John Mac Ghlionn

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is the epitome of Hollywood masculinity. His on-screen magnetism and talk show couch affability have endeared him to millions. Now though, the Rock seems to be crumbling.  Johnson first forged his identity in the testosterone-fuelled world of professional wrestling The Rock, who has referred to himself as ‘the hardest worker in the room’, has developed a reputation in the industry for his lateness and lack of professionalism on set. In April, the Hollywood trade publication The Wrap published a exposé, one that cast The Rock in the most unflattering of lights. According to the piece, The Rock used to pee in a bottle during movie shoots, rather than use the restroom – you know, like a respectable, housetrained human being.

Tyson Fury, the towering British behemoth with the quick wit and even quicker fists, is ready to fight Oleksandr Usyk. Unlike Usyk, however, Fury is not just a pugilist; he's a spectacle. He's one of boxing's greatest assets because he's not just in the business of winning fights. Fury's journey from rage to riches is as compelling as any Hollywood script, and he’s proven himself as much a showman as a slugger. His trash talk is legendary, a verbal ballet of insults that leaves opponents flustered and fans roaring. In this arena, he's often compared to another icon of the fight game: Conor McGregor. Both men share a knack for the theatrical, but while McGregor's star burned bright and fast, Fury's has evolved with time, growing more formidable with each bout.

Everything is trauma. From Barbie’s Oscars snub (very traumatic) to Taylor Swift’s new album (also deeply traumatic), profound emotional distress appears to be everywhere. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), trauma requires ‘actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence’. A horrific car crash, a terrorist attack, an armed robbery, these all fit the bill. An Oscar snub does not. Why, then, do so many people appear to think of themselves as traumatised? It’s certainly a clickbaity concept, but it's not a scientific one This raging fire of self pity is being fuelled by unqualified influencers who call themselves ‘trauma coaches’.

Jimmy Donaldson, more commonly known as MrBeast, is the world’s most successful YouTuber. More than 250 million people follow his channel. His videos are mostly absurd challenges involving obscene amounts of cash generated from his YouTube advertising revenue. In one video, he eats $100,000 worth of gold leaf ice cream; in another, he pays a participant $10,000 a day to see how long they’re willing to live in a supermarket. His most popular video, a remake of the Korean survival horror TV show Squid Game, has over half a billion views.

Vince McMahon is the godfather of modern wrestling, an American entrepreneur and media magnate worth a cool $2.8 billion. He was raised in a trailer park in North Carolina but went on to turn the World Wrestling Federation (now known as WWE) into a global phenomenon. McMahon is responsible for creating superstars like Hulk Hogan and Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson. He also became a character in his own right, going from a commentator to an in-ring villain, ordering wrestlers around and shouting his Trump-esque catchphrase ‘You’re fired!

The flamboyant, ridiculous mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor is considering a run for the Irish presidency. ‘Potential competition if I run,’ he tweeted yesterday, along with a picture of Gerry Adams, Bertie Ahern and Enda Kenny, the three septuagenarian current favourites for the job. ‘Each with unbreakable ties to their individual parties politics... Or me, 35. Young, active, passionate, fresh skin in the game. I listen. I support. I adapt. I have no affiliation/bias/favoritism toward any party. They would genuinely be held to account regarding the current sway of public feeling. I’d even put it all to vote. There’d be votes every week to make sure. I can fund. It would not be me in power as President, people of Ireland. It would be me and you.

An increasing number of British companies are using personality tests to hire staff. Two of the more popular personality tests are the Big Five and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). There's just one problem and it's a rather big one: both of these tests are utterly scientifically useless. And Brits are being hired (or not hired) based on the results of these dubious tests. Personality tests are a type of zombie falsehood. Despite their lack of scientific validity and numerous papers displaying their many failings, they just won't die Of the two, the MBTI appears to be more popular. The assessment comprises 93 forced-choice questions.

An increasing number of young Brits are single. Many of these people don’t want to be single. They want to be in a relationship. But, for some reason or other, they’re having no luck. Why? What’s holding them back? A recent study shed light on the factors that contribute to involuntary singlehood in Britain and beyond. The researchers, two psychologists based in Cyprus, explored the impact of sexual functioning, body weight, and whether or not an individual had children from a previous relationship, and how all three affect a person’s relationship status. The findings were published in Evolutionary Psychological Science.