition which makes his hands and feet look like bark. 




He has Epidermodysplasia verruciformis, a skin condition which causes wart-like lesions to cover parts of the body. It's an inherited condition that makes the sufferer highly susceptible to infections caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). Mohammad told Truly: “I am known as the ‘tree man’. 

My disease is very rare and it is hardly seen anywhere.” Mohammad has undergone treatment for his disorder, but the warts always grow back. “I tried traditional medicine but it was no use”, he explained. “My hands and feet have turned into roots.” 


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